Marvel's The Defenders is an American streaming television miniseries created by Douglas Petrie and Marco Ramirez for Netflix. It is based on the Marvel Comics characters Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist, who form the eponymous superhero team. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and acknowledges the continuity of the franchise's films. The miniseries is a crossover event for several interconnected series from Marvel and Netflix. It was produced by Marvel Television in association with ABC Studios, Nine and a Half Fingers, Inc., and Goddard Textiles, with Ramirez serving as showrunner. The series stars Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock / Daredevil, Krysten Ritter as Jessica Jones, Mike Colter as Luke Cage, and Finn Jones as Danny Rand / Iron Fist, all reprising their roles from their individual series.
Introduction
The Defenders (miniseries)
The Defenders (miniseries) | Introduction
Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist etc Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist.
when does marvel's the defenders take place
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August 18, 2017
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what is the defenders?
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American streaming television miniseries
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who wrote this?
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Petrie and Ramirez
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who are the characters in this series?
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In April 2016 Petrie and Ramirez were announced as showrunners of "The Defenders", a miniseries that crosses over "Daredevil", "Jessica Jones", "Luke Cage", and "Iron Fist".
Doug Petrie | Introduction
Marvel's The Defenders is an American streaming television miniseries created by Douglas Petrie and Marco Ramirez for Netflix. It is based on the Marvel Comics characters Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist, who form the eponymous superhero team. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and acknowledges the continuity of the franchise's films. The miniseries is a crossover event for several interconnected series from Marvel and Netflix. It was produced by Marvel Television in association with ABC Studios, Nine and a Half Fingers, Inc., and Goddard Textiles, with Ramirez serving as showrunner. The series stars Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock / Daredevil, Krysten Ritter as Jessica Jones, Mike Colter as Luke Cage, and Finn Jones as Danny Rand / Iron Fist, all reprising their roles from their individual series.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Introduction
S. J. Clarkson, director of the miniseries' first two episodes, also serves as an executive producer on the first episode. In July 2016, Loeb confirmed that the miniseries would consist of eight episodes, and stated that Petrie and Ramirez would consult with Melissa Rosenberg, Cheo Hodari Coker, and Scott Buck—the showrunners of "Jessica Jones", "Luke Cage", and "Iron Fist", respectively—on how their characters would act; the other showrunners read each of the scripts for "The Defenders" and provided insight into each individual character's world. On this collaboration, Petrie said of Rosenberg specifically that she was "wonderful because she's in this position of being a fellow artist and letting us do what we do, but at the same time loving her character and being protective of her character and wanting us to get it right".
The Defenders (miniseries) | Development
By late May 2016, Petrie and Ramirez had turned in a completed story for the miniseries, based on a "very bare-bones structure" from Loeb. Petrie and Ramirez went through a "trapeze act" to have the story work for viewers who had not seen the previous series, while also not have redundant moments of exposition for those who had. Petrie said the miniseries would be a "detour" for the characters, allowing them to return to the worlds of their own series at the end, making it equivalent to "Daredevil" season 2.5, "Luke Cage" season 1.5, "Jessica Jones" season 1.5, and "Iron Fist" season 1.5.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Writing
It also stars Eka Darville, Elden Henson, Jessica Henwick, Simone Missick, Ramón Rodríguez, Rachael Taylor, Deborah Ann Woll, Élodie Yung, Rosario Dawson, and Scott Glenn, all also returning from previous series, as well as Sigourney Weaver. Development began in late 2013, with Cox the first actor cast in May 2014. Petrie and Ramirez joined as showrunners in April, after doing so for the second season of "Daredevil". Petrie left with the start of filming, which took place in New York City from October 2016 to March 2017. Cinematography and design work established the different color palettes from the characters' individual series, and combined them as the team is formed.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Introduction
Ramirez explained that the scene was included because a third season of "Daredevil" had already been announced, and they did not want to make the audience think they "were trying to cheat them or convince them of something that's not happening".
The Defenders (miniseries) | Writing
Set a few months after the second season of "Daredevil", and a month after the first season of "Iron Fist", the vigilantes Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist team up in New York City to fight a common enemy, the Hand.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Premise
This includes her mentor Stick and the miniseries' apparent central antagonist Alexandra, whom she both murders, as well as Daredevil. Ramirez said that the theme of "having to embrace the identity you want" also applies to the four Defenders. He added that Elektra murdering Alexandra made more sense than one of the Defenders doing it, as the writers felt that none of the Defenders were murderous and would have to be pushed into doing it. Regarding where the miniseries leaves the Defenders, Ramirez compared their relationship to "people who were on the same bus when it got in an accident ...
