Netflix Marvel: Luke Cage, Iron Fist, The Defenders, Punisher

[thebestMAX]

Halfway through Luke Cage II and although a little slow in the dialogue in parts it is still much better done than the first season. Some pretty good music so far also.

Having a hard time getting through JJs second season, bogged down halfway.

DD and Punisher are tied for the best of these so far with Iron Fist being a boat anchor for dead last.

 

[zinfamous]

Watched S1 of DD. Not bad. Still haven't watched S2.

I watched S1 of Luke Cage, it was OK, but it wasn't great.

I watched IF1, thought it pretty much sucked all the way through. I mean...the kid has this super-punch power...yet he's a whiny pussy?

As much as I wanted to dislike The Punisher, (I'm just never been a Bernthal fan, but this did change my opinion somewhat) it was pretty damned good. Possibly the best of the Netflix Marvel shows so far. (I liked the first Punisher movie with Thomas Jane, even if he really wasn't "bad" enough for the part...he still did it justice. Hated the second movie with Jigsaw.) Looking forward to S2.

Couldn't get into Jessica Jones or The Defenders.

I really liked Punisher, too. You should watch DD2. It was much better than the first season (because Punisher), save for one or two of those fight sequences in the early episodes of season 1. I liked Defenders because it was mercifully short at like 6? episodes. 8 episodes? That's about where these series should be. 13 episodes is terrible for all of them, because much of it ends up being fluff. They should all be 10 episodes.

I wanted to like Jessica Jones, but season 1 whimpered through halfway in--I mean, I'm supposed to be terrified by a guy that can be defeated by wearing earmuffs....and why does it take another 8 episodes for our brilliant heroine to figure that out? Season 2 was better simply by virtue of not having that useless turd of a villain, but still encumbered by about 4 or 5-too many episodes of crap.

Iron Fist was just terrible. I hope they never make more of those.

 

[tommo123]

I really liked Punisher, too. You should watch DD2. It was much better than the first season (because Punisher), save for one or two of those fight sequences in the early episodes of season 1. I liked Defenders because it was mercifully short at like 6? episodes. 8 episodes? That's about where these series should be. 13 episodes is terrible for all of them, because much of it ends up being fluff. They should all be 10 episodes.

I wanted to like Jessica Jones, but season 1 whimpered through halfway in--I mean, I'm supposed to be terrified by a guy that can be defeated by wearing earmuffs....and why does it take another 8 episodes for our brilliant heroine to figure that out? Season 2 was better simply by virtue of not having that useless turd of a villain, but still encumbered by about 4 or 5-too many episodes of crap.

Iron Fist was just terrible. I hope they never make more of those.

iron fist is fine in an appearance after iron fist s1 and defenders. 1 episode but still, he wasn't whiny and annoying. the showrunner for iron fist isn't doing any more from what i read so IF s2 could be good.

 

[Kaido]

Watched S1 of DD. Not bad. Still haven't watched S2.

I watched S1 of Luke Cage, it was OK, but it wasn't great.

I watched IF1, thought it pretty much sucked all the way through. I mean...the kid has this super-punch power...yet he's a whiny pussy?

As much as I wanted to dislike The Punisher, (I'm just never been a Bernthal fan, but this did change my opinion somewhat) it was pretty good. Possibly the best of the Netflix Marvel shows so far. (I liked the first Punisher movie with Thomas Jane, even if he really wasn't "bad" enough for the part...he still did it justice. Hated the second movie with Jigsaw.) Looking forward to S2.

Couldn't get into Jessica Jones or The Defenders.

Yeah. My take:

Spoiler: Spoilers

1. Daredevil S1 & S2 were great. I hate that they took out Wesley. Punisher was fantastic in DD S2.

2. Jessica Jones S1 should have been a 4-part mini series. The first couple episodes were promising, then lots of boringness, then the last few episodes were amazing with Kilgrave. S2 had better pacing, but had no real villain...you were just kind of along for the ride rather than really getting sucked into the show.

