Jessica Jones S01 E04: AKA 99 Friends

Producer/writer Hilly Hicks Jr., late of "The Big C" and a show that didn't get enough of a chance, "Kidnapped," wrote this one, with David Petrarca directing. Petrarca's resume includes "Boardwalk Empire," and "Game of Thrones," among others. That Marvel can command such talent amazes me. Comics have truly grown up.

As we open Jessica is pondering the eyes of the Purple Man. They're everywhere. Anyone could be in his thrall, watching her, taking pictures of her. It's maddening, and a lesser person would break. Jessica, she goes to work, and finds a new case on her doorstep.

Standard stuff - mad wife needs in flagrante photos of her philandering husband for the divorce, but it's the reference that's fishy. Paranoia's gonna getcha to paraphrase the Kinks. Once bitten, twice shy, to quote Ian Hunter. Jessica is remembering the Hope case from "AKA Ladies Night," which Kilgrave sent to her door.

Meanwhile Patsy, I mean Trish calls. The cop who tried to kill her last episode is back, and it's Jessica to the rescue. Trish isn't in danger; the cop is out of Kilgrave's power and now worried he had killed her. Jessica talks him down, her cover is blown, and now this cop knows more than she wants him to, but she calms him down.

While this could be a lesson in the scope of the Purple Man's powers and what happens to the people he throws away, there's a little more to this. We will see this guy again, I think. The cop was identified as Will Simpson, former special forces, and that matches up to something in the comics… Nuke. That Will Simpson was subjected to the same super soldier programs that created Captain America and Wolverine, became a cyborg, tattooed an American flag on his face, and fought Daredevil while rampaging through Hell's Kitchen.

Back on the case, Jessica, thinking Kilgrave is behind it, follows the wife not the husband. She sees her practicing her gun skills, and when Jessica is sure she's not mind controlled finally follows the husband. Like Admiral Ackbar always says, it's a trap, and not by the Purple Man, by the wife. She lost her mother in the Battle of New York, and blames superheroes. Learning that Jessica is 'special' and 'gifted,' she went after her. Big mistake.

Also in this episode we had the intriguing concept of a support group for Kilgrave's victims, a slowly growing at gunpoint friendship/relationship between Trish and Will, and the revelation of who's been following and taking pictures of Jessica. The Trish and Will thing is a bit creepy, and by the middle of this one I knew Malcolm was the spy.

Despite the twists and turns in this episode, and the lack of Kilgrave's physical presence, I dug this episode quite a bit, and I was relieved the Purple Man was not the major villain of the piece. The only letdown was the Hogarth divorce, which was as interesting as watching Diggle just stand around and do nothing on "Arrow."

Daredevil S01 E09: Speak of the Devil

After the end of the last episode, Daredevil and the Kingpin (both as yet unnamed thus, so let's call them as we've seen them - the Devil of Hell's Kitchen and seeming philanthropist Wilson Fisk) are officially at war, and the man in the shadows, the mystery head of the house of cards, has played his hand in the bright sunshine. Things are not looking good for Daredevil, even with his new alliance with Ben Urich. And I'm not just talking about that blow he takes in the opening seconds of episode nine.

The opening fight sequence is between Daredevil and a ninja in red, the latter a master of martial arts fighting skills and weapons. It's pretty intense, and our hero is on the losing end for most of this pre-credits scene. Could this be the first real appearance of so-far-only-speculated Hand? It could be, as this episode is written by show staff writers Christos Gage and Ruth Fletcher Gage. The former is also a Marvel Comics writer who has in the past impressed me with his knowledge and respect for the Silver Age, something rarely seen in today's deconstructionist event themed comics.

Speaking of the Silver Age, there's been a recent hubbub about artist Wally Wood getting credit on the show and a possible lawsuit brewing as well from the comics creator's estate, the fires fanned of course by the rabble-rousers at Bleeding Cool. I think a lot of this comes from the show credit of 'created by' being followed by the names Stan Lee and Bill Everett, and not Wally Wood.

While it's true that almost everything we associate with Daredevil - the red costume, the billy club, the chest symbol - all came from Wally Wood's early redesign of the character, of that there is no doubt, how far should we go with this? I'm on episode nine here and the only reference to the Wood work so far is in the credit sequence itself. In actuality, and I hate saying this, if anyone really deserves any extra credit for this series so far it might just be Frank Miller, stylistically and principally, from his Man Without Fear story.

