Marvel's Daredevil (Netflix)

[Silver Nemesis]

Great write up, colors. I'm glad you enjoyed season 3.

The third season never forgets that Bullseye has certain skills that Daredevil can't quite match. But the same is true in reverse. So Dex has every possible reason to "fight" Daredevil from afar while Daredevil has every possible reason to fight up-close as much as he can. It makes each character a serious threat to the other.

The fight scenes also made excellent use of the environments. Partly due to Bullseye's use of improvised weaponry, but also in the way the combatants use the furniture and scenery to their advantage.

Most fight scenes in other films and TV shows can be transposed to any setting, but these fights were custom choreographed for their locations. They really are incredible. Fast, brutal and technically advanced, with excellent use of surrounding objects and structures. And as you say, both characters' fighting styles accurately reflect the comics and communicate something to the viewer about their personalities.

Bullseye's a sadist, but also a coward at heart. He uses stabbing implements and projectiles to inflict damage from a distance, but buckles under pressure when the fight gets up close and personal. He's a good fighter, but not as good as Daredevil. He knows this, so whenever the battle gets too intense he distances himself from Matt and blitzes him with projectiles.

Daredevil's throwing skills are ridiculously good, but still not on a par with Bullseye's. At a distance, Matt knows he can't win. He relies on his radar-enhanced reflexes to deflect/dodge Dex's attacks (with mixed success), then uses his stealth and agility to close the gap between them. Up close, he can wreck Bullseye with medium difficulty.

But neither character completely dominates the other, since the combative dynamic keeps seesawing between CQC and ranged attacks. Bullseye wants to keep his enemy beyond arm's reach, while Daredevil wants to bring his in close. Both fighters try to manoeuvre their opponent onto unfavourable ground so they can take control of the situation, and watching the balance of power shift back and forth between them is part of what makes their duels so compelling.

Near the end of this season, Karen had somewhat worn out her welcome with me. Now seemed like a good time to send her off. It's tempting to say that she created a lot of unnecessary trouble this season and, ultimately, made things a lot harder than they really needed to be for everybody else. Killing Lantom HURT.

I sort of feel the same way. I don't dislike Karen at all, but I do feel like her storyline is played out. At least in terms of adapting her major comic arcs. I'm sure the writers had plans for her in season 4 and I would've liked to have seen how her storyline progressed. I suspect they might have started incorporating elements from other comic characters' story arcs, such as Heather Glenn or Milla Donovan. Alternatively they might have moved beyond the comics completely and allowed Karen to transcend the boundaries of her literary history. Unlike the 616 Karen, the MCU version managed to curb her drug addiction before it consumed her entirely. And unlike the 616 Daredevil, the MCU version managed to protect Karen from Bullseye. These differences are significant. The Karen in the TV show has weathered adversity more successfully than the comic book version, and she now has the opportunity to advance into previously unexplored waters (e.g. becoming a private investigator, marrying Matt, etc).

As far as the show's prospects of resurrection are concerned, we still don't have much to go on. I don't think we'll hear anything concrete about Marvel's plans for The Defenders until after the final season of Jessica Jones has been released. In the meantime Kevin Mayer, Chairman of Direct-to-Consumer and International division at Disney, has confirmed the characters could be revived on another service such as Disney+:

"We haven't yet discussed that, but I would say that's a possibility."

https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a25615188/disney-streaming-service-could-save-marvel-netflix-daredevil-luke-cage-iron-fist/

However it's also been revealed that none of these shows could be revived for a period of at least two years after their final season has been released on Netflix:

Sources tell Variety that the deal for the original four Marvel shows includes a clause that prevents the characters from appearing in any non-Netflix series or film for at least two years after cancellation. That means that "Daredevil," "Luke Cage," and "Iron Fist" — which were all canceled this year at Netflix — could not come to the Disney streaming service until 2020 at the earliest.

https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/defenders-disney-streaming-daredevil-iron-fist-luke-cage-jessica-jones-1203087219/

Hopefully Marvel can find a way around this to get Daredevil back in action sooner.

