S01.E01: Snow Gives Way

[Tara Ariano]

Quote

Danny Rand and his family climb up a snowy mountain looking for the ancient city of Kun Lun.

[Primetimer]

Or is it rusty enough for the scrap heap?

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[Snookums]

I had a bad feeling about this watching the trailer because I hate Danny's hair. I know his character hasn't been exposed to a whole lot of styling product or anything but I simply cannot take him seriously--I want to hand him a juice box and send him to kindergarten.

And the whole "proving identity" thing is pretty much dead as a plot point, guys. There's this thing called DNA testing. Unless every single scrap of Danny's parents' possessions and personal products has vanished into a black hole, there's got to be a hair or fingernail clipping lying around somewhere.

[The Crazed Spruce]

The official episode synopsis:

Quote

After being declared dead 15 years earlier, Danny Rand returns to New York. But his welcome is a far cry from what he'd hoped.

[xqueenfrostine]

Yikes!  That has got to be the clumsiest pilot I've watched in a while.  I went into this series both with an open mind (since Marvel rarely fails to deliver me something worth watching) and with lowered expectations (because the early buzz for this series has been terrible), but this was worse than what I was expecting.  I'm not sure it was a wise idea to begin the series with Danny already in New York.  It didn't make me feel like I was getting in on a story from the beginning, it felt like I had been dropped in to a story that was already in progress.  Which isn't great, because now instead of watching Danny try to reestablish his identity from a place where I understand and connect with his character, I had a hard time figuring out why I wasn't supposed to see things from the Meachams' point of view as this annoying and crazy drifter descends into their lives and starts breaking into their homes, cars and offices.  

I'm going to keep watching, but I don't have a good feeling about this.  

[Bec]

Yeah... so far it's kind of... meh. But, eh, I'll still watch more. I'm just not super excited about it.

The opening credits look cool. The music is kind of forgettable, though.

It was hilarious when Danny picked up that mask to "disguise" himself in that scene in Chinatown. You're still the only blonde dude in the vicinity, buddy. That mask didn't help at all.

Does it mean something that Harold Meachum quoted the same "know your enemy" bit of Art of War as Matt did back in Daredevil season 1? Or was it simply lazy repetitive writing? At one point there was a bit of background music that sounded like something that was used in season 1 Daredevil, too. It could just be they're recycling some generic synth music loops. But it's nice if it's a subtle way to start tying the worlds together.

The way the sound editing of the security guards' batons hitting the ground was done reminded me of Daredevil, too. It was weirdly distinct as if someone is using the sound to focus on where the baton hit the ground. Except it doesn't make much sense here since Danny isn't blind.

I pretty much spent the episode hoping Danny would get arrested so maybe a certain lawyer will happen to help him out. I know, I know, it's probably too soon for that.

[AimingforYoko]

Yeah, the way they handled some guy with a scruffy beard and no shoes strolling into headquarters and announcing he's the presumed dead Rand scion was very realistic. But man, is it dull.

[thuganomics85]

Well, it wasn't as bad as I feared (yet?), but it definitely was the least impressive debut from the Marvel's Netflix shows.  Danny's just dull right now, and he isn't an idiot, so he had to know that showing up disheveled, shoeless, and claiming he's Danny would be met with resistance and not open arms.  And then doing things like breaking into Joy's house and stealing Ward's car, isn't helping matter.  It would make more sense if I felt like this was all part of Danny's plan to get under the Meachum's skins, but that doesn't seem to be the case yet. 

Still, the Meachums in general have ways to go too, before becoming anywhere was good as past villains.  Although, I'm curious to find out why Harry is in hiding and believed to be dead.  And it doesn't sound like Joy knows he is still alive; only Ward.  Hopefully David Wenham will get more moments to shine.

Colleen Wing has potential, at least.  Jessica Henwick fared better in her brief moments, compared to the horrible character she played on Game of Thrones.

That homeless guy Danny befriended should have just gone ahead and wore a sign letting Danny and everyone else know he was doomed.

I feel like we are going to see Danny's parents die almost as much as we've seen Bruce Wayne's parents die in the various Batman films or shows.

