There was a great deal of hype surrounding the release of the first season of Netflix's Iron Fist. Following strong showings for Daredevil, Jessica Jones and Luke Cage, fans couldn't wait to see what the streaming service had in store for Danny Rand. However, once the series arrived, the reception was, well... let's just call it lukewarm, at best.
Iron Fist was panned by critics and fans alike, who lamented its less-than-stellar fight scenes, its questionable storytelling decisions, and its propensity to paint the lead character as an immature, unlikable brat. But regardless of how you may have ultimately felt about Season 1, Marvel Television obviously had a plan at work for the character, and a big one at that. After all, his origin story carried over into the team-up series The Defenders where Danny Rand's background played a crucial part in the overall plot. There, Danny Rand settled more into his role as the Immortal Iron Fist. To many fans, The Defenders went a long way in setting Danny on a path similar to the comic books.
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This evolution and turn for the character was further solidified in the tenth episode of Luke Cage's second season, "The Main Ingredient," where Finn Jones appeared as a guest star to offer fans the truly epic duo of Power Man and Iron Fist. In the episode, Danny appeared to have matured, and he had a resolve and a calmness of spirit he simply didn't have before.
Last night saw the release of the first teaser of Season 2 of Iron Fist during the series' panel at Comic-Con International in San Diego. The teaser was surprisingly brief, clocking in at under 40 seconds, but that's all that was needed for the series to declare that Season 2 will be a much different beast than its predecessor.
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The brief teaser doesn't offer much in the way of footage or story details, but it gives fans just enough of a statement to make it clear the plan is for this new adventure to be a welcome departure from Season 1. Right off the bat, Danny's determination to help others is on full display. When before he had a propensity to talk and declare his status as the Iron Fist to his enemies, this time he simply intervenes when someone in the street needs help. This instantly shows that the arc Danny was on in the closing moments of The Defenders -- when he stepped up to become the newest protector of New York following Daredevil's "death" -- is being followed up on in an organic manner.
What's more, by highlighting a new, much better fight scene than we saw in , well, all of Season 1, the teaser is telling fans everywhere that Season 2's fights will indeed be a major improvement. Both seasons of Daredevil set an impressive precedent in the fighting department, something that did not help Iron Fist's lackluster battles. For whatever reason, Season 1's fight choreography wasn't what fans expected to see on a show about a man who had been trained by monks his entire life. Though brief, Season 2's teaser indicates to us that the fights will be better choreographed, and perhaps more importantly, that they will be more brutal and hard-hitting. This should go a long way in assuaging fans who were weary of a Season 1 repeat.
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Finally, the teaser also hinted at the fact that this new season will have a better sense of purpose. Danny makes vague mentions of a war, and of his new role as a defender of New York, and this directly gives a better sense of the direction of Season 2. Season 1 struggled in that Danny hadn't much in the way of purpose. He returned home, and bragged about being the Immortal Iron Fist, antagonizing a whole lot of people along the way. But now, Danny's mission is set, and his resolve is palpable. He's here to help -- to save someone in the middle of the street, or to stop bigger threats... like the coming of Typhoid Mary.
Now, Danny is truly a man of the people, and he's ready to become the hero we always wanted him to be. All that's missing is a yellow mask.
Bring on Season 2.
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Arriving Sept. 7 on Netflix, Marvel’s Iron Fist Season 2 stars Finn Jones as Danny Rand, Jessica Henwick as Colleen Wing, Sacha Dhawan as Davos, Tom Pelphrey as Ward Meachum, Jessica Stroup as Joy Meachum, Simone Missick Misty Knight and introduces Alice Eve as Mary Walker.