Iron Fist: Eight Diagram Dragon Palm
March 20, 2017 9:36 PM - Season 1, Episode 4 - Subscribe
Danny makes a shocking discovery and a radical pricing proposal. Colleen's extracurricular activities go viral, and Ward issues a stern warning.
AV Club review here. (Warning: contains a comparison to Trump.)
One of my favorite lines from the review:
AV Club review here. (Warning: contains a comparison to Trump.)
One of my favorite lines from the review:
Now it would be one thing if Iron Fist were aware of how neatly Danny’s monologue echoes the blindness of privilege. Indeed, the joy of Marvel’s other iron hero Iron Man is just how much the films play around with Tony Stark’s relationship to his privileged life and persona. But so far this show doesn’t seem interested in truly delving into Danny’s psyche.
It occurred to me that Finn Jones is doing a really good job of playing a person who kind of got stuck emotionally/developmentally at age 10. He's painfully naïve and innocent (so confused as to why everyone can't just be friends) and I think we're seeing a gradual maturing as the episodes go on. But that might be stunted a tad due to his utter delight in having a "dad" again in Harold.
posted by cooker girl at 8:21 AM on March 21, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by cooker girl at 8:21 AM on March 21, 2017 [2 favorites]
The Bulletin reporter calls in, saying "don't give the front page to Karen". Could it be that Karen Page is still at the Bulletin after the gobbledygook of a column she submitted at the end of Daredevil Season 2?
Yeah. I would bet a shiny nickel on that - narrative conservation at work. (We don't know any other Karens in journalism here, I don't think.)
Also, Jesus Christ, Colleen, take the rent money from Danny.
I don't blame her. He's coming across pretty stalky. I mean, that's *not* what's going on, but the flag is still a bright shade of red. In her shoes, I'd be wary of accepting anything from him too, even after all this.
It occurred to me that Finn Jones is doing a really good job of playing a person who kind of got stuck emotionally/developmentally at age 10.
I feel like Jones is well cast here because of that, yes. They're pushing that too hard - the board room scene was probably about right for what I'd expect, while him just babbling about K'un Lun at the psych ward was too much and too dumb - but overall, I think that was the intent and that he's a decent choice to portray it.
posted by mordax at 10:08 AM on March 21, 2017 [1 favorite]
Yeah. I would bet a shiny nickel on that - narrative conservation at work. (We don't know any other Karens in journalism here, I don't think.)
Also, Jesus Christ, Colleen, take the rent money from Danny.
I don't blame her. He's coming across pretty stalky. I mean, that's *not* what's going on, but the flag is still a bright shade of red. In her shoes, I'd be wary of accepting anything from him too, even after all this.
It occurred to me that Finn Jones is doing a really good job of playing a person who kind of got stuck emotionally/developmentally at age 10.
I feel like Jones is well cast here because of that, yes. They're pushing that too hard - the board room scene was probably about right for what I'd expect, while him just babbling about K'un Lun at the psych ward was too much and too dumb - but overall, I think that was the intent and that he's a decent choice to portray it.
posted by mordax at 10:08 AM on March 21, 2017 [1 favorite]
And yeah, Harold's handling of Danny was sort of.. HEY KIDS? THIS IS HOW YOU DO THIS. I mean, either way, Danny is in his "graces", and either Danny deals with the Hand and frees Harold from his obligation, or Danny dies, freeing Harold from a different obligation.
Meanwhile Ward is all HARUMPH HARUMPH I WANNA KICK HIM INNA BALLS AGAIN DAD.
I think a lot of people forget that he wasn't 18 years old, fully developed shithead like playboy Oliver Queen, this was 10 a year old kid who was constantly kicked down by his older playmate, so maybe a bit of arrested development is to be expected?
posted by Kyol at 8:28 PM on March 21, 2017
Meanwhile Ward is all HARUMPH HARUMPH I WANNA KICK HIM INNA BALLS AGAIN DAD.
I think a lot of people forget that he wasn't 18 years old, fully developed shithead like playboy Oliver Queen, this was 10 a year old kid who was constantly kicked down by his older playmate, so maybe a bit of arrested development is to be expected?
posted by Kyol at 8:28 PM on March 21, 2017
I'd heard this show was bad, but this episode, fuck, this isn't bad writing, it's bad storytelling.
You can kind of believe the whole raised in a monastery thing, the fish out of water homeless new york thing in the previous episodes. You can look past the shoddy writing, the kind of creepy stalking he does of Coleen Wing (though that gets worse.) You can say, well, this is his motivation, he wants recognition for who he is... but then in this episode he gets it, and it's like storytelling fart. It smells bad and you are left wondering if the show shit it's pants.
posted by Catblack at 5:25 PM on March 22, 2017
You can kind of believe the whole raised in a monastery thing, the fish out of water homeless new york thing in the previous episodes. You can look past the shoddy writing, the kind of creepy stalking he does of Coleen Wing (though that gets worse.) You can say, well, this is his motivation, he wants recognition for who he is... but then in this episode he gets it, and it's like storytelling fart. It smells bad and you are left wondering if the show shit it's pants.
posted by Catblack at 5:25 PM on March 22, 2017
Maybe it would have been more interesting if Danny were kidnapped rather than rescued, and basically conscripted into becoming the Iron Fist, the living weapon, because he was a disposable outsider.
I'm still betting that the plane crash wasn't an accident.
posted by Halloween Jack at 9:43 PM on March 27, 2017
I'm still betting that the plane crash wasn't an accident.
posted by Halloween Jack at 9:43 PM on March 27, 2017
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The Good: Even though it was painted on so thick that Daredevil couldn't hear through it, I did enjoy the sibling rivalry Harold set up between Danny & Ward at the beginning of the episode. Hogarth "doesn't do" hugs & is probably pissed off she missed off on billing Danny for all the legal work she was promised last episode. Harold Meachum Secret Ninja was a decent reveal, though.
For some reason Colleen's 2 vs 1 fight this episode seemed more fluid & realistic(?) than last week's challenge against the man-mountain.
The Bad: Danny's eye rolling board room shenanigans & Colleen's unnecessary KO of the tackling dummy. If they were trying to showcase her inner rage, they did that a few scenes later when she was pummeling faces and breaking shoulders in the cage. More filler in a show filled with it. I really felt the acting in the Joy/Danny scenes in the loft. The show has a really bad case of telling when they could be showing. Also, Jesus Christ, Colleen, take the rent money from Danny.
The hallway/elevator scene is probably the best action set piece so far (faint praise) but the hallway was done better in Daredevil, and the elevator was done better by Captain America, so if suffers by comparison.
The Other: I know that in the comics Danny earns his way into becoming the Iron Fist in K'un Lun, and this episode's conversation with Joy shows that it's the same here. I was hoping that they were doing something different here in the show, though. Maybe it would have been more interesting if Danny were kidnapped rather than rescued, and basically conscripted into becoming the Iron Fist, the living weapon, because he was a disposable outsider. And now that's 'programming' he has to fight if he wants to be a functioning member of society (especially as an NYC power player). The proverb dribbling naif thing isn't really doing it for me, but maybe I just really want him to be K'un Lun's version of the Winter Soldier rather than anything groundbreaking.
The Bulletin reporter calls in, saying "don't give the front page to Karen". Could it be that Karen Page is still at the Bulletin after the gobbledygook of a column she submitted at the end of Daredevil Season 2?
posted by Jugwine at 4:43 AM on March 21, 2017 [3 favorites]