'Luke Cage' review

Sweet Christmas!

Luke Cage is the latest series developed via the so far successful partnership with Marvel and Netflix, following two seasons of Daredevil and one series of Jessica Jones. The show is obviously based upon the Marvel Comics character of the same name, portrayed by Mike Colter, who made his debut as the bulletproof hero in 2015's Jessica Jones. Now, the spotlight is shining on Luke with suitably high expectations from the strong quality of Marvel and Netflix's previous collaborations, plus the strong responsibility of Luke Cage being Marvel's most diverse project to date.

This review is spoiler-free!

Mike Colter as the indestructible Luke Cage is a fantastic lead.

The good thing with Luke Cage, and the only thing we really knew for sure going in, is that Mike Colter makes for a fantastic Cage. I, personally, thought he was one of the standout stars of last year's Jessica Jones, behind only David Tennant's performance as the chilling antagonist. So going into Cage's solo project, I was confident the show would at least have a strong lead, and Colter doesn't let us down. One of the things I really appreciated about Colter's performance was the range he captured within Cage. It'd be too easy for the character to be a one-note and rather stereotypical tough guy who doesn't open up and is bitter due to being raised in a tough neighbourhood. However, Cage is actually more interesting than that in my opinion, with him actually seeming like one of the nicest guys in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as long as you don't piss him off or hurt those around him. Mike Colter really managed to sell me on the fact that Luke Cage is definitely a guy you'd love to hang out with and grab a beer with, but you'd be shitting your pants if you got on his bad side, which isn't exactly an easy balance to strike. Of course, as important as a lead actor is, the show can all too easily crumble if those around him aren't up to standards either, and thankfully this isn't a problem facing Luke Cage.

Mahershala Ali as Cornell Stokes / Cottonmouth is a strong foe for Cage.

Rosario Dawson returns in her role as Claire Temple from both Daredevil and Jessica Jones, and she's better than she has ever been here. Within the context of the comics, Claire has always been primarily affiliated with Luke Cage, so it's perhaps fitting that here is where she gets the beefiest role and the best chance to develop both her character and her performance. Luke Cage certainly helps cement her role as one of the most fascinating recurring characters within the MCU. Marvel and Netflix having a game-plan of their various projects allows them to introduce characters like Claire before they meet the character they are most affiliated with, and Luke Cage is no exception, as it introduces us to Misty Knight, a frequent Iron Fist character, portrayed by Simone Missick. Missick's performance is another of the show's strongest, and it's not hard to imagine that her character will quickly become a fan-favourite on the Netflix shows. Netflix is also known for introducing some of the MCU's greatest villains to us, such as Wilson Fisk and Kilgrave, and Mahershala Ali gives us our latest Netflix villain in the form of Cornell Strokes, also known as Cottonmouth, who was one of my favourite actors on the show. He provided an interesting antagonist to face off against Cage with interesting motivations as we come to expect from the show, and there was something fresh about Cottonmouth that helped him avoid becoming too similar to other crime bosses such as Wilson Fisk. Perhaps it was his respect for Harlem that mirrored Cage's own. Alfre Woodard also stars as Mariah Dillard, who was equally phenomenal. You might recognise Woodard from meeting another superhero earlier this year, when she confronted Iron Man in Captain America: Civil War about collateral damage from his heroics. However, as cool as it might be to finally see the TV universe have an effect on the films, her character within Luke Cage is completely separate, and the casting in both is purely coincidental. Nevertheless, Luke Cage probably holds the best cast of any Marvel TV project thus far, and the show really succeeds because of it.

Luke Cage's narrative is mostly strong, but stumbles late in the season.

While I'm going to avoid specific elements of the plot in this review due to spoilers, it's fair to say that the bare-bones premise of the show is Luke Cage doing heroics and battling evil forces within Harlem, such as Ali's Cottonmouth. The show, obviously, becomes much more detailed and intricate than that, but I won't spoil any of the inner workings. The story was actually really interesting, and seeing Luke evolve into the character we know from the comics is just as fun as it was with Matt Murdock in Daredevil. Like the previous two shows, Luke Cage uses it's thirteen-episode order to also give us more details into the villains' stories, and that also did not disappoint. However, I've got to make note of something that bugged me with Jessica Jones, Daredevil Season Two and now Luke Cage. All three seasons seemed to have a dipping point in quality, around about two-thirds or three-quarters into the show (I think I noticed it at about episode 8 for Cage). At about the same point in all three seasons, I couldn't help shake the feeling that something was happening on-screen just because Netflix wanted 13 episodes, and that the show might be better off with just 10 episodes for a tighter narrative. Maybe it's just me, but with this being the third season of Marvel / Netflix TV in a row to give me the same effect I can't help but wonder if Netflix should make their episode order more flexible to the creators. Luke Cage manages to get back on track for the finale, but it feels like the season's peak is about 5 or 6 episodes in. One of the strongest episodes was one of the last, and I certainly wasn't disappointed in the resolution, but once you lose track and throw off pacing, it's hard to build back the same momentum, and Cage fell just short of getting it back for me. Perhaps one of the root causes of the loss of momentum is that it feels a little bit like around this time the show transitions from one story to another, and it doesn't do it quite as elegantly as it should have.

The show's dedication to developing a rich culture is one of the highlights.

Nevertheless, Luke Cage never becomes a bad show, or even a mediocre one. It just feels that it takes a brief step down from great to good. The show always offers plenty to enjoy, even in those few "off" episodes. The show's connection to black culture is one of its strongest assets, and one that seperates Luke Cage not only from its sister shows like Daredevil, but from all shows within the superhero genre such as The Flash and Gotham. Hot on the heels of a video that went viral criticising Marvel's use of generic and almost lazy music to score their films, Luke Cage brings one of the greatest examples of superhero soundtracks since Marvel's own Guardians of the Galaxy with Star-Lord's Awesome Mix Vol. 1 being critical to the film. Luke Cage brings the heat with its soundtrack, and it does a lot more than just throw any rap music at the screen to hope it sticks. Cheo Hodari Coker, the show's creator, started out as a music journalist, and his intense knowledge really shows here as he layers Luke Cage with a musical identity that becomes as much of a character to the show as Harlem. The original score from Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad is also strong, utilising a "90's hip-hop vibe". Luke Cage is built with such an inherent passion for Harlem, black culture and the music featured within that it feels rich with culture, which is particularly important for Marvel's first project with a minority lead.

Luke Cage is Netflix's latest success and perhaps one of the year's best shows.

Luke Cage is certainly another welcome success from the collaboration between Marvel and Netflix, and definitely one worth checking out regardless of whether you're a Marvel die-hard, a casual fan or just looking for something that feels a little fresh. In a year where certain superhero adaptations have felt a little samey, uninspired and tedious, Luke Cage becomes one of Marvel's more unique adaptations. With an incredible cast, amazing respect to the fictional characters and real culture and a mostly strong narrative, you'd do yourself a disservice to skip this show. It may not always be as bulletproof as its protagonist, but Luke Cage is an absolute blast, and I can't wait to see what Marvel have in store for Luke when he returns in The Defenders next year, and hopefully another season to his own series later.

Luke Cage  -  8 / 10