I love it when a plan comes together. And this month, the next big thing for Marvel Cinematic Universe will drop to Earth: The Defenders. Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist join together to protect Hell’s Kitchen. We’ve seen them all fight solo before (with an occasional mix and match), but now they’re together. A more street level Avengers.
I’m very excited about this take on Marvel’s other superhero team up group. Though I was a part-time fan of the comic book version. For those who don’t know (or forget) it started as a team up of Doctor Strange, The Hulk and the Sub-Mariner. The Silver Surfer joined early on. The core members were Valkyrie, Night Hawk, Power Man and Hellcat to name a few from the early days.
So, half of the Netflix team were actual members, but overall it is a complete different team. And I’m sure their battles will be more down to earth where the comic books were more… mystical. Who knows, we may see a more comic book version of The Defenders somewhere down the road, but I am happy with the nitty gritty world of Hell’s Kitchen.
Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Netflix world has been pretty successful for the most part. We were all happy to see Daredevil finally getting the respect he deserved. It didn’t hurt that it was a television series where the character had some time to develop. There’s no doubting that Charlie Cox is Daredevil. Some were not as impressed with the second season, but it was still leap and bounds better than any other incarnation of Lance Murdock and friends.
One of the biggest surprises was Jessica Jones. A far lesser known hero from the Marvel Universe, but she was given the sophomore Netflix series. And she just killed it! I don’t think people were expecting such a psychological thriller with their superhero. And that brought it up a notch!
Luke Cage was another surprise. Though the Hero for Hire is a little better known in the Marvel Universe, it still felt like they were taking another chance. Mike Colter is perfect as the cool ass kicker. And though the story was pretty great, it wouldn’t have been much without him. Sweet Christmas! Marvel had another Netflix success on their hands.
Then came Iron Fist… Yeah, this was not one of their best efforts. It was pretty much despised by all. I know not all superhero shows can be original, but where this offered nothing new, it also offered nothing fun. I guess you can’t win them all.
So, going into Defenders with 75% of characters we love is still pretty good odds. And something tells me that seeing Iron Fist and Luke Cage, aka Power Man spend more time together will help bring Iron Fist into his own (a boy can dream, can’t he?). Overall, this one has the ingredients to be an unforgettable series.
Are you going to binge watch it? Or take it in small doses? Either way, here’s some cool Defenders gear to wear while watching. Defenders assemble! Oh… you know what I mean…
Written by Tom Misuraca
I am an award-winning playwright/novelist/screenwriter/blogger. I enjoy comics (Batman, Fantastic Four, X-Men), movies, music (Gothic, Industrial, 80s), reading and yoga.