Marvel's Daredevil (Netflix)

[thecolorsblend]

Less than a month to go until the two-year anniversary of season 3, which is when the Netflix contract is supposed to expire. Hopefully it won't be too much longer before we hear something concrete about Marvel's plans for DD.

Considering the nature of the rumors making the rounds, there's good reason to doubt that even Marvel knows what their own plans are. Contract or no, this whole thing looks pretty complicated.

[thecolorsblend]

It's interesting to note certain changes that have occurred in the Daredevil comics since the TV series started. For one thing, Matt is looking more and more like Charlie Cox. Recent artists are generally depicting him with darker hair and stubble on his chin.

Marvel changes the height and weight stats for their heroes from time to time. Until recently, Daredevil was meant to be 6'0 and 200lbs. Now he's 5'11 and 185lbs, which is almost exactly the same as Cox's stats.

Matt's secret identity has been restored and he's relocated back to New York. He's also about to become a member of the Defenders, like his MCU counterpart.

The 'world on fire' visualisation of Matt's radar sense has appeared in some of the more recent comics.

Daredevil's current costume is darker. And his mask is sometimes drawn with the nose covered (depending on the artist), similar to the mask in the TV show.

There have been other subtle nods too, like the Italian gladiator movie poster on the wall of Melvin Potter's workshop, or the occasional reference to the New York Bulletin, or the recent introduction of Father Jordan as a Lantom-like figure for Matt to confide in. As someone who wasn't enamoured with Mark Waid's light-hearted Silver Age approach to the character, I have to say I approve of all these changes. It feels like the comic book Daredevil has returned to his dark roots and is back to his old self again. And I believe the TV series is at least partly to credit for that.

On the subject of the TV show, Charlie Cox has recently said they're to start filming season 3 later this year (woo-hoo!). Jessica Jones season 2 is also about to commence filming. This raises the problem of which series will get the spring release date in 2018 and which will have to wait until summer. I'm hoping DD gets the spring release. Partly because it means I don't have to wait as long to see it, partly because I enjoyed the fact the first two seasons were released in spring, and partly because – if season 3 is an adaptation of Miller and Mazzucchelli's Daredevil: Born Again, as many of us suspect – it's the perfect superhero story for Easter. Born Again is essentially an allegory for the Passion:

•   Matt is betrayed by someone close to him who sells him out in exchange for cheap material gain (a fix of heroine instead of thirty pieces of silver).

•   Matt is publicly defamed and accused of a crime of which he is innocent.

•   Matt is scourged by his enemy and brutalised to the brink of death.

•   Matt staggers around the streets of New York, mirroring Christ's walk to Golgotha. During this walk, Matt falls three times.

•   Matt is pieced in the side.

•   Matt then symbolically 'dies' and is held in his mother's arms in an image that consciously evokes the Pietà.

•   There's also an obvious crucifixion image in one chapter, with the cross above Matt's bed serving to highlight the significance of his pose.

•   Several days pass while Matt convalesces. Eventually he rises again stronger than before, and returns to save his friends. Themes of resurrection and redemption feature prominently.

Now I'm not expecting a literal scene-for-scene adaptation of this story. But if it is referenced in the main plot of season 3, and if the most important themes and images are preserved, then it would be insane not to release it around Easter.

Arguably, this is off-topic for what this thread is supposed to be about.

Otoh, not too much of anything is going on right now with Daredevil.

Anyway, reread Born Again last night for the first time in a long time. Years, perhaps. And man, I like it better each time I reread it.

I have nothing against Miller's first run on Daredevil. It probably saved Daredevil from the ash heap of history (which would be enough all by itself) and it's obviously a bona fide classic. I love it.

But Born Again is just better, I now realize. In the initial Miller run, Daredevil experienced setbacks (significant ones, even, with the death of Elektra, as an example). But in the main, the good guys mostly won and the bad guys mostly got punished. It plays to expectations in that way.

But Born Again mostly consists of Matt going from one ass-kicking to another to another to another etc. Therefore, when Matt finally regains the inner strength to become Daredevil again, I would argue that he's a better, strong and more impressive hero as a result.

In fact, I could even half ass argue that as Hush is Batman's series finale, Born Again could be Daredevil's series finale. Y'know, the end point where you can exit out of a character's publication history because you've come to a natural and logical conclusion. Of course, after Born Again was published, we got the totality of Daredevil vol. 02. So perhaps Born Again is not the character's best ending. But it's still a very strong ending.

I love this storyline!

[Silver Nemesis]

Marvel should have reacquired the rights to Daredevil by now, but so far there's been no news regarding their plans for the character. While we wait, here's a new video examining the cancelled Daredevil video game from 2003.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a96ecYQ4W0E&feature=emb_logo

[The Laughing Fish]

Deborah Ann Woll tweeted this picture today.



https://www.twitter.com/DeborahAnnWoll/status/1333279803454021632

Is good news about to come?

