What Luke Cage & Iron Fist Seasons 3 Would Have Been About
1
ADVERTISING
What would have happened in the now-cancelled third seasons of
Luke Cage and
Iron Fist? October has been a difficult month for fans of the popular Marvel Netflix shows. On the one hand, the eagerly-anticipated
Daredevil season 3 has finally released, to popular and critical acclaim. Unfortunately, this was against the backdrop of two major cancellations, with Netflix bringing both
Iron Fist and
Luke Cage to an end after two seasons.
The reasons for the cancellations are believed to have been slightly different. In the case of
Iron Fist, it's generally believed that the show never recovered from a critically-panned first season, in spite of the best efforts of new showrunner Raven Metzner. In contrast, there have been reports that talks on
Luke Cage season 3 went to the wire, with reports of "
creative differences" between Marvel and Netflix. The streaming service apparently wasn't comfortable with the direction Marvel intended to take the series, and they wanted a shorter 10-episode series than Marvel was prepared to make.
Related: Why Luke Cage & Iron Fist Won't Go To Disney Play
It's possible that
Luke Cage and
Iron Fist will be
replaced by team-up showslike
Daughters of the Dragon and
Heroes for Hire. By now, though, it's quite clear that this wasn't the original plan. Key members of the cast, and even the two showrunners, have taken to social media to thank their fans for following them, and there's a definite sense of sorrow to their comments.
Daredevil showrunner Erik Oleson, a close friend of Metzner's, gave a sense of just how difficult a time it's been for the Marvel teams. "
The Marvel shows are a family," he explained. "
I took Raven out for drinks on Saturday night and we commiserated. It was heartbreaking news."
ADVERTISING
So what were Marvel's plans for
Luke Cage and
Iron Fist seasons 3? This article will look at the ideas set up in the shows, and the (sparse) comic book precedents, and attempt to deduce what was going to happen.
WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IN LUKE CAGE SEASON 3?
Luke Cage season 2 ended with a whole new status quo for Harlem's Hero. He'd inherited Harlem's Paradise, and had concluded he could do more good for his neighborhood as a crime boss who was attempting to keep the peace. It's an approach Luke has never taken in the comics, which makes it pretty difficult to guess where showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker was planning to take the series. The only solid hint has been given by
Mike Colter, who described something of a "fall from grace" arc:
ADVERTISING
"I think the plan for season 3 is to explore Luke's ability to govern and be fair. At the end, we talk about there being a new sheriff in town, a new king in Harlem. We're going to see how he deals with this power, because we know absolute power can corrupt absolutely. And sometimes when you don't have someone checking you, someone to put you in place, someone to tell you 'you can't do that,' we sometimes get out of control. We see that everywhere."
Related: All The MCU Team Ups We'll Never See Because Marvel Keeps TV Separate
Part of this involves the fact that Luke's old friendships and relationships are breaking down. Although
Rosario Dawson was willing to reprise the role of Claire Temple, Luke's lover and moral conscience, she stressed that it may not be possible due to personal commitments. "
My daughter is in high school," Dawson pointed out, "
so I kinda wanna not be 3,000 miles away for work." Meanwhile, Luke's new role as a crime boss will inevitably cause conflict with Misty Knight, who's been offered a promotion and would be in charge of bringing an end to Luke's burgeoning criminal empire. Season 2 ended with Luke alone in his office, signifying that he'd lost everyone and everything that could keep him on the straight and narrow.
Dialogue in
Iron Fist season 2 strongly suggested that Misty would call in her friend Colleen Wing to help against Luke. Colleen has become New York's new Iron Fist, and she could well be
the key to stopping Luke. After all, as Misty noted, Colleen now has "
one of the few weapons that might make a dent in that man." A flash-forward scene at the end of
Iron Fist season 2 suggested that Colleen will learn how to channel her Chi through other weapons, most notably her katana, and that's an absolute game-changer.
