Defenders (Season 1) Review

So finally our Marvel Netflix Avengers team has crossed over! Daredevil, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and Jessica Jones are so entertaining on their own but together its even better. Overall, I don't think the show is as great as it could've been mainly due to the overarching story they decided to go with but the character interactions and some of the action scenes really show the potential for what the next seasons could improve upon. First off, I like how the show took its time for our characters' story lines to connect, so that when they eventually come together it doesn't feel forced. I like how the side characters from each of the shows were used as well, especially characters like Colleen Wing. Her and Iron Fist really benefitted from the material given to them in this show because Iron Fist Season 1 wasn't as strong, in my opinion, as the other heroes' solo outings. Iron Fist was more light hearted here and his banter with Luke Cage is so fun to watch that I could see those two team up on their own like they do in the comics. Even Daredevil and Jessica Jones made a great duo, especially because Daredevil is the only one with a superhero suit, which leads to some really comedic remarks from Jessica and the others.

The show also has some clever visual cues like how when switching to each Defender’s side of the story the coloring of the scenes would change like Luke being in yellow lit areas while Jessica being in more bluish environments. It was a cool touch. Elektra, I thought was also an improved character from Daredevil Season 2, but was also part of what made the Defenders kind of bland at times. Sigourney Weaver plays the main villain of the Hand Organization, which is the villain group that they have been building towards since Daredevil Season 1. The problem is that even though Sigourney's character had an interesting motive and development through the episodes, the Hand, in general, was kind of a boring foe by the end of it. I just thought it was odd because Daredevil and Iron Fist's stories were more connected to the Hand than the other two Defenders, making the show a little lopsided with all the ancient, mystical plots. I think it would have been better to come up with a new villain that directly connected to all the characters evenly. We’ve had to fight these ninjas for 3 seasons of the other shows so to see them again felt kind of repetitive.

The ending battle and resolution still really surprised me though and I love how this show left a lot of lasting consequences for the main and side characters of each of the shows. I was bummed that The Punisher was left out of the fight, but at least his show is coming in a few months and I guess it wouldn’t have made sense for him to show up here. The show was also really well paced at 8 episodes, which I think should be how long the other show’s seasons should be. Overall, this show had great character interactions, great action scenes, but a bland villain with a satisfactory plot. I am more excited to see what the next season will bring us now that we are done with this Hand business, but Season 1 still lays a great foundation for this universe and was a joy to watch.