The first reviews for The Defenders are in, and they aren’t as glowing as we expected – and wanted – them to be.
Despite making a great start with Daredevil and Jessica Jones, the Netflix corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe fell into lethargy with Luke Cage and Iron Fist. And Netflix delivered the goods with Daredevil's second season, but it appears that the first four episodes of The Defenders are struggling to get some love from the critics.
The review embargo was just lifted, and the majority of the websites agree that Netflix/Marvel's first ensemble TV show is entertaining, although its story moves slowly for such an event. The cast is praised, including the actors who play the superheroes, although it’s mentioned that Sigourney Weaver seems a bit bored as the main antagonist, Alexandra.
Of course, the reviews cover just the first four episodes. We’re hoping that the sparks mentioned by some of the reviewers will eventually start a raging fire. Here are some excerpts:
Collider: If you thought Defenders would be a culminating chapter to the other Netflix/Marvel series so far, think again. So far, it feels like another prelude, and it makes one wonder if we'll ever get to the main event.
Empire: Even so, there is enough joy in watching the sparks fly as these four alpha characters finally collide to make you feel The Defenders might just have been worth the wait. It's a long-anticipated crossover series that delivers some engaging character clashes, but which fails "” in the first half, at least "” to up the ante story-wise.
We Got This Covered: While the show starts as something of a slow burn, once the heroes come together, it more than lives up to the promise fans have been clamoring to see realized. It may not be the strongest Netflix/Marvel series thus far (that would be a toss-up between Daredevil and Jessica Jones), but The Defenders splits the differences between its leads, creating something that even casual fans of these shows shouldn't miss.
Coming Soon: For fans, this is definitely worth a watch, though getting to the actual story might be frustrating for some. When the team-up finally does happen, it's pretty satisfying. If you haven't seen all the other series, fear not. A lot of time is spent explaining. Hopefully we can let that go in the second half.
According to Marvel Television head Jeph Loeb, this could be the only season the series will get. At this point, we don't know whether this has something to do with the reviews.
But we'll definitely binge-watch these eight episodes as soon as they’re released on August 18, 2017!
