History Recap / TheDefenders2017S1E1TheHWord

At Seagate Prison, [[Creator/MikeColter Luke Cage]] is being escorted down a hallway by two guards while the inmates cheer him on. He's being released from prison now that all the charges against him have been dropped. As he's being discharged, he is greeted by his lawyer, [[Creator/EldenHenson Foggy Nelson]], who thanks Luke for his friend Bobby Fish supplying the necessary evidence to exonerate him. Foggy congratulates Luke for his restraint, making it through his time served without a single incident. Luke asks for Claire, but Foggy tells him only the lawyers are allowed back here. As Luke leaves, Foggy gives him his business card and lets him know that he can always reach out to Hogarth Chao & Benowitz if he ever needs help. Luke assures him he doesn't need to start over, he just needs to move forward, [[ArcWords always]]. Foggy helpfully lets him know that most people call him Foggy, to which Luke quips, "And you let them?" which earns an amused smirk from Foggy.

Danny and Colleen are flying back to New York on a Rand Enterprises plane. Danny has a vivid nightmare in which he sees the dead bodies of the monks in K'un-L'un and himself being chastised for them getting killed. Colleen rousts him and tries to get him to talk about the screaming, which he tries to shrug off as turbulence terrors, but she's not buying it. They talk about the man they hunted down in Cambodia and its clear that he's feeling guilty about his death, and is still feeling guilty about the not being at K'un L'un to protect his city. Colleen insists that it's not his fault, but Danny remains unconvinced.

Jessica returns to her apartment, which has still not been fixed since [[Recap/JessicaJones2015S1E11AKAIveGotTheBlues the fight she and Trish had with Will Simpson]]. The window is boarded up and the apartment itself is still absolutely trashed with holes in the wall and the bullet holes from Simpson's gun right behind Jessica's desk. There are two people standing outside the door as she approaches: Michelle Raymond and her teenage daughter Lexi. They've heard about what Jessica did and want her to take a case: Michelle's husband John has been missing for a week, and she's worried for him. Jessica flat out refuses. As Michelle presses her case, Jessica goes into mocking mode, and suggests that everyone thinks their partner would never do anything like this, but usually they're always cheating. Lexi lobs a few snarky comments at Jessica and her mom, and finally the two of them leave. Jessica has a moment of remorse as she prepares to open her door, turns around, and calls out to them. Michelle turns around hopefully, but Jessica only says that she hopes they can find him soon. Just as Jessica is settling down in her apartment, her phone rings. A man using a scrambler to disguise his voice gives her a simple message: do not look for John Raymond.

* CoitusEnsues: Justified as Luke ''has'' just gotten out of prison, and Claire has apparently been [[IWillWaitForYou willing to wait for him.]]

** Matt's introduction in the episode has him struggling not to run out and intervene in a single road rage incident. The episode with him struggling not to break down in the face of hearing ''everyone in New York'' panicking and injured after an earthquake.

* ForgotAboutHisPowers: Danny and Colleen find a dying man wounded by Elektra, apparantely forgetting that the Iron Fist has healing powers.

* YouGetMeCoffee: Alexandra hands over the task of feeding the pigeons to Madame Gao. Given that Gao has previously been portrayed as a powerful BigBad, this shows [[AlwaysABiggerFish just how powerful Alexandra is that Gao would act so deferential to her]].

* AllForNothing: Danny is frustrated that their search for information on the Hand only led to an AlmostDeadGuy who's only words were to tell them to [[DramaticIrony go back to New York where they started]].

* AllForNothing: Danny is frustrated that their search for information on the Hand only led to an AlmostDeadGuy who's only works were to [[DramaticIrony go back to where they started in New York]].

** Jessica refuses to take on the Raymonds' case to their faces, then upon getting into her apartment, gets a call from someone using an electronically disguised voice.

