10 MARVEL Characters Netflix's TV Shows Got Right...And 5 They Totally Screwed Up
With Daredevil season three now on Netflix, we're taking a look back at the many characters introduced by Marvel on the streaming service to see what they got right...and exactly how many they got wrong!
Season one of Daredevil was launched back in 2015 and since then, we've spent a considerable amount of time in this corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe both with the Man Without Fear and heroes like Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Punisher. Throw in a plethora of supporting players and villains and Marvel has introduced a lot of comic book characters on the small screen.
Now, with season three of Daredevil streaming on Netflix, we've decided to take a look back at ten characters we believe Marvel got right in this corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and five who were screwed up so badly that we never want to see them again (well, unless they're rebooted).
Needless to say, we're sure you'll have plenty to say about the heroes and villains listed here as well as those who failed to make the cut. Once you've check out the full list by clicking on the "View List" button below, be sure to head to the comments to let us know what you guys think of our picks.
WRONG: Leland Owlsley
While Leland Owlsley was a competent enough secondary villain in Daredevil season one, Marvel completely dropped the ball on a character who has frequently comes to blows with both the Man Without Fear and Spider-Man over the years.
From the moment he was introduced, it was hard to imagine Bob Gunton's version of the character ever taking to the skies with razor sharp claws ready to slice Matt Murdock to pieces. Plus, while his death at the hands of Wilson Fisk was definitely a surprise, it also closed the door to him ever developing into anything close to what we see in the comic books.
Alas, this screw up was probably the result of Marvel looking to ground these shows in reality as much as possible so we never should have got our hopes up about seeing The Owl.
RIGHT: Daredevil
While Netflix's portrayal of Matt Murdock has been a little hit and miss over the years, he's easily the most consistent character we've seen in any of these shows and following his journey has been fun from the very start.
From his time in the black suit inspired by Frank Miller and John Romita Jr.'s The Man Without Fear to the moment he finally donned the classic red costume, Daredevil's journey may have hit some bumps in the road and probably needed at least a little more time in the courtroom but this version of the character has been hard to fault for the most part.
Whether it's his interactions with The Kingpin or the way he stood up against The Punisher's twisted belief system, Charlie Cox's Daredevil is so good, he's the only one listed here who deserves a movie.
RIGHT: Kilgrave
Marvel Studios has a spotty track record when it comes to villains and it's only really been during Phase 3 that we've seen any sort of real improvement. David Tennant's Kilgrave knocks spots off nearly every bad guy to grace the big screen; he's menacing, twisted, and genuinely frightening.
Sure, it was disappointing seeing him return as an "it's all a dream!" style character in season two of Jessica Jones but the way he tortured Jessica throughout the first season made for compelling viewing and ensured it was extremely satisfying to see him finally get his just desserts at her hands.
The only bad thing about him being killed off is that we won't get see more of him down the line.
WRONG: Iron Fist
I think Finn Jones is a talented actor and a good choice to take on the role of Danny Rand but let's face it, he's been wasted from the start. There have been moments of greatness (that cameo in season two of Luke Cage, for example) but Marvel completely dropped the ball on the character and so it's no great surprise that Iron Fist has now been cancelled.
During season one, Danny could barely use the Iron Fist and then in season two, he spent most of the season without it which is just jaw-droppingly stupid when you stop and think about it.
While it's said that he'll live on in this corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we're never going to get to see him meet Orson Randall and that's purely down to the stupidity of Marvel Television when it comes to the way they've handled the hero.
RIGHT: The Punisher
When Jon Bernthal was cast as Frank Castle, fans rejoiced. After all, it was hard to imagine anyone better than The Walking Dead alum taking on the role of The Punisher. While he could have easily disappointed, the actor exceeded expectations from the start and delivered a performance which was undoubtedly Emmy worthy.
As a result, it came as no surprise when the vigilante was granted his own series after appearing in Daredevil season two and while Castle should have spent more time wearing that iconic body vest, it was an enjoyable story arc which gave the character his well-deserved share of the spotlight.
Marvel very nearly screwed The Punisher up with that convoluted origin story and conspiracy theory revolving around the death of his family but now that's out of the way, there's a very good chance that we'll see Frank finally become the character we all know and love from the comic books when he returns in season two.
RIGHT: Colleen Wing
Fans have so many of their own ideas about who or what a character should be, it's rare that they unanimously agree one has been improved during the transition from page to screen.
In the case of Colleen Wing, though, it's fair to say that Marvel has done an incredible job bringing her to life in Iron Fist and there's a very good reason why a huge number of fans have been campaigning for her to get her own spinoff series (preferably alongside Misty Knight who is every bit as fantastic a character).
While giving her the power of the Iron Fist was a controversial decision among fans at the end of season two, it sets the stage for some exciting stories down the line...which sadly are now unlikely to ever be told following Iron Fist's cancellation.
RIGHT: Luke Cage
Forgetting the fact that Luke Cage's arrival in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was somewhat overshadowed by how relevant a bulletproof black man was at the time given everything that was happening in America, the job Marvel did with Power Man has been pretty exemplary from the start.
There were admittedly some sizeable errors made during the course of season one (putting him in a coma, for example) but those ultimately didn't matter too much and even though tying his origin story into Jessica Jones felt forced, that was quickly glossed over.
In season two, Mike Colter continued to develop Luke Cage and took the Hero for Hire to some dark and unexpected place, especially after that insane finale. With any luck, we'll get to see him team up with Iron Fist more often moving forward as making him a crimelord on a permanent basis definitely doesn't feel like a good direction for the character.
