Luke Cage Strikes Back for Season 2!!!

"Luke Cage" returns to Netflix for Season 2 (June 22), where all 13 episodes will be locked and loaded for superheroic gorging.  

The series' star, Mike Colter has earned praise for his Marvel icon portrayal in "Jessica Jones", "The Defenders" or his initial, self-titled outing. Mind you, this isn't the character most of us grew up with (if I had my way, Colter's Cage would be constant Power Man yellow shirt and shiny belt); nonetheless, as far as Marvel's modernized (i.e., less flashy) Cage goes, Colter has nailed it.

Much of the success stems from Colter's cool, calculating demeanor. Harlem's humble hero isn't a brute, even though he springs from tough turf. He's a thinking man who'll pound an opponent into the ground only if the desperate moment requires it. Then again, if his temper should ever get the best of him, Rosario Dawson's Claire Temple is usually nearby to snuff the indignant flame. 

Per Neflix, Season 2's big villain is John Bushmaster (Mustafa "the Cavern" Shakir), aka the Power Master. Like Cage, Bushmaster is bulletproof, but Caribbean born and a New York mobster. In comic lore, there have been several Bushmasters, who've combated both Cage and Iron Fist; so, even though mythical liberties have been taken for Season 2, the concept will still graze its Marvel context.

This live-action Bushmaster sounds formidable, but is he up to the task? These Netflix shows do sway toward surprising misleads. Season 1 sure as hell taught us that. (I suppose if Bushmaster fizzles, we'll still have Alfre Woodard's Mariah Dillard prowling the criminal corridors.)

Colter claims that Season 2 emits a more brooding tone than the initial, which concentrated on mob interplay, but considering Bushmaster's background, why would the second stretch be much different, even if spiked by darker depths? On the other hand, the trailer does convey a distinct vengeance element, after Cage's mettle is tested in a most mortifying way. 

No matter how things develop, this new engagement should spark interest among fans, ensuring that "Luke Cage: Season 2" becomes another powerful pillar in Netflix's expanding, Marvel foundation.

Marvel/Netflix's Luke Cage Kicks Butt--Solo Style!!!

For me, Netflix's "Jessica Jones" seemed a backward way of introducing Marvel's kick-ass hero, Luke Cage: that is, I thought Cage (damn it) should have had a series first. However, Michael Colter's presence in Jones' re-imagined world proved influential enough to grant him his own series, which Netflix premieres this Friday (9/30). Its arrival has many fans rejoicing, and I dare say, I'm now included in that avid crowd.

As with other Netflix shows, "Luke Cage'"s cast is most impressive. In addition to Colter, there's Mahershala Ali as nightclub-owner/villain, Cornell "Cottonmouth" Stokes; Alfre Woodard as Cottonmouth's politician cousin, Mariah Dillard; Theo Rossi as slick baddie "Shades" Alvarez; Simone Missick as Misty Knight, a moral-based detective partnered with Frank Whaley's tough and cynical Rafael Scarfe. (Also, "Daredevil'"s Rosario Dawson will be visiting for a significant chunk of episodes.)

All thirteen episodes will be available for viewing on the first day of release, and as we witnessed in "Jessica Jones", Cage will be devoid of his '70s blaxploitation trimmings. However, the show's tone will still be action-oriented, though more in the atmospheric vein of M. Night Shyamalan's "Unbreakable": a formula also established in "Jessica Jones". Additionally, we're promised insight on how Cage's impenetrable skin came to be and watch him rise as a Harlem guardian. 

The Cage series demonstrates how serious Netflix is in presenting a Marvel equivalent to CW's DC universe. There seems little doubt that "Luke Cage" will capture the same successful essence of Netflix's preceding superhero shows and somewhere down the line, cross permanently into them. (Let's not forget that "Jessica Jones: Season 2" and "Daredevil: Season 3"; as well as the "Punisher" and "Iron Fist" series are yet on the way, just itchin' for some two-fisted visitors.)