* WhamShot: After the city is hit by some kind of earthquake-like event, Alexandra turns to speak to a hooded figure standing behind her. The hooded figure is [[BackFromTheDead Elektra]].

** Luke exits down the stairs of Cole's apartment, and then we cut to Jessica coming up the stairs of the dive apartment.

* BadDreams: Danny appears to be plagued by night terrors about [[MyGreatestFailure K'un-L'un]]. According to Colleen, it's not the first time he's been heard screaming in his sleep.

Matt and Karen take lunch at an Upper West Side diner. They exchange some small talk about their jobs. With the closure of Nelson & Murdock, Matt has been doing pro bono lawyering. Meanwhile, Ellison has been giving Karen free reign as she gets settled in to her new career. Karen really feels like this journalism work is what she's meant to do, and a great way of honoring Ben Urich's legacy. She lowers her voice a bit and asks Matt whether he misses being Daredevil. He hesitantly admits that he doesn't regret it, but he doesn't miss it either. Karen seems to be satisfied with that response, and comments that she really feels like they needed some time to figure themselves out and, now that she knows Matt is Daredevil, they're in a much better place. She mentions she's been covering the police beat and she really thinks the NYPD are doing a good job. Matt cracks a bit of a cynical smile, realizing that maybe he actually did it-he was the hero this city needed and now they don't need Daredevil anymore. But Karen thinks that right now the city needs more of Matt Murdock. She then remembers that she still needs that quote, which Matt quickly gives her.

Jessica gets on her computer and spends the afternoon researching information on John Raymond. At one point, [[Creator/EkaDarville Malcolm Ducasse]] pops in to grab a soda from her fridge, much to Jessica's annoyance. She's apparently already told him to stop coming into her apartment unannounced, which Malcolm helpfully counters is because he made himself a copy of her key when he agreed to help her get her locks changed. He lights up at seeing that Jessica is on her computer and researching a case. She insists she hasn't taken it...yet, and he's already celebrating that she's totally taken the case and runs over to hover over her shoulder while she's researching, which pisses her off. They talk briefly about the missing man. John Raymond is an MIT graduate and an architect at Duncan & Dotter Designs, and has designed numerous skyscrapers in New York and the Middle East. Malcolm posits the possibility that the threatening phone call is actually from an amateur, and maybe Jessica could trace the call back by calling the phone company. Jessica immediately picks up the phone and calls the operator, pretending that she received a call from her grandfather who is missing from dementia and gets the number. The address the number is connected to is a payphone at 11th Avenue and 49th Street. Malcolm recognizes the address from his days as an addict in Kilgrave's employ is a shooting gallery - a super shady place that people generally use to get off the grid to use drugs, and other illicit vices.

Luke and Misty take an afternoon stroll through Harlem, exchanging small talk along the way about taking down Diamondback. Now that Luke's back, he's interested in taking down [[Creator/AlfreWoodard Mariah Dillard]] and [[Creator/TheoRossi Hernan "Shades" Alvarez]], who have apparently been keeping a low profile the last few months. Misty has been made lead detective on a citywide task force combating a new crime syndicate that's popped up recently. Their conversation takes them to the charred remains of a parked car, which is decorated with flowers from an impromptu shrine. Misty explains that since Diamondback's arrest, Harlem has been hit by a string of suspicious murders that bear striking similarities: young black males in their twenties get recruited into some kind of mysterious well-paying job, move their mothers out of the projects into nice houses in Westchester County, then turn up dead. No one knows what the job is, and whether it's drug running or it could be something more sinister, Misty doesn't know. But the real kicker, is that this burned out car belonged to Sean Miller, and if that last name sounds familiar, it's because his sister was Candace Miller, the would-be witness who would've gotten Mariah convicted for Cottonmouth's murder had Mariah not ordered Shades to kill her. Candace and Sean had another brother, Cole, and last Misty heard, Cole wasn't exactly on the right side of the law. She hopes Luke can talk some sense into Cole before his mother loses her last child.