The Defenders (miniseries) | Writing
The producers had referred to the character as "a Sigourney Weaver type" for four months before Loeb contacted her about the project. Additionally, J. Mallory McCree recurs as Cole; Michelle Federer and Chloe Levine portray Michelle and Lexi Raymond; and Ron Simons appears as police captain Strieber. Babs Olusanmokun and Yutaka Takeuchi portray Sowande and Murakami, respectively, both being leaders of the Hand.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Casting
Ramirez also felt that the antagonist should be a common denominator rather than having individual villains combining from each series. They settled on the overarching organization of the Hand, and have the characters following individual investigations that lead them to converge on the same location. It was subsequently important to Ramirez that the Hand be destroyed by the end of the miniseries, to give it a definitive ending and to allow the individual characters, especially Iron Fist, to move on to new stories and adversaries. To give something unexpected to the audience, the focus of the story is ultimately revealed to be Elektra Natchios, and her journey of rejecting the people in her life who have told her what to do.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Writing
In September, Simone Missick said she would be reprising the role of Misty Knight from "Luke Cage" in the miniseries. After production began in October, it was confirmed that Darville, Missick, and Yung would appear, alongside "Daredevil" actors Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page, Elden Henson as Foggy Nelson, and Scott Glenn as Stick; "Jessica Jones"s Rachael Taylor as Trish Walker; and "Iron Fist"s Jessica Henwick as Colleen Wing. Ramón Rodríguez also reprises his "Iron Fist" role as Bakuto, while Rosario Dawson returns as Claire Temple from all of the previous Marvel Netflix series. At New York Comic Con in October, Sigourney Weaver was announced to be playing the main antagonist of the miniseries, later revealed to be Alexandra.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Casting
Loeb compared the miniseries to the Olympics, where "you get to know all of these athletes in their various sports [and then] they're going to get together", while Coker further compared it to the forming of the Wu-Tang Clan or Voltron. Ramirez and Petrie wanted the project to feel earned, grounded, and topical like the individual series, rather than "a corporate mandate". Goddard noted that each of the individual series have different tones, and combining them for the miniseries created a different one. Finding this new tone was the most challenging aspect of the project for Ramirez. Scenes in the early episodes were created to feel like the "most optimal versions" of each individual series, using visual and sonic elements from each that are slowly combined as the miniseries goes on.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Writing
The superheroes Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist team-up in New York City. "The Defenders" sees Cox, Ritter, Colter, and Jones reprise their roles as Matt Murdock / Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Danny Rand / Iron Fist, respectively, from the previous television series. In March 2014, Loeb stated that the miniseries would begin filming after "Iron Fist". In April 2016, Marvel announced that Douglas Petrie and Marco Ramirez would act as showrunners for "The Defenders". However, by the start of filming in New York City in October 2016, Petrie had left the series as co-showrunner. Filming concluded in March 2017.
Marvel's Netflix television series | "The Defenders" (2017)
it's kind of like, 'This was a great adventure to have with you, I'd be okay with seeing you again, I'd also be okay with never seeing you again. The final image of "The Defenders", in which Murdock wakes up with a nun by his side, is an homage to a panel from the "Daredevil" story arc "Born Again" (1986). The nun calling for "Maggie" is an implied reference to Murdock's mother, which Ramirez would not confirm at the time of miniseries' release. He did note that this scene along with several others from Daredevil's story in the miniseries was a direct homage to the comics, and that this panel from "Born Again" was one of his favorite Daredevil panels.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Writing
A "Defenders" five-issue miniseries debuted in July 2005, by Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, and Kevin Maguire (as a team, best known for their work on DC's Justice League franchise), featuring Doctor Strange attempting to reunite the original four Defenders to battle Dormammu and Umar. This series focuses mostly on humor as the characters spend most of their time arguing with and criticizing one another. The series was later collected into both hardcover and trade paperback collections, entitled "Defenders: Indefensible".
Defenders (comics) | 2005 miniseries
Rosenberg said that she and the other showrunners "felt really included in the process". Loeb compared this relationship to Joss Whedon consulting with the filmmakers of the MCU's before directing the crossover film "The Avengers" (2012). At the start of filming in October 2016, Petrie left the series as co-showrunner. Loeb explained, "We got to a point where the scripts were done, and we wanted Marco to continue, and Doug pursued other avenues."
The Defenders (miniseries) | Development
So the idea of taking the concept and name and applying it to [the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)] feels wholly natural" adding there was "a wonderful concept" behind why the group would form in the MCU and why they would be called the Defenders. In April 2016, it was announced that Douglas Petrie and Marco Ramirez, the showrunners for the second season of "Daredevil", would serve as showrunners and executive producers on "Marvel's The Defenders". "Daredevil" creator Drew Goddard also serves as an executive producer on the miniseries, along with Karim Zreik, Cindy Holland, Allie Goss, Alison Engel, Kris Henigman, Alan Fine, Stan Lee, Joe Quesada, Jim Chory, and Marvel Television head Jeph Loeb.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Development
The publication was retitled near the end of the run as "The New Defenders" but featured none of the original members and only Valkyrie, Beast and the Gargoyle of the former long-term members. The concept was modified in the 1993–95 series "Secret Defenders," in which Dr. Strange assembled different teams for each individual mission. The original team was reunited in a short-lived 2001 series by Kurt Busiek and Erik Larsen. In 2005 Marvel published a five-issue miniseries featuring the classic line-up by J.M. DeMatteis, Keith Giffen and Kevin Maguire. In December 2011 writer Matt Fraction and artist Terry Dodson launched a "Defenders" series with a mixture of classic and new members, which lasted for 12 issues.
Defenders (comics) | Introduction
Cox, Ritter, Colter, Jones, and additional stars of the miniseries appeared at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con to promote the series, where the first episode was also screened. A red carpet premiere for the series was held at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center on July 31, 2017, where the first two episodes were screened.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Marketing
Defender (real name Don Stevens) is a superhero who appeared on the cover of the first issue of "U.S.A. Comics" and in stories from issues #2-4.
List of Marvel Comics characters: D | Defender
In August 2017, Marvel launched a new Defenders comic book series starring Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist, based on the Netflix incarnation of the team. During the "Secret Empire" storyline, the Defenders were seen fighting the villains that were on a rampage for what happened in Pleasant Hill. They were defeated when Nitro exploded.