The Defenders already confirmed that a punch thrown with the power of the Iron Fist can knock Luke Cage down; that means, in theory, that Colleen's sword can be used to cut him too. Making matters worse, Luke wouldn't necessarily find out that Colleen was a threat to him until she was ready to take him on. It's important not to overemphasize Colleen's importance to the plot, though; Marvel would have been hoping she'd be needed for both
Luke Cage and
Iron Fist seasons 3, so scheduling alone would have meant she had a limited role in
Luke Cage.
ADVERTISING
The arc sounds vaguely similar to that of the
Shadowland event, a comic book miniseries that saw Daredevil make the same kind of mistakes Luke is guaranteed to make. At the same time, though, it's likely the resolution would have been slightly different; rather than seeing Luke beaten by his friends, it would have probably involved him realizing what he was becoming, presumably after making a big mistake. There would be a certain poetry if
Luke Cage season 3 were to end with Harlem's "
bulletproof black guy" going back to jail, but this time for crimes he really did commit.
WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IN IRON FIST SEASON 3?
Iron Fist season 3 would probably have had a different focus; the mythology of the Iron Fist. It would have divided its time between Danny Rand's quest in Asia and Colleen Wing's new career as the Iron Fist of New York, but a single thread of discovery would clearly weave between the different plots. After all, the flash-forward scene reveals that Danny Rand will somehow become a second Iron Fist, and that both he and Colleen will learn to channel their Chi through weapons like guns or blades. It may be that Danny even discovers another dragon, explaining how he gets his powers back. It's uncertain whether or not Marvel would take that approach, though, given Netflix budgets didn't exactly make for
a strong Shou-Lao in Iron Fist season 1.
The "months later" scene name-dropped a major figure from
Iron Fist mythology, Orson Randall. In the comics, Randall was Danny's predecessor as the Iron Fist, who abandoned his duties and faked his own death. Randall is a fairly recent addition to the
Iron Fist mythology, created by Ed Brubaker and David Aja back in 2013. It was Randall who told Danny about the existence of the Seven Capital Cities of Heaven, introducing the concept of
the Immortal Weapons, the cities' sacred defenders. His signature move was channeling his Chi through guns - the very skill Danny seems destined to pick up.
ADVERTISING
Related: Iron Fist: The Biggest & Best Easter Eggs Hidden In Season 2
Meanwhile, another aspect of the plot would probably have involved Colleen learning her family history.
Iron Fist season 2 suggested that she was descended from Wu Ao-Shi, the "Pirate Queen of Pinghai Bay," the first female Iron Fist. It's likely that, at first, Colleen will attempt to use the Iron Fist in a diplomatic way, attempting to keep the peace between the different gangs. Little by little, though, she'll wind up taking to the streets as a vigilante. Interestingly enough, there was actually no reason for Colleen to channel her Chi in that scene set "months later," so it may be she'll find the power of the Iron Fist every bit as addictive as Danny did. It could be that Danny's quest ultimately unlocks the secret of truly mastering the Iron Fist, rather than forever struggling to avoid being mastered by it.
ADVERTISING
One final plot thread was surely intended to be a key part of
Iron Fist season 3: Typhoid Mary's third personality. Season 2 teased that a third personality was buried deep within Mary Walker's psyche, a brutal and bloody killer. In the comics, that third personality is the misandrist Bloody Mary, and she's the most terrifying and dangerous of all Mary's alters. At the same time, though, Marvel may well have decided to hold off on that plot for another show; the character is usually associated with Daredevil, and it would definitely be thrilling to see Alice Eve's Typhoid Mary go up against Charlie Cox's Daredevil.
-
With
Iron Fist and
Luke Cage sadly canceled, what's next for the two heroes? There's a lot of speculation that Marvel and Netflix will pivot to
two spinoffs, Daughters of the Dragon and Heroes for Hire. Luke Cage could potentially even be the villain in
Daughters of the Dragon, which would focus on Misty and Colleen; he'd then transition over to
Heroes for Hire for a redemption arc, teaming up with Danny Rand.
At the moment, though, that's just speculation. Whatever Marvel insiders may say, there's no guarantee will sign up to this approach. For now, there's a real danger that the stories of Luke Cage and Danny Rand - and, indeed, their tremendous supporting characters - will be left incomplete.