[Silver Nemesis]

It's been confirmed that deaf Native American actress Alaqua Cox is playing Echo in the Hawkeye Disney+ series.

https://www.cbr.com/hawkeye-disney-plus-echo-swordsman-yelena-belova/

So that's yet another major Daredevil character wasted on another hero's TV show. If the Iron Fist and Hawkeye comics don't have enough interesting supporting characters to flesh out their casts, then they shouldn't make TV shows about them in the first place.

Looking at the situation more optimistically, perhaps they're merely introducing Cox's Echo in the Hawkeye series to set her up for the impending return of Cox's Daredevil...?

[The Laughing Fish]

Take this rumour with a grain of salt, but it's interesting to read nonetheless.

https://www.small-screen.co.uk/mcu-daredevil-movie-reportedly-in-the-works-with-charlie-cox-starring-exclusive/

[Silver Nemesis]

[Silver Nemesis]

When asked which Marvel character he'd most like to tackle on the big screen, Zack Snyder expressed interest in adapting Frank Miller's Elektra Lives Again (1990).

"I would choose Elektra Lives Again. Do you know that Frank Miller comic book? It's a graphic novel about Elektra. Daredevil is having these dreams about Elektra coming back to life, and it's really cool and weird...It's just cool, and beautiful. That's what I would do. No one cares, but that's what I would do."

https://screenrant.com/zack-snyder-join-marvel-elektra-lives-again-movie/

The art style and page layouts of Elektra Lives Again are very similar to those of The Dark Knight Returns, so I can see it appealing to Snyder's visual sensibility. But it's an incredibly dark story, full of gore and nudity, so there's no way it would ever be adapted as an MCU feature film. Not unless Marvel starts producing r-rated movies for the Disney+ Star channel.

They could have adapted it for the Netflix show – and indeed aspects of it were referenced in The Defenders (2017) – but it wouldn't fit with the current tone of the MCU movies. It also has a strong oneiric quality that's probably too abstract for mainstream CBM audiences. I've never been a big fan of Elektra Lives Again anyway, so I'm not especially keen to see it turned into a film. There are plenty of superior Daredevil stories out there that are more deserving of adaptation.

[Silver Nemesis]

Kevin Feige was recently asked about the possibility of Cox returning.

Is there any chance that Charlie Cox could be back as Daredevil or do you consider what happened with Netflix almost like an alternate universe?

FEIGE: I look at anything that's happened before, whether it's our movies, whether it's Marvel entertainment TV series, in particular, obviously the comics, video games, cartoons, all of it is available as inspiration for the future of Marvel. That's the way that comics have worked for many years. So, we'll see.

I think a lot of people really loved Charlie in that role and are hopeful that he can find a way back.

He wouldn't say anything. Just looked at me and smiled.

https://collider.com/kevin-feige-interview-wandavision-she-hulk-deadpool-3-secret-invasion

Yeah, I reckon something's in the works.

[thecolorsblend]

Kevin Feige was recently asked about the possibility of Cox returning.

Is there any chance that Charlie Cox could be back as Daredevil or do you consider what happened with Netflix almost like an alternate universe?

FEIGE: I look at anything that's happened before, whether it's our movies, whether it's Marvel entertainment TV series, in particular, obviously the comics, video games, cartoons, all of it is available as inspiration for the future of Marvel. That's the way that comics have worked for many years. So, we'll see.

I think a lot of people really loved Charlie in that role and are hopeful that he can find a way back.

He wouldn't say anything. Just looked at me and smiled.

https://collider.com/kevin-feige-interview-wandavision-she-hulk-deadpool-3-secret-invasion

Yeah, I reckon something's in the works.

Back when the Netflix shows were a going concern, I got the distinct impression that Marvel Studios in general and Feige in particular had no use whatsoever for them. Considering Daredevil's proximity to Miller with some Bendis/Maleev thrown in, Jessica Jones overlap with Bendis and Punisher's general Ennis vibe... I mean, yeah, I could see where those specific influences were foreign to the tone that the MCU was shooting for. The grittiness of those characters isn't easy to tonally reconcile with Thor: Ragnarok, for example. Perhaps that was why Feige distanced the big screen MCU from them? It sounded reasonable at the time.

But considering some rumors and allegations going on about Jeph Loeb, one wonders if Feige was trying to keep Loeb at arm's length more than anything. If the answer was "no", I'm sure Feige would probably say so.

I guess we'll find out soon enough. But considering that Charlie Cox is most certainly the closest we'll ever get to the Bendis/Maleev run, it seems hopelessly foolish to cast him aside.