Iron Fist is basically Anastasia with martial arts or Arya from Game of Thrones except not as badass set in Marvel Cinematic Universe. It is about Danny Rand, who is played by Finn Jones, trying to figure out where he belongs: where he was born or where he was raised to be a living weapon. Because I watched the Netflix series so late, I heard that it was dreadful and did not have high expectations. Of all the Marvel shows that I have watched to date (I have not yet seen Runaways, The Defenders, The Punisher or the second season of Jessica Jones), it is saved from being the weakest by The Inhumans because the main character is the least compelling or convincing character in the show.
Even though I agree that it would be great if an Asian actor played Doctor Strange or Iron Fist, I still paid to see Doctor Strange opening weekend and always planned to see Iron Fist. My primary goal is the overarching Marvel storyline so boycotting isn’t an option for me. They have had me since 2008. Also Benedict Cumberbatch eventually did a good job in Avengers: Infinity War so I was going into the series with less trepidation in spite of the criticism.
I also watch Game of Thrones. Jones did a great job in a supporting role as Loras Tyrell, a badass gay knight who eventually is broken by religious persecution. So even if he was not the ideal choice for the job, I thought that at least Jones could act. I’m not sure if Danny’s flaws reside in the way that the writers wrote him or how Jones played him, but there is a point in the series when someone says to him, “You are the worst Iron Fist ever,” and it is true. In the first episode, he can sense when a blow is coming, but that ability seems to evaporate in subsequent episodes. Read the manual.
Danny is supposed to be the most innocent and sweetest of the Netflix Marvel characters, but that does not mean that he should be dumb. I’m from New York City. I grew up around rich kids loved and unloved by their parents. Once a New Yorker, always a New Yorker—the way that you navigate the city, assess people for levels of danger and have a certain savvy disproportionate to your years is ingrained. Danny was way too old when he left NYC not to understand how things work. He is less mature than the flashbacks of younger Danny. I also don’t think that I like the superhero name, Iron Fist. I start to call him Iron Man, then correct myself. It is more of a glowy fist.
It does not help that physically Finn does not look like Iron Fist. I felt like Glee’s Sue Sylvester. Don’t monks shave their head? Does Kun Lung have hairdressers that put in streaks? If he was beaten and forced to fight all the time, he does not have to be bulky, but his body needed to be more defined, scarred and hard. If Keanu Reeves can do it, and even though I adore him, Reeves is not the best actor, then Finn should be able to as well. In fights, his wrists are limp, and unless CGI is used, I never bought that he won a fight. We don’t get a good fight until episode 4, and I noticed that he is better if he is in close proximity to an elevator. He doesn’t even look like he has a dancer’s body, but he does have Michael Jackson’s power to shatter exposed lightbulbs inexplicably. He is just scrawny. Wardrobe needs to stop giving him those black tank tops that are doing nothing for his arms and put on a shirt. Finn looks best fully clothed. I think that the armor helped him in Game of Thrones because when he finally wears a big bulky sweater, I can buy it. Also how did his iPod survive? If it is too cold or it just falls on a carpet, it acts up.
I enjoyed Iron Fist for the supporting characters.
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I actually pegged all the characters’ story arcs fairly early in the show. Even though Ward made an evil first impression, I immediately guessed that his father was still alive and abusing him. Tom Pelphrey could teach a master class on giving more than the script offered because he projected all this information in his face from the first episode. I actually was suspicious of Joy fairly early in the show, and thought that because she is socialized to be good, she tries to be, but being evil comes naturally. She is more like her daddy. Casually drugging people and harvesting organs are not things that nice people do. In her unguarded moments, she speaks honestly, “We don’t want you here.” I remembered Jessica Stroup from The Following. The saddest part of the story was when their father put a wedge between the siblings. The wardrobe department did a great job with Joy. Her morality was reflected in her clothes: the more white that she wore, the more moral she was, but grey and black clothes were a sign that she was embracing her dark side. Also she doesn’t like brown M&Ms, which is Get Out eating style. Unless she has an allergy, I judge her for not preferring peanut M&Ms.
