This August, Marvel fans' streaming devices are set to explode when Marvel's The Defenders finally arrive in all their glory. Two seasons of Daredevil and a season each of Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist have been spent intricately building the grim and gritty world of the MCU's New York City in the five years following the Battle for New York. Now The Defenders looks set to seriously up the ante, with the biggest team-up of Marvel superheroes since last year's Captain America: Civil War.
The first trailer for The Defenders drops tantalizing teases of just how the Netflix all-star team up show will play with all of the toys in The Defenders' toy box, set to a slowed-down version of Nirvana's grunge classic "Come As You Are". We have long-awaited meet ups, new relationships, the return of many old favorites, and a compelling new villain threatening not just Hell's Kitchen but the entire city. Here's how The War for New York is shaping up in Marvel's The Defenders.
Daredevil Meets Jessica Jones
The trailer re-introduces us to Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter) exactly how fans best remember her: defiant, tetchy, and in trouble with the law. This time, Jones is being held in Detective Misty Knight's (Simone Missick) interrogation room for disrupting a city-wide investigation, stealing evidence from a crime scene, and getting Knight's only lead killed. She needs legal representation, which unexpectedly arrives in the form of Matthew Murdock (Charlie Cox), who introduces himself as Jessica's attorney. And with that, the worlds of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage seamlessly collide. Later in the trailer, Daredevil even dons Jessica's famous scarf, turning it into a makeshift version of his original mask.
When season 2 of Daredevil ended, Nelson and Murdock, Matt's law firm with his best friend Foggy Nelson (Elden Henson), was dissolved. Foggy went to work for Hogarth, Chao & Benowitz, the law firm run by another regular player in the Netflix series, Jeri Hogarth (Carrie-Anne Moss). It was unclear if Matt would continue practicing law, but it seems like the blind lawyer of Hell's Kitchen will use his legal expertise to get the superpowered private detective out of yet another fine mess she has found herself in.
Power Man and Iron Fist
When Luke Cage ended, the titular hero of Harlem with the unbreakable skin was hauled off to the pen. After he was exposed as Carl Lucas on television, he was taken into custody because he "owed the state of Georgia time." We see Luke Cage (Mike Colter) return to New York City, time apparently served, and reunited with his love interest Claire Temple (Rosario Dawson). Of course, while Luke was doing his time, Claire befriended the newest hero in New York City, Danny Rand a.k.a. the Immortal Iron Fist (Finn Jones). We last saw Danny at the entrance of the magical city K'un-Lun with Colleen Wing (Jessica Henwick), realizing that his departure allowed the city to be attacked by evil ninja cult The Hand. Danny and Colleen have apparently returned to New York in pursuit of the Hand, who have been laying plans there over the course of the various series.
"You're on the same side," Claire pleads with Luke and Danny, but before the famed comic book duo known as the Heroes for Hire can become pals, as per Marvel comics tradition, they must first fight each other. One of the coolest shots in the trailer is Danny's glowing Iron Fist pounding Luke's unbreakable chin. Luke mocking Danny's superhero code name also draws a big laugh.
[valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='Friends%20of%20The%20Defenders']
Friends of The Defenders
The Defenders each bring their share of friends, allies, and associates into the fray, and the trailer spotlights just a few key supporting players. Besides the ubiquitous Claire Temple and Misty Knight, the trailer features Stick (Scott Glenn), Matt Murdock's irascible blind ninja mentor. As aware as ever about the goings-on of his former student, Stick seems to know all about the other heroes who will comprise the Defenders as well. Also confirmed to appear in the series will be other fan favorites like Colleen Wing, Karen Page (Deborah Ann-Woll), and Jessica Jones' best friend Trish Walker (Rachael Taylor).
The War for New York
There will be enemies galore for the Defenders to fight, but one of the primary antagonistic forces will be the Hand - the evil ninja cabal that has been featured in both seasons of Daredevil and in Iron Fist. Most importantly, the trailer includes the resurrection of Elektra Natchios (Elodie Yung), whom we saw being entombed at the end of Daredevil season 2, after she was revealed to be the Black Sky - an ancient super weapon cultivated by the Hand. Elektra sacrificed herself to help Daredevil fight the Hand, but Elektra was actually sealed in The Hand's mysterious and ancient device, which was powered by blood sacrifice. Elektra's return is bad news not just for the Devil of Hell's Kitchen but for all of New York City; we have not just a rematch and potential rekindling of romance with Matt Murdock in the offering, but we may see a kung fu conflagration between Elektra and Iron Fist as well. It also seems like both Daredevil and Elektra are getting new, upgraded costumes.
Alexandra
The villain problem that many fans say plagues the MCU seems to be less of an issue with Netflix's Marvel series. From Vincent D'Onofrio's Wilson Fisk, to David Tennant's Kilgrave, to Mahershala Ali and Alfre Woodard's siblings Cottonmouth and Mariah, the shows leading up to The Defenders have managed to cast powerhouse actors to create truly memorable antagonists. The Defenders scored a true powerhouse actor to threaten the entire team by casting Sigourney Weaver as the white-clad villain currently known only as Alexandra. The nature of Weaver's character is being purposely shrouded in mystery; some rumors suggest Alexandra may secretly be Mephisto, one of Marvel Comics' most powerful demonic evils. If that's the case, it makes sense she would be allied with the Hand, itself an organization steeped in ancient dark magic. It seems like at least one aspect of that magic takes the form of a power wave that blasts the Defenders backwards in one confrontation.
The Colors of The Defenders
One of the coolest things about The Defenders is each hero is defined by a specific color. Daredevil is of course red, his trademark. Jessica Jones's hue is blue, Luke Cage is yellow, and Iron Fist is green. Each primary color is a signature of their superhero costume or persona. The series takes the color coding to another level by lighting each hero in accordance to his or her signature color, creating a unique visual language for the series.
Fans have a mere three months to wait before The Devil of Hell's Kitchen, the smart-ass detective, the righteous ex-con, and the kid with a glowing fist unite to defend New York City from evil no one hero can handle alone. Now, the hope is The Defenders can achieve the critical and fan acclaim heaped upon Jessica Jones and Luke Cage, as opposed to the disappointment that met Iron Fist, Marvel and Netflix's first major misfire. Here's hoping The Defenders lives up to fan expectation and indeed raises the bar for superhero action on television. One thing's for sure from the trailer: we're getting what may be the most awesome hallway fight scene ever featuring all four Defenders!
All 8 episodes of Marvel's The Defenders will be available on Netflix from August 18th, 2017.