[palmaire]

9 hours ago, Bec said:

The opening credits look cool. The music is kind of forgettable, though.

Is this the fist [sic] time (or first time I've noticed) that Netflix has offered a button to skip the intro? I may watch the credits once for a new series but don't need to see them every episode. So thanks for that; makes it quick and tidy.

As for the show itself ... not good when the intro skip is the most exciting thing for me so far.

[blueray]

Well I watched the pilot. It wasn't as horrible as I was worried about but defiantly could have been better. Why didn't Danny find something nice to wear and shower before going. I'd imagine he'd could have found some short of "cash only" job somewhere. He obviously got to NYC somehow, which would have cost money. At least it did show him try to get a job.

I feel like it would have been better to start with the origin story in this case. As I'm sure I'm not the only one that never read the comics and doesn't know anything about the character.  Hopefully it's coming soon :).

Edited March 18, 2017 by blueray

[The Solid Muldoon]

Nothing odd about picking Danny to be a Defender. He is Luke Cage's best friend.

[Anela]

It was okay. If he keeps responding to people with inspirational quotes, this is going to get annoying. 

[Chas411]

The entire production seemed really amateurish especially the fight scenes. I was really surprised about that given its Marvel. The lead guy isn't great. Maybe he'll get better but so far I just think there's a serious lack of charisma. I have a soft spot for Jessica Stroup since 90210 so I'll keep it up for another few episodes for her.

[Bec]

I like the decor of Harold's building. It's very art deco. I like how creepy his penthouse is, too. I wonder if he's immortal or something? Because he doesn't look a lot older than his "son". Maybe he had to "die" because if he stuck around it's eventually gonna become obvious that he hadn't aged a day in decades.

[NorthstarATL]

I liked the opening credits. I hadn't read the original stories since I was a kid, but I started thumbing through them during the episode just to see if what I remembered was reflected in the show. (It wasn't.) I like it well enough, I guess. Fist just doesn't have the stellar supporting cast that the others do, IMO, and that puts too much weight on Danny Bland's shoulders.

[HavartiHead42]

Thank you all! I'm always so happy when I'm not alone. I feel bad for blaming the guy for his hair, but it's so bad it's distracting. I usually think fight scenes are filler, but I enjoy watching the fight choreography on Daredevil, even on re-watch. Here it looked sloppy. Poor editing/direction, maybe?

Almost the biggest issue for me was discovering that they've transformed beautiful former white supremacist Kurt from Banshee into a middle aged guy trying to pass for 35. What have they done to Tom Pelphrey? The scene with his dad reminded me of the scene from Diner, where they describe Bonanza as a show with a 49 year old father and his three 47 year old sons. 

[shrewd.buddha]

Not as boring as Luke Cage. But not as well written as *any* of the others.

Danny comes off as not very bright, not very centered, and without any particular purpose. It is as if he doesn't even know why he came back to NY. 

As others have said - the fight choreography is not very good. 
And unless Danny was the adopted child of two wealthy people who where also adopted and without any biological family, it would be pretty easy to prove who he is with current DNA testing.  Looks like the writers would rather just ignore anything that gets in the way of their plot.

Edited March 19, 2017 by shrewd.buddha

[JustaPerson]

I don't know if it was intentional or not (maybe not) but I liked how casually Danny seemed to do martial arts, almost lazily like he barely needed to expend any effort to deal with those Rand security guards. His body language while doing it seemed more relaxed when compared to say Matt Murdock. Probably just sloppy choreography, but it worked for me *shrugs*

[starri]

It's...serviceable.  It's not nearly as awful as the advance reviews made it sound, but it's just a bit plodding.  I think starting out with this "prove you're Danny Rand" plot was a mistake.

It's also so different than the other Netflix shows.  Nelson & Murdock is in a rundown building.  Alias Investigations is in a rundown building.  Luke works in a barbershop.  Half of this is in a skyscraper or a fancy mansion off Gramercy Park.  Danny Rand was always basically Martial Arts Batman, but without some tweaks, I don't know if he quite meshes with his live-action friends.

