Following the release of the first trailer for Netflix's superhero ensemble series The Defenders, showrunner Marco Ramirez has teased what fans can expect from the show and it's fight scenes. The Defenders arrives this summer, bringing together characters from Marvel/Netflix's catalogue of TV shows to battle a common threat to New York. Fans were most recently introduced to Danny Rand (Finn Jones) in the first season of Iron Fist, and he will be joining forces with Matt Murdock aka. Daredevil (Charlie Cox), Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter), and Luke Cage (Mike Colter), next.
Each of these characters comes from a show with its own distinct tonal, visual, and violent style, and threading all those together was always going to present significant creative challenges to The Defenders showrunners.
In an interview with Forbes, showrunner Marco Ramirez discussed some of the unique difficulties he was presented with during production on The Defenders. When production for the ensemble show began, neither Luke Cage nor Iron Fist season 1 had aired. As Ramirez put it:
"That as an interesting creative challenge but all of the writers' rooms were in the same building so we could visit with the other showrunners. Geographically it was very convenient to just walk over to ask a question of Cheo Hodari Coker, who created and ran Luke Cage. Also Marvel was very involved in every step and they were very good at letting me know what was going on in the other writers' rooms so I knew what to expect."
That level of intimacy and cohesion goes a long way to allaying any concerns fans had that elements of these shows were too discordant to convincingly mesh together. Ramirez went further than that, flagging up the overt differences between the Marvel/Netflix shows as one of the strengths of The Defenders. He said:
“It’s kind of like imagining a musical composition, and everyone has their own instrument. We have to work our way for Matt to do some cool parkour-y stuff, Danny to use his fist in some awesome way, Luke to use his strength and invulnerability in some cool way, and Jessica to just be a badass brawler.
"Coming at them from an emotional perspective is how we write those fight scenes, so Luke ends up being the protector, and Danny and Matt end up becoming the offense. Jessica is kind of the reluctant punk rock member of the band who doesn’t want to be there, but who’s really awesome. It’s making sure each of the characters can really pop.”
There's a real sense of tactical consideration in how these characters will pull together during the pivotal moments, and in how the star aspects of each show will be given time to shine in The Defenders. Daredevil's impressive choreography is certain to make a comeback, and Luke Cage's dry humor has already been showcased in The Defenders footage, teasing his initial altercation with Danny Rand.
Despite merging and staying true to these individual styles, The Defenders is still set to change the landscape of the Marvel / Netflix landscape drastically - with fans hoping for more crossovers, such as Heroes for Hire in the future.
NEXT: The Defenders Official Trailer
The Defenders releases on August 18th, and The Punisher will arrive later this year. Premier dates for the next seasons of Jessica Jones, Daredevil, and Luke Cage have not yet been announced.
Source: Forbes