Defenders (comics) | 2017 series
Director S. J. Clarkson, cinematographer Matthew J. Lloyd, production designer Loren Weeks, and costume designer Stephanie Maslansky worked together to create distinct color palettes for each of the characters, maintaining the looks from their individual series, rather than attempting to blend the looks of all the different series for the miniseries. Maslansky explained that the palettes were used for the lighting, sets and locations, and costumes for the lead characters as well as extras. When the characters begin to crossover, so do the colors, and decisions were made regarding which colors come to the foreground and which are seen less on a scene-by-scene basis.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Design
Rosenberg and the season's writers were halfway through the writing process by August 2016, with the scripts completed by the end of October 2016. Writing during the 2016 United States presidential election, Rosenberg noted she "was just so " and that she and the writing team tried to tap "into the rage Hillary [Clinton] must have felt every day" for the characters. With "The Defenders" releasing before the season, Rosenberg used the miniseries as an opportunity to help "set up" elements for the season, working with "The Defenders" executive producers and writers Doug Petrie and Marco Ramirez to do so.
Jessica Jones (season 2) | Writing
there is forward progress in the narratives for each" of the Defenders, despite them not interacting in the episode. She added that the episode included elements expected for a Marvel Netflix series, and concluded with a binge-watching-appropriate cliffhanger. "Polygon"s Julia Alexander was "stupidly excited to binge the rest of the season" after seeing the first episode, praising the "intriguing" Alexandra and her relationship with Elektra, as well as the miniseries' efforts to focus on the individual identities of the Defenders. Peter Sciretta for "/Film" called the episode "a fine start" to "The Defenders", but felt it did not succeed in introducing the characters to viewers who had not seen the individual series.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Critical response
Clarkson and Lloyd also learned the technical requirements for depicting the character's Iron Fist based on the process used by that series' crew, along with how the effect of Cage's abilities were created.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Cinematography
In 2008 Joe Casey wrote a new miniseries with a new line-up of Defenders as a result of the Super-Human Registration Act and the events of the Civil War. Nighthawk wanted a team made up of previous Defenders such as Hellcat and Devil Slayer but Tony Stark (Iron Man) makes the decision to select other heroes for the team. The line-up is led by Nighthawk, with Blazing Skull, Colossus, and She-Hulk as members. The Defenders are assigned to New Jersey under the Fifty State Initiative, because the proximity to New York City demands more experienced heroes than can just be recruited from the ranks of Camp Hammond.
Defenders (comics) | The Last Defenders
The Fearless Defenders was an ongoing comic book series published by Marvel Comics that debuted in February 2013 as part of the company's Marvel NOW! initiative. The series, written by Cullen Bunn with artwork by Will Sliney, centered on the Valkyrior, a team of female superheroes led by Valkyrie and Misty Knight. Despite favorable reviews from critics, the series ended in December 2013 after thirteen issues due to poor sales.
Fearless Defenders | Introduction
He highlighted the use of color throughout the episode to differentiate the characters. Reviewing the first four episodes of the series, Katharine Trendacosta for "io9" appreciated the writers for addressing the questions viewers wanted answered and depicting moments that fans wanted to see without "sacrificing the characters or the story". She did criticize the amount of exposition, the unoriginal story, and the "over-the-top" villains, but felt that "the good of "The Defenders" far outweighs the bad ... it's all a canvas to showcase Matt, Jessica, Luke, and Danny coming together [to be] more entertaining". "The Washington Post"s David Betancourt also gave a positive review, calling the event "well worth the wait", enjoying the pairing of Cage and Rand and calling Weaver's "compelling" Alexandra the "biggest surprise" of the series.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Critical response
The eight-episode event premiered on August 18, 2017. The miniseries also sees many supporting characters from the individual series reprise their roles, including, Deborah Ann Woll, Henson, Scott Glenn, Élodie Yung, Eka Darville, Moss, Taylor, Simone Missick, Jessica Henwick, Dawson, Ho, Ramón Rodríguez, Peter McRobbie, Morgan, Amy Rutberg, Susan Varon, and Nichole Yannetty as Karen Page, Foggy Nelson, Stick, Elektra Natchios, Malcolm Ducasse, Jeri Hogarth, Trish Walker, Misty Knight, Colleen Wing, Claire Temple, Gao, Bakuto, Lantom, Turk Barrett, Marci Stahl, Josie and Nicole, respectively. Midland Circle, which was referenced in previous Netflix series, is revealed to be an operation of the Hand, who bought the building to search for the life substance hidden beneath the property.
Marvel's Netflix television series | "The Defenders" (2017)
Members of "The Defenders" appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television series "Marvel's The Defenders". Each of the Defenders listed below have an individual series all leading up to the miniseries
List of Defenders members | Marvel Cinematic Universe
In February 2017, John Paesano was announced as the composer for the miniseries, after previously composing for the first two seasons of "Daredevil". Paesano felt "there was more license to push the envelope and lean a bit more into the orchestral colors" of each character since they were "dealing with outright superheroes that audience is familiar with". His score, which was a hybrid of synthesizers and a 30-piece orchestra, borrows the "color" of each character's themes from their individual series "to remind viewers of their individual personalities". The music of Johannes Brahms is used throughout the miniseries, first in the second episode where Alexandra is shown listening to a performance of his First String Quartet by the Aeolus Quartet.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Music
In 2001–2002, the Defenders reunited in "Defenders" (vol. 2) #1–12 created by Kurt Busiek and Erik Larsen, immediately followed by "The Order" #1–6, in which Yandroth manipulated Gaea into "cursing" the primary four Defenders (Doctor Strange, the Sub-Mariner, the Hulk, and the Silver Surfer) so that they would be summoned to major crisis situations. These members were then mind controlled by Yandroth into forming the world-dominating "Order"; once the Order were freed from this control by their fellow heroes (including their teammates Hellcat, Nighthawk, and Valkyrie), the Defenders apparently disbanded. A fill-in issue set between these two series was published in 2011.