If they're going to continue with him after Defenders, they should just take a page from Marvel in the 70s and combine Danny and Luke into a single Heroes for Hire series.  And give Colleen and Misty a Daughters of the Drago miniseries.

And nothing he's going to do later in the series is going to be braver than walking down Park Avenue barefoot.  Yech!

[tennisgurl]

I went into this trying to have an open mind, despite the bad reviews. I've seen everything the MCU has put out, and loved all of the Netflix Marvel shows (flaws and all), so I really wanted to like this, but...its kind of bland so far. Not as God awful as some reviews made it out to be, just boring, without a lot of characters to root for or get interested in. I know its the pilot, but by the time the pilot of DD, JJ, and LC got finished, I had some idea of who the main character was, their supporting cast, and what the driving theme was going to be. Here? I guess we do have a lot of that, its just that they haven't given us any real reason to care. None of the characters really stand out, and I'm not sure what the main theme of this show will be, besides Danny getting his company back. A company he didn't earn or work for, he just inherited. But, he wants to clean it up? Why? Give us something else, show!

It doesn't help that, to me, the whole episode felt like a bland version of the first episode of Arrow. Rich guy who was presumed dead shows up again to start working with his dead parents company. Said parent or parents died in the same alleged accident that allegedly killed him in some foreign location. He has also come back with badass new skills that he wants to use to fight crime and clean up the company, while reconnecting with old family and friends, despite his new outlook on life. Except, this guy is no Stephen Amell, and, while the first half of Arrows first season has some real flows, it wasn't bland or directionless, by any means. It also helped that Oliver suffered from horribly PTSD, and had trouble relating to people because of that, and that gave him a character arc that would carry through the whole show. Danny is all chill and zen, and while he also has trouble relating to people (mainly in his lack of understanding of private property, personal space, or common sense), I don't know if we are supposed to see it as a fault. Are we supposed to see his creepiness as likable, or is this something he needs to overcome? I really have no idea. It doesn't help that he has stupid hair and dresses like a roaming yoga instructor.

I REALLY hope this "no one believes Danny is Danny" plot is over ASAP. I mean, just run a DNA test. Then show them the results. This whole thing could be over in a few hours. Easy.

[Kel Varnsen]

Not sure how I feel, about it since there wasn't much to it. That Ward guy is a bad actor though, and looks like a guy they would cast as one of Trump's sons in a made for tv movie.

Also apparently in the mcu, Mercedes-Benz's don't have side impact airbags.

[Calvino321]

Did anybody else notice some UNCANNY PARALLELS between Iron Fist and the WB masterpiece that was Tarzan? Lost heir to a billion-dollar fortune returns to NYC to reclaim his legacy from nefarious relatives and fight crime barefoot? Somebody tell me I'm not alone in this.

[Hiveminder]

When I read that people were calling this a ripoff of Arrow I thought they were exaggerating, but I can see where they're coming from. 

The fight scenes were unimpressive, and Danny came off as naive and kind of dumb. I'm having trouble seeing him as the hero of the story. And what was with the song he was listening to in the beginning? It set a pretty peppy vibe which I don't think helped anything. 

[Chas411]

Joy surprised me - I didn't think she was actually drugging him. That was about the most surprising part of the episode for me.

[Kel Varnsen]

16 hours ago, Hiveminder said:

 

The fight scenes were unimpressive, and Danny came off as naive and kind of dumb. I'm having trouble seeing him as the hero of the story. 

Speaking of Danny being dumb, why was he all mysteruous and weird when trying to get a job teaching kung fu from Colleen? Why not just come out and say yoi are looking for a job and that you are able to teach kung fu?

42 minutes ago, Chas411 said:

Joy surprised me - I didn't think she was actually drugging him. That was about the most surprising part of the episode for me.

I love that trope where it is incredibly easy to give someone enough drugs to quickly knock them out without killing them or without them noticing there drink has been spiked.

[xqueenfrostine]

22 hours ago, Kel Varnsen said:

Not sure how I feel, about it since there wasn't much to it. That Ward guy is a bad actor though, and looks like a guy they would cast as one of Trump's sons in a made for tv movie.

