History Heartwarming / TheDefenders2017

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* The Comic Con trailer, with Creator/StanLee musing about the importance of superhero stories and how they can inspire people to make a difference in their own way.
-->'''Stan Lee:''' They're the greatest story ever told. Heroes shows us that we don't need to be perfect to do what's right. It's not about living without fear but facing injustice. It's not about being powerful but finding your calling when you less expect it. They show us its okay to be vulnerable no matter how tough you are. Because even though they're heroes, they're still human.

* Luke gives Danny shit about the "mystic stuff". When he realizes he's offended him, he humors him and starts asking questions, which leads to the two of them bonding over the weird stuff they've survived. Danny ends the conversation by pointing out Luke is NotSoDifferent. Luke playfully slaps his leg.

-->'''Luke Cage:''' [[CrowningMomentOfFunny I'm not hugging you]]. ''[[[ActuallyPrettyFunny Matt laughs]]]''

** The scene itself plays out very much like the "I'm not yours to protect" conversation from season 2, episode 11, when Matt tried to go with Karen into protective custody after she got shot at in her apartment. During that scene, Matt was ''telling'' her he was coming with her (implying that it’s ''his'' decision to make), while this time around, Matt’s ''asking'' Karen (implying it’s ''her'' decision to make). It might not make much difference to the result. When Karen says no in the "I'm not yours to protect" scene, Matt doesn’t insist, while if she’d said no here when he visits her at her office, he would have kept trying to convince her. But still, it’s an important difference in Matt's whole approach, and shows that he recognizes that he has no right to tell Karen what to do.

-->'''Matt Murdock:''' It's only going to get harder from here on out. You realize you're only at mile one of a marathon, right? Everybody is going to tell you how to feel. Doctors are going to tell you to stay positive. Your family's gonna tell you not to feel sorry for yourself. Your therapist is gonna tell you not to be angry--…your ability to get through it...as this gets harder...that is a hundred times more powerful than slapping a smile on your face and pretending like everything is just fine. No one can give your life back, Aaron. You have....you gotta take it back.

** While Luke and Danny are fighting Alexandra's men in the boardroom, a guy with an automatic rifle comes in and begins shooting at Danny. Luke steps in front of Danny to shield him from the gunfire, and then Danny breaks cover once the guy is out of bullets.

* When Matt is talking with Stick after having gotten Karen to go to the police station, Stick senses Karen's scent on Matt and says, “if she’s as sweet as she smells I can see why you’re broken up about this one”, and Matt snaps “don’t bring her into this” at him. In a few interviews after ''Daredevil'' season 2 was released, Charlie Cox said that Matt loves Karen too much to want to see her get mixed up in his complicated life, and that attitude is very evident here. Matt has just basically been forced to admit to Karen that he had been lying about wanting to give Daredevil up, and feels horrible both about that and the fact that she is getting dragged into this mess again. Matt could barely function when he realized the Hand had kidnapped her (to the point that Elektra had to calm him so he could concentrate). The last thing he wants is for that to happen again.

* During the fight, despite agreeing to holding Danny away, Jessica still came his defense by trying to keep Matt from hurting him anymore. Doesn't work, but props for trying.

* When Jessica woke up to find herself in the precinct and getting interrogated by Knight, she immediately asked for her teammate's whereabouts. Considering how close off she usually is, it is nice to see that Jessica already cares about the safety of her teammates.
** Look at how much Jessica's trust in Matt has improved. Her reaction to Matt forcibly grabbing her in Midland Circle was an exasperated "You grab me like that again, I'll punch you so hard you'll see!" Here, as Matt, Jessica and Luke are being escorted through the precinct, Jessica shows no discomfort with Matt holding on to her elbow to keep up appearances.
* Matt tears up when it fully hits home that Stick is dead. As reinforced by Charlie Cox in interviews, Matt may not have liked Stick, and for good reason, but he was still important enough in his life that he can't help mourning the death of his mentor.

* Matt Murdock is coming off the heartwrenching season 2, which ended with Elektra getting killed and Nelson & Murdock breaking up. It is refreshing to see him back in the game as the witty lawyer we know and love, showing that he is rebuilding his world. We see that he can be very good even when he doesn't have Foggy to tag-team with, as he successfully wins an $11 million lawsuit against a pharmaceutical company whose negligence put a young boy in a wheelchair. Afterwards, Matt talks to the boy, who is clearly having a hard time adjusting to his new circumstances, and gives him a very touching pep talk about handling adversity and, very specifically, coming to terms with a life-changing injury.

* After giving his little pep talk to the boy, Matt finds himself face to face with Karen Page, who is at the courthouse covering the case for the ''Bulletin''. The two go to a diner to catch up (and so Karen can get a comment from Matt). They are still incredibly friendly even after everything that happened in season 2, and Karen believes that now that she knows Matt is Daredevil, they are in better places than they were before.

