So Today I Watched… Luke Cage (Marvel/Netflix, 2016)Man...

So Today I Watched… Luke Cage (Marvel/Netflix, 2016)

Man you gotta love these Marvel Shows it’s almost like watching a 13 hour film that doesn’t let you go until you are done. Every single one so far has been rock solid and while Daredevil is still the most beloved of the bunch I gotta hand it to Luke Cage on how solid it is. It’s a love letter to Harlem and to Black culture and history. Set in the same Marvel Cinematic Universe as The Avengers, Daredevil, Jessica Jones and the upcoming Iron Fist and Punisher series. Luke Cage was the hot potato of the bunch. If you have read Luke Cage or Power Man comics in the past you may know why. Allow me to elaborate…

Luke Cage used to be a very outspoken character in the comics, when he was created he was all jive talking and a cultural representation of the 70′s. He was from the streets. He was a hero for hire, the one taking down the scum The Avengers or the X-Men didn’t have the time to deal with and he did it for a fee, a move inspired when his first outgoing as a vigilante was compensated with cash in a moment he was desperately in need of it. The modern Luke Cage is bit more altruistic he’s a very cultured and educated black man who was wronged and like his comic counterpart was forced to do time. While inside he is forced to participate in clandestine fight circuits and offered a chance for a reduced sentence if he agrees to be part of an experiment that goes sour and grants him unbreakable skin and super strength.

The series picks up five months after the events of Jessica Jones with Luke working two jobs outta payroll to make ends meet and keep a low profile. He’s hesitant to get involved on anything that will make his life more difficult than it already is but as these things go it’s not too soon until trouble comes looking at his door. He find himself at odds with Harlem’s #1 gangster, a man nicknamed “Cottonmouth” and who has a close relation to Pop’s the last family his deceased lady Reva had and the man who has taken him under his wing. When the conflict escalates and people close to Luke star to pay with their lives he’s gotta choose to face the music or run away from it… and face it he does with some very useful allies. Packed with characters that honors their comics origins we get to see Misty Knight wonderfully cast in the skin of one damn fine Simone Missick, the return of Rosario Dawson’s Claire Temple who is by now the glue in the Marvel Netflix Universe and solid acting of Alfre Woodward as Mariah Diller,  Mahershla Ali as Cottonmouth, and Erik Laray Harvey as Diamondback.

On a closing note and speaking of music… lend your ears to the original Soundtrack that has been gathered and created for this series. It features a live performance for each episode by some of the most talented black singers and musicians ever assembled . All in all I find Luke Cage as another solid chapter in storytelling a damn fine representation of the character and his original struggles brought on to these complex times. Go and bing-watch this and face the music!

Posted in: Reviews & Appreciation