I know I'm making a lot of folks mad here, especially writers, but all that comics work back in the day was work for hire. Lawsuits decades later are ludicrous. By the same token that Wally Wood gets credit for creating Daredevil, Bill Finger and Gardner Fox and Jerry Robinson should have their names above Bob Kane's for creating Batman - because they really created Batman, and I'd add Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams to that list as well. Those five men made Batman more than Kane ever did. As far as I'm concerned, Bob Kane knew his way around a lawyer's office better than he ever did a drawing board. Just my opinion, so you know where to send the hate mail.

The fact is this - comic books are a collaborative artform in a shared universe created via work for hire. Maybe the credit should read, and read accurately, 'created by Marvel Comics,' and be done with it. I'm not begrudging Wally Wood or his estate what is due, but this just gets in my crawl. Enough is enough.

After the credits sequence we once again find Matt in front of St. Agnes with Father Lantom. I doubt we will get a Runaways reference for Lantom, but the fanboy in me still hopes for some nod to Skye from "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." for St. Agnes. Either way, this time once again cribbing from Frank Miller, Matt is seeking some sort of therapy through confession. I was pleased that Lantom, unlike Karen and Ben later this episode, has figured out Matt's other identity. It's not that hard.

Merely a plot device in his first two appearances, here Lantom's Peter McRobbie (who had also worked with Charlie Cox on "Boardwalk Empire") has room to play and make an impression finally. Rather than confessional, they chat over coffee, and McRobbie, doing an almost Robert Duvall rift tells a tale of his belief in, and his encounter with, The Devil. Lantom's story is both morality play and warning to Matt. Do not mess with The Devil.

Meanwhile, Fisk revealing himself as a benefactor and savior before being exposed as a devil has hampered if not frozen Ben Urich's investigation. As I mentioned, it kinda lowers my respect for Urich that he can't stand so close to both Daredevil and Matt Murdock and not know they're the same person. So much for the dying art of investigative reporting.

There are some intriguing name drops this episode, most notably Senator Cherryh. In the comics this corrupt senator is close to the Kingpin and has run afoul of Spider-Man, Elektra, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Daredevil - most of the heroes in these Netflix series leading up to "The Defenders."

Speaking of the Defenders, when Matt brings the fight to Fisk by visiting Vanessa's art gallery, she makes mention of putting a Richmond on the guest list. "He won't come but he'll get pissy if he isn't invited." Could this be millionaire Kyle Richmond, longtime leader of the Defenders, also known as Nighthawk? The description unfortunately fits the temperamental and much-dissed hero.

Also, location location location. I keep forgetting about the law offices of Nelson and Murdock, across from Atlas Investments, a possible homage to Atlas Comics, the name Marvel went by in the 1950s, and the Agents of Atlas, the retconned name given to the heroes of that era. N&M's offices are also where Van Lunt Real Estate used to be. Cornelius Van Lunt was the criminal industrialist also known as Taurus, one of the twelve-member cartel called Zodiac - longtime enemies of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers.

Back at the art gallery, Charlie Cox shows his first weakness as an actor when putting up a front for Vanessa, but is it bad acting on the part of Cox or of Matt Murdock? An argument could be made for both. When Fisk shows up he is equally uncomfortable. It is almost as if they know each other already subconsciously. Of course they have already spoken as Daredevil and Kingpin in "Condemned", perhaps this meeting is just a formality. And D'Onoffrio's Fisk silently makes no doubt of how he feels about Matt. That final look as our hero leaves says volumes.

Throughout the episode, Foggy and Karen, who are doing most of the heavy lifting, continue to piece together the house of cards with Fisk at its peak. The murder of the tenement woman they had been helping - so soon after Matt's visit to Vanessa has raised many flags. Matt, who has been keeping a low profile as Daredevil, puts the suit back on for a night on the town to release some of his pent up rage on the criminal element.

On this rampage he corners a drug dealer and asks him where he got his product. This product has a symbol on it that we saw Madame Gao's servants packaging in her drug sweatshops earlier in the series. The symbol in the comics is that of the Steel Serpent, an enemy of Iron Fist. Much like the Marvel Cinematic Universe proper, everything here is connected. Daredevil's tracking of the drugs, and the tenement woman's killer, eventually leads to the ninja, coming full circle to the episode's opening in media res.

The ninja, in what could very well be paraphernalia and costuming of The Hand, is revealed to be Nobu. He knows of Stick, and has some more than human abilities himself like slowing his heartbeat and lowering his body temperature. The battle that follows is intense, bloody, and increasingly one-sided. Daredevil takes the upper hand by luck, barely surviving himself... only to walk into Fisk's trap.