Defenders (comics) | Reunion and The Order
February 2013 saw the debut of "The Fearless Defenders", a series written by Cullen Bunn with artwork by Will Sliney. Bunn said that he had wanted to write the series, which centers on a new team of Valkyrior, led by Valkyrie and Misty Knight, after writing "Fear Itself: The Fearless". It was suggested to him that it should run as a Defenders title, however Bunn explained that beyond the name there is "little connection" to the Defenders.
Defenders (comics) | The Fearless Defenders
Goddard also executive produced and co-wrote an episode of the miniseries "The Defenders". The series featured a team-up of the Marvel Television superheroes, including Daredevil. It was released on Netflix in August 2017.
Drew Goddard | "Daredevil" and "The Defenders"
Marvel launched a new "Defenders" series in December 2011, written by Matt Fraction and drawn by Terry Dodson. The new book features Doctor Strange, Red She-Hulk, Namor, the Silver Surfer and Iron Fist. The new series follows the reunion of the Defenders in "Fear Itself: The Deep". During the battle against the Death Celestials the characters Black Cat, Nick Fury, and Ant-Man join the team. The series was cancelled at issue #12. Despite the prophecy supposedly being a hoax, the central storyline of the series involves a reunion of the original four Defenders setting off a chain of events leading to the destruction of the universe.
Defenders (comics) | 2011 series
"Collider"s Allison Keene also gave the miniseries 3 stars out of 5. She felt some of the solo series issues such as pacing and narrative choices were still present, but there were still elements to enjoy including Jessica Jones and the banter among the heroes. Keene felt that the pacing issues improve once the Defenders finally unite. She criticized the focus on Rand's company, and also said that the miniseries felt less like a culmination or ending than she would have liked. Reviewing the series for "Uproxx", Alan Sepinwall felt "The Defenders" borrowed the best elements of the previous series, such as the fights scenes of "Daredevil", Jessica Jones's "snappy dialogue, the music (particularly in Luke Cage's scenes), and Rosario Dawson.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Critical response
The Defenders is an American courtroom drama series that ran on CBS from 1961 to 1965. It was created by television writer Reginald Rose. Original music for the series was scored by Frank Lewin and Leonard Rosenman. This series is not related to the 2010s CBS series of the same name.
The Defenders (1961 TV series) | Introduction
The Defenders are a set of fictional superhero groups with rotating membership appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are usually presented as a "non-team" of individualistic "outsiders" who, in their prior adventures, are known for following their own agendas. The team often battle mystic and supernatural threats. Its original incarnation was led by Doctor Strange and included Hulk, Namor, and—eventually—Silver Surfer. They first appeared as the Defenders in "Marvel Feature" #1 (Dec. 1971). The group had a rotating line-up from 1972 until 1986, with Dr. Strange and the Hulk being usually constant members along with a number of other mainstays such as Valkyrie, Nighthawk, Hellcat, Gargoyle, Beast, the Son of Satan and Luke Cage, and many temporary members.
Defenders (comics) | Introduction
"The Defenders" is the final series of the initially ordered Netflix series, after "Daredevil", "Jessica Jones", "Luke Cage" and "Iron Fist". In August 2014, Vincent D'Onofrio, Wilson Fisk in "Daredevil", stated Marvel Television planned to "branch out" after the Netflix series. In March 2015, Loeb confirmed that there was potential for the series to crossover with the MCU films and the ABC television series since they are all set in the same universe, but said they would each remain self-contained at first because "the audience needs to understand who all of these characters are and what the world is before you then start co-mingling".
The Defenders (miniseries) | Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins
Stan Lee makes a cameo appearance through an on-set photograph as NYPD Captain Irving Forbush, the same photograph seen in previous Marvel Netflix series. The Aeolus Quartet also cameo as themselves, performing Johannes Brahms' First String Quartet for Alexandra.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Guest
In October 2013, "Deadline Hollywood" reported that Marvel Television was preparing four drama series and a miniseries, totaling 60 episodes, to present to video on demand services and cable providers, with Netflix, Amazon, and WGN America expressing interest. A few weeks later, it was announced that Marvel Television and ABC Studios would provide Netflix with live action series centered around Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist, leading up to a miniseries based on the Defenders. In November 2015, Marvel Comics' editor-in-chief Joe Quesada stated there was no apprehension from Marvel in changing the line up of the Defenders from the "classic" original line-up (Doctor Strange, Hulk, Namor and Silver Surfer) because "to the world at large, no one knows who the Defenders are.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Development
The miniseries also references the events of "The Avengers".
The Defenders (miniseries) | Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins
These characters helped form the team in "Marvel Features" #1 (December 1971).
List of Defenders members | Founders
Maslansky, who designed the costumes for the previous Marvel Netflix series, had the choice between designing for "The Defenders" or the first season of "The Punisher" due to a scheduling conflict between the two productions, and chose to work on "The Defenders" so she could create the culmination of all her work on the previous series. She described the process of highlighting the individual character's color palettes as a celebration, looking to infuse the costumes with red for Daredevil, navies and lavender for Jessica Jones, olive green for Iron Fist, and gold "Harlem colors" for Luke Cage. The characters' costumes were kept consistent with their individual series, though for Daredevil's superhero costume, which is created by Hargate Costumes in Los Angeles, the helmet was changed for "The Defenders" to having a matte surface that was less shiny than in "Daredevil".
The Defenders (miniseries) | Costumes
This group's composition was even more fluid than that of the original Defenders, but typically included either Doctor Strange or Doctor Druid as leader, joined by a custom selection of heroes chosen for the mission at hand. At various times, War Machine, Darkhawk, Thunderstrike, Wolverine, the second Spider-Woman, Ant-Man, Iceman, Nomad, and many others were members. At the end of its existence, the group had a somewhat regular composition including Cadaver, Sepulchre, Joshua Pryce, and Doctor Druid.