Ha!  Now that you mention it, he is a dead ringer for Donald Jr.

[Chicago Redshirt]

Re: DNA, it's not clear to me where one would be able to necessarily find a valid sample. Just in case, I'll put spoiler tags in. 

Danny and his parents have been presumed dead and gone for 15 years. Most of their personal belongings would be destroyed or cleaned. Their bodies were not found.

[Chicago Redshirt]

On further reflection, I suppose that they could potentially exhume Danny's grandparents or other older relatives, assuming they weren't cremated or unknown or something.

But even that would be contested -- with literally billions at stake, could it be trusted that someone wouldn't have exhumed the remains and replaced them with the supposed imposter's grandparents?

[Ottis]

On 3/18/2017 at 8:43 PM, Kel Varnsen said:

That Ward guy is a bad actor though, and looks like a guy they would cast as one of Trump's sons in a made for tv movie.

The Ward dude looks just like one of the recent SNL cast members, especially in a certain light, and from a low angle. I almost started laughing a couple of times because of it. It's the guy who was always in The Californians sketch, I can almost remember his name but not quite. Fred Armison?

On 3/18/2017 at 1:34 PM, JustaPerson said:

on't know if it was intentional or not (maybe not) but I liked how casually Danny seemed to do martial arts, almost lazily like he barely needed to expend any effort to deal with those Rand security guards. His body language while doing it seemed more relaxed when compared to say Matt Murdock. Probably just sloppy choreography, but it worked for me *shrugs*

I actually liked that a lot. It was almost subconscious, as opposed to Daredevil's will.

[Kel Varnsen]

Also did anyone else think that the ipod thing was a bit of a Guardians of the Galaxy ripoff? What with a guy using an outdated device to listen to songs from his childhood because he was far away from his home.

Edited March 20, 2017 by Kel Varnsen

[Bec]

I didn't think of that, but yeah. I wonder how he kept it charged. Did those mountain monks have electricity?

[Chas411]

Is it possible they blew the entire show budget on the plane crash stunt and that's why they keep repeating it. It certainly doesn't look like they invested it in the fight stunt scenes. 

[TVSpectator]

So I am currently on episode 8 but I do want to get this off my chest about the pilot. First, I really didn't find it bad but I didn't like how it just seems like it just started in the middle of Danny's story. We literally see Danny in his street clothes walking barefoot but I was hoping that it would start with a flashback to 10-year-old Danny surviving the plane crash and a montage of his training in K'un Lun. We had very little flashbacks and the one that we have was the plane crash but that was it. 

 

Although, I did like the Meachums from the start. They seem to be really interesting and yeah, if someone they thought dead for 15 years comes back, then I would also think that person is either crazy and/or a con artist. 

[WatchrTina]

On 3/25/2017 at 11:44 AM, TVSpectator said:

Danny in his street clothes walking barefoot

I've lived in NYC and whenever anyone is depicted as walking barefoot there it just grosses me out because, ew.  

But more to the point -- how did Danny GET to NYC with (apparently) nothing but the clothes on his back (and not on his feet), an old iPod, and a book of Buddhist teachings.  How do you get to NYC from Tibet without a passport, which I presume he doesn't have?  I haven't read the comics but now I'm guessing that that place where he trained -- the place the martial arts teacher had never heard of -- exists on some astral plane other than our plain-vanilla existence and that he got to NYC through some mystical portal a la Doctor Strange.  

I'll keep watching but so far, this has been painful.  The dialog is so bad it hurts my ears.

On 3/17/2017 at 10:06 PM, Bec said:

I wonder if [Harold is] immortal or something? Because he doesn't look a lot older than his "son". Maybe he had to "die" because if he stuck around it's eventually gonna become obvious that he hadn't aged a day in decades.

Okay, this I like.  This I could get behind.  Because otherwise the idea of a 40-something man faking his own death and thereafter living secluded in a secret penthouse is just . . . stupid.  Okay, maybe he has a helipad on top the building and he regularly flies to his private island where he lives a life of luxury surrounded by priceless stolen art and nubile young women.  But still . . . why?