As Luke exits down the stairs of Cole's apartment, Jessica enters a similarly sketchy apartment building: flickering lights, sounds of people fighting and/or having sex. She heads up the stairs to the specific apartment that John Raymond has apparently been renting. She bangs on the door, shouting to John that she knows he's inside. After getting no response, she breaks in by breaking the doorknob. The TV is playing the evening news, but the place is otherwise dim and deserted. Jessica slowly walks through, peeking into the bedroom and rounding back out to the living area. She spots some boxes, opens one up and [[OhCrap immediately pales]] as she notices that the boxes are full of explosives.

* RefusalOfTheCall: As Matt is rehearsing his statements in his apartment, he hears the sounds of a fight a few blocks away. His hands ball up into fists, and he strongly fights the urge to go out and do something about it, only relaxing when he hears the police arrive to break it up.

** [[Series/IronFist Danny Rand]] is still afraid of flying and doesn't like turbulence. Ironically, he's been using a Rand Industries plane on his trip across Asia, no doubt given to him by Ward Meachum to make amends.

** Series/JessicaJones still hasn't fixed the damage her apartment took in the fight with Simpson. She still has the bullet holes in the walls.

A scene transition later, and we're suddenly in Seagate Prison, where [[Creator/MikeColter Luke Cage]] is being escorted down a hallway by two guards while the inmates cheer him on. He's being released from prison now that all the charges against him have been dropped. As he's being discharged, he is greeted by his lawyer, [[Creator/EldenHenson Foggy Nelson]], who thanks Luke for his friend Bobby Fish supplying the necessary evidence to exonerate him. Foggy congratulates Luke for his restraint, making it through his time served without a single incident. Luke asks for Claire, but Foggy tells him only the lawyers are allowed back here. As Luke leaves, Foggy gives him his business card and lets him know that he can always reach out to Hogarth Chao & Benowitz if he ever needs help. Luke assures him he doesn't need to start over, he just needs to move forward, [[ArcWords always]]. Foggy helpfully lets him know that most people call him Foggy, to which Luke quips, "And you let them?" which earns an amused smirk from Foggy.

Ultimately, Matt wins his client $11 million in punitive damages. As they are emerging from the courtroom, Aaron's parents walk ahead to talk to the group of reporters that are there to report on the verdict, while Aaron hangs back. Aaron is very nervous, and clearly having a hard time adjusting to his new circumstances. Matt hangs back and gives Aaron a little pep talk. He suggests to Aaron that he shouldn't let his disability and other people define who he is. Rather, he should define who he is by himself. Aaron seems to be won over by Matt's sage advice, and wheels away to join his family during their little hallway press conference. As Matt lingers, he senses someone standing right behind him. Much to his delight, it's [[Creator/DeborahAnnWoll Karen Page]], who is here covering the case as a reporter for the ''New York Bulletin''. Karen congratulates Matt on winning the case and is complimentary toward him and what he did in the room. She timidly mentions that she needs a quote from him for the ''Bulletin'' story, and suggests that maybe they could go out and do it over lunch. Matt seems surprised at the offer, and happily agrees to do so, once he's done his part giving a statement to the TV reporters.

Jessica gets on her computer and spends the afternoon researching information on John Raymond. At one point, [[Creator/EkaDarville Malcolm Ducasse]] pops in for a soda, which pisses Jessica off. She's apparently already told him to stop coming into her apartment unannounced. He insists she gave him a key, she counters that he made himself his own copy of the key, to which he helpfully clarifies because he was helping her get her locks changed. Malcolm lights up at seeing that Jessica is on her computer and researching a case. She insists she hasn't taken it...yet, and he's already celebrating that she's totally taken the case and runs over to hover over her shoulder while she's researching, which pisses her off. They talk briefly about the missing man. John Raymond is an MIT graduate and an architect at Duncan & Dotter Designs, and has designed numerous skyscrapers in New York and the Middle East. Malcolm posits the possibility that the threatening phone call is actually from an amateur, and maybe Jessica could trace the call back by calling the phone company. Jessica immediately picks up the phone and calls the operator, pretending that she received a call from her grandfather who is missing from dementia and gets the number. The address the number is connected to is a payphone at 11th Avenue and 49th Street. Malcolm recognizes the address from his days as an addict in Kilgrave's employ is a shooting gallery - a super shady place that people generally use to get off the grid to use drugs, and other illicit vices.

