I think most of those people did know the character's origins. Basically he started out at the height of the Kung Fu craze in the 1970s. The fact that he was turned into a white character was probably the same reason why David Carradine and not Bruce Lee got the lead role in "Kung Fu".
Danny Rand wasn't turned into a white character, he was created as a white character. It was a product of the times. Let's be honest, the comic book industry in the 70's was very white. Most of its readership in the 70's was very white. They were giving a story to its base. They never made any pretenses to anything other than the fact that he was a little rich kid who was stranded in the Himalaya's when his parents died and raised by kung fu masters. To be honest, we can go back and forth on this issue, it won't change our opinions of the matter. I think Marvel has/had an opportunity to cast an asian actor for a major role with Shang-Chi. Within the non-comic reading population, he's about as popular as Iron Fist is. Now, if they cast a white boy as Shang-Chi I'd think it would be pretty fracking stupid and would be a bit upset over it.
I'm pretty sure that's actually what he meant, "turned into" as part of the original creative process rather than from something else.
The show is bad but the 16% rating on RT is incredibly ridiculous. Like it should be far close to 30% IMO
I'm 11 episodes in and enjoying it. It's much better than the RT rating. Maybe not as good as the other Marvel shows, but I'm looking forward to the last two episodes, more than I was looking forward to most of Daredevil, or Jessica Jones, or the last couple of episodes of Luke Cage. On the cultural appropriate front, the least we can say is that this show is true to the origins in the comics. Marvel took two cultural trends in the early 1970s and turned them into comics - blaxploitation movies became Luke Cage, and kung fu movies became Iron Fist. Both were insensitive as hell back in the day, and would still be if they came out today. When Luke Cage became a Netflix series last year, they stayed true to the blaxploitation origins, but made it an homage, a love letter to 1970s black American culture which set very nicely into 2010s black American culture, with the music from Wu Tang and the cameos from Method Man and such. The episodes of Luke Cage were named after songs from some early hip hop group. It felt true to me (a white suburban guy who has no connection to black American culture). The Iron Fist series is true to its origins, but the origins include the whitewashing and cultural appropriation that people are complaining about. It doesn't feel as much like an homage / love letter to 1970s kung fu movies. The episode names are based on some made up kung fu moves. If that was my culture, I'd be kind of pissed, like watching actors in yellowface in a kung fu spoof or something. Aside from the issues inherent to the comics, the TV show has its own issues - the actor playing Danny Rand not carrying the show being the main issue. The drunk guy in China was more entertaining in his brief appearance. I get that they can't make that guy Danny Rand without fundamentally changing the origin story, but maybe that would be a good show to watch, a Shang Chi series. I'd watch it.
Finn Jones is pretty much the acknowledgement that not all British actors can act Though I doubt they would have cast the drunken fighter. He's even more of an unknown than Finn was. For me the listing of the problems stem mostly 1) they didn't have the proper budget to do IRON FIST justice. 2) they had the wrong leading man. Finn just didn't have the range or physicality 3) the writing was ridiculous. Too many scenes focused on the Meachums, and yet it distracted from the terrible action scenes. 4) hiring their leading man and giving him just 2 months to get in the proper shape before the series began filming
Is the fact that Lewis Tan isn't a household name really that much of a problem? I honestly hadn't seen Mike Colter in all that much before he was in "Jessica Jones" and he seems to have done fine with "Luke Cage" (I still haven't seen it). It's also not like Finn Jones is a huge star. Sure, he had a part on one of the most popular shows in the world, but it wasn't a huge part and he wasn't really in it much in the last couple of seasons. I mean, I only knew Charlie Cox as Nucky Thompson's Irishman in "Boardwalk Empire" as well. Though it has to be said he was one charismatic mo-fo in that role.
My beef was the writing. When I first started the show I thought the early reviews were way out of line and actually started enjoying in beginning to mid range. Danny Rand was so all over the place that I grew so tired of it by the end and to push myself to finish the season. Does he want to be part of the business?? Does he want to be the iron fist??? Does he want his own destiny?? Even till the last episode we are waiting for his arc to grow. The minor characters were a lot more interesting I did like the development of the hand.
That all actually made sense to me. I mean after growing up a pampered billionaire he suddenly lost his parents as a 10-year-old and was whisked away to a mythical land to brutally learn martial arts, and then 15 years later he attempted to drop back in to his former life. It would be unbelievable if his adjustment was smooth, and the entire plot takes place in a matter of weeks. For better or worse the entire season was an origin story. I'm hoping he gains some clarity during Defenders, too much "Who am I and who do I want to be?" at this point would be a bit much.
I understand that part but he never really gave anything a try. He wants to be part of the business and completely abandoned it. Just like he abandoned the monks. At the end it doesn't seem like anything has been learned that sets him on his road of being the iron fist. Rands motivations are not coherent
That was my point, he's a totally mixed up dude, not totally part of either world or sure which one he wants to belong to or how to go about doing so. If he can be said to have learned anything it's that things aren't nearly as simple as he was taught. But hey, I remember being pretty similarly all over the place at 25 (minus the supernatural martial arts powers/billionaire stuff), so maybe that's why I give him the benefit of the doubt.
Why is Daredevil wearing that "mask" over his face? (on that other trailer) When I first saw it I thought it might have been Iron Fist.
Also, Freeform gave a 10 episode order to a New Warrios half hour comedy. Squirrel Girl will be in it. http://tvline.com/2017/04/05/marvel-new-warriors-squirrel-girl-series-order-freeform/
His reaction to seeing Hulk is amazing. So, we saw the big green guy leave in the Avengers jet, destination unknown. Anyone "in the know" - ahem @Dante - able to shed some light on where he might've gone and how he ended up in Goldblum's fight club?
I don't understand all the hype surrounding GOTG2. I thought the original was very mediocre...just like Logan
Thor, Hulk, Goldblum, Cate, under Taika's vision is going to be something to see (at least for comic-book fans). As for the Hulk, in the comics the "Illuminati" (Iron Man, Dr. Strange, R. Richards, & Black Bolt) trick him into going to space - with the intention of having him land on a planet to live in peace. He ends up going through a wormhole and landing on the planet Sakaar (remember the "ninja turtles" from GOTG - they're Sakaarans) where he is forced into slavery and goes full Gladiator. A must read story. In the film, with some liberties taken, the wormhole and Sakaar will stay the same.