Marvel's The Defenders (Netflix)

Discussion in 'TV and Movies' started by Readsalot, Aug 14, 2017.

  1. Readsalot

    Readsalot Level 13 (Assassin) Citizen

    68%
    Messages:
    379
    Likes:
    467
    xp:
    474
    Zone:
    South Africa
    LitCoin:
    2,297,670
    Zorkmid:
    245
    This Friday! (18 Aug)

    [​IMG]

    Anybody else excited? Got a favourite character? I can't wait...
     
    Matthew James and Seagrim like this.
  2. Larakel

    Larakel Level 14 (Defender) Shop Owner Citizen Aspiring Writer

    26%
    Messages:
    604
    Likes:
    858
    xp:
    526
    Zone:
    Newbie Island
    LitCoin:
    23,072
    Zorkmid:
    1
    Jessica Jones
     
    Matthew James likes this.
  3. Readsalot

    Readsalot Level 13 (Assassin) Citizen

    68%
    Messages:
    379
    Likes:
    467
    xp:
    474
    Zone:
    South Africa
    LitCoin:
    2,297,670
    Zorkmid:
    245
    Any reason? I like her, but I have so many favourites.
     
    Matthew James likes this.
  4. Larakel

    Larakel Level 14 (Defender) Shop Owner Citizen Aspiring Writer

    26%
    Messages:
    604
    Likes:
    858
    xp:
    526
    Zone:
    Newbie Island
    LitCoin:
    23,072
    Zorkmid:
    1
    She doesn't take anybody's crap. I love her attitude.

    Plus her shower had the best screen Marvel villain to date.
     
  5. Readsalot

    Readsalot Level 13 (Assassin) Citizen

    68%
    Messages:
    379
    Likes:
    467
    xp:
    474
    Zone:
    South Africa
    LitCoin:
    2,297,670
    Zorkmid:
    245
    Aye, David Tennant set a new standard for wickedly evil. I liked Jessica but it was the counterplay between her and Killgrave that made it such a good series for me. Vincent D'Onofrio did a great job, too, as Kingpin, so I'm hopeful we'll see more of him eventually.
     
    Matthew James likes this.
  6. James T. Witherspoon

    James T. Witherspoon Level 8 (Thug) LitRPG Author Citizen

    76%
    Messages:
    103
    Likes:
    151
    xp:
    188
    LitCoin:
    607,668
    Zorkmid:
    23
    I'm excited, but I still haven't finished Iron Fist. Need to get on that sometime, but I found the show to be very boring compared to the rest of the Marvel lineup.
     
    Matthew James likes this.
  7. Readsalot

    Readsalot Level 13 (Assassin) Citizen

    68%
    Messages:
    379
    Likes:
    467
    xp:
    474
    Zone:
    South Africa
    LitCoin:
    2,297,670
    Zorkmid:
    245
    I agree, Iron Fist isn't their best work. In my opinion it was a mistake casting Finn Jones. He makes a fine Danny Rand but since he never had any martial arts training before he was cast for this, his fighting scenes are completely unconvincing. In other words, what should have been the strongest point of the series, the kick-ass kung fu, turned out to be the biggest let-down. For me, anyway.

    I hope that since there are more main protagonists and less focus on him The Defenders will be up to Marvel's previous standards again.
     
  8. Paul Bellow

    Paul Bellow Forum Game Master Staff Member LitRPG Author Shop Owner Citizen Aspiring Writer

    100%
    Messages:
    9,471
    Likes:
    7,372
    xp:
    5,313
    Zone:
    Midwest, US
    LitCoin:
    14,716,157
    Zorkmid:
    1,335
    NPR had a piece about it today... Basically they said Jessica Jones and Daredevil were cool but the other two kinda sucked. Would be interesting to see them come together ala Avengers, Justice League... Big names like Sigourney Weaver too.
     
    Matthew James likes this.
  9. Readsalot

    Readsalot Level 13 (Assassin) Citizen

    68%
    Messages:
    379
    Likes:
    467
    xp:
    474
    Zone:
    South Africa
    LitCoin:
    2,297,670
    Zorkmid:
    245
    I don't think Cage sucked, but I do think they should have made it shorter. There were a couple of episodes in the middle/towards the end where nothing much happened and it started dragging a bit, which is why (I think) the reviews weren't as positive as Daredevil and Jessica Jones.
     