Following lunch with Karen, Matt goes to his church and sits down for {{confessional}} with Father Lantom. It's been three days since his last confession, and he's going more consistently and often. Matt begins by talking about his reunion with Karen. Matt feels bad, telling Karen a white lie about not missing Daredevil. Father Lantom assesses Matt's mood about the conversation, and the conversation changes to Elektra and how Matt is dealing with her death. Matt is clearly hung up over how she died, and wonders if he's disrespecting Elektra's memory by hanging up the Daredevil armor.

As Luke exits down the stairs of Cole's apartment, we change to Jessica coming up the stairs in a similarly sketchy apartment building: flickering lights, sounds of people fighting and/or having sex. She heads up the stairs to the specific apartment that John Raymond has apparently been renting. She bangs on the door, shouting to John that she knows he's inside. After getting no response, she breaks in by breaking the doorknob. The TV is playing the evening news, but the place is otherwise dim and deserted. Jessica slowly walks through, peeking into the bedroom and rounding back out to the living area. She spots some boxes, opens one up and [[OhCrap immediately pales]] as she notices that the boxes are full of explosives.

As the shaking stops, Matt gets to his feet and is quickly overwhelmed by the sounds of cries for help.

* OhCrap:
** Jessica's search for John Raymond leads her to an apartment full of crates. Crates that are full of ''explosives''. Whether or not they are going to go off is not the point. It scares Jessica enough to realize this is something that is better left in the hands of the cops.

** Also clear in the expression on Danny's face when Luke [[NoSell tanks every punch and kick he throws without so much as flinching]].

* ReluctantHero: Jessica Jones refuses to admit she's actually helping people... while helping them. Malcolm picks up on this and goes over her "I haven't taken the case" rhetoric to ask her about the various things she's doing that are clearly her having taken the case of a possible cheater.

** [[{{Series/Daredevil}} Matt Murdock]] still goes to Father Lantom for confession.

In Manhattan, [[Creator/KrystenRitter Jessica Jones]] is passed out drunk in an empty bar. She gets rudely awakened by the bartender, who helpfully informs her that its morning and she should probably leave. Outside, [[Creator/RachaelTaylor Trish Walker]] runs to keep her car from getting towed, as she accidentally parked illegally in a loading zone. The parking enforcement officer writing the ticket is unsympathetic and refuses to unhook her car, that is, until Jessica shows up and rips Trish's car off the tow cable with her bare hands. As they go for a walk, Trish and Jessica talk about Jessica's life state ever since Kilgrave's death. Jessica's life apparently now involves a lot of drinking and zero working, which greatly concerns Trish. Trish lets Jessica know that she's been getting a lot of calls from publicists, and wants Jessica to take some interviews on ''Trish Talk'', if only to make some extra money while dodging her PI business. Trish is disappointed that Jessica could take such a triumphant event like defeating Kilgrave and make it all negative, but Jessica tries to tell her not to worry. Trish takes a sip of her coffee and nearly spits it out. It turns out Jessica had accidentally handed her coffee to Trish, which is laced with whiskey.

