Ranking Every Aspect Of The MCU From Worst To Best
13. The Defenders
The Defenders provided a microcosm of both the best and worst elements of the Netflix shows. It reduced the episode count from thirteen to eight, yet still dragged in the middle. It finally brought Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist together and allowed them to verbally and physically spar with each other, but it took almost three hours of exposition to get there.
Danny Rand, despite being the least interesting and most critically-reviled character by far among the central quartet, was made the focal point of the story as a walking MacGuffin. The various supporting characters from the individual shows interact with each other, but have very little to actually do. The great Sigourney Weaver was brought in to play the villain, but her motivations were left unclear as she was shunted off to the sidelines in favor of the Hand. Again.
Hardly a disaster, but The Defenders is definitely a missed opportunity that failed to realize its true potential. Some of the action is strong, fans will get a kick out of seeing the four heroes fight alongside (and often against) each other, and the actors generally have a great dynamic, with Krysten Ritter on scene-stealing sardonic form. Hopefully if New York's street-level heroes team up again, Marvel will learn from their mistakes and genuinely deliver the small-screen Avengers we were all hoping this would turn out to be.