Our Iron Fist episode-by-episode viewing notes kick off with a look at the season premiere, Snow Gives Way.
These viewing notes contain spoilers.
1.1 Snow Gives Way
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So.
Its kind of difficult to talk aboutIron Fistwithout first addressing one of several elephants in the room.
Which do we pick first?
The unfortunate colonial overtones?
The troubling speed of the production despite a 3 year lead time?
You could write an essay covering any of these topics.
Ill put it upfront: Im going into this with an open mind.
If I didnt think I could give it a fair review, I wouldnt be doing it at all.
That said, this first episode is a struggle.
He also attempts to befriend martial arts instructor Colleen Wing, but shes having none of it.
It just makes his choices seem unrealistic throughout, and that makes him a frustrating lead.
This might be okay if Dannys fight scenes were impressive, but broadly, theyre not.
On the plus side, I like the dynamic of Joy and Ward as the shows sibling antagonists.
Their relationship is an interesting one which sets them apart from the other Netflix villains.
Theyre far more relatable and grounded, though that does have the side-effect of making them also less iconic.
Colleen Wing is unambiguously great, at least though if anything shestoojaded to Dannys plight.
Unfortunately, everyone spends time doing things that dont make a lot of sense.
Danny explains stuff to people who he thinks already know it.
I could go on.
In terms of characters…
The origin story is a rework of the comics Iron Fist origin.
In the comics, Ward Meachum is Harolds brother rather than son.
He first appeared in Marvel Premiere #19 (1974).
And Colleen Wing, who is Dannys some-time love interest, first appeared in Marvel Premiere #19.
So those are the basics.
What did you think of episode one?