Defenders (comics) | Secret Defenders
The series' title sequence, designed by Elastic, evokes the work that the company did for the series "True Detective" by recreating the characters of the show out of elements of its setting: the sequence depicts the four Defenders out of colored topographical maps of New York City, showing the different areas of the city that each of them come from.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Design
In response to this, Loeb reiterated that there were still no plans for the series to continue at that time, but this did not mean that it would never be continued in the future, especially since a "Defenders" team was not actually formed in this miniseries and future "Defenders" stories could then focus on different characters.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Future
The team is disbanded for incompetence but Richmond eventually founds a team outside the Initiative with the Son of Satan, She-Hulk, Krang, and Nighthawk (S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Joaquin Pennyworth). The team reappears in the mini-series "Vengeance" (2011).
Defenders (comics) | The Last Defenders
Defenders membership was fluid, yet a few members were relatively constant: the three founders (Doctor Strange, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and the Incredible Hulk), the Silver Surfer, Valkyrie, Nighthawk, Hellcat, and Gargoyle. Membership was clearer in the New Defenders era when the team was more formally organized.
Defenders (comics) | Membership
In the final issue, Dr. Strange changes the past so that the reunion never happens, thus erasing all the events of the series.
Defenders (comics) | 2011 series
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 78% approval rating with an average rating of 6.59/10 based on 100 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, ""Marvel's The Defenders" further develops well-known characters in an action-packed arc whose payoff packs more than enough of a punch to offset its flaws." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 63 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". The early screening of the first episode at San Diego Comic-Con was met by "applause throughout" from the crowd. Tracy Brown of the "Los Angeles Times" noted after "a quick refresher on where each hero's solo story left off ...
The Defenders (miniseries) | Critical response
The miniseries also references the events of "The Avengers".
Marvel's Netflix television series | "The Defenders" (2017)
At the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con, a teaser trailer was shown featuring the word "Defend" forming from pieces of the logos from the four previous series over "the ominous shape of a giant hand", along with Glenn providing a voice over as Stick, asking how the four heroes plan to save New York when they cannot save themselves. For New York Comic Con later that year, the four Defenders' actors appeared together on stage, along with Weaver, to promote the miniseries. In April 2017, series' release date was revealed via a teaser trailer designed to look like security footage showing the four Defenders inside a Midland Circle elevator.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Marketing
The following is a list of character summaries from the FX Networks television series "The Shield".
List of The Shield characters | Introduction
Suffering from creative burnout on the series, DeMatteis felt a change was needed. As of issue #125, "The Defenders" was retitled to "The New Defenders" as the original four members (Doctor Strange, the Silver Surfer, the Hulk, and Namor) are forced to leave the team, in response to an alien prophecy that states that these four, operating as a group, would be responsible for destroying the world. While The Beast reforms the team as an official super-hero team complete with government clearance. The "New Defenders" concept provided a substantial boost to the series's sales, but left DeMatteis in a creative drought, as he realized in retrospect that "...I created a book that was exactly the kind of the thing that I hated to write.
Defenders (comics) | The New Defenders
In the 2009 ongoing "Hulk" series (Issues 10–12), Red Hulk assembles a counter team of supervillains called the Offenders, which includes Baron Mordo, Terrax the Tamer, and Tiger Shark, and fights past versions of their enemies.
Defenders (comics) | The Offenders
The origin of the Defenders lies in two crossover story arcs by Roy Thomas prior to the official founding of the team. The first, in "Doctor Strange" #183 (November 1969), "Sub-Mariner" #22 (February 1970), and "The Incredible Hulk" #126 (April 1970) occurred due to the "Dr. Strange" series being canceled in the middle of a story arc, leaving Thomas no choice but to resolve the storyline in other series that he wrote. In the story, Dr. Strange teams with Sub-Mariner and the Hulk to protect the Earth from invasion by Lovecraftian interplanar beings known as the Undying Ones and their leader, the Nameless One.
Defenders (comics) | Publication history
2 #5–7, followed by issues #3–4 of the relaunched "Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme" series.
Defenders (comics) | The New Defenders
Following Wolverine's murder of Hank Pym during the "Age of Ultron" to keep Ultron from being created, a splinter timeline called Earth-26111 is created. In the new timeline, the Defenders became the world's premier superhero team after the disbanding of the Avengers. The new Defenders line-up consisted of Doctor Strange, Captain America, Wolverine, Janet Van Dyne as Captain Marvel, Thing, Scott Summers as Cable, Hulk, and Star-Lord. The group is a resistance against Morgan le Fay who has conquered half of Earth.
Defenders (comics) | "Age of Ultron"
The end of the season introduces a new costume for Iron Fist, an homage to the tracksuit that the character wears in the comics. Maslansky felt that the full tracksuit was "very '70s, a little too wise-guy, Italian mafia", and so designed a track jacket that used the classic design and colors of green with gold stripes, and paired it with cargo pants. For Alexandra and the Hand, the executive producers suggested the color white as a repurposing of the phrase "the light at the end of the tunnel" given the group are immortal supervillains. Alexandra's costumes also feature metallic elements to suggest that she was more of a warrior in a past life and has that "fierceness or a power within her".
The Defenders (miniseries) | Costumes
Jeff Jensen for "Entertainment Weekly" gave the series a "B+", calling it "lively genre entertainment that recharges your interest in Marvel pop". He praised the fact that "The Defenders" was only 8 episodes long, compared to the 13 of previous Marvel Netflix seasons. Dan Jolin of "Empire" gave "The Defenders" 3 out of 5 stars, finding "enough joy" in the interactions between the Defenders to make it feel "worth the wait". However, he felt it failed to "up the ante story-wise", and was disappointed that Weaver's Alexandra was "yet another businessperson baddie whose dirty deeds are hidden by sharp suits".
