Luke Cage Returns With A Vengeance
If you follow the oft-complicated, interconnected world of Marvel’s cinematic and television universes, then you already know Luke Cage came out of the gate with a strong first season that unfortunately weakened in its back half. If you stuck with the Defenders long enough to actually see the team-up, then you are made of stronger stuff than some. I am very happy to report, however, that Luke Cage’s second season took note of the criticisms about pace and characterization and the lack of bionic-armed cops, as season two delivers a fantastic 13-episode bout for our hero (and Misty Knight finally gets that bionic arm).
Returning players include Luke Cage (Mike Colter) and Misty Knight (Simone Missick), as well as Shades (Theo Rossi) and the ever lovely Bobby Fish, played by the equally lovely Ron Cephas Jones. Newcomers include some other Defenders players, since Netflix seems to have a better handle on casual team-ups than the MCU has, which means a Daughters Of The Dragon team up with Jessica Henwick’s Colleen Wing and a late-stage Heroes For Hire episode with Finn Jones’ Danny Rand kung-fu-ing his way around Harlem with Luke himself. But it’s newcomer Mustafa Shakir, playing Luke’s new rival for Harlem Bushmaster (look, Luke Cage loves its snake-themed villains).
A lot has been said about Marvel’s “villain problem.” Netflix has suffered less with Vincent D’Onofrio’s Wilson Fisk and David Tennant’s terrifying turn as Kilgrave, but they were exceptions to the rule. More often than not, even the Netflix-Marvel fare struggles with squandered potential when it comes to villains. Following Black Panther, and Michael B. Jordan’s pitch-perfect, hugely sympathetic performance as Killmonger, maybe Luke Cage felt some of the pressure lift off it to be the only representation of African-Americans in Marvel. There’s a kick to Luke’s steps as he walks down the streets, a joy in Colter’s performance that is missing the morose intensity that drove so much of the first season. And Shakir’s Bushmaster gives Luke a villain to actually fight, instead of a corrupted system that he can only ever dent.
The basic plot is standard: Bushmaster isn’t even there for Luke; Luke’s just in his way. Instead, he’s there for Mariah Dillard and a twist on restoring family honor. Dillard’s grandmother, Harlem’s old crime boss Mama Mabel, burned his whole family alive and he’s been honing magicks of Jamaica for years to make himself into something truly formidable. We see this a few times before Luke ever encounters him, but when that showdown finally happens, we see the Bulletproof Man get the beatdown of his life. This is the man who Iron Fist couldn’t even dent when punched with, well, the Iron Fist.
What makes this season so different and, honestly, so much better than previous Netflix/Marvel optionings is the pace. Thirteen episodes usually means that there’s a drag somewhere in the middle, a subplot stretched to its breaking point so that by the time the actual plot resumes, you’re a little sick of the characters. Luke Cage keeps the focus on enough of its ensemble that it doesn’t slow the pace, but keeps it steady.
Some of the best television in the history of the medium is happening right now, and a lot of that is based on something already existing. I highly recommend giving Luke Cage season two a bing. It’s packed with everything one asks for from prestige television: excellent scripts, direction, acting, action, story. If this is a clue of what’s to come from further Defenders series like Iron Fist, Daredevil, and Jessica Jones, then the future for Netflix and Marvel is especially bright.
By Dane Laborn