This may come as a surprise to some: according to a new study by
Jumpstart (courtesy of
Variety), it seems that while critics and fans both had varying reactions to Iron Fist, the show still pulled in big ratings, earning the spot of the highest debut season for any of the individual Defenders. While it is dwarfed by the far more popular second season of
Daredevil, the Immortal Iron Fist bested both fellow Defenders
Luke Cage and
Jessica Jones debuts, but also trouncing Netflix's newest seasons of their signature streaming shows
House of Cards and
Orange Is The New Black, at least within the first month of their debuts.
Considering Daredevil's own debut doesnt seem to have made the cut on this list, if that trend holds for the other seasons we can expect Marvel to continue to dominate among Netflix's originals as more and more seasons of those shows come out. In fact, by the end of 2017 alone it is expected for all four Defenders shows to have begun production on new seasons.
So while it seems critics may have disliked the show, Marvel's branding is strong enough to propel Danny Rand above and beyond his peers in terms of series debuts. With The Defenders just now hitting the internet and still The Punisher coming in the fall, as well as all four Defenders shows set to begin filming sequel seasons by the end of this year (two of which have already begun shooting) if these ratings continue it seems Marvel and Netflix certainly won't be parting ways any time soon.