The Defenders (miniseries) | Critical response
It starred E. G. Marshall and Robert Reed as father-and-son defense attorneys who specialized in legally complex cases, with defendants such as neo-Nazis, conscientious objectors, demonstrators of the Civil Rights Movement, a schoolteacher fired for being an atheist, an author accused of pornography, and a physician charged in a mercy killing.
The Defenders (1961 TV series) | Plot
Midland Circle, where the four Defenders all initially meet, was previously mentioned in the first and second seasons of "Daredevil" and the first season of "Iron Fist." It is revealed to be an operation of the Hand, who bought the building to search for the life substance hidden beneath it. Ramirez said that after showing the Hand purchasing the building in the first season of "Daredevil", and introducing the hole they were digging in "Daredevil"s second season, it was up to the writers on "The Defenders" to decide what would be in the whole. Ramirez felt that having the skeleton of a dead dragon be the source of the substance the Hand sought was the best way to tie the different series together, including because it references the first season of "Daredevil" where Gao sells a drug made from crushed dragon's bone.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins
Despite this, Emolia was placed in witness protection.
List of The Shield characters | Emolia Melendez
After defeating Diamondback, Luke Cage, Iron Fist and Jessica Jones reformed the Heroes for Hire.
Heroes for Hire | The Defenders (2018)
[a] character I could do anything I wanted to without worrying about how it would affect any other titles that character might appear in." He later became the editor for several issues.
Defenders (comics) | Publication history
I made it into a standard superhero team..." DeMatteis stayed on for only six issues of "The New Defenders" before turning it over to writer Peter Gillis, whose run was marked by shorter, more personal stories. Gillis recounted, "I had been working for a while at Marvel, and was constantly pumping for more work, and specifically a series of my own. So when I heard DeMatteis was leaving "Defenders", I was in [editor] Carl Potts' office like a shot, and I got the gig." Though the series remained a modest hit through the Gillis/Perlin run, it was cancelled to make room in Marvel's production schedule for the New Universe line.
Defenders (comics) | The New Defenders
This incarnation of the Defenders was divided among two rival groups. The Order (Doctor Strange, the Hulk, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and the Silver Surfer) and the Defenders (Hellcat, Nighthawk, and Valkyrie). The three decided to recruit the so-called "female analogs" of their former teammates. They would serve until both teams disbanded.
List of Defenders members | Recruits against The Order
In July 2017, Colter said the writing for the season was different from the first, because "we know the show now. We know the world that we’re in and we know sort of what works and what doesn’t work and we’re just gonna double down on that stuff, so look forward to a very exciting and very relevant and pop culture-heavy show." He added that after the first season and the crossover miniseries "The Defenders", Cage would have "a whole new outlook on life" and would not be dealing with the judicial system anymore. Coker explained that the storyline for the season did not come from any particular iteration of the comics, and instead was based on the characters that appear: "who is Luke Cage and getting much deeper into that, but also finding out different things about Mariah Dillard, also finding out things about Misty Knight," including getting her mechanical arm "and what that entails from an emotional standpoint." In particular, the new villains introduced for the season and their abilities impacted the story in terms of "what that represents against Luke".
Luke Cage (season 2) | Writing
However, he felt that the pacing of the four episodes reviewed was "yet another Netflix ultra-slow burn". He saw this improve once the four heroes meet in the fourth episode, and hoped that in the second half of the season "both [the] show and team could justify their existence as something more than a package Marvel put together years ago in the hopes everything would work out". "Variety"s Maureen Ryan felt "The Defenders" had some positive elements and especially praised Weaver's performance, but described the series as "workmanlike" and said it was "a bit blander" than a series about superheroes and ninjas should have been.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Critical response
Writer Steve Englehart has stated that he added the Valkyrie to the Defenders "to provide some texture to the group." Englehart wrote "The Avengers–Defenders War" crossover in "The Avengers" #116–118 (October–December 1973) and "The Defenders" #9–11 (October–December 1973), leaving "The Defenders" afterwards because he "didn't want to keep doing two team books at the same time." Len Wein briefly wrote the series and introduced such characters as Alpha the Ultimate Mutant and the Wrecking Crew. Wein also added Nighthawk to the cast because, in his words, doing so "gave me a character to play with who didn't have a whole lot of previous history ...
Defenders (comics) | Publication history
The Defenders is an American legal comedy-drama television series that was ordered to series by CBS for the 2010–11 television season. The series originally ran from September 22, 2010 to March 11, 2011. Set in Las Vegas, Nevada, the show involves a pair of defense attorneys who go all out to help their clients while keeping their personal lives in order. The show is loosely based on real-life Vegas lawyers Michael Cristalli and Marc Saggese. This series is not related to the 1960s CBS series of the same name. In October 2010, CBS announced that the show had been picked up for a 19-episode season with the option to produce a full 22-episode season.
The Defenders (2010 TV series) | Introduction
The Great Defender is an American drama television series created by Frank Renzulli. The series stars Michael Rispoli, Peter Krause, Kelly Rutherford, Rhoda Gemignani and Richard Kiley. The series aired on Fox from March 5, 1995, to July 31, 1995.
The Great Defender (TV series) | Introduction
The teaser also featured a hidden URL which led to a faux website for the "New York Bulletin" featuring "plenty of easter eggs and little details". Dave Lewis of the "Los Angeles Times" felt having the security footage teaser end on the timecode 08:18:20:17, was "a fun way to indicate the show's release date". A month later, Netflix and Marvel released a trailer for the miniseries. They also released multiple motion graphics showcasing various character crossovers through the social media accounts for "The Defenders" as well as each of the individual series. Nicole Sobon of "Comic Book Resources" felt releasing these this way was "a smart marketing move by both Marvel and Netflix, as over the course of the years, the Twitter accounts [for each series] have managed to drive in plenty of fan interaction by their 'conversations' between the characters".
