The Defenders

The Defenders has been anticipated ever since the success of Daredevil that premiered back in 2015. With the continued success of Jessica Jones and Luke Cage, it seemed that Iron Fist was going to foreshadow an epic saga. The tale of Danny Rand would turn out to be a stone around the neck of the fearsome foursome as Iron Fist was littered with flaws. Those flaws would carry over to the eight-episode season, but it wouldn’t damage the series too much. The Defenders first season was worthy of the hype, but it could’ve been better than what it was.

The show kicks off some time after the events of all four character seasons and some fans will be surprised by how some of the characters have moved on (spoiler alert). Matt Murdock has moved on without Foggy and has retired from being a vigilante to resume work as an attorney. Jessica Jones is still an angry, drunk private investigator who is trying to move on after killing her mind controlling stalker, Kilgrave. Luke Cage is freed thanks to certain help and finally gets the coffee that he’s been wanting for a while. Danny Rand, however, is continuing his fight against the hand and that’s what’s lead him back to New York.

 Each character has a sub story that would eventually lead them together and force them to work together to bring down The Hand, an organization that’s been a problem from the start. Things don’t go smoothly for several factors both externally and internally with the four heroes thanks to the leader of the Hand, Alexandra Reid (Sigourney Weaver). It’s a roller coaster ride that takes off after the third episode with great choreographed fights and a story that delivers plenty of twists and turns. The few problems that I have are mostly with the characters Matt Murdock and Danny Rand.

As mentioned, Matt Murdock has retired from being a vigilante but there wasn’t any real explanation given for leaving the mask locked up. It takes forever for him to finally put the suit back on and when he does, that’s when things picked up. To be honest, the first three episodes are boring, but that’s mostly because the story is setting up. Danny Rand’s dialogue was repetitive to the point it makes you want to fast forward his parts. Most of the time, he’s reminding everyone who he is, what his mission is and why he must complete his mission.

Most of the series focused on Iron Fist and it might be the last we see of this character in Netflix’s plans for the Marvel characters. The ending of this series closes a lot of doors related to his story the most, so it might be implied that Marvel and Netflix are moving on from this character because of the lousy reviews from fans and critics. Time will tell if Iron Fist survives, but right now Marvel and Netflix will be releasing The Punisher later this year. Fans of the famous anti-hero are chomping at the bits to see Jon Bernthal reprise the role. Jessica Jones will return for her own season, Luke Cage is starting production and Daredevil will begin filming soon.

The Defenders gets a 7.5 out of 10, it was a great show, but it could’ve been better by having more episodes. The fact that it’s only eight episodes and not 10 or 12 is a bummer, but the series is still worth watching; even if it starts off slow. The chemistry is spot on with the main characters, Sigourney Weaver plays a great antagonist, and the series brings closure to everyone. This will allow for a fresh start to everyone’s solo season and it’ll be interesting to see what happens with Daredevil in particular after the end of this series. If you want to know what I’m talking about, then start binge watching.