The final Defender is here! Netflix recently released a new original series from Marvel: IRON FIST. Iron Fist is the fifth season in Netflix's build towards the DEFENDERS which began back in April of 2015 with Daredevil. There have been two seasons of Daredevil and one season each of Jessica Jones and Luke Cage. Now we are introduced to Iron Fist, perhaps the strangest hero in the bunch and potentially the most powerful hero among the Netflix Marvel crowd.
Iron Fist first appeared in May 1974 in Marvel Premiere #15. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Gil Kane, but the team who really developed the character and story were Chris Claremont and John Byrne. The character appeared at a time when Kung Fu films were being exported from China and Hong Kong. It was the height of the exploitation era of the 1970's, an era in which some today would say was shameful. Marvel Comics tried to cash in on many of the popular topics of the exploitation era including "Blaxploitation," 70's horror, and kung fu.
Marvel's two major kung fu exploitative characters released at the time were first SHANG CHI: THE MASTER OF KUNG FU and secondly Iron Fist. Shang Chi, as the name implies, was a Chinese man (Marvel's version of Bruce Lee essentially) while Iron Fist was the traditional white American male in a foreign land. Of the two of them Shang Chi seemed the more successful for the time. However, in recent years it has been Iron Fist who has endured far better. Both characters were similar in that they are perhaps the greatest hand-to-hand fighters in the Marvel universe. Iron Fist focused more on Chinese mythology and mysticism while Shang Chi was more of a super spy and secret agent (Like Bruce Lee in ENTER THE DRAGON).
Personally I love both characters and would love to see both of them come to the screen. Iron Fist is one of my top ten favorite Marvel characters. When Netflix announced the host of characters they were going produce into television shows it was Iron Fist I personally was most excited for. While Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Luke Cage are equally great characters or even greater in many respects, I personally wanted to see Iron Fist the most. Having to waiting almost three years for Iron Fist to get here has been a challenge to say the least.
But the wait is over!
THE PLOT
Danny Rand, the long believed deceased son of the Rand Corporation founder Wendell Rand, returns after 15 years. The problem is no one believes it's really him. To reclaim his birthright and inheritance as majority shareholder of Rand Corp, Danny needs to convince everyone he is who he says he is. To begin with he has to explain where he has been for the last 15 years: K'un Lun, one of the seven capital cities of Heaven. There in K'un Lun he was trained in the martial arts and earned the power of the Iron Fist. What exactly the Iron Fist is even Danny doesn't fully know yet. Now back in New York Danny discovers his company is being used as a front to sell drugs. And on top of that, the evil group known as THE HAND have infiltrated his company too. Danny embarks to rid Rand Corp of these infections and vanquish The Hand once and for all.
WHAT I LIKED
Now, I was an Iron Fist fan prior to this. So take my words as slightly biased.
The Beginnings of a Hero. In current comics Danny Rand is in his mid-thirties and already quite proficient at using his powers. He is a force to be reckoned with who could take out the Hulk if need be. Instead of this, the Netflix show presents Danny Rand as a 25 year old man, still very immature and unsure of his powers. At age 25 he is the youngest of Netflix's Marvel heroes as well as the most inexperienced. Yet he has potentially the greatest power of them all. By the end of the show he is still only just realizing the extent of his powers. This makes Danny unique among his fellow Netflix Marvel heroes and gives his character plenty of developmental potential for the future. Running themes throughout the show include an emotional balance and focus of chi. Only through a calm state of mind can Danny fully utilize the power of the Iron Fist. Being a young and immature character, finding his balance becomes a big journey for Danny.
The Setup. As a fan of Iron Fist I thought the groundwork and foundation of Iron Fist's world was very well executed. The setup of K'un Lun was true to the comic albeit sparsely shown in the show. The Trial of Shou Lao the Undying (how one acquires the Iron Fist power) was established along with Danny's relationships with Lei Kung ~ The Thunderer and Davos. The concept of the Immortal Weapons was touched on as well. All in all, the mythos of Iron Fist and concepts surrounding the character were setup accurately according to the comic.
The Meachums and Rand Corp. One of the central aspects of Iron Fist's story is his company Rand Corp. When Danny returns from K'un Lun he discovers his company has been taken over by the Meachums. Iron Fist's first major long term conflict is the battle to reclaim his company from the Meachums. The Meachums are critical to Iron Fist's origins and Netflix does that story admirable justice. Chinese martial arts mysticism mixed with corporate espionage has always been a unique aspect of the Iron Fist comic, though not always the focus.
NITPICKS
In an ideal world Iron Fist should have the best fight sequences of all of the Marvel heroes, movies and television alike. No one save Shang Chi can rival Iron Fist's martial arts skills. Well, this isn't an ideal world and the fight scenes, while better than both Luke Cage's and Jessica Jones' in my opinion, feel a bit unrefined and not photographed as well as they could've been. It makes me realize how truly special the team behind the Daredevil show really is to have achieved such incredible fight scenes. Again, the fight scenes in Iron Fist aren't bad by any stretch. Sadly though, when one compares the fights to Daredevil, Iron Fist comes up a bit short.
Corporate corruption and espionage plays a good role in the Iron Fist comic and is among Iron Fist's original saga. But having read more than just the first saga, there are other Iron Fist stories I prefer over the battle against the Meachums. But those stories involve a more mature and experienced Danny Rand. I speak of stories centered in K'un Lun with a heavy focus on mysticism. Netflix sadly is not equip to portray such stories well. It would require an HBO Game Of Thrones budget and Netflix simply doesn't have those kinds of resources for a Marvel show... yet. Going with the Meachum's story was a wise choice since perhaps no other story of Iron Fist's could be done the justice they deserve.
Other nitpicks I have include the portrayal of THE BRIDE OF NINE SPIDERS. She is a part of the Immortal Weapons in the comics and my favorite among them next to Iron Fist. She looked good in the show but how they used her storywise was disappointing to me. Also, we never get to see Iron Fist in his costume! Even Luke Cage had one scene with him in the classic yellow and blue costume equip with bracelets and tiara too!
THE VERDICT
I have waited a long time for Iron Fist to get here and I am very happy with the results. Personally I enjoyed it quite a bit. Netflix does a good job of setting up the world of Iron Fist and presents viewers with a different hero than Daredevil or Luke Cage. While the story is true to the comic it isn't my favorite Iron Fist story nor the best story they could've adapted from Iron Fist's canon. But it is a great place to start the character. I can't wait to see Iron Fist again later this year in Netflix's DEFENDERS! I do hope that we eventually see a second season too. I'd like to see them take more time in refining it and I'd like to see the Daredevil crew take a crack at Iron Fist.
Overall Ranking: 6 out of 10
For more examination and fandom of Iron Fist check out the posts below!
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The fight scenes still felt like they were being rehearsed, not filmed...and the CGI didn't blend well. The acting seems a bit dead pan for me as well.
ReplyDeleteConsidering how badass IF is, I'd have to agree, they shoehorn him into this series, instead of giving him a chance to sprout.
It's so true, sadly. I know he's far more obscure than Daredevil but c'mon. This is Netflix's fifth time doing this. Iron Fist in theory should've been the most refined of them all. Much to my chagrin this is not the case
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