The Defenders (miniseries) | Marketing
Loeb cautioned against the "easy comparison" to "The Avengers", noting that lessons would be taken from that crossover such as how that team did not come together right away, but unlike the Avengers in the film, the Defenders do not operate out of one location such as Avengers Tower or have matching costumes. "The Dirty Dozen" (1967), "Seven Samurai" (1954), and other films "where characters came together who did not want to come together" were bigger influences on the project than "The Avengers". Choosing an antagonist for the miniseries was another challenge, according to Ramirez. Loeb did not want a villain like the aliens from "The Avengers" because these are "street level heroes [who] come from a very real place", but each of the Defenders has been shown to be "really powerful" in their individual series and the antagonist would have to prove a challenge for the four of them together.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Writing
Clarkson, who also directed for "Jessica Jones", said that series is "very dark and very steely and very blue" while "Daredevil" focused more on red, and so these were emphasized early on. When Murdock and Jones meet, they are in a "steely gray-blue" room to indicate that it is Jones's world, with Knight there wearing a "Luke Cage"-appropriate tan color, and Murdock entering and letting red into the room to show the connecting of the two characters. Clarkson was inspired by New York-set films such as "The French Connection" (1971), "Shaft" (1971), and "Serpico" (1973) when establishing the look of the miniseries.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Cinematography
"Splatalot!" featured a recurring cast of Defenders, consisting of six charismatic young adults. Each episode featured 3 Defenders per round, (but all six on the Final) ensuring that the audiences never sees the same lineup twice. Each Defender has their own unique persona, colour, costume and signature weapon - they work together to incite laughter and most importantly, impede the Attackers until one of them proves that he or she is worthy of the crown of "Splatalot!". In season 2, Knightriss, Shaiden, Ballista, Tinkor, Gildar and Crocness have left the show, but they returned to the screen for the show's American run on BYUtv.
Splatalot! | The Defenders
Note: The most frequent time slot for the series is in bold text.
The Defenders (1961 TV series) | Broadcast history
Still worried about future embarrassment and humiliation this incident would bring him, as Lozano was threatening to speak publicly of the incident, Aceveda made a DEA immunity deal with Antwon Mitchell in return for Antwon murdering Lozano. Lozano was then murdered by Antwon with a 40-pound weight from a barbell. Unfortunately for Aceveda, Juan made a digital copy of the photo on a USB before his death.
List of The Shield characters | Juan Lozano
Steve Gerber introduced Jack Norris as the estranged husband of Barbara but the Valkyrie persona had no memory of him. Writers David Anthony Kraft and Ed Hannigan explained some of the Valykrie's backstory in "The Defenders" #66-68 (Dec. 1978–Feb. 1979). Three years later, writers J. M. DeMatteis and Mark Gruenwald wrote a follow-up story in "The Defenders" #107-109 (May–July 1982) which resolved remaining plot points from the Kraft and Hannigan story. The Valkyrie remained a member of the Defenders through most of the series' run and is apparently killed in the final issue, #152 (Feb. 1986). According to writer Peter B.
Valkyrie (Marvel Comics) | Publication history
This novelette is in the public domain in the U.S., and is available at Project Gutenberg.
The Defenders (short story) | Copyright Status
The ending of the miniseries "The Defenders", which sees Matt Murdock waking up in a convent surrounded by nuns after being presumed dead, implied elements of the season would be inspired by the "Born Again" story arc. Charlie Cox was excited to adapt "Born Again", calling it "an amazing story" and that the implications of the story on the season "would be exciting". He cautioned, however, that it would not be a "page-for-page" adaptation, "because if you do [that], then you become a foregone conclusion. There may be elements from "Born Again", but I'm sure there will be elements that are unfamiliar and surprising and different in order for the show to be compelling to fans who know the comics very well." Oleson crafted an original story for the season, taking "pieces of some of my favorite comic book runs, that told a larger story".
Daredevil (season 3) | Writing
"Daredevil" is an American web television series created for Netflix by Drew Goddard, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), sharing continuity with the films of the franchise, and is the first in a series of shows that lead up to a Defenders crossover miniseries. The series stars Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock / Daredevil, as well as Deborah Ann Woll, Elden Henson, Rosario Dawson, and Vincent D'Onofrio. Toby Leonard Moore, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Bob Gunton, and Ayelet Zurer join them in the first season, while Jon Bernthal, Élodie Yung, and Stephen Rider join them for the second; Joanne Whalley, Jay Ali and Wilson Bethel join for season three.
List of Daredevil characters | Introduction
After that, a gang member called Carlos and told him where he could find Jaime. After Mackey talked with Wet Willie, Carlos told him about Jaime and they went to talk with him. After some convincing, Jaime told them that the killer didn't belong to any gang and that he was white. Carlos and Vic went to the Barn and told Gilroy what they had found. They then met with Latino activist Raoul Jimenez who demanded action. Although Vic disagreed, Carlos vouched for the LAPD to release the sketch they had drawn with Jaime's description. Carlos then received information that the killer had started another shooting in a grocery store.
List of The Shield characters | Carlos Zamora
In 1990, the original trio reunited in "The Incredible Hulk" #370–371, in which it was revealed that the prophecy was a hoax. The originals then rejoined with the Silver Surfer in a story entitled "The Return of the Defenders" running in "The Incredible Hulk Annual" #18, "Namor the Sub-Mariner Annual" #2, "Silver Surfer Annual" #5, and "Dr. Strange, Sorcerer Supreme Annual" #2.
