Iron Fist Episodes 1-3 Review: Not Quite The Punch I Was Hoping For

With "Iron Fist" (currently streaming on NetFlix), Marvel has introduced all four Defenders. They also include DareDevil, Luke Cage and Jessica Jones. I'm 1/3 through the season. There are 13 episodes total.

The premise of "the story is a bit lame. Danny Rand (presumed dead in a plane crash that killed his parents) returns to his life in New York. He has spent the last 15 years in a Himalayan Buddhist monastery. Danny wants to reclaim his name and majority ownership of Rand Enterprises. He's worth billions. But is that it?

Where's the baddie that's intent on world domination? There is a mysterious group called the "Hand". They're like the Illuminati but real. Danny is sworn to protect against them. There are also the Meachums (brother and sister Ward and Joy and their supposedly dead daddy Harold). While they're not pillars of virtue, they're not evil enough to be "big bads".

There are also WAY too many references to these people's childhood. I get it. You havent seen each other in 15 years. But you can stop talking about it at some point. Very unrealistic.

Finn Jones is a like-able enough actor. You'll remember him from "Game of Thrones" as Loras Tyrell. I dont see him having the physical prowess of a king fu master though. Speaking of which, many of the early fight scenes look VERY choreographed. They seem to get better as time passes.

I do like Jessica Henwick as Colleen Wing though. She is the standout of the series and her fight scenes seem less fake. Jessica Stroup is also able to breath life into Joy. I'm not if she'll join Danny or pass over to the dark side. More of these two ladies please.

Marvel (MCU) crossovers include:

Attorney Jeri Hogarth. You remember her from "Jessica Jones" . I always enjoy seeing Carrie-Anne Moss. She's also currently on "Humans" on AMC.
Rosario Dawson as Claire Temple (from "DareDevil", "Luke Cage" and "Jessica Jones") will appear in later episodes.

Grade: 3 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). "Iron Fist" is not a horrible show but not great either. There's not a lot that keeps me coming back for more. I'm hoping it grows on me over time.