Marvel's Netflix franchises are dropping like flies. First Iron Fist was cancelled after two seasons. Next to go was Luke Cage. It pains me to say it makes sense. Iron Fist really had no redeeming qualities. Luke cage at least had the soundtrack going for it. I managed to watch both shows because, a) my half-century-plus of watching TV has made me adept at fast forwarding through superfluous expository dialogue, and b) I still have the soul of an 11-year-old boy buying these comic books off the spinning rack at the drugstore for 15 cents. But from a dramatic standpoint there was nothing worth saving.
Like the beleaguered denizens of Hell's Kitchen, our last hope lies with Daredevil whose third season dropped this month. (I should note I have not watched Jessica Jones so I could be missing something, but I doubt it). And the hope is realistic. With a new showrunner Daredevil has taken a step up.
To repeat like a broken record, THERE IS STILL TOO MUCH TALKING. It's not as bad as it used to be, but it became clear that the problem has not been solved right off the bat when episode one was about forty minutes of exposition followed by a fairly pedestrian street fight. Everyone who wants to create an action drama should be required to watch the first ten minutes of Avengers: Age of Ultron, followed by the first ten minutes of Avengers: Infinity War. If after seeing those, you are content with a script that starts with twenty pages of dialogue, please tender your resignation. Using my personal superpower of exposition-spotting I was able to fast-forward through at least half of all the early episodes and not miss a beat. That might have dropped to 25 percent by the later episodes.
I should also add, that despite the slow start, by the end of the season I was fully sucked in and invested in the characters, even the ones that were so previously annoying. The dialogue, though too wordy, was at least not at the level of the infantile exchanges in the previous seasons. But the acting and casting of the roles was excellent and many of the actors showed something really special. I do think it was the actors themselves that sold me on this.
Daredevil benefits from themes of guilt and revenge that, despite the uneven presentation, are actually coherent. Matt Murdock, for all his hand-wringing holiness, doesn't hesitate to endanger his friends in pursuit of the villian. He frets over his sins, as he should, but that doesn't seem to stop him. There is a cost to heroics and the hero gets is wrong sometimes and the hero can be a jerk -- it makes things more interesting.
The now legendary villain, Wilson Fisk, is once again brought to life by the mighty Vincent D'onofrio. If think you don't know D'onofrio, you probably actually do. An actor of remarkable range -- Private Pyle in Full Metal Jacket, the military dude in Jurassic World, he's also a lead in one of those excruiting Law and Order series so he's skilled in handling inane dialogue -- he just nails the menace and malice of Fisk, even in the quietest scenes. (Non sequitur: he once held a job as Robert Plant's bodyguard.)
Stepping up acting-wise is Debra Ann Woll. She has to spend the bulk of the series on the edge of a breakdown from her guilt over killing someone in season one, her being in danger from Fisk because of her association with Daredevil, and her anger/concern for Matt Murdock and all his double-edged actions. There is a scene where she tries to contact her family for support but her father only offers superficial excuses but not a drop more; Woll just kills this scene, then gets what is essentially an origin episode, which is Emmy-worthy.
Daredevil's signature moment came in the hallway fight scene from season 1. Arguably, the expansion of the whole netflix Marvel universe was kickstarted from that moment. Well the fight scene in episode 4 of season 3 makes that one look quaint. An extended tracking shot during a prison break, Murdock has to fight his way through a squad of hit men only to be confronted by their crime boss and has to negotiate to get an escort through the remainder of the riot to the outside. It is technically astonishing, not just the length of the tracking shot, but the constant physical activities of the actors. It's one thing the track Henry and Karen Hill walking through the back of the house of the Copa, it's another to have your actors choreographing flips and flying kicks through multiple minutes, hitting marks and timing in concert with the camera. I'll look forward to reading the analysis of how it was done. Like I said, a technical marvel and a tribute to the cinematographic and choreographic skills of everyone involved. Still, it was not emotionally affecting as say the final battle against Thanos on Titan. (Will this guy not shut up about The Avengers?)
So overall a big step up for Daredevil. They have now reached the level of quality that could keep a standard broadcast TV show going indefinitely. No word on how Netflix feels about that yet. If the trend continues, future seasons could be something special.
One wonders where Netflix is going to go with the Marvel series (if anywhere). They won't get the rights to any more characters from Disney, who will want to keep them for their own streaming service, so unless Iron Fist and Luke Cage are actual money losers, you would think they'd rework them somehow (Heroes for Hire?).
Marvel TV series from non-Netflix outlets have been better. Agents of Shield has pretty much spent six years at the quality level Daredevil just touched. Legion is a confusing but highly creative experience. The late, lamented Agent Carter has so far been the only Marvel series that was actually excellent. My guess is Disney will get in the game directly next. TV fits better with more intimate stories so that would seem to eliminate things like the now in limbo Fantastic Four or X-men variations. Spiderman might work but why on Earth would you do anything to risk that glorious franchise?
I have no idea where all this is going, but wherever it goes, THERE NEEDS TO BE LESS TALKING. My fast-forward thumb keeps going into spasm.
