GRcade

Iron Fist was the worst of the 4, but it was decent enough to hold my attention.

Up to episode 11 in prep for Defenders.

Danny's just the worst. And not in a good way. He's po faced, mansplaining and condescending as he goes.

Some episodes seem to call him on this, others present him entirely straight faced. It's an inconsistency that indicates poor show running (they've fired them for season 2 I think). Claire's presence was breath of fresh air with energy and sense of fun. RD has done some serious heavy lifting.

I'm not sure if it's actor/writing/direction or a combination - but it just doesn't work. Veers from naivity to "So wise everyone should listen" without any structure or style. (Jack Sparrow calling him on his tantrum's during the fight was spot on target, but I'm not sure the show intended it to be)

It doesn't even have flaire as you add in completely lack luster fights (Jones said he saw Choreography 15 minutes before?!?!)

We're finally 11 episodes in starting to get hints of Danny's motivations and arc, but in general pretty much every other character is better written, acted and has a more compelling storyline (Joy has floundered a bit)

We also might finally be getting a decent central antagonist. (Gao/Harold haven't quite filled this role, and 'The Hand' is too nebulous). Every other series had great central villians as a counter point to the heroes - and Iron Fist has suffered for it's lack. (So many poor choices)

Still..only 2.5 hours to go by Friday

So finished this last night.

It's just...eurgh. So bad. So many messy disjointed plots - for each character

Danny has a new central motivation every few episodes and nearly completely ignores previous

Came back - important to make family connections
Went to Mental Hospital
Fought for Rand
Got to Rand, started some changes not many
Lost Rand - never followed up (Joy and Ward fight to get back in, no one got Danny abck barely followed up)
Kidnapped Goa (which someone we're later told got Hand out of Rand)
Then all about Bakuto for 2 episodes
Then all about Harold.

It's just a messy structure - has no one running it even seen a TV show before? The other netflix stuff massively padded their story line - but it was normally a single story line stretched out, rather than so many different ones like switching channels.

Synopsis

Season 2 furthers the transformation of Danny​, a character with a fish out of water coming of age story making his way in a harsh new world, battling to work out who he is. This season, Dann​y​ has promised that with Matt Murdock gone, he will step up and protect his city. ​But a sinister plot twist threatens his very identity ​and he must conquers his villains to protect the town and people he holds close to his heart.

twitter.com/MarvelIronFist/status/1019382213509443585

twitter.com/MarvelIronFist/status/1020126146208456704

I'm looking forward to this after Danny's last appearance. Marvel are apparently going all in this time and it's rumoured to be 10 episodes instead of the 13 (Punisher is taking the 13 episode order and Iron Fist is taking The Defender's 10 episode order). Plus Alice Eve is in the cast



Tweet thread of panel:

twitter.com/NXOnNetflix/status/1020069468142153728

Panel summary (spoilers)

I didn't mind season 1. It seemed to get a lot of hate, but I certainly preferred it to the travesty that was JJ S2. I also actually liked Danny. I found him quite amusing, and his constant referencing to Chi with people rolling their eyes made me smirk.

The only thing from that trailer that seems odd is that Danny is back to being Whiny/Angry Danny which doesn't sit with Chilled Danny from LC S2.

Iron First season one was very average so I am not expecting much from season two. I'll watch it though.

Trailer looks decent, but then it's easy enough to cut a solid trailer from a show which is otherwise crap.

If they've sorted out the fight sequences, reduced the whinge factor from Danny and given us more of a coherent story then I still have hopes for the immortal Iron Fist.

1 week to go

Reviews are out

Currently up to 59% on RT compared to 39% of Season 1 https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/marve ... n_fist/s02

TheDailyDot wrote:Congratulations to Iron Fist, which just leveled up from unwatchably bad to merely boring. Thanks to new showrunner Raven Metzner (Sleepy Hollow), Marvel’s worst Netflix show now features competent writing, decent action scenes, and a hint of actual personality. It may not measure up to the panache of Luke Cage or Jessica Jones, but at least watching it no longer feels like a stint in purgatory.

GameSpot wrote:Even if you hate Iron Fist, it might be worth checking out Season 2 just to see Danny finally brought low--though no doubt he'll bounce back by the season's end. That is, of course, if you don't mind the generally slow burn of all of Marvel's Netflix universe shows. That lethargic pacing is one of the worst things you can say about Iron Fist Season 2--at least based on its first six episodes--and that alone should speak volumes as to how big an improvement it is.

