Last night I had a fever that bumped up to almost 102. This morning the fever broke and other than being a little worn out I’m ready to jump back into Luke Cage.
Luke Cage s01e03 Who’s Gonna Take the Weight?
writer: Matt Owens
director: Guillermo Navarro
Netflix
Quick Review:
Episode 3 brings our hero to action, which of course brings out some consequences. It’s good to see Luke making choices and being an agent of change. Somehow it is even better that things are shown to not have the expected results. Another positive aspect of this episode is how it expands the world and shows us a few more character motivations. Really the only downside in this episode was relying back on police corruption.
Spoilers Lurk Below
Analysis:
Let’s start with the police corruption. First, I’m pretty sure this has factored into every Netflix Marvel show. Okay, Jessica Jones was more about a crazy cop, but close enough. Second, if a point they are wanting to stress is that Misty Knight is an excellent cop, doesn’t having her partner be a murderer undercut that ever so slightly. So, yeah, it feels a little tropey to have that element involved, but I was also disappointing with the handling of it. The moment Bad Cop (whose name I can’t remember) took off his tie it was just a waiting game for the strangulation. I felt like the show was trying to surprise me, and boy did it fail.
The first season of Daredevil had a tremendous hallway fight. It got so much buzz that season 2 went back to that well again and again. This episode we got the Luke Cage version. I appreciated the tone of it and how, while paying homage, it was going its own way. Daredevil’s hallway fight was about it being an exhausting endurance test. This was about showcasing the might of Luke Cage. Daredevil felt every punch. Luke is able to shrug off bullets. Daredevil, visually, went with something approximating a single take. This had many different cuts.
Might is not Luke Cage’s problem. But, perhaps, seeing the big picture is. His made these attacks, which were all successful, but seems to have failed to see how his enemy might retaliate. I find it interesting that Luke’s remaining compatriot is a chess player. Perhaps this be a person who can provide him with lessons on strategy, on seeing the whole board.
Wrap Up:
A nice solid third episode. Definitely more things to enjoy here than things that trouble me. Really, it will just depend on how they handle Bad Cop and whether or not there is enough plot to sustain 10 more episodes.
Deadly Troubadour 
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