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Defenders Countdown: 28 Days

Power Man and Iron Fist

The time has come! In less than a month, Luke Cage and Danny Rand will finally be running headfirst (fist first?) into each other in glorious live action. In preparation, here is a quick overview of the history of this most beautiful of friendships.

Luke and Danny meet under less-than-ideal circumstances-- though as any longtime reader of superhero comics knows, the best friendships often start with an editorially-mandated Superpowered Showdown(TM). Luke’s loved ones-- Claire Temple and Noah Burstein-- are kidnapped by sleazy mob boss Bushmaster, and threatened with death unless Luke kidnaps one of Bushmaster’s own enemies. The kidnappee in question is Misty Knight-- bionic ex-cop, one half of Nightwing Restorations, and Danny’s girlfriend. Luke, who grudgingly agrees in order to ensure Claire and Burstein’s safety, learns that Misty is at the Rand townhouse and busts in to grab her.

Chaos ensues. It just so happens that Misty and Danny are out on a date, and instead, Luke runs into Colleen Wing-- who manages to call for backup just before Luke knocks her unconscious. Misty shows up next, and gets in a few good hits before getting KO’d as well. When Danny arrives and sees what’s happened to his two closest friends, he is... less than forgiving.

Danny: “Mr. Cage-- turn around.”

Power Man #48 by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, and Francoise Mouly

As anyone might after getting a building dropped on them, Luke comes up swinging. The fight is as intense as you’d expect, with Danny’s extreme training and chi powers balanced out by Luke’s sheer toughness and strength. They’re both used to winning, and this surprising challenge shocks and impresses them. Seeing at last that the fight can’t go on, and trusting Power Man’s heroic reputation in spite of his current behavior, Danny takes a gamble and lets Luke grab him.

Danny: “Hands like vise... can’t breathe... But... I... sense at heart... Power Man isn’t... killer. I can try... tiger claw to eyes... last resort... blind him... Then, if that works, if I can summon... strength... pop his eardrums... killing blow, but not yet.”

Luke: “Lord, no-- What am I doin’?”

Power Man #48 by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, and Francoise Mouly

This near murder shocks Luke out of the fight. Calming down enough to explain himself, he soon earns Danny, Misty, and Colleen’s trust and sympathy. As a team, they rescue Claire and Dr. Burstein from Bushmaster’s headquarters, and then-- with the help of Danny’s attorney Jeryn Hogarth-- free Luke, at last, of the drug charges that originally sent him to jail.

Danny: “Alone at last. You changed your name, huh? Jeryn says your real, legal identity is now Lucas Cage! [...] Luke, how do you feel?”

Luke: “Kid, if you live a thousand years, you’ll never know [...] how sick I felt when they put me away... an’ how gut-bustin’ good I feel tonight. I ain’t just free, Danny-boy, I been reborn!”

Power Man and Iron Fist vol. 1 #50 by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Dan Green, et al.

Luke and Danny’s friendship progresses quickly after this. They start hanging out (their first one-on-one team-up occurs while Luke is giving Danny a tour of Harlem), and they come to realize that they really enjoy partnering up. At the time, Luke is working on retainer for Misty and Colleen’s P.I. business, but with Danny in the picture he considers revitalizing his own operation-- this time with some key changes.

Luke: “Y’know, Danny-- we make a pretty good team. If I wasn’t part of Misty’s detective agency...”

Danny: “You got fired, remember? Although I’m sure they’ll take you back. If you really want them to...”

Power Man and Iron Fist vol. 1 #53 by Chris Claremont, Ed Hannigan, Sal Buscema, et al.

When the offer comes, Danny eagerly agrees to join Luke’s Heroes for Hire business-- for several reasons. Having been born wealthy and then raised in a society without an emphasis on financial gain, Danny has no concept of the value of money. He hopes that joining Luke’s small, low-income business will fix this. It also gives him the sense of purpose and chance to use his skills that he has been desperately searching for since becoming stranded on Earth. But mostly, it allows him to spend more time with Luke. For the 72 issues that Heroes for Hire exists in its original form, Luke, Danny, and friends face down everything from dragons to Daleks (not a joke-- there are actual Daleks in this series)-- while building both a reputation as one of the baddest street-level teams around, and a friendship that is nothing short of legendary.