    Matthew James and Paul Bellow like this.
  10. Paul Bellow

    Paul Bellow Forum Game Master Staff Member LitRPG Author Shop Owner Citizen Aspiring Writer

    100%
    Messages:
    9,471
    Likes:
    7,372
    xp:
    5,313
    Zone:
    Midwest, US
    LitCoin:
    14,716,157
    Zorkmid:
    1,335
    Yeah, I've not watched any of them, so I can't comment personally. Might watch this one, though. We shall see.
     
    Matthew James likes this.
  11. Readsalot

    Readsalot Level 13 (Assassin) Citizen

    68%
    Messages:
    379
    Likes:
    467
    xp:
    474
    Zone:
    South Africa
    LitCoin:
    2,297,670
    Zorkmid:
    245
    I really recommend Daredevil and Jessica Jones. Both are excellent, though completely different in tone.
     
    Matthew James and Paul Bellow like this.
  12. James T. Witherspoon

    James T. Witherspoon Level 8 (Thug) LitRPG Author Citizen

    76%
    Messages:
    103
    Likes:
    151
    xp:
    188
    LitCoin:
    607,668
    Zorkmid:
    23
    Yeah I agree with this. I liked both seasons of Daredevil quite a bit. Jessica Jones was really good at points, but I didn't like some of the side characters/stories. Luke Cage started off wonderfully, but went sharply downhill about halfway through the season for me. Iron Fist started off horribly, in my opinion, with a doofy main character, an uninteresting origin story, and a boring plot around his corporation. It's been hard for me to find any interest in finishing it.
     
    Matthew James and Paul Bellow like this.
  13. Readsalot

    Readsalot Level 13 (Assassin) Citizen

    68%
    Messages:
    379
    Likes:
    467
    xp:
    474
    Zone:
    South Africa
    LitCoin:
    2,297,670
    Zorkmid:
    245
    Watched all 8 episodes last night and came away feeling... underwhelmed. I liked the slow build-up; the fact that each character got some time to him and herself was actually a nice touch. And the story for the first six episodes was fine - a bit predictable, but fine.

    But something felt off with the last two. Perhaps it was just too much of a build-up, perhaps I expected too much, but I felt let-down and when I finished watching I sat there thinking: Meh.

    I won't go into details yet or discuss specifics, not until after the weekend, so as not to spoil it for people who are still going to watch it. I'll just say the way I feel now I score it 6/10, even though I really liked the first six episodes.
     
    Matthew James and Paul Bellow like this.
  14. Paul Bellow

    Paul Bellow Forum Game Master Staff Member LitRPG Author Shop Owner Citizen Aspiring Writer

    100%
    Messages:
    9,471
    Likes:
    7,372
    xp:
    5,313
    Zone:
    Midwest, US
    LitCoin:
    14,716,157
    Zorkmid:
    1,335
    Did the other shows have more episodes? Maybe that threw off their timing, a bit. Thanks for letting us know. I've never gotten into superhero TV shows very much.
     
    Matthew James likes this.
  15. CheshirePhoenix

    CheshirePhoenix Crazy Hermit on the Hill LitRPG Author Beta Reader Citizen Editor Aspiring Writer

    96%
    Messages:
    1,279
    Likes:
    1,684
    xp:
    996
    LitCoin:
    1,442,684
    Zorkmid:
    178
    I absolutely LOVE Jessica Jones. The noir gumshoe vibe from the series came through brilliantly, and Tennant as Kilgrave is the best Marvel villain ever. He's up there with Ledger's Joker.

    Followed closely by the first season of Daredevil. D'Onofrio as Kingpin really makes the show turn. Season two dropped off a lot, since the trial of Frank Castle doesn't really make for good watching if you're not a Punisher fan, and the abrupt switch from Punisher to The Hand really didn't do it for me. Villains make the comic book universe go 'round, and faceless organizations don't make for good quality villains.

    Like Cage was mediocre. It wasn't good, but it wasn't bad.

    And then, there's the Iron Fencepost. Dear sweet flying spaghetti Cthulhu, everything that could go wrong did, with that series. From stiff, wooden acting, to poor directing and cinematography, crappy fight choreography (with the sole shining exception being when Iron Fencepost gets his ass handed to him by the drunken boxer), and lukewarm villains. I don't really have anything good to say about it other than Rosario Dawson as Claire was the best part of the show.