3. Luke Cage S1 was sloooooooow. Should have been a single movie, not a series. I hate that they took out Cottonmouth (Netflix has an awful habit of killing off the most interesting villains!). S2 is still semi-slow (I'm only 3 episodes in, at this point, but it's already more fun than the first season), but at least they have consistent pacing & stuff actually happens every episode.

4. Iron Fist had poor choreography & a whiny protagonist. Harold & his kids were great though. That part where he sticks his hand in the hot dog water...lol. I think the series should have been about Colleen Wing instead, she was way more interesting.

5. Defenders was fairly lame. Sigourney Weaver never actually did anything evil, however. In Star Wars, Darth Vader worked because he choked people, tortured people, ordered the genocide of an entire planet, etc. He did evil stuff to show he was an evil guy. Plus, there was a lot of just lame writing. Like in the cave under the building when Danny is fighting Elektra, you knew she was going to rile him up & then step aside so he punched the wall to break it. Sooooooo dumb. They could have written that in a way more awesome way!

6. Punisher was different than expected, but surprisingly great. I expecting a superhero show, not a show about a soldier portrayed as a regular person dealing with real life. And it turned out to actually be really good! That final fight scene on the merry-go-round, with the glass mirror...daaaaaaaaang! Plus they setup Jigsaw for a future fight, which was pretty cool.

I think Daredevil is killing it, followed by Punisher, then down the line, Luke Cake, Jessica Jones, Defenders, and finally Iron Fist.

Overall, I'm super impressed at what they are doing with TV shows now...music, costumes, graphics, choreography, etc. Episodes are more like movie-quality instead of TV show-quality. And they're doing a good job with how real people would deal with having powers...balancing work, relationships, integration into their neighborhoods, etc. It's fun to see something other than Tony Stark being insulated from all of that (don't get me wrong, I love Ironman 1).

 

[Kaido]

the showrunner for iron fist isn't doing any more from what i read so IF s2 could be good.

I hope so. The show has a lot of cool potential, and they did a great casting & writing for Harold, Ward, and Joy. Although I didn't agree with Joy's ending...now she wants to kill Danny? Really? Really?

 

[vi edit]

I really liked Punisher, too. You should watch DD2. It was much better than the first season (because Punisher), save for one or two of those fight sequences in the early episodes of season 1. I liked Defenders because it was mercifully short at like 6? episodes. 8 episodes? That's about where these series should be. 13 episodes is terrible for all of them, because much of it ends up being fluff. They should all be 10 episodes.

I wanted to like Jessica Jones, but season 1 whimpered through halfway in--I mean, I'm supposed to be terrified by a guy that can be defeated by wearing earmuffs....and why does it take another 8 episodes for our brilliant heroine to figure that out? Season 2 was better simply by virtue of not having that useless turd of a villain, but still encumbered by about 4 or 5-too many episodes of crap.

Iron Fist was just terrible. I hope they never make more of those.

Totally agree about the shorter season. I don't know what the business decision to do 13 episodes is, but I think these shows are suffering from quantity over quality. They could easily condense them down to 8 or 9 episodes a season and intellectually insulting moments for sake of progressing a plot. 9 hours is plenty to build character depth and tell the story they want to tell.

 

[Oyeve]

Halfway through Luke Cage II and although a little slow in the dialogue in parts it is still much better done than the first season. Some pretty good music so far also.

Having a hard time getting through JJs second season, bogged down halfway.

DD and Punisher are tied for the best of these so far with Iron Fist being a boat anchor for dead last.

I concur wholeheartedly.

 

[William Gaatjes]

I like Luke Cage S2 so far very much.
The bushmaster is fun to watch. Great villain.
Also, the series Luke Cage is a great means to find some intertesting new music. :thumbsup:

What is it with these series that it is so much above average ?

 

[William Gaatjes]

Luke Cage season 2 : Poor Tilda...
She has to endure so much...

On the other hand, Gabrielle Dennis wo plays Tilda is extremely attractive.

