We finally come to it: the final Defender, Iron Fist. By now, you’ve been treated to the full live tweet of Iron Fist, led by our very own Alice W. Castle. Now sit down, get some tea, and get ready for these full breakdowns of each episode. In “Felling Tree With Roots,” Danny goes through a major first in his life and the Meachum empire falls. Let’s jump into this but be warned, there will be spoilers.
1. Feels Like The First Time, Feels Like The Very First Time
Danny and Colleen have done the deed and now we have a romance subplot that I’m very conflicted about. I kind of don’t see the chemistry between these two characters in a romantic sense. I really liked the idea of them getting close and being partners as heroes and not as a romantic couple. With anything, there’s always romance shoved in there but I prefer things to kind of develop on their own and this didn’t. It was telegraphed right from the beginning and I wonder what this show would look like without it. Danny has like no people skills so rushing into a romance doesn’t make much sense.
2. Corporate Hero Danny Rand Strikes Again
As I’ve mentioned a few times now, I love Danny Rand’s inability to lead a company this large with anything other than his heart. It’s pure wish fulfillment for me but probably doesn’t work that much for this show. This comes back again in this episode as Danny refuses to make good on what he promised Joy. Instead, Danny doesn’t apologize and he goes and shuts down the plant causing cancer and agrees to keep all the employees on payroll. This is obviously a huge problem for a corporation but it wins Danny great press. It also leads to….
3. The Downfall Of The Meachums
Iron Fist is by no means a good show. I have struggled to get through these episodes but for the first time there was an actual logical chain of events. Danny’s inability to lead a corporation has backfired on him, Joy and Ward as the board of directors outs all of them. I’m extremely curious to see where Joy goes after this because of all three people involved, she’s the one who’s been holding it all together. Now that Danny’s actions have caused her to lose everything, how will she react? I am very curious and nervous to see what happens with her next. On the other hand, you have Ward who went fully off the deep end and murdered his father.
4. I Will Remember You
I liked Harold Meachum as a character. He was one of the few bright spots in this show but how he goes out makes a ton of sense. After Danny’s bad timing leads to the Hand realizing that Harold was lying, he kills the two men that come to punish him in front of Danny. When Ward visits, Harold insults him when he won’t help him dispose of the bodies. After realizing he has stolen enough to run away, Ward is almost free when everything comes crashing down on him as Harold takes the money away and tells him he always knew he had it and that he’d never be free. Drug addicted, stressed out Ward kills Harold in a bloody mess and we say goodbye to Harold. This is another thing that you just knew was coming but unlike Colleen/Danny, this worked for me. I still don’t actually “like” Ward but I’m kind of hooked on watching what happens to him. How much lower can he go and now that his company is no longer his, how much more reckless will he become? The Meachums are not quite the Lannisters but I like their drama. On a more focused show, this would be great but….
5. This Is Still About Heroin??
Danny finds out just what Madame Gao is up to and I still wish the show would be more focused on what it is doing. There is a lot happening in this episode that doesn’t all connect because Iron Fist is trying to do everything at once. Madame Gao and The Hand have used the Rand corporation as a front to make and distribute and extremely deadly form of heroin. They are poised to put more out into the city at a rapid pace. Again, the problem with Iron Fist (at least one of its biggest) is that it has decent ideas but is throwing them all out at once, hoping that something sticks. On the plus side, Madame Gao is getting a lot of screen time and she’s quite the chilling villain.
What did you think of this episode? Let me know in the comments below!