Danny: “--It’s me! [...] Are you all right?”

Luke: “Just fine now! Bet you’re the one who saved my hide, right?”

Danny: “Well, I, uh, suppose I did.”

Luke: “I knew that you did!”

Power Man and Iron Fist vol. 1 #85 by Denny O’Neil, Keith Pollard, and Christie Scheele

All good things must come to an end, however, and the first iteration of Luke and Danny’s partnership ends in the most sudden, shocking way possible. In a freak accident, Danny is beaten to death by another superhero, and Luke is blamed for it.

Tower: “Fact: Iron Fist was pummeled to death by someone with superhuman strength. Fact: the day before the murder you had an argument with Iron Fist. A very loud, very public argument. Fact: Iron Fist’s will names you as sole beneficiary of the Rand fortune. Fact: your P.I. firm, Heroes for Hire, has been going down the drain from the word go. Fact: you’re an ex-con with a reputation for being a hothead. [...] I may not have an airtight case... but I’ve got enough to hang on to you until I do.”

Luke: “What are you pushin’ for, Tower? District Attorney not good enough for you? You runnin’ for mayor or somethin’?! You’re grasping at straws, man. You got nothin’ and you know it. I loved that man.”

Power Man and Iron Fist vol. 1 #125 by James Owsley, Mark Bright, and Bob Sharen

Luke manages to avoid a prison sentence, but the experience seriously damages his psyche. He has once more been accused of a crime he didn’t commit, thus proving that in the eyes of the world, he’ll always be a morally suspect ex-con-- one capable of murdering someone he thought of as a brother. In the wake of Danny’s death he moves to Chicago, trades in the yellow v-neck and tiara for a more subdued, darker look, and starts a new solo act as a tough mercenary who’s only in it for the money. When it turns out that Danny didn’t actually die, but had been replaced by a shape-shifting sentient plant from K’un-Lun (er, long story...), it takes Luke a little while to sort out his feelings.

Danny: “Like the ‘in it for bucks’ attitude you throw in everyone’s face? That’s not you. [...] And it also stops anyone from getting too close, eh? Like I did?”

Luke: “Yeah! Don’t you get it? You proved the only one I could ever count on’s me.”

Cage vol. 1 #12 by Marc McLaurin, Dwayne Turner, and Kris Renkewitz

...But he and Danny figure things out.

Luke: “Got your ticket and... all, Fist?”

Danny: “Yeah, Luke. Look, despite all that’s happened-- all that’s changed-- I want you to know, you’re still my best friend. And I’ll always be there.”

Luke: “Me too, man. Me too.”

Cage vol. 1 #13 by Marc McLaurin, Scott Benefiel, and Frank Turner

Since then they have remained BFFs and de facto brothers, sticking together through several more iterations of Heroes for Hire, Luke’s own personal Avengers team, and everything in between. When Luke and Jessica Jones have a baby, they name her Danielle-- Dani for short.

Danny: “That’s really nice, guys.”

Jessica: “You’re her family. You know that, right? (Unless you’re really a Skrull, then you can go @##$ yourself.)”

Luke: “And you got matchin’ booties.”

Jessica: “Man, he’s been waiting to drop that joke on you.”

New Avengers vol. 1 #34 by Brian Michael Bendis, Leinil Yu, and Dave McCaig

...And in that one alternate universe where Danny and Misty’s baby is real (stay tuned for our Danny and Misty post for more on that...), they name her after her uncle Luke.

Jessica: “Lucy, how does your dad look?”

Lucy: “Daddy, you look beautiful.”

Danny: “Thank you, Lucy. Man, you look so much like your mom. How’d I get so lucky?”

Secret Wars: Secret Love, “Misty and Danny Forever” by Jeremy Whitley and Gurihiru

As is often the case with people who have spent years in close proximity, they’ve rubbed off on each other-- to the point where they can anticipate each other’s behavior, occasionally finish each other’s sentences, and (possibly most endearingly) have even picked up each other’s slang and speech patterns.

Guy: “What about the explosives?”

Luke: “Fist’s taken care of that.”

Guy: How do you know?”

Luke: “’Cause I know him!”