 

[Newbian]

Season 2 of Iron fist is up.

 

[zinfamous]

Season 2 of Iron fist is up.

I just noticed this.

....and no one cares.

Hey, at least it's a merciful 10 episodes, finally! Not sure if I will watch it, though.

 

[Newbian]

I just noticed this.

....and no one cares.

Hey, at least it's a merciful 10 episodes, finally! Not sure if I will watch it, though.

Since they tend to have interweaving stories in the other versions you will be forced to or suffer.

I still need to get around to doing that with jessica jones series as the first season super villain of "mind control" set me off as it reminds me of crappy sci fi time travel shows.

 

[Kaido]

I just noticed this.

....and no one cares.

Hey, at least it's a merciful 10 episodes, finally! Not sure if I will watch it, though.

They redeemed Danny Bland in Luke Cage 2, no joke. Night & day difference. They made him who he should have been in season 1.

I'm a couple episodes in, pretty decent so far!

 

[zinfamous]

They redeemed Danny Bland in Luke Cage 2, no joke. Night & day difference. They made him who he should have been in season 1.

I'm a couple episodes in, pretty decent so far!

In that you mean we were only punished by enduring him for about 20 minutes of screen time, instead of an entire season?

OK, I'll buy that. ...don't need more of it, though.

 

[tommo123]

no, danny is a decent character in luke cage. i finished s2 of IF yesterday and liked it. took me 2 weeks to get through s1

 

[thebestMAX]

Had my doubts about watching Iron Fist 2 after the first season letdown but I gave the first episode a shot last night. I have to say Danny came across a lot better than he did last time, someone listened and acting lessons must have worked. As for the story, the jury is still out but Ill give it a go for at least 2 more episodes then decide. Never a favorite character of mine but he does figure in other superhero timelines.

 

[Kaido]

Had my doubts about watching Iron Fist 2 after the first season letdown but I gave the first episode a shot last night. I have to say Danny came across a lot better than he did last time, someone listened and acting lessons must have worked. As for the story, the jury is still out but Ill give it a go for at least 2 more episodes then decide. Never a favorite character of mine but he does figure in other superhero timelines.

I don't think it was his acting that was the problem in IF S1, I think it was the story & the directing. He was super-whiny the whole series (writing), the kung-fu stuff was pretty lame for the most part (directing & choreography), etc.

I probably liked Harold & Ward the most from season 1, haha.

 

[OutHouse]

just started with Iron Fist season 2. hope it is just as awesome as season 1.

 

[zinfamous]

I don't think it was his acting that was the problem in IF S1, I think it was the story & the directing. He was super-whiny the whole series (writing), the kung-fu stuff was pretty lame for the most part (directing & choreography), etc.

I probably liked Harold & Ward the most from season 1, haha.

agreed. the story and character were just dumb. I tend to have actors benefit of the doubt at least once, and in that case the whole season was just so godawful. I did like him in Luke Cage s2, but that's primarily because I thought that was a damn good series that season. Just Iron Fist being Iron Fist. no moping horseshit. And mercifully little of it altogether, lol.

 

[Kaido]

Just Iron Fist being Iron Fist. no moping

The biggest thing I don't buy is Joy's character change. Okay, so she suddenly turned pure evil because her world got turned upside down? I buy Davos' agenda, but not Joy's. I'll see how S2 goes I guess...

 

[Skel]

While an improvement over the first season.. this is still a very bad show.

Spoiler

I'm a bit amused at the fact that the people making the show realized that the main character was so weak they changed the focus of the show completely. Now instead of "THE" Iron Fist, we now have other Iron Fists. I still don't think this makes up for the completely wasted time (that brought the entire show to a grind) that was it's need to give every character, no matter how minor, it's own story arc. I won't even get into how wasted Alice Eve's Mary was. That could have been an interesting story, but instead it was watered down to daytime soap opera levels of stupidity. I do admit I'm not sure who was more boring, Danny Rand or Davos. I also don't know why Marvel's Netflix arm is so obsessed with families. I wouldn't be surprised at this point if Daredevil's mother will show up, and become the focus of the series.

