*Warning: Spoilers Ahead*
WHO’S GONNA TAKE THE WEIGHT
So, after the first two episodes I’m cautiously optimistic about this season. But I still am stymied as to who will prove to be a challenge to Luke. He could snap Cottonmouths neck without skipping a beat. He seems to be going down the path of waging a hit and run war against him. Attacking his safe houses and leaving (most) of the cash and illegal contraband that he finds for the police to confiscate.
This starts to put a hurt on Cottonmouth who resorts to his fallback plan of consolidating his ‘assets’ in his cousin’s campaign headquarters building. Luke knows this because Chico told him about the fallback plan.
We also find out that Misty’s partner Detective Rafael Scarfe, played by Frank Whaley, works for Cottonmouth and kills Chico when he decides he wants to come clean about everything he knows of Cottonmouth’s organization. I had a feeling that the Detective was going to be a bad guy from the first time I saw him. Kind of wish I was wrong about it. Even up until right before he killed Chico, I was hoping I was wrong. But all the signals were there.
Misty is putting things together and after the campaign headquarters assault, she is pretty sure it’s Luke who’s doing the attacks on Cottonmouths safe houses.
Scarfe gives up Luke to Cottonmouth who decides to take Luke out personally with a rocket launcher to the restaurant owned by the Asian couple that he rents his room from when he’s eating there and unwinding.
Did he get to the his Asian landlady in time before the explosion and cover her? Can even he survive that kind of explosion? Add to that the entire building seemed to collapse on them in the closing scene!
I still think there’s some bigger baddie on the horizon that will give Luke a run for his money. The fight scenes so far have been pretty one-sided. With Luke basically manhandling Cottonmouths goons. But he’s cautious not to kill anyone.
Hoping to see some character development in future episodes. Also, I know Rosario Dawson is supposed to be in this so I’m looking forward to seeing how she factors in. I’m assuming someone gets hurt pretty bad and Luke takes them to her since he met her in Jessica Jones. So far Rosario’s character is what is binding all these series together. She’s been in all of them. Both Daredevil seasons, Jessica Jones and now Luke Cage.
There have been a few references to the other series and the MCU, also. Luke is called Powerman as a joke a couple times. Wilson Fisk is referenced as are the ‘bigger’ heroes.
Rating: 7/10