When Fisk offers Daredevil his shot, free punch, in the beginning of a hand to hand combat, our hero is in no shape and is no match whatsoever. Fisk beats him senseless, pummeling his foe almost as he did his father as a boy. When Fisk walks away, telling Wesley to finish him, Daredevil escapes. You might think that's the cliffhanger, but it's not, as it's Foggy who finds Matt near dead, in costume... now things are getting interesting...

Daredevil S01 E01: Into the Ring

I'm not a big Daredevil guy. I know, a lot of you are thinking that's blasphemous. The truth is I'm also not a big Frank Miller fan. And while I acknowledge he did good work on the character, I can never really get past the idea of why a comics creator who so clearly hates superheroes would ever want to work in superhero comics.

My Daredevil is the first one I encountered - the swashbuckling superhero who partnered with the Black Widow and protected swinging San Francisco. Yeah, I know, that was a loooong time ago. I also liked the Ben Affleck Daredevil film, so there you go. At least I didn't say I liked the Rex Smith version.

All that said, when I first heard about the Netflix "Daredevil" series, I was immediately enthralled as it had Steven S. DeKnight as one of the showrunners. DeKnight is the man. Over on Starz, for several seasons, and throughout a tragedy and a recasting, he produced "Spartacus," perhaps one of the most brutal, dynamic, and spellbinding shows I've ever seen. If anyone could do Daredevil justice, it would be him. After watching the first episode, it's all true.

Unlike other entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this series takes place in Hell's Kitchen, just several blocks of one of the poorer sections of New York City. Daredevil exists in the same universe as the Avengers, but he's not going globetrotting, fighting gods, or headed to space, but he is solidly here. Hell's Kitchen has cheap rents and is being rebuilt after the Battle of New York, courtesy of the Avengers. Simple cause and effect. This is a world where super powers exist, but they do not really touch this corner of the Universe.

Charlie Cox, who was one of the best parts of HBO's "Boardwalk Empire," is cast in the dual role of Matt Murdock and Daredevil, far exceeds expectations. It is one thing to look at him, look at his body of work, and then actually watch him on the screen as the blind fury. He plays both roles splendidly. And his chemistry with Elden Henson's Foggy Nelson is one of the best things about the show, as well it should be. Henson's acting resume is impressive, and I'm delighted to see him here.

The episode opens with what else, the essential origin of Daredevil, a young Matt Murdock in an accident where radioactive materials get in his eyes. He goes blind, but develops a 'radar sense' that allows him a type of seeing similar to a hyper-advanced bat, through sound bouncing off objects. Yes, it's very hokey, but we're also talking Stan Lee in the Silver Age of comics. This is how they rolled back then. And thus he becomes Matt Murdock, Good Samaritan lawyer by day, masked vigilante Daredevil by night.

Our second scene is pure Miller, who introduced the religious aspect to the character. Matt is in a confessional, giving viewers a quick rundown on his dad, boxer Battlin' Jack Murdock. Did everyone else catch the Easter egg with Crusher Creel, AKA the Absorbing Man? But the big point of the confession was that Matt is there to ask forgiveness for not what he has done, but for what he's about to do.

What follows next is what I was so excited about when I heard McKnight was doing Daredevil - the potential of the fight scenes. As our hero takes down the baddies to stop a slave trade, there are no swords or animation as in "Spartacus," but the action sequence is amazing. This, along with the chemistry of the actors, will be the highlight of the series. And major props to Philip Silvera, the fight coordinator, this is all his prize.

A word or two about the costume. While we know that eventually we will get the traditional red outfit, it's even heavily hinted at in the bloody animation credits sequence, this black thing is what we start with. I didn't mind it, this cross between Rex Smith's outfit and the one from The Man Without Fear. The black with the red highlights works, even in the rain, I just miss the horns.

Action series, superhero series, check, check, but what we really have is a crime drama. That where Karen Page enters the equation. Karen goes back to the old days of Daredevil, and was unfortunately destroyed during the Miller era (I've been told it was Kevin Smith who did the damage, but by that time, because of Miller, I was no longer reading). Her casting, in the firm of actress Deborah Ann Woll, from "True Blood," was one of the few things about this series I was worried about. I needn't have worried, she's perfect.

The thrust of the episode involves a conspiracy Karen stumbled over to rebuild Hell's Kitchen after the Chitauri invasion and how everyone wants a piece of the pie, but it goes deeper. Though unseen, except through his harbinger Wesley, deliciously played by Tobey Leonard Moore, the real villain here is the Kingpin. Wilson Fisk will be played by Vincent D'onofrio, who has promised his will be the definitive version of the character.