[Silver Nemesis]

https://www.savedaredevil.com/

[Silver Nemesis]

Charlie Cox on what would have happened in season 4:

"They'd had a preliminary conversation with me about what might happen and who might be involved or what the story might be. That was exciting me and what I heard was very exciting. So I had a vague sense of what the show might be. I had some idea.

"I was looking forward to Wilson Bethel kind of getting to inhabit the character of Bullseye. Season 3 was kind of an origin story for the character and how Agent Poindexter becomes that character. So I was looking forward to having a season where he really embodies the Bullseye persona and what that dynamic would be between Bullseye and Daredevil."

And on the cancellation:

"I know that it's not personal, or it certainly doesn't feel personal to me. Obviously, I'm very saddened by the cancellation and I was shocked by it because Season 3 had been so well received. I imagined we would continue making the show."

https://www.inverse.com/article/52610-daredevil-season-4-spoilers-charlie-cox-talks-possible-plot-lines

[Silver Nemesis]

While Daredevil season 3 will doubtless be snubbed for all major awards (it already lost the SAG best stunt award to GLOW), it has received the Golden Tomato fans' choice award for best TV show of 2018: https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/guide/fan-favorites-television/

Meanwhile Charlie Cox has admitted to creating a fake email account for his baby daughter and using it to sign the 'Save Daredevil' petition :

"I wasn't sure about adding my email because I'm not very technically savvy, and I didn't want to suddenly put my email online; I don't know if it's visible or not. But what I did do is I made a fake email for my two-year-old daughter, and she signed it."

https://comicbook.com/marvel/2019/01/24/daredevil-charlie-cox-signed-save-daredevil-petition/

[thecolorsblend]

Cheeky.

I like it!

Yeah, Daredevil is liable to get overlooked with awards. Apparently only dead Joker actors and the Black Panther are allowed to be recognized for awards. Whatever, oh well. If mainstream approval mattered to me, I would've chosen a different hobby.

[Slash Man]

It looks like Netflix is taking full advantage of that two year clause to hurt Marvel in whatever petty way they can. But I think there's plenty of ways to coast off the success of season 3 without waiting the full two years to possibly revive/reboot the show. Daredevil was a perfect, recognizable name to bring to TV audiences that wasn't as popular as the main Avengers. I mean, he still had more name recognition than Ant-Man, Captain Marvel, and the Guardians, but I digress. The brand was improved from the TV series, and I think it's perfectly suitable for movies. Marvel usually teases a character before giving them a solo adventure, but there's plenty of established characters to tell a meaningful story with. Black Widow would be great, but the timeline of her solo film would put it before Daredevil's conception.

[Silver Nemesis]

With Marvel recently announcing several new TV series to air on Hulu (which is mostly owned by Disney), the network's senior vice president Craig Erwich has confirmed they're open to reviving the Netflix shows.

Hulu Is Open to 'Daredevil' or 'Luke Cage': Originals Boss Cites 'Good Creative Relationship' With Marvel

https://www.thewrap.com/hulus-open-to-daredevil-or-luke-cage-originals-boss-cites-good-creative-relationship-with-marvel/

We've had a relationship with Marvel since 'Runaways,' we're getting into business on these animated shows. I'm sure it will lead to — you know, business gets you business — we have a good creative relationship with them. That's where opportunities tend to arise.

This next quote sounds as though it's referring to the 2-year hiatus stipulated in the Netflix contracts.

Marvel has a ton of titles we'd be interested in. It kind of just depends on when they're ready, [and] who, most importantly, is going to be behind these things.

So there's still hope.

In unrelated news, Charlie Cox is guest appearing in Deborah Ann Woll's new Dungeons & Dragons series Relics & Rarities.

Here's some cool fan art.