Edited March 27, 2017 by WatchrTina

[AKA...CJ86]

So, a little late but finally started the series.

I enjoyed it for the most part, I agree with what's been said by my fellow PTV'ers, really no reason to parrot everyone else, but again, I did enjoy it.

The only head scratcher to me is what WatchrTina above mentioned. How does Danny get to NYC?

My own observations: Shallow maybe, but you know Ward's a baddie just by his hair.  The minute Joy's pouring tea... of course it's poisoned. And of course Harold's alive and... you can guess how the rest of the season will play out. Not liking the fight for Rand Enterprises, or the Misidentification of Danny Rand. Side note on Joy, I take it she'll be the one who switches to Danny's side later on?  After the poisoning, I only see an obvious redemption for her.

With each new Marvel Netflix I've typically been blown away with each new addition, or each addition was better than what came before, my opinion of course, and again, only seeing the first episode so far, I enjoyed Iron Fist, but I didn't think it was better than, or improved upon anything/the other series, that came before it.

Edited March 27, 2017 by CyberJawa1986
Edits and Stuff, Yo!

[TVSpectator]

On 3/26/2017 at 6:05 PM, WatchrTina said:

I've lived in NYC and whenever anyone is depicted as walking barefoot there it just grosses me out because, ew.  

But more to the point -- how did Danny GET to NYC with (apparently) nothing but the clothes on his back (and not on his feet), an old iPod, and a book of Buddhist teachings.  How do you get to NYC from Tibet without a passport, which I presume he doesn't have?  I haven't read the comics but now I'm guessing that that place where he trained -- the place the martial arts teacher had never heard of -- exists on some astral plane other than our plain-vanilla existence and that he got to NYC through some mystical portal a la Doctor Strange.  

I'll keep watching but so far, this has been painful.  The dialog is so bad it hurts my ears.

 

I would keep on watching since they do explain how Danny got back into the US (actually they do explain a lot of other stuff in later episodes that people keep on complaining about) and also for some reason the dialog isn't bothering me. 

On 3/26/2017 at 9:41 PM, CyberJawa1986 said:

So, a little late but finally started the series.

I enjoyed it for the most part, I agree with what's been said by my fellow PTV'ers, really no reason to parrot everyone else, but again, I did enjoy it.

The only head scratcher to me is what WatchrTina above mentioned. How does Danny get to NYC?

My own observations: Shallow maybe, but you know Ward's a baddie just by his hair.  The minute Joy's pouring tea... of course it's poisoned. And of course Harold's alive and... you can guess how the rest of the season will play out. Not liking the fight for Rand Enterprises, or the Misidentification of Danny Rand. Side note on Joy, I take it she'll be the one who switches to Danny's side later on?  After the poisoning, I only see an obvious redemption for her.

With each new Marvel Netflix I've typically been blown away with each new addition, or each addition was better than what came before, my opinion of course, and again, only seeing the first episode so far, I enjoyed Iron Fist, but I didn't think it was better than, or improved upon anything/the other series, that came before it.

 

I would just keep on watching the series only because they do explain it (in a passive sort of way but then again this is a man who has been living in a magical city that is located in another dimension, for 15 years. His way of thinking would be different but still he is dumb but others do point it out). 

[millennium]

On 3/17/2017 at 7:00 AM, Bec said:

Yeah... so far it's kind of... meh. But, eh, I'll still watch more. I'm just not super excited about it.

The opening credits look cool. The music is kind of forgettable, though.

 

I like the opening credits and the music.  Stylistically it's in the same family as the Daredevil intro (which I personally love).  I don't remember the Jessica Jones and Luke Cage intros, but I don't think they had the same feel as Daredevil and Iron Fist.

On 3/17/2017 at 11:34 PM, NorthstarATL said:

I liked the opening credits. I hadn't read the original stories since I was a kid, but I started thumbing through them during the episode just to see if what I remembered was reflected in the show. (It wasn't.) I like it well enough, I guess. Fist just doesn't have the stellar supporting cast that the others do, IMO, and that puts too much weight on Danny Bland's shoulders.