A rooftop meeting of Kingpin's pseudo-Legion of Doom introduces us to the lesser villains who will be challenging Daredevil this season. Madam Gao and Leland Owlsley (The Owl!) stand out. There is definitive sense of evil to the unseen Kingpin, especially in the montage scenes toward the end of the episode. He does not play, and you do not mess with him. Of course Daredevil has made himself a serious enemy.

Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook ~ You might have noticed its been quite a while since I posted about any movies currently in theaters. Well, it's been a while since I've been out to a movie. Tonight, after dinner with good friends we haven't seen in a while, we decided to hit a flick last minute. I wanted Die Hard or The Hobbit, but the ladies settled on multiple Oscar nom rom com drama Silver Linings Playbook.

What a pleasant surprise. I didn't know all that much about it beyond the noms for best picture, best actor Bradley Cooper, best actress Jennifer Lawrence, best supportings Robert DeNiro and Jacki Weaver, and best director David O. Russell. Surprisingly all of the noms are well deserved, some might not win, but all well deserved.

Based on the book "The Silver Linings Playbook" by local teacher turned novelist Matthew Quick. That alone lends credibility to the locale of the flick - Philadelphia, as well as the passion for Eagles football so important to the story. That story has bi-polar Patrick (Cooper) trying to repair his life and get his wife back, even though she's moved on while he was in a mental hospital. Enter Tiffany (Lawrence) widowed and equally flawed, trying to get him back on his feet.

Cooper and Lawrence are no strangers to Oscar, and recently she has gained serious genre cred as Catniss and young Mystique. I think Jennifer Lawrence's best years are ahead of her, and right now she's better than most other actresses her age. I loved her here. DeNiro and Weaver are just as good as Cooper's parents. The whole film is full of terrific performances, including Julia Stiles, Shea Whigham of "Boardwalk Empire," Anupam Kher, and believe it or not, a completely non-annoying Chris Tucker.

This was a great flick, I definitely see a couple (at least) Oscars coming its way this weekend, but let's face it. It's no Die Hard. ;-)

Take the Poll

I keep forgetting that Blogger has a polling system. As long as we have it, we might as well use it, right?

As you can see by looking to the immediate right, the question up for polling right now is: What is your favorite new or returning TV series this season?

Your choices include, in no particular order or preference: The Waking Dead, Dexter, Homeland, Treme, Elementary, The Big Bang Theory, American Horror Story, Sons of Anarchy, Boardwalk Empire, Breaking Bad, Revolution, Castle, Glee, Person of Interest, Survivor, Fringe, Vegas, Arrow, Copper, Grimm, Once Upon a Time, Revenge, or 666 Park Avenue. And if your choice isn't reflected there, please click on Other? and let me know what you think, deal?

Boardwalk Empire

HBO does it again. Do they ever make programming that is not the best out there? No, and how can someone not like a television series that film god Martin Scorsese has his hands in? He actually directed the pilot episode, the one that got this series renewed after only one airing, if that tells you anything about its quality. It was fabulous. For me, Scorsese working on the small screen is the equivalent of Leonardo da Vinci doing a comic book - lower rent yes, but the hand of a genius on a format smaller than their mind - a spectacular effect.

"Boardwalk Empire" takes place in 1920 Atlantic City and follows the exploits of Nucky Thompson as played by Steve Buscemi. Again, Buscemi is someone suited for the big screen and therefore rules the small one. It is good to see him finally in a role that matches his abilities. His character is based loosely (or closely, depending on your perspective) of Nucky Johnson who was treasurer of Atlantic City of the time, a famously generous and equally infamously corrupt personage whose work behind the scenes has become legend.

While Nucky's name is altered to protect both the innocent and the guilty, there are other real life folks floating around "Boardwalk Empire." Stephen Graham's Al Capone and certainly Vincent Piazza as Lucky Luciano are notable for their appearances here, but the real real life tour de force is Michael K. Williams as African-American gangster Chalky White. You might remember him from his role as Omar in "The Wire."

And speaking of fantastic performances, serious props go to Kelly MacDonald, Gretchen Mol and especially to Michael Pitt as Jimmy. The latter is the real star here in my opinion, and will walk from here to much bigger and better things, if that's possible. And Michael Shannon is particularly scary as the IRS agent pursuing Thompson.

Final word, this is damn good television, right up there with other HBO alum like "The Sopranos" and the aforementioned "The Wire" as well as stuff like "Mad Men" and "Dexter." "Boardwalk Empire" is do-not-miss television.