One of the top 3 Marvel projects to look out for next year is the Daredevil TV show premiering on Netflix. The success of the series is crucial for the continued growth of the Marvel brand, as they are about to venture into an area that they are unfamiliar with. They will be taking their first steps into the darker side of the Marvel universe with the series and it is yet to be seen how audiences will respond.
Daredevil is being brought to the small screen by television veterans Jeph Loeb (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) and Steven DeKnight (Spartacus). Loeb’s involvement may worry some, depending on if you felt that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. started off poorly as part of a masterplan or not. In any case, he explains the approach to the upcoming Netflix series.
There aren’t going to be people flying through the sky; there are no magic hammers…We’ve always approached this as a crime drama first, superhero show second.
That seems like the correct approach for the gritty tale of Matt Murdock, the trial lawyer who fights for justice in the courtroom and serves vigilante justice in the streets. It does have me a little concerned as well, only because Loeb took the same approach with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. when it began as well. However, it does seem to be the best route for this project.
In October, we got our first glance at what the Daredevil costume would look like. EW recently provided a new official still from the show highlighting the masked vigilante.
Clearly this is not the traditional crimson red look that the crimefighter is most known for, but one of the earlier incarnations before the outfit was refined. It is possible that this will indeed be the costume throughout the series and his more iconic look will be saved for the series finale or even The Defenders series. DeKnight explains a little bit more on the tone.
It’s a little grittier and edgier than Marvel has gone before, but we’re not looking to push it to extreme violence or gratuitous nudity.
Marvel promoting the very practical looking gear, is a signal to fans that this may be more “realistic,” than we are used to. Netflix gives Marvel the latitude to be as edgy as Disney will allow, so hopefully viewers are in for a little bit of a shock. The fact that there hasn’t been any dynamic official photos or footage is reason for concern, but hopefully all fears about the cheap looking production will be put to rest with a quality trailer.
The main Marvel cinematic universe does feel like it’s in a very safe place right now. Whether it’s people with god-like abilities or regular humans that can be miraculously brought back to life, the stakes have been dramatically lowered by the fantastical nature of their storytelling. Hopefully these tales of crime and grit provide a broader canvas for telling stories, while not forgetting what put Marvel on the map, superheroism. We should find out soon…
Marvel’s Daredevil will be available on Netflix in 2015.
Does fact that we haven’t seen the red suit concern you? Let us know on the comment boards, , and !
Source: EW