    And sadly, that spilled over into The Defenders. Iron Fencepost ruined every scene he was in, and even Krysten Ritter couldn't save it. Although she tried - my favorite scene was in the subway. You'll know it when you see it, but I don't want to give it away any more than that. But pretty much only DD and Iron Fencepost had any believable reason to be involved. JJ and Cage were pretty much just kinda along for the ride and that made their presence unnecessary/unbelievable beyond a certain point.

    I will say it had a very ninja turtles vibe to it. Cage as Donatello, DD as Leonardo, Fencepost as Raphael, and JJ as Michelangelo. There is even a Splinter, Krang, Shredder, Rocksteady, Bebop, and one of the other upjumped mooks-turned-named-villain. And obviously, the Hand subbed in for the Foot Clan.
     
  16. Matthew James

    Matthew James Blind Beholder Beta Reader Citizen

    38%
    Messages:
    318
    Likes:
    455
    xp:
    269
    LitCoin:
    3,251
    Zorkmid:
    0
    I was expecting a lot from Jessica Jones after Dare Devil, and unlike others who enjoyed JJ... Tennant did nothing for me. Yes he was evil, and yes he was a believably dickish character for having arrested development and stage 10 narcissism, but he wasn't Kingpin with his bizarre reliance on and respect for an underling who was a true friend and ally, in a twisted way. So there was the good buy buddy relationship, and the bad guy buddy relationship, and Dare Devil just worked. Though most of the people I know have their biggest complaint about the casting of the best friend character Foggy. Who didn't bug me at all.

    The Purple Man however was totally twisted and it was in a vacuum, so it only ever affected the others in the story and forced them to react, and then f**k up their reactions because it had to last for a whole season, which is okay if you dug the Jessica chasing down leads stuff and remaking the same plan with the same goal, but really it felt like a rehash of House MD. Where House didn't trust anyone and did B&E with his staff to get to the truth. Except without a cast of characters who are way different and constantly forced to interact with each other while reacting to the edicts of a lovable but misanthropic boss.

    The power hierarchy was Purple Man at the top, and the "House" interns were played by the black guy, the chick, the white dude, the chicks best friend, and everyone else was a casualty of the actions taken by those subordinates when they weren't a victim of the man at the top. I liked the Jessica Jones character and her friend, but I wish there had been a sort of "Origin Story" and personal recovery arc that then built up to a season 1 finale with a "Oh f**k the purple man is back" moment that shatters her existence after she finally got straight with the world. Then there wouldn't have been an emotional vacuum around the Purple Man, and the JJ spiral would have hit harder. I think the Season 1 that we got would have been a perfect Season 2, but without some more "weight" on the JJ side of the game board Tenant just dominated the first season.

    I have zero desire to watch Iron Fist after how the Mandarin was handled in Iron Man 3, and without the budget and casting of Dr. Strange and the passion of Into the Badlands it seems like a series that is just going to piss me right the hell off. Luke Cage I don't know about, but if I can jump straight into Defenders without losing anything, then I'll put it on the "List" and hope for the best.
     
    Seagrim likes this.
  17. CheshirePhoenix

    CheshirePhoenix Crazy Hermit on the Hill LitRPG Author Beta Reader Citizen Editor Aspiring Writer

    96%
    Messages:
    1,279
    Likes:
    1,684
    xp:
    996
    LitCoin:
    1,442,684
    Zorkmid:
    178
    If you don't want to miss anything in The Defenders, you've got to watch the second half of DD season 2, and pretty much the entirety of Iron Fencepost.
     
    Matthew James likes this.
  18. VRRanger

    VRRanger Level 12 (Rogue) Roleplaying Beta Reader Citizen Aspiring Writer

    67%
    Messages:
    248
    Likes:
    308
    xp:
    397
    Zone:
    Washington State, USA
    LitCoin:
    1,591,024
    Zorkmid:
    143
    Last year I tried watching Jessica Jones and didn't get past the first episode. I tried it again (I think only last week) and have already binged season 1 and 2. They do a great job with the character. I really enjoyed it, though apparently I caught it right when season two came out and have to wait more than a year for season 3. Which is sad. I have not gotten into any of the other marvel shows. And yes, they did an awesome job with kilgrave in season 1.
     




Share This Page