Forbes wrote:Overall, there are notable things worth pointing out about season two of Iron Fist. It’s much better paced and way easier to watch. But coming back from what was a truly lack-luster first season was going to take far more than a few kung-fu classes. It was going to take a complete overhaul of the series and it’s hard to say if that was ever going to be possible.

Den of Geek wrote:While this didn't knock me out the way the sophomore Luke Cage effort did, Iron Fist Season 2 certainly feels more like the show I thought we were getting the first time around. Better writing, better fight choreography, and an increased focus on the wider cast all make a difference, and help smooth over many of the usual Marvel Netflix problems.

JoBlo wrote:There is a lot going on in the six episodes made available for review by Netflix, but all of it is good. And by good I mean really good. I love everything about the second season of Iron Fist. With role reversals for many of the supporting characters, namely Joy and Ward, the first half of the season definitely sets up a drama that takes a lot of cues from the source material of the comics while delivering a original story that fits in with this Marvel universe. Without divulging the twists and turns that populate these episodes, there is clearly a lot more care taken to ensure that these characters are more balanced and three-dimensional than they were in season one.

CNet wrote:The first six episodes set the season up for an exciting second half, with action sequences coming thick and fast. There are still plenty of jump cuts, but the punches and kicks feel a lot more real this time. But I'm still missing the stylistic kung fu from older Chinese kung fu flicks (pick any Bruce Lee movie) or even the awesome Matrix.

Decider wrote:I’m not gonna front like Iron Fist Season 2 is perfect. Few TV seasons can be Mad Men Season 5 or Buffy Season 3, after all. Even on the grand scheme of Marvel/Netflix shows, this one falls squarely in the middle of the pack because there are still scars from Season 1 on this mostly healed show. Finn Jones is much more comfortable in the role, having found his footing in Defenders and his Luke Cage episode. But he’s still playing a privileged doof that’s as intimidating as a pound puppy. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, and the show knows that’s his whole deal. Still, he’s way less charismatic than Colleen and Misty–but also, everyone is.

As with all Netflix shows, please spoiler tag your spoilers and more importantly tell us which episode the spoiler relates to BEFORE the spoiler itself.

If you're talking multiple episodes, please break the spoilers up by episode (and annotate each one) if you can



eg:
I didn't like what they did in the first episode because (S1E1) because it wasn't as good as Daredevil. The next few episodes were better (S1E5) because of the Iron Man cameo

I’ve only managed to watch the first 2 episodes of season 2 so far and it’s better all round. I’m really liking Alice Eve’s character, it’s like a split personality thing she has going on

I have noticed a lot of red in background shots, especially up high (red neon crosses). I wonder if they’re going to tie that in to Daredevil somehow. I think Matt Murdock left a lasting impression on Danny when they met

BID0 wrote:I’ve only managed to watch the first 2 episodes of season 2 so far and it’s better all round. I’m really liking Alice Eve’s character, it’s like a split personality thing she has going on

Agreed

BID0 wrote:I’ve only managed to watch the first 2 episodes of season 2 so far and it’s better all round. I’m really liking Alice Eve’s character, it’s like a split personality thing she has going on

I have noticed a lot of red in background shots, especially up high (red neon crosses). I wonder if they’re going to tie that in to Daredevil somehow. I think Matt Murdock left a lasting impression on Danny when they met

Do you know much about Typhoid Mary, Bido? I know you like your Marvel so guess you probably do! She's one of the iconic street level villains, usually associated with Daredevil and Deadpool but I'm really glad they've found a way to get her into the MCU, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how she pans out in IF!

Corazon de Leon wrote:

BID0 wrote:I’ve only managed to watch the first 2 episodes of season 2 so far and it’s better all round. I’m really liking Alice Eve’s character, it’s like a split personality thing she has going on

I have noticed a lot of red in background shots, especially up high (red neon crosses). I wonder if they’re going to tie that in to Daredevil somehow. I think Matt Murdock left a lasting impression on Danny when they met

Do you know much about Typhoid Mary, Bido? I know you like your Marvel so guess you probably do! She's one of the iconic street level villains, usually associated with Daredevil and Deadpool but I'm really glad they've found a way to get her into the MCU, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how she pans out in IF!

I read something about her being a Daredevil villain but I don't know much more than that, so I'm excited to see what they do with her. It's a very different role to what Eve would normally play.

After finishing episode (S02E03) I now dislike Joy Meachum even more than I did in Season 1. She always feels like a filler storyline

Halfway through. So far its better than JJ2 and defenders. Vast improvement from s1

Nice! I’m hoping to get another episode in tonight if I get time

On holiday for a quiet few days. Caning through it only 3 episodes left

5 down, 5 to go now. I’m going to finish before rubix