Power Man and Iron Fist vol. 1 #89 by Denny O’Neil, Denys Cowan, and Christie Scheele

Danny: “All right, mama, you may be bigger, badder and... a few thousand years more powerful than the last dragon I faced... but then I hadn’t mastered the power of the Iron Fist!”

Immortal Weapons #5 by David Lapham, Arturo Lozzi, and June Chung

Luke and Danny’s newest H4H venture was recently torpedoed by Diamondback, and they’re both currently working through some major changes in their own lives, but their love is stronger than ever.

Luke: “It’s gonna be okay, brother. I love you.”

Danny: “Love you, too.”

Power Man and Iron Fist vol. 3 #15 by David Walker, Sanford Greene, and Lee Loughridge

The teasing and baiting of Luke and Danny’s imminent encounter in The Defenders has been relentless-- from Danny worrying about Claire’s unnamed, bullet-riddled friend in Episode 11 of Iron Fist, to Mike Colter and Finn Jones hugging on stage at NYCC last year. In the interviews they’ve done together so far, the two actors have displayed what we consider to be fantastic chemistry, and when questioned about their characters’ relationship in the show, they’ve both indicated a level of care being taken to their interactions that, for us, is a big relief. After all, they can’t rely on viewers having read the comics-- this friendship needs to be built anew in the MCU.

Finn: "The dynamic between the characters is working really well. Before we started this, because there was such hype around our characters coming together for the first time, there was a worry that it might be too over- sensationalised or too over-written or too over-anticipated. But the way that it’s written and the way that we’re getting on and working together, it feels really natural.”

Mike: "They’re trying to organically allow our characters to get to know each other, without just going, ‘Hey, I like you, you like me, let’s hang out!’”

Source: SFX

At this point, we know that Luke and Danny will have their all-important bonding fight-- likely not on the building-destroying scale we’d like (see the beginning of the post), but that’s okay. We also know that both characters are starting from different emotional places than when they met in the comics-- with Luke relatively at peace following his acceptance as Harlem’s hero and the end of his prison sentence, and Danny feeling lost and untrusting in the wake of all his recent betrayals and the disappearance of K’un-Lun. It will be fascinating to see how these altered mindsets impact the development of their relationship in the show. We also have this little tidbit from Finn, which provides some hints as to the source of their initial tension:

“There's friction there at the beginning, and it's pretty obvious because we come from two different worlds. Luke Cage is from the streets. And he's trying to do good. He cares about community, he cares about lifting the bottom up... whereas Danny comes from a completely different side of New York, one of privilege, power, and money. And so when they come together, they definitely have a clash of ideals which, throughout The Defenders, they are coming to grips with.”

Source: Den of Geek

We have to admit to being nervous about this. The class difference is a notable element of Luke and Danny’s friendship, and something that has been a source of misunderstandings in the comics:

Luke: “Don’t seem fair, somehow... how some folks gotta hustle all their lives just to get by, and others got it made ‘cause they were born rich. Only thing all that hustling ever got me was a term in Seagate Prison-- ‘Little Alcatraz’-- for something I never even did.”

Danny: “Luke, we’re partners now. You’re my best friend. Anything I have is yours... whatever you want. Just name it.”

Luke: “No way! I got little enough as it is without losin’ my self respect, too.”

Danny: “But I didn’t... I only meant...”

Power Man and Iron Fist vol. 1 #56 by Mary Jo Duffy, Trevor Von Eeden, and George Roussos

Danny’s utter lack of interest in money jarring with Luke’s desire to make a living is a neat thing, and we would love to see it integrated into the show. However... it shouldn’t lead them to actually fight. Unless handled impeccably, that would feel out-of-character and weird. Danny is the most down-to-earth billionaire ever, who lacks the typical mindset of those born rich, and this needs to remain true since it’s a key component of his character. Even if Rand Enterprises had some direct, negative impact on Harlem that were to come to light in The Defenders (which-- hey-- is possible), we can’t imagine a reason why Danny wouldn’t be completely on Luke’s side.

But of course, we’ll reserve our judgement until we’ve actually watched the show. For the moment, we can’t wait to finally see this friendship happen. It’s gonna be beautiful.

#Luke Cage #Danny Rand #Iron Fist #Heroes for Hire #Commentary #Defenders Countdown

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