* Luke Cage is being released from prison, thanks to Foggy Nelson's defense strategy. He immediately seeks out Claire Temple and they go back to her apartment for some [[DestructoNookie really strong]] [[UnusualEuphemism "coffee"]]. He also has an amicable reunion with Misty Knight, who is glad to see him back in Harlem.

* Despite Jessica's rude attitude toward Malcolm, when he gets held hostage by John Raymond, she makes it very clear that she will harm John if anything happens to Malcolm. She even goes so far as to refer to him as her friend, which is not a word Jessica throws around lightly.

** At one point, while in the boardroom, a guy with an automatic rifle comes in and begins shooting at Danny. Luke steps in front of Danny to shield him from the gunfire, and then Danny breaks cover once the guy is out of bullets.
** Later on, when Matt is knocked down by Elektra, Danny drives Elektra back by using the Iron Fist to shatter one of her katanas and propel her backwards. He then offers the downed Matt his hand and helps him up.

* Seeing how Luke and Jessica parted on less than amicable terms, it's nice that he's enjoying himself while in her company. And he truly has forgiven her for Reva's death (the last time he forgave her, he was actually saying things that Kilgrave had ordered him to tell Jessica), now that he knows everything about his marriage to Reva was a sham.

* During their confrontation, Matt [[IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight tries to get through to the revived Elektra]]. The moment he says her name, she hesitates, just like she did at Midland Circle, and Matt manages to get close enough to touch her face, asking what the Hand has done to her. When Murakami appears and makes for Matt, Elektra lashes out and sends Murakami flying, knocking him unconscious. Murakami later tells Alexandra that he suspects that Elektra wasn't being possessive of her kill, but protecting Matt.
* Even after their recent fallout and Nelson & Murdock closing, Foggy is still clearly one of Matt's loved ones who Matt needs to keep safe from the Hand. Foggy even trusts Matt enough to leave work to go into hiding at the precinct, despite Matt not revealing any details to him.

* Jessica and Matt go question John Raymond's family again to find out more about the Hand's plans. His daughter, however, believes her dad was a man who didn't care about his family. Jessica then tells the story of Matt's dad and how he defied being a criminal and was indeed a good man.

** Look at how much Jessica's trust in Matt has improved. A few episodes ago, her reaction to Matt grabbing her in Midland Circle's lobby was "You grab me like that again, I'll punch you so hard you'll see". Here, as Matt, Jessica and Luke are being escorted through the precinct, Jessica shows no discomfort with Matt holding on to her elbow for guidance.
* Matt tears up when it fully hits home that Stick is dead. Matt may not have liked Stick, and for good reason, but he was still important enough in his life that he can't help mourning the death of his mentor.

** [[spoiler:Even after EVERYTHING Elektra has done to him, [[ParentalSubstitute Stick]], and [[SuperTeam his team]], Matt still truly loves [[AxCrazy Elektra]]]]

* The first thing Jessica sees when entering her apartment? Malcolm got in again, this time fixing the office, starting with filling the bullet holes.

* After a few episodes of giving Danny crap, the Defenders stand back and let Danny use his Iron Fist as the opening attack as they finally have confidence in his abilities, resulting in Danny not only overpowering Gao's chi-force but knocking down all the dozen or so villains in the area.

* We see Karen lighting a candle for Matt when she and Foggy are at the church. After the way Karen spoke of religious faith following Elena Cardenas' death ("My parents were. That's probably why I'm not"), it means a lot that she was actually in church, crying and lighting a candle and asking Foggy to stay with her to pray. She knows how much faith/the church meant to Matt, and is so broken that she's grasping at any little bit of hope.
** Even moreso, it's very likely that following the events of ''Daredevill'' season 2, Karen had been the one who wanted to put their relationship on hold, probably because she couldn't bear to come clean with Matt about Wesley's death. Here, it feels like she's trying to find a way to be close to him in the church. There's a lot of loss, love, and regrets in one scene.

[[folder: The H Word]]

[[folder: Mean Right Hook]]

[[folder: Worst Behavior]]

[[folder: Royal Dragon]]

[[folder: Take Shelter]]

[[folder: Ashes, Ashes]]
* Luke gives Danny crap about "mystic stuff". When he realizes he's offended him, he humors him and starts asking questions, which leads to the two of them bonding over the weird stuff they've survived. Danny ends the conversation by pointing out Luke is NotSoDifferent. Luke playfully slaps his leg.

[[folder: Fish in the Jailhouse]]

[[folder: The Defenders]]

* Despite Jessica's rude attitude toward Malcolm, when he was held hostage by John, she made it very clear that she would harm him if anything happens to Malcolm. She even goes so far as to refer to him as her friend, which is not a word Jessica throws around lightly.

* While Interrogating Sowande as Daredevil Matt boast to Sowande that Elektra is fighting their control and that their Black Sky is defective when Sowande however then claims if that is so The Hand will just kill her Matt loses it and nearly strangled him showing even with Elektra still under the enemies control and trying to kill them Matt still cares about her safety.