[thecolorsblend]

[ Disclosure ] I have no history or experience with PR or higher level corporate wheeler-dealer strategies. I do, however, have a talent for recognizing sneaky lawyer tricks sometimes. [/ Disclosure ]

I'm not the only one who's speculating that Erwich is doing an end-run around the two year hibernation thing. It's an old trick. One party is under contract and cannot make offers to other parties. Because that would violate the contract.

So instead, other parties either make offers to them. The first party's contract can't possibly forbid that. Alternatively, other parties might make offers in public (A) to get the first party's attention and (B) to whip up public support a little bit. Either approach allows the party under contract to consider offers without violating said contract.

Hulu is a major streaming platform. And while they're not necessarily hurting right now, the years to come look like they'll include one hell of a blood bath with all these different platforms. The market will get awfully crowded very soon. The next year or three will be hand-to-hand combat.

Amazon has several popular original shows. They're doing well and they should be taken seriously.

Disney+ will be the most massive game-changer the streaming industry has ever seen. In a sane world, Disney would be a good candidate for antitrust action.

Netflix is streamlining their service and raising prices in advance of the nuclear bomb that Disney+ represents.

If the powers that be at Hulu aren't s**ting bricks right now, they f***ing should be. Any sane manager at Hulu right now should be searching far and wide for IP's to develop or to buy out from somebody else.

Therefore, nabbing the MC(Netflix)U would be a massive coup for Hulu. They need original content and they need IP's with built in audiences.

Friends, this isn't a joke. Erwich is serious as a g****mn heart attack about this. I stake my reputation on it.

[ Prediction ] I have no idea exactly how the dust will settle with the streaming services. But I'll venture a guess and suggest to you that Netflix is facing the most serious peril right now. Everybody else has cover from other parts of their business. Netflix doesn't and they've topped out on their audience in the US. There aren't huge numbers of new Netflix subscribers to be found in America right now. At the very minimum, Netflix had better be ready to take this straight to the chin. [/ Prediction ]

[Silver Nemesis]

I really hope you're right. My only concern is that Hulu isn't available here in the UK. But I'm sure they can find another way of distributing the series outside of the US.

And that's a very good point about Hulu needing big IPs to compete with the other streaming platforms. Obviously Netflix has a lot of popular original content, so they can afford to take their Marvel shows for granted (see the abrupt cancellations and lack of promotion for the most recent seasons as proof of this). Hulu, on the other hand, might prioritise a show like Daredevil. Which could mean bigger budgets and shorter intervals between seasons.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for this.

[thecolorsblend]

I believe this would be a mutually beneficial deal. Like I said, Amazon Prime has solid original shows which are popular with viewers. I don't think Amazon would necessarily bend over backwards to accommodate Marvel Netflix. Why would they when they're not hurting for content right now?

Netflix obviously isn't interested.

YouTube Red probably can't afford full seasons of all these shows.

There's still a chance Disney+ may want the Netflix shows for themselves. And even if they do, Disney may be Marvel's parent company but TPTB at Marvel have bargaining power. A deal with Disney is not guaranteed, imo.

That leaves Hulu. And whoever is calling the shots at Marvel probably regards Hulu as a good fit for these Netflix shows. Handmaid's Tale notwithstanding, Hulu isn't exactly famous for their amazing original shows. Marvel Netflix could change that overnight. It could give Hulu a presence in the original programming world that they simply don't have right now. Plus, it's not totally foreign territory for Hulu to develop Marvel properties (like Runaways).

If the two year clause exists, it's a tough deal. Nobody knows what the streaming industry will be like by then. Two years is an eternity in today's market. This deal could fizzle before it even happens. Or any number of other things might arise which make it impossible.

But right here, right now, this is a ridiculously good choice for both Hulu and Marvel. I have more confidence now that the Netflix world will continue in some capacity than I did just a few weeks ago.

Keep the faith, brother. And don't worry about distribution in Europe. One way or another, you guys will get the same goodies as the rest of us. Be certain of that.