WRONG: Diamondback
What a clusterf**k this ended up being. Teased throughout the first half of Luke Cage season one before being unmasked as the show's big bad, his attempts to make his "brother's" life a living hell fell flat and were topped off with a cringe-worthy fight sequence which saw him suited up in a comical costume for a lame-ass fight scene.
By the time the season ended, he was left comatose and the stage was seemingly set for him to return...something season two understandably didn't even bother to reference.
Both Mike Colter and showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker have acknowledged that Luke Cage went downhill with Diamondback's introduction and while it's not like the character was ever that great in the comics to begin with, it was still a shame to see him wasted in this series.
RIGHT: Cottonmouth
While Luke Cage's version of Cottonmouth definitely differed to his comic book counterpart, there's no denying that Marvel did a superb job of taking a relatively one-dimensional character and transforming him into one of the best villains we've ever seen in Netflix's corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Mahershala Ali was absolutely superb from start to finish and while Marvel's intention was to shock us by killing Cottonmouth off halfway through the season, that backfired on them spectacularly as no one could quite believe that one of the show's best characters had just been unceremoniously dispatched!
Despite that, what little we did see of him was extremely satisfying and it's just a shame that no one in Power Man's orbit has managed to be as effective a villain since...well, one did but we'll get to him a little bit later.
WRONG: The Hand
When it became clear during the first season of Daredevil that The Hand would be the big bads of these Netflix TV shows, there was a lot of excitement among fans. Iron Fist and Daredevil season two attempted to expand on that but it soon started becoming clear that Marvel didn't really know what they were doing with the clandestine group of ninjas.
In fact, by the time The Defenders came around, it was apparent that Marvel had totally dropped the ball on the villains, doing away with what made them great in the comic books and focusing instead on businessmen and plans which made little to no sense.
Even Elektra's death and resurrection was botched and seeing Daredevil or any of these heroes battle ninjas quickly got old. As it stands, The Hand has now been defeated but what happened to us getting to meet The Chaste and all those characters? Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you see it), this plot thread is now dead so who knows!
RIGHT: Wilson Fisk
Giving Wilson Fisk an origin story rather than making him a cardboard cutout mobster in the same way his comic book counterpart is so often portrayed was a bold move and one that definitely paid off.
Vincent D'Onofrio's performance is equal parts terrifying and fantastic and whether he's brutally attacking a fellow criminal or delivering a speech to one of our heroes that sends a chill down your spine, his Kingpin is a force to be reckoned with and one it would be great to see clash with the likes of Tony Stark and Spider-Man on the big screen.
With Fisk's transformation into the Kingpin of Crime seemingly set to continue in Daredevil season three, Marvel would be wise to establish the character as the new big bad of this world because that's probably the only way we're ever going to get to see The Defenders assemble again.
RIGHT: Bushmaster
Luke Cage has received a lot of representation here but that's not favouritism; that's because the show has done a consistently good job with its characters. After the disappointment that was Diamondback, the only place to go next was up but Bushmaster was a terrific villain in his own right and his story arc was every bit as enjoyable as Luke's.
Justifying his actions with a tragic backstory really helped to make Bushmaster relatable and giving him similar power set to Power Man was a smart move which resulted in some tremendous fight scenes as we got to see Luke finally meet his match.
Mustafa Shakir, meanwhile, delivered a superb performance which put him on the map and we'll hopefully be seeing much more from him moving forward. Whether or not that will be in Luke Cage is hard to say but it would be great to see him head up a series of his own either on the small screen or on the big one.
WRONG: Foggy Nelson
I really like Elden Henson as Foggy Nelson but Marvel has made him arguably one of the most infuriating characters in any of these Netflix shows. He's a bad friend to Matt Murdock, pretty much nothing like his comic book counterpart when it comes to reluctantly supporting the Man Without Fear, and so judgemental that he's a chore to watch.
Foggy has had his moments, however, and it definitely appears as if season three is making things right.
I'm sure that many of you will take issue with Foggy making the list instead of Karen Page (or even Claire Temple) but while she has also become equally as infuriating as time has passed, it's just frustrating to see Foggy wasted when there's so much that could have otherwise been done with him.
RIGHT: Billy Russo
We know that Jigsaw will be making an appearance in season two of The Punisher and while it's too soon to say whether or not Marvel will get the villain right (set photos have pointed to him not being anywhere near as disfigured as he should be), there's no denying that following Billy Russo's origin story proved to be immensely satisfying.
Yes, it was vastly different to the source material but the reveal of his true motivations and the subsequent battle with Frank Castle was great fun to watch as was that brutal scene where he tore his old friend's face to pieces.
Ben Barnes delivered a tremendous performance and while you'd have to be as blind as Daredevil not to see him inevitably turning on Frank, those unfamiliar with the comic books were probably still surprised and now we just have to hope and pray that Marvel doesn't drop the ball on Jigsaw!
RIGHT: Jessica Jones
I very nearly didn't include Jessica Jones here after that abysmal second season which focused on her boring relationship with her mother but the first season is still up there as one of the best Marvel shows produced by Netflix.
It's now hard to imagine anyone other than Kristen Ritter bring this character to life and watching her in action feels exactly like reading Brian Michael Bendis' Alias comic book series. She also stole the show in The Defenders and even during the lows of season two, the character managed to be a great deal of fun to watch.
With any luck, season three will set things right...providing we see a lot less of Trish Walker!
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