 

[thebestMAX]

Random thoughts:
If Danny or Davos can be taken down so easily, what the hell good is the Iron Fist? Makes no sense. No guns exit in that time line? They are always attacked with knives, sticks or fists. I guess honor is involved. Also, Immortal should also mean just that. I guess it means the Dragon is immortal but not the one carrying it. Never read the comics so maybe these things are explained.

2 more episodes to go but holy bogged down slow Batman. Less jibber jabber and pregnant pauses please. (Mary) Why do I do these things to myself?

 

[Kaido]

Random thoughts:
If Danny or Davos can be taken down so easily, what the hell good is the Iron Fist? Makes no sense. No guns exit in that time line? They are always attacked with knives, sticks or fists. I guess honor is involved. Also, Immortal should also mean just that. I guess it means the Dragon is immortal but not the one carrying it. Never read the comics so maybe these things are explained.

tbh this has been bugging me as well. I'm on episode seven now, where they just escaped the apartment before Davos got the next people on his list, and Colleen fought the dude with the eyepatch. Whole movie could be solved with a gun lol.

Spoiler

I suspect the immortal part refers to the Iron Fist & I guess the spirit of the dragon, because when Davos gets the shipment with the body of the old Iron Fist guy in to rip the tattoo off of, he's obviously, well, dead, so not exactly Immortal, right? And if it's passed down from person to person, who has to fight to win the right to face the dragon & become the Immortal Iron Fist, then the person themselves definitely isn't immortal. Maybe someone who followed the comic books more could shine some light on that....

 

[Ventanni]

My wife watches these shows sometimes, and I just think they're awful. Does anyone notice that these shows are always filmed in a warehouse? My best friend ruined Lord of the Rings for me because he pointed out how many times the director used helicopter shots during the movies. Bam! Helicopter shot. Bam! Helicopter Shot. Shows like these, along with shows like Arrow, seem to always be filmed in warehouses. Haha!

Additionally, it always seems like there's a character that's always driven by revenge, a desire to murder, hatred, or anger. 'Cause, ya, those are great role models in life.

I know, I'm being critical.

 

[Skel]

tbh this has been bugging me as well. I'm on episode seven now, where they just escaped the apartment before Davos got the next people on his list, and Colleen fought the dude with the eyepatch. Whole movie could be solved with a gun lol.

Spoiler

I suspect the immortal part refers to the Iron Fist & I guess the spirit of the dragon, because when Davos gets the shipment with the body of the old Iron Fist guy in to rip the tattoo off of, he's obviously, well, dead, so not exactly Immortal, right? And if it's passed down from person to person, who has to fight to win the right to face the dragon & become the Immortal Iron Fist, then the person themselves definitely isn't immortal. Maybe someone who followed the comic books more could shine some light on that....

Spoiler: not sure if needed

You'd be correct. Iron Fist is a title in K'un L'un and it used to be passed down to a new person when the old one died. Shou-Lao gets killed by the Iron Fist and that powers his fist. When the Iron Fist dies Shou-Lao is reborn in his cave and awaits the next challenger. The people of K'un L'un train their entire lives for the chance to take on Shou-Lao, which is one of my issues with this show. Everyone seems to fight Rand to a standstill when he should be walking through people.

I read somewhere that the people making the show said his original origin of being the outsider in an Asian kung-fu city that somehow rises to the top and becomes their champion was too outdated for today. That's why they went with the story they way they did. I've noticed that Jeph Loeb (the main guy in Marvel TV) really seems to hate superheros. Every TV show he does, it's like he goes out of his way to avoid having them in any costume. I get wanting a more 'realistic' version of these things, but it's like he wants to make a full on soap opera (which I know is a key part of comics) and focus on drunks making babies rather than... I don't know.. a gang war with a guy who can punch a hole in a building in the middle.