Television

'Iron Fist' Featurette: So Who Is Danny Rand Again, Exactly?

Iron Fist featurette
By Angie Han

Who is Danny Rand? That's the question Netflix hopes you're asking yourself right now, and the question it's counting on to make you binge-watch 13 episodes of Iron Fist next month. We know he's played by Game of Thrones alum Finn Jones and that he's the final piece of the Defenders puzzle. But where did he come from? What are his powers? What does he want?

A new Iron Fist featurette touches upon some of those basics, while still leaving plenty to the imagination. There's tons of new footage mixed in here amid all the Finn Jones talking heads. If you'd like to know more about Marvel's newest small-screen superhero, click through to check out the Iron Fist featurette.  

Iron Fist Featurette

To accompany the Iron Fist featurette above, Netflix has also released an Iron Fist motion poster (or whatever we're calling these really short animated things these days).

One reason I'm not completely sold on Iron Fist yet is that Danny, despite being new to the MCU, feels so reminiscent of so many other characters we've already met. The Marvel Cinematic Universe already has a billionaire scion-turned-superhero; he's based just a few blocks down the road at Stark Tower. Danny's mystical training at K'un-Lun seems like a repeat of Doctor Strange's journey to Kamar-Taj. And the whole "rich kid goes missing, comes back with abilities obtained through mysterious means" thing is very Arrow and Batman Begins.

Granted, that doesn't mean Iron Fist has nothing new to offer. There's a reason comic books return to this concept so frequently — it's endlessly malleable material for wish-fulfillment fantasies. I just hope Danny's got some more interesting tricks up his sleeve.

Iron Fist hits Netflix March 17.

Billionaire Danny Rand (Finn Jones) returns to New York City after being missing for years, trying to reconnect with his past and his family legacy. He fights against the criminal element corrupting New York City with his kung-fu mastery and ability to summon the awesome power of the fiery Iron Fist. Marvel's Iron Fist, produced by Netflix in association with Marvel Television and ABC Studios, is the fourth in the hero series, following Marvel's Daredevil, Marvel's Jessica Jones and Marvel's Luke Cage, all leading up to the teaming up of the main characters in Marvel's The Defenders, which is set to debut later this year.
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