Defenders (comics) | The Return of the Defenders
Barbara Norriss, later the host of the Valkyrie, first appears in this story. In the second arc, featured in "Sub-Mariner" #34–35 (February–March 1971), Namor enlists the aid of the Silver Surfer and the Hulk to stop a potentially devastating weather control experiment, inadvertently freeing a small island nation from a dictator and facing the Avengers under the name of the "Titans Three". The Defenders first appeared as a feature in "Marvel Feature" #1 (December 1971), where the founding members gather to battle the alien techno-wizard Yandroth and remain as a team afterward. Editor Stan Lee, wanting to write all of the Silver Surfer's stories personally, had asked other writers not to use the character, and suggested that Thomas use Doctor Strange instead.
Defenders (comics) | Publication history
Most of the characters listed are Eurth's versions of known Marvel Comics characters:
Avataars: Covenant of the Shield | Characters
The Defenders are a loosely organized team of fictional characters mostly, but not solely, superheroes in the Marvel Universe. For much of their history, there was no official membership. Thus, the Defenders had a reputation as being a "non-team", a term which was coined in the pages of the comic. All could be considered Defenders. The following list attempts to make sense of their membership but may not be complete.
List of Defenders members | Introduction
Guardo was later revealed to have ordered the grisly murder of 11 Mexicans at the San Marcos apartments.
List of The Shield characters | Guardo Lima
Due to the production demands, he brought his long-time second unit cinematography collaborator Jim McMillan onto the miniseries to help balance the workload for when episodes were filming simultaneously. Lloyd was the primary cinematographer for "The Defenders", but McMillan is credited for several episodes on which he did the most work. Lloyd described the production of the miniseries as being more similar to a film than the previous Marvel Netflix television series due to the scheduling requirements of the larger cast and the fact that episodes would not always be shot in order due to location requirements. The schedule also demanded more days per episode for filming, so the overall production was not as significantly shorter as Lloyd had expected given the episode count is lower than the usual Netflix order of 13.
The Defenders (miniseries) | Filming
Kyle Richmond requested an Initiative version of the Defenders from Tony Stark, intending to fill the ranks with previous Defenders including Gargoyle, Hellcat, and Devil Slayer. However, Stark assembled an entirely different team in hopes of the Defenders maintaining a stable roster for once. The team was officially disbanded after its first mission was deemed a failure.
List of Defenders members | Initiative Team (Last Defenders)
In the Ultimate Marvel universe, the Defenders are a group of amateur vigilantes who dress up as superheroes. None of them have superpowers, although they claim to be experienced in crimefighting. Henry Pym is invited to join them, and he accepts, adopting a new identity, Ant-Man, to avoid the potential legal problems of using his growth serum, as it has become the official property of the government. Their members include Ultimate versions of Power Man, Hellcat, Nighthawk, Valkyrie, Black Knight, Son of Satan and Whiz-Kid. The Ultimate Defenders are much more interested in becoming celebrities rather than actually stopping crimes or saving lives.
Defenders (comics) | Ultimate Marvel
An original fantasy series, intended to be a trilogy
Deborah J. Ross | The Seven-Petaled Shield
The original incarnation of The Order starred in the six-issue limited series "The Order" (April-Sept. 2002) intending to conquer the world in order to protect it. The team consisted of the original Defenders: Doctor Strange, The Incredible Hulk, Namor the Sub-Mariner and Silver Surfer. Their fellow Defenders Hellcat, Nighthawk, Valkyrie and Clea team up with other heroes (including Ardina, a cosmic-powered woman they mystically create from a portion of the Silver Surfer's energy) to oppose the Order and return them to their senses, just in time to prevent the curse from rendering Yandroth omnipotent.
The Order (comics) | Defenders offshoot
Defenders of the Earth is an American animated television series produced in 1986, featuring characters from three comic strips distributed by King Features Syndicate—Flash Gordon, The Phantom, Mandrake the Magician, and Mandrake's assistant Lothar—opposing Ming the Merciless in the year 2015. Supporting characters include their children Rick Gordon (son of Flash), L.J. (son of Lothar), Kshin (adopted son of Mandrake), and Jedda Walker (daughter of the Phantom). The show lasted for 65 episodes; there was also a short-lived comic book series published by Star Comics (an imprint of Marvel Comics). The closing credits credit Rob Walsh and Tony Pastor for the main title music, and Stan Lee for the lyrics.
Defenders of the Earth | Introduction
Co-star Tommy Walker said that "Daredevil" and "Defenders" showrunner Doug Petrie had pitched a multiracial Asian American version of "Iron Fist" to Marvel Television which was rejected by Loeb.
Jeph Loeb | Racial controversy
This is a list of episodes of the television series "The Defenders".
List of The Defenders (1961) episodes | Introduction
The trio meet and befriend Angela Petrelli and Charles is revealed to be telepathic. The group flees before the massacre at Coyote Sands and vow to form a Company to protect people like them from that ever happening again.
List of Heroes characters | Charles Deveaux
This is a list of fictional characters in the television series "Heroes", the "Heroes" graphic novels, and the "Heroes" webisodes.
List of Heroes characters | Introduction
Ep.1- “The Boyz Are Back in Town” In this episode Streak and Ace the old defenders are reintroduced, and three new unnamed defenders join the team. Towards the end of the episode, the Defenders, Zim the Guardian and Joe find out that they are about to meet a new unknown villain. Ep.2 – “Stats All Folks - Part 1” In this episode Dr. Stat, the new villain who is obsessed with useless baseball statistics, comes in contact with the team of Defenders and threatens to destroy their Tropicana field. The names of the new Defenders are then revealed, Hypnotic, Sluggernaught and Bossman Junior.
Defenders of the Game | Season II