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What Can We Expect From 'Luke Cage' Season 2?

It looks as though Luke Cage is joining the ranks of the renewed!

By Tom BaconPublished 6 years ago 5 min read
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He's signed up for Season 2! [Credit: Netflix]

Back in 2015, Marvel and Netflix launched their partnership with the hit series Daredevil. Jessica Jones was another tremendous success, and both shows were renewed for second seasons, although Jessica Jones Season 2 isn't expected until 2018. Now, it looks as though Luke Cage is joining the ranks of the renewed — it's official that we'll see a second season of everybody's favorite "bulletproof black man!"

So, what can we expect from Luke Cage Season 2?

Don't mess with Luke. [Credit: Netflix]

When Marvel and Netflix first began to launch their shows, the plan was for no more than two superhero shows to be streamed each year. That's why last year saw Daredevil and Jessica Jones, while this year we got the delights of Daredevil Season 2 and Luke Cage!

The times, they are a-changin', and next year we've got no less than three confirmed #MarvelNetflix shows — Iron Fist, Punisher, and The Defenders. We already know that 2018 will feature Daredevil Season 3 and Jessica Jones Season 2, both set after #TheDefenders, so — unless "coming soon" actually means in two years' time — it looks as though we're going to get Luke Cage as our third Marvel Netflix production in 2018.

It's worth noting that scheduling deals are probably the reason it's taken a while for Luke Cage Season 2 to be confirmed. Season 1 aired September 30th 2016, and Season 2 has only been confirmed on December 4th. You're talking a full 65 days later; in contrast, Daredevil Season 2 was confirmed only 11 days after Season 1 aired.

The Defenders Will Change Luke Cage's Status Quo

The ultimate Netflix team-up! Image: Netflix

Naturally, we can't expect Luke Cage Season 2 to pick up right where Luke Cage left off. After all, the titular superhero will be teaming up with Daredevil and Iron Fist — not to mention his ex Jessica Jones — in The Defenders. In order to get Luke into the team-up, it's pretty clear that The Defenders will have to resolve the climax of Season 1, which saw Mike Colter's Luke Cage under arrest once again. In a promising touch, Rosario Dawson's Claire Temple was planning to call in a certain lawyer friend of hers, which sounds like the initial setup for The Defenders to me.

Let's assume that, by the end of The Defenders, Luke has been cleared of all charges; it's safe to assume he'll be returning to Harlem, where he's already something of a celebrity. How will he make ends meet? Well, the most popular theory is surely by forming "Heroes for Hire" — agreeing to step in when needed in return for, ah, financial compensation. In the comics, Luke ran "Heroes for Hire" alongside Iron Fist, so, consequently, many fans had actually been expecting both Luke Cage and Iron Fist to only run for one season, with a Heroes for Hire series bringing the two together. Marvel has clearly opted for another path, so I wouldn't be at all surprised if "Heroes for Hire" played a part in Luke Cage Season 2.

What About Luke's Love Life?

Of course, one of the hottest debates around is just who Luke will wind up "going for coffee" with when The Defenders is over. The show features two of his exes (Krysten Ritter's Jessica Jones and Simone Missick's Misty Knight), as well as Claire Temple herself.

Claire Temple has served as an essential bridge for The Defenders; Rosario Dawson's popular character was introduced in Daredevil Season 1, and is serving as the connective tissue for every show so far. Set pictures have already shown Luke and Claire indulging in a PDA, but that doesn't mean things will end well for the pair. Many fans are wondering if Claire will suffer the fate of Phil Coulson, and be the character whose death is used to bring the superheroes together as a team.

[Credit: Marvel Studios]

More significantly, though, if Marvel's Netflix shows want to remain even remotely true to their comic book inspirations, then Luke will need to get back with Jessica Jones. After all, in the comics those two characters wound up married, and they've even had a kid! The dynamic between the pair was simply electric in Jessica Jones Season 1, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see their romance rekindled somehow in The Defenders. Whether that's the case or not, though, we can safely expect Mike Colter and Krysten Ritter to start making more cameos in one another's shows sometime soon.

What about the Villains?

Mariah Dillard. [Credit: Netflix]

Luke Cage Season 1 ended with Alfre Woodard's Black Mariah finally embracing her life of crime, but we also had a hint that her story is set to continue in Iron Fist. Luke Cage closed with Jessica Henwick's Colleen Wing called in to investigate Black Mariah, and she's also set to appear in Iron Fist. That said, Black Mariah just doesn't fit for the kind of martial-arts-style crime bosses Iron Fist typically takes on.

In contrast, Daredevil has featured the crime boss Madame Gao (played by Wai Ching Ho). Most fans believe she's the #MCU version of a classic Iron Fist foe known as the Crane Mother — in Daredevil Season 1, the Crane Mother's insignia was on Madame Gao's heroin packets. My suspicion is that Iron Fist will be taking on the Crane Mother rather than Black Mariah as his major opponent.

So, assuming that Black Mariah's criminal reign hasn't come to an end in Iron Fist, she's available to continue as the major villain of Luke Cage Season 2. Given the significance of her arc in Season 1, I think bringing her back would be a smart move.

The Sokovia Accords

Sure to affect Marvel Netflix sooner or later. [Credit: Marvel Studios]

Running through the background, though, is another issue: the Sokovia Accords. In #CaptainAmericaCivilWar, the world's government signed up to a program where metahumans would have to register with the government and get sign-off before they worked as superheroes.

Dialogue in Luke Cage Season 1 deliberately sets that series as happening at the same time as Daredevil Season 2 — meaning the Sokovia Accords were yet to take effect. Sooner or later, though, those Accords are going to become a major plot element over in Marvel Netflix. There's absolutely no way any corner of the MCU can avoid them.

Luke Cage was in the thick of it in the comics! [Credit: Marvel Comics]

Over in the comics, Luke Cage was on Captain America's side in the original "Civil War" arc, and he was strongly opposed to registration. I suspect the MCU version would be no less unhappy with the idea of signing on with the government. So that could cause major problems for Luke...

As you can see, Luke Cage Season 2 has a lot of possibilities! We don't know much, but at least we know what questions to ask: What will happen in Luke's love-life? Will Black Mariah still be on hand? How will the Sokovia Accords affect Luke? Our next glimpse of Luke Cage will be in next year's The Defenders, which will set Luke up ready for Season 2. Until then, I suspect we'll only be able to guess!

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About the Creator

Tom Bacon

A prolific writer and film fan, Tom has a deep love of the superhero genre.

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