It’s been an awful long time coming – too long, perhaps – but Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage are all finally ready to share the screen together for The Defenders.
Pegged to arrive via Netflix this Friday, August 18th, Marvel’s starry ensemble series finds our street-level heroes going up against Sigourney Weaver’s Alexandra and the nefarious organization known only as The Hand. Introduced via the second season of Daredevil – ditto for Jon Bernthal’s Punisher – it’s a criminal gang of ninjas and crooks that appears to hold ties to Stick, while we know that The Hand is responsible for reviving Elektra from the brink of death.
Elodie Yung’s supporting player is all set to be introduced as a “completely new character” by the time The Defenders begins, which doesn’t exactly bode well for her fiery relationship with Charlie Cox’s Man Without Fear. Moreover, can we expect Elektra to be reborn as Black Sky, the super weapon teased at the tail-end of Daredevil season 2? We’ll find out in a few days’ time.
Prior to its imminent release, Marvel and Netflix offered the first four of eight episodes to critics for review, with our own Robert Yaniz Jr. writing that “the tale at the heart of The Defenders isn’t particularly strong, but seeing these characters finally share the screen is an experience that makes even the low points of the Marvel/Netflix partnership well worth it.” That chimes with the overriding critical consensus, too: satisfying, but light on story.
All eight episodes of The Defenders will be available to stream from August 18th. That leaves Marvel fans ample time to indulge in the Netflix team-up series before the oncoming IMAX premiere of Inhumans, though if early reviews are to be believed, ABC’s adaptation of the Royal Family is not nearly on the same level as Daredevil and Co.