A scene transition later, and we're suddenly in Seagate Prison, where [[Creator/MikeColter Luke Cage]] is being escorted down a hallway by two guards while the inmates cheer him on. He's being released from prison now that all the charges against him have been dropped. As he's being discharged, he is greeted by his lawyer [[Creator/EldenHenson Foggy Nelson]], who thanks Luke for his friend Bobby Fish supplying the necessary evidence to exonerate him. Foggy congratulates Luke for his restraint, making it through his time served without a single incident. Luke asks for Claire, but Foggy tells him only the lawyers are allowed back here. As Luke leaves, Foggy gives him his business card and lets him know that he can always reach out to Hogarth Chao & Benowitz if he ever needs help. Luke assures him he doesn't need to start over, he just needs to move forward, [[ArcWords always]]. Foggy helpfully lets him know that most people call him Foggy, to which Luke quips, "And you let them?" which earns an amused smirk from Foggy.

In his apartment, [[Creator/CharlieCox Matt Murdock]] is brewing his morning coffee, rehearsing his remarks for an upcoming court case as his notes are being printed off on a Braille printer. He freezes up mid-speech when he hears the sound of a fight breaking out outside. Matt tenses, trying to resist the urge to get involve. He relaxes when he hears the police arrive to break up the situation and resumes practicing his speech. The scene immediately switches to a courtroom, where Matt is cross-examining a witness in an injury lawsuit. Matt is representing a family that's suing a construction company for faulty construction and using substandard materials, which caused their son Aaron James to have an accident that has left him permanently paraplegic. Matt manages to pin the executive on the stand into a corner and goes in for the kill.

Luke returns to Manhattan, reentering on a bus ride over the Queensboro Bridge, and he takes in the sights of Harlem, including Pop's Barbershop, which has been restored to mint condition since Diamondback tore up the place. He gets off the bus, which is plastered with a New Harlem Renaissance ad, hinting that Mariah Dillard is still active. As he disembarks, he's greeted by [[Creator/RosarioDawson Claire Temple]], who has been waiting for this moment and asks him if he wants that coffee. They end up back at her apartment and immediately have very passionate sex, overturning furniture, going at it all over the place, on the floor and on the dining room table. As Luke and Claire bask in the afterglow, they make small talk on what Luke might do now that hes back in New York. He calls Claire out a little bit, saying that he knows she kept some things from him in the letters they exchanged while he was away. She confesses a lot of things happened and are still going on in the city, and she's concerned about Luke trying to be a hero. Their post-coital chat is interrupted by a knock on the door. It's Detective [[Creator/SimoneMissick Misty Knight]], amused to see Luke at Claire's place so quickly after being let out. Misty politely asks Luke if he'd like to come out for a stroll with her.

Jessica gets on her computer and spends the afternoon researching information on John Raymond. At one point, [[Creator/EkaDarville Malcolm Ducasse]] pops in for a soda, which pisses Jessica off. She's apparently already told him to stop coming into her apartment unannounced. He insists she gave him a key, she counters that he made himself his own copy of the key, to which he helpfully clarifies because he was helping her get her locks changed. Malcolm lights up at seeing that Jessica is on her computer and researching a case. She insists she hasn't taken it...yet, and he's already celebrating that she's totally taken the case and runs over to hover over her shoulder while she's researching, which pisses her off. They talk briefly about the missing man. John Raymond is an MIT graduate and an architect at Duncan & Dotter Designs, and has designed numerous skyscrapers all over the world. Malcolm posits the possibility that the threatening phone call is actually from an amateur, and maybe Jessica could trace the call back by calling the phone company. Jessica immediately picks up the phone and calls the operator, pretending that she received a call from her grandfather who is missing from dementia and gets the number. The address the number is connected to is a payphone at 11th Avenue and 49th Street. Malcolm remembers from his days as an addict in Kilgrave's employ is a shooting gallery - a super shady place that people generally use to get off the grid to use drugs, and other illicit vices.

Luke and Misty take an afternoon stroll through Harlem, exchanging small talk along the way about taking down Diamondback. Now that Luke's back, he's interested in taking down [[Creator/AlfreWoodard Mariah Dillard]] and [