The second half of The Defenders season kicks off with the heroes getting together to fight the Hand and Elektra, aka The Black Sky, at the halfway point of their season in an all out brawl. The first half was riddled pretty badly with problems, so does the back end make up for the troubled beginning? I have to say that it certainly does.
The Hand’s evil plan for immortality centers around Iron Fist unlocking a chamber that will spell destruction for New York City and the Defenders have to put it all on the line to stop them.
The Marvel/ Netflix team up took the approach of a more ‘real world’ grounding of its heroes, taking a turn away from the MCU and shaping their own universe into a darker world. It had mostly worked but Iron Fist and The Hand began to be problematic for this more realistic approach. Which is why, in the second half of this season, I was so happy to see the writers throw that model out the window and fully embrace the sometimes lunacy of its comic book roots. Once people start getting resurrected from the dead and dragons become key plot points, you’re probably okay with leaving behind some of that ‘real world’ grounding. The more they embraced this comic book side of things, the more fun the show got, and it got much more enjoyable as well.
The Elektra/ Daredevil love story took on a more prominent role in the back half, something I was very happy about. The Man Without Fear era was my favorite Daredevil, so seeing this storyline play out, including the cliffhanger ending, was enjoyable for me. Charlie Cox/ Daredevil continue to be the best thing about The Defenders and I can only hope that season 3 comes through soon. Jessica Jones continued to shine as she slowly embraced the hero mantle being thrust upon her. The strained relationship between her and Luke Cage also let us see a more vulnerable side to Jones, a rare glimpse behind the facade of apathetic disassociation.
What became the most compelling thing about The Defenders was the role of The Hand. The immortal members of the hand were suddenly faced with their own mortality after the last of the substance that resurrected them was used to bring Elektra back. The unity and division, rise and fall of the villains of the season easily took the forefront of the most interesting aspect of the show. Sigourney Weaver’s cold and calculated command of the violent sect and her maternal care for the Black Sky were almost two completely different characters and Weaver pulled it off with style. As the series unfolds and allegiances rise and fall, all as they strive to use the Iron Fist to fulfill their goals, the villains remained the most interesting parts of the show. It’s only fitting that they capped off such a season with a loving fist fight into oblivion, a great end to great villains (for now).
Of course, many of the problems from the first half carried through to the second half. Mike Coulter’s inability to be engaging, charming, or compelling remains a problem but it becomes tempered as more of the screen time is shared with better actors. Unfortunately, even pulling Jessica Henwick from the sidelines couldn’t help Finn Jones as Danny Rand continued to plummet the value of The Defenders. Giving Colleen a good reason to swing her katana was a huge added bonus to the back half of the season but it ultimately left me wondering with the hell she was with Rand in the first place.
Which leads me to another sub par aspect to the show – the side characters. Yes, Foggy, Karen, Colleen, and Claire ultimately got shoved to the side so the heroes could have the spotlight. It was a shame to see such solid characters get passed over and relegated to pretty much being in one room for most of the time. What was the most egregious of it though, was how Misty Knight ends up with the most screen time of them all, simply to be the most annoying part of the 8 episodes. To a point of where she ends up caught in the middle of a battle between The Hand and the Defenders, I genuinely rooted for her to be killed off. It’s incredible how Colleen Wing is the only character out of Iron Fist and Luke Cage that I care about at all.
In the end, how does The Defenders actually stack up? Well, half of them are still absolutely terrible but that means that two of them are still exceptionally good. The Hand are great villains, even taking hold of the more compelling parts of the show in the back half and giving the heroes a real threat to face. Once The Defenders fully embraced its comic roots with resurrections, dragons, and escaping impossible scenarios, the show really found its footing and really became the show I was hoping it could be. Ultimately, The Defenders does earn itself a passing grade and is worth watching despite its faults.
When Netflix and Marvel first teamed up and Daredevil came out, I had thought the sky’s the limit. After a couple of ninja laden seasons and a turn from Jessica Jones, my hopes for The Defenders were still sky high. However, here we are. The show barely scrapes by, mostly on the backs of its villains, Ritter, and Cox. It’s almost a shame that the best aspects of the shortened Defenders season were what it set up. I’m looking forward to seeing how they tackle Daredevil in season 3. I’m looking forward to seeing how Jess approaches her work and relationships in season 2. I’m interested to see what becomes of The Hand!
On the other hand, hopefully, Netflix decides to forgo a Luke Cage and Iron Fist second season to do a Heroes for Hire arc instead. That way, if there is a next time The Defenders meet again, it won’t be entirely weighted on the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen and the reluctant detective, AKA Jessica Jones.
The entire Defenders season is currently available to stream on Netflix.