WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for Daredevil#12, by Chip Zdarsky, Marco Checchetto, Nolan Woodard and VC's Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
The Marvel Universe has been looking at Kingpin in a different light since he retired and decided to follow the righteous path as mayor of New York. Wilson Fisk believes with the real Daredevil retired, the time's come for him to go clean, although he's still making shady deals to advance his political career.
In Daredevil #12, though, Chip Zdarsky places Fisk in a very precarious position that could ruin all these ambitions when the former gangster responds to bullying from an elite member of high society in the worst way possible.
While Matt Murdock's personal life might be spiraling out of control, Wilson Fisk is being wined and dined by America's wealthiest families. The Stromwyns have approached him since they need his street smarts to strengthen their empire, which leads to a round table discussion on a wide range of topics, ranging from deals with China to who the prison system really benefits.
The elite in the cabal, however, are fascinated by Fisk, poking and prodding at him as if he's a circus animal on display. They ask teasing questions about his sordid past such as his time in prison, how it felt killing people and other parts of the the life he's trying to leave behind. One of his tabelmates, Tyrone, however, goes over the line, ridiculing Fisk's look and reminding him how he was bullied as a kid with unsavory jokes. Basically, he wants to remind Fisk he'll never be one of them, which backfires spectacularly for Tyrone.
When Fisk goes to the bathroom, his rage boils over and he tries to calm down after playing it cool. However, when Ty comes knocking and continues to joke, he grabs him by his collar and pulls him in. Fisk loses his cool and in frustration, he chokes Ty before pummeling him with his gigantic hands.
While the beatdown is represented by vague crimson panels, the scene ends with an eerie shot of the victim in a bathtub wrapped in the shower curtain. This marks Fisk's return to his old ways, which leave Ty dead and the entire room covered with blood in the aftermath.
Now, Wesley, his right-hand man, will have to concoct a plan for this, but it's looking pretty unlikely that he'll make it out without everyone else knowing what happened, especially since he's still covered in Tyrone's blood.
This could be what breaks his alliance with the elite, or it could lead to Kingpin taking over this group, using Tyrone's death as a warning to kep them in line. This scene is quite similar to Vincent D'Onofrio's multiple meltdowns in Netflix's Daredevil series as Fisk, and also hearkens back to numerous cases in Marvel history when Fisk melted down.
However, this time the repercussions could be more dire, since we can't rule out the elite having weapons and assassins of their own to handle any insubordination within the camp. Plus, they could always approach some of Fisk's past associates who want him dead for his success. While Fisk may have tried to tame the beast, the Kingpin just will not be made fun of, and this issue is a stark example of how he retaliates when his ego's threatened.