Danny Bland!  Perfect.

[AudienceofOne]

Late to the party but I have to comment. I spent this episode wondering why Netflix had suddenly hired student directors, editors and actors to do a Marvel show. It should have better production values than this, no? And better acting? And better scripting? It was all so stilted and cliched. And, wow, was the main character annoying. There's nothing worse than the 'rich guy who discovers Eastern mysticism' bullshit. 

On 17/03/2017 at 1:24 PM, xqueenfrostine said:

I had a hard time figuring out why I wasn't supposed to see things from the Meachams' point of view as this annoying and crazy drifter descends into their lives and starts breaking into their homes, cars and offices.  

This.

I did kind of see the first scene as evidence of his exclusion from society. He ran into the building like a 10-year-old going home, like he was still the kid he used to be. So apart from the stilted acting and terrible production values, that scene kind of worked for me. But then instead of taking a moment to think about it and take a different approach he proceeds to run around town like an insane junkie.

[rubinia]

On 3/18/2017 at 10:27 PM, Hiveminder said:

And what was with the song he was listening to in the beginning? It set a pretty peppy vibe which I don't think helped anything. 

It's "So Fresh, So Clean" by Outkast. It came out in 2001 I think which means it might still be somewhat popular around the time of the plane crash--hence why it's on his ipod. It was probably also supposed to be ironic that the first shot is him in dirty clothes and no shoes while "So Fresh, So Clean" is playing over the scene.

[Sandman]

On 2017-03-18 at 6:01 PM, starri said:

It's...serviceable.  It's not nearly as awful as the advance reviews made it sound, but it's just a bit plodding.  I think starting out with this "prove you're Danny Rand" plot was a mistake.

I agree it's not nearly as dire as the advance reviews made it seem (I found the pilot of Arrow far worse), and I guess I don't have high enough standards when it comes to fight choreography -- I wasn't really bothered by the fights. But the pace drags, and I don't really care about Joy at all. Am I supposed to? The writing makes it hard to tell. I have high hopes for Colleen Wing, though I don't know the character well; I didn't really read Iron Fist or Luke Cage all that much.

But, great googly-moogly, who keeps giving Tom Pelphrey work? I've never been a fan, but in this he is almost unwatchably bad. I want to like David Wenham, but the Ward and his not-dead Dad scenes are lifeless (haha?).

Edited May 4, 2017 by Sandman

[methodwriter85]

On 5/1/2017 at 2:54 PM, rubinia said:

It's "So Fresh, So Clean" by Outkast. It came out in 2001 I think which means it might still be somewhat popular around the time of the plane crash--hence why it's on his ipod. It was probably also supposed to be ironic that the first shot is him in dirty clothes and no shoes while "So Fresh, So Clean" is playing over the scene.

Looking at that Ipod made me feel old as dirt because I was in middle school when those were the cool new things that I'd never get a chance to have. (IPods weren't really affordable until the Nano came out in 2004.) Now they might as well be cassette players from the 80's.

I think it's also supposed to show that a part of Danny is "stuck" in 2002 when the accident happened.

Quote

Almost the biggest issue for me was discovering that they've transformed beautiful former white supremacist Kurt from Banshee into a middle aged guy trying to pass for 35. What have they done to Tom Pelphrey? The scene with his dad reminded me of the scene from Diner, where they describe Bonanza as a show with a 49 year old father and his three 47 year old sons. 

I googled Tom Pelphrey, sure that he was like 40-something and playing like 15 years younger because the indications that he would have been a 15-year old in 2002 just got a big fat "no" from me, and then was shocked to read he was born in 1982. Damn.

Danny's looks are kind of deterrent for me. He's got such dainty little faint. He feels like the cute coffee barista that gets to play his guitar on breaks, not a super-hero.

[Parker]

I enjoyed the first ep without knowing little about this character.

A little less dark than Daredevil, Jessica and Luke, which was a little refreshing.

Looked forward to more.  Interested to see where this goes.