The Defenders: Ashes, Ashes

"Any questions...?"

Wow. The Defenders is on fire as we approach the endgame. So many twists and turns.

Not that it's all shock moments- we get lots of fun plotting and skulduggery between the four surviving fingers of the Hand. We get some good little chatracter scenes- between Luke and Danny; between Luke and Stick; between Matt and Jessica. We see Danny versus the others- who are right- in a hero versus hero fight that actually makes sense. We see Matt and Jessica make a significant discovery about the Hand's intentions, although I'm not sure exactly why Matt starts to play that piano.

And then we get the final few minutes. We don't expect Stick to drug Luke so he can kill Danny. No hard feelings, of course: Danny would be useful to the Hand, so he has to die. Fortunately everyone is able to race back... but so is Elektra. It's an even bigger shock when she kills Stick- who, to be fair, has just assured his own doom by the karmic rules of television drama- and brings Danny to Alexandra.

So Alexandra triumphs yet again. She's won the prize, she's got the Iron Fist, the key to K'un Lun and the elixir of life she seeks to cure the disease that is killing her. And she's proved to her restless colleagues that she was right....

So Elektra kills her. And takes over, her agenda unclear. Wow. Just wow. This is brilliant in every way. Yet the shocks work, because the characterisation does.

The Defenders: Take Shelter

 "You are the dumbest Iron Fist yet!"

This is a fascinating episode. The heroes are not yet fully a team, not least because Matt is hiding the truth about Elektra from them... but it's great to see them interact. But the greater friction is, of course, within the five fingers of the Hand. This is a particularly strong episode. All the pieces are out and the mid-game phase is underway.

Plot-wise, things are pretty simple. The heroes' loved ones are threatened by the Hand, so Misty is persuaded to give them protection. Elektra is the catalyst to everything. Matt is forced to confess her backstory, and insists that some part of the resurrected "Black Sky" remains Elektra- something which the ending seems to prove. Meanwhile, the baddies turn against Alexandra for her going off-piste in resurrecting Elektra. Oh, and Stick beheads Sowande, as you do.

There is so much lore being hinted at. Does Gao blind her acolytes, and does this explain Stick's origins? There are hints that there may be more to K'un Lun than is known to Danny. The Hand has "always" owned New York. Alexandra had a daughter before her pilgrimage to K'un Lun.

Deeper than this, though, is the characterisation. Karen and Stick are pulling Matt in opposite directions. Claire is utterly devoted to Luke, and a wise friend to Colleen. This is very well written and acted. It's nuanced, fascinating television, balancing the action with intrigue and solid characterisation. I'm impressed. The Defenders has been good from the start, but this is more.

The Defenders: Royal Dragon

 "Who hears neon?"

This is my favourite episode of The Defenders thus far. I suspect, although I can't comment on what to come, thatI'm not alone in that. I mean, all four heroes all interacting over a meal for the entire (well, close) episode! Stick turning up after a decent interval both to act as a delightfiully interesting catalyst and to provide much-needed exposition about who the Hand are, all five fingers (including both Gao and Alexandra), the link to K'un Lun, the obsession with immortality... and, as Jessica discovers, Alexandra at least is very old indeed. 

And it's wonderful. Yes, there's a lot of reveals and a lot of cool moments, but the episode wisely takes its time, letting the interactions between the characters not be rushed. So Jessica gets to persuade a sceptical Matt at the start, only to leave when she realises what she's getting herself into... only to return once again when she realises her own case, and the widow and orphan clients she cares about, are themselves threatened by the Hand.

Yet both Luke and Matt are reluctant,,, and Matt is in denial about Elektra no longer being the woman he loved. Or is he right and Stick wrong? Even Alexandra finally gets to feel her terminal illness a little. But it will come to us all. And the rest of us have certainly not lives for two centuries, potentially much, much longer.

A superb episode ends perfectly, with Elektra and a crash. This series took a couple of episodes to build, but right now it's bloody good.