The villain plaguing The Defenders looks to have some ties with Matt Murdock's old mentor, Stick. We know from the past two seasons of Daredevil that Stick has been fighting a war against The Hand for decades. He's frequently mentioned that a bigger war is on the horizon if they don't stop The Hand before they get the "Black Sky." Unfortunately, the Black Sky seems to be Elektra, and from what we've seen in the trailers - she's back with a vengeance. But it's also become apparent that Stick has been familiar with some of the people higher up in The Hand for quite some time.

The Defenders will struggle to work together before they come up against the main villain, however. We found out last year that Sigourney Weaver would be joining the cast of the show as a character named Alexandra - although whether she's a character from the comics or an original creation has yet to be made clear. Thanks to a short clip from the Netflix/Marvel TV miniseries, we now know that she and Stick have been acquaintances for quite some time.

The Daredevil Twitter account shared the short clip in a similar fashion to the clip of Foggy Nelson meeting Luke Cage. It's a great way of teasing the audience by revealing just a small clue as to what we can expect from these characters meeting. The most intriguing part is that Alexandra calls Stick "old friend" as she removes the hood from his head. You can watch the clip in the space below:

This is troubling. #DEFEND pic.twitter.com/8M1LaYG6ou— Daredevil (@Daredevil) August 14, 2017

Stick and Alexandra have been more than just acquaintances, so it's possible they were something more than that. The scene masterfully shows her threatening manner whilst also teasing that the pair have crossed paths more than once before. The scene also makes it clear that Stick has been captured by The Hand. So we have to wonder, is this set before or after the restaurant scene where he surprises the heroes covered in blood? Perhaps that scene is just prior to his escape from The Hand and then finds Murdock and the 'super friends'.

The Defenders finally debuts in full at the end of this week on Friday, August 18th, 2017. It will unite Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist as they attempt to protect New York from The Hand. It won't be a smooth ride, and the team won't exactly be friends right from the start of the series. In fact, they won't even meet up in the first episode. But they'll come together to defeat Sigourney Weaver's villain as she runs The Hand's operations. How exactly Alexandra will be threatening the city hasn't been revealed, but we won't have to wait too long to find out.

More: The Chaste Confirmed to Return in The Defenders

The Defenders premieres on August 18 on Netflix, with The Punisher premiering later in 2017. Additional seasons of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage are expected to air in 2018, with the new season of Iron Fist coming sometime in the future.

Source: Marvel