I was frustrated with the way that they were written. If Ward lives in a world in which his father was resurrected from the dead, why is it so hard to believe that Danny is alive? If Joy knows that her father is dead and resurrected from the dead, why doesn’t she believe Ward that their father is not their father. Pet Cemetery, the Monkey Paw legend and zombies are really popular. Does she not watch horror films? Also Joy does not trust Ward because he is a drug addict, but once you know about the father, it explains the drug abuse. Never trust dead people not named Jesus. It annoys me when writers make a character curious then not want to hear information when the other person is finally ready. Shout to Wards in the Marvel universe always killing their family. At least this Ward is one and done after cremating him. Ward is actually decent because he put aside his complaints of abuse to express sympathy when Danny revealed everything that Harold Meachum did to him and his family.
Harold Meachum was a perfect villain. He managed to by sympathetic because he loves his kids, but with or without the evil resurrection, he was raised to believe that abuse is appropriate. Every time that he expressed love for his father, who sounded like an awful man, I got chills. David Wenham did a great job simultaneously playing the man as he was, and the sinister force beginning to take over.
I never trusted Connie until the end, and I don’t think that I’m a fan. I was completely suspicious of the program that she alluded to when she spoke to her students. She usually wears red plus when she was doing the outdoors drill with her students, she told a woman, “You move as fast as a pig.” She clearly has blood lust, is a bit of a hypocrite and was not doing it for the money. Danny excused her behavior away too easily. I didn’t think that her fighting ability was as impressive as she thought, but her fights with her sensei were the best. She stood still like Mary Ann Gallagher in Saturday Night Live—hands in her armpits. Is that a common martial arts stance? It made her seem extremely insecure. How come the Hand can’t pay her rent or get her better equipment?
It was so great to see characters from other Netflix Marvel shows in Iron Fist, especially when they acted differently from what we expect. Hogarth is a rescuer in this show and thinks that the Meachums are shady, which is damning. Madame Gao is a more interesting character because she isn’t simply the Hand, but has her own agenda and is a fan of Christopher Nolan’s Batman. Claire is still my favorite Marvel Netflix character as the voice of moral authority and common sense. I actually was worried about her hanging out with this reckless rich boy, especially in the last episode. Don’t break laws for these people. Even though Connie taught Claire, Claire acquitted herself better than her teacher in a fight. “So you’re saying I have more experience fighting the Hand than you do.” Claire needs to get Danny to fund her own Hotel Artemis.
In nice touches, the Triad’s in house doctor is never shown, but is impressive because all those men were treated by the time that Danny arrived. The Ringmaster had a code like Molly’s Game, and I appreciated that he always advised Connie against certain things then respected her decisions. He wants the money, but he isn’t gross. I appreciated how many black people worked on all levels of Rand: security guards, scientists, the board, executive assistants. RIP Lawrence! Lewis Tan as the drunk fighter was the best fighter on the show, and they punked him. Don’t worry, Tan. No one bought that you really lost! Kyle, you ungrateful, dumbass looking for vanilla. Why did you suddenly get comfortable?
Since Danny is a living weapon, and so is Elektra, I’m looking forward to a showdown between them, but she should win. I want to know how much Danny’s father knew about this world, but I don’t want to see that overplayed plane crash scene again. Enough! No more road trips that look exactly like New York City. For all of Danny’s flaws, I do agree that if Iron Fist is the enemy of the Hand, then you should go where the Hand is. I appreciate that he and Connie are soul mates in the way that they were raised and have to leave their past so they can move forward together, but I also don’t care. I was not shipping them in the first place. I know that workout scene in the twelfth episode was supposed to be hot, but it was not. I may not like Connie, but she deserves better.