The Defenders has been one of those Marvel projects that everyone has sort of forgotten about for years. Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist crossed paths in the 2017 Netflix crossover, but the result was a frustratingly uneven experience, rather than the street-level Avengers fans had envisioned.
Ten years later, Marvel seems to be ready to give the team another chance in ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Season 3. And, in all honesty, it could be just what these characters are looking for.
The Defenders Deserved A Better First Story
The biggest issue with The Defenders was its cast. On paper, it was nearly impossible to screw up the mix-up of these four heroes. Daredevil was already one of Marvel’s most popular heroes, Jessica Jones was a unique character with a unique story, Cage brought his unstoppable strength, and Iron Fist had enormous comic-book potential.
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However, the crossover had a hard time fitting all of those parts together. The story was fast-paced, the threat was not as serious as it could have been, and the team just didn’t develop like fans would have liked. The divisive reputation of Iron Fist made things even more difficult. It was a frustrating missed opportunity.
‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Could Finally Redeem The Team
It has already been proven that the Netflix era doesn’t need to be wiped away in order for Marvel to move forward, as ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ has already proved. Rather, it can take what works and enhance what doesn’t. With the return of Jessica Jones and Luke Cage, the series has the opportunity to restore that street corner of the MCU.
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Returning Iron Fist to the mix might be even more interesting, as after all of the things that have transpired with his original series, Marvel has plenty of room to reinvent him. Most significantly, these characters are now older.
Instead of spending an entire season introducing everyone and forcing them into the same conflict, ‘Born Again’ can simply let them be heroes who already know each other. That might have a significant impact on how people think about The Defenders going forward.
The original crossover may have been a dud, but the characters were not to blame. ‘Born Again’ could be a surprisingly good comeback for Marvel if it gives them the story they deserve the first time around. A second chance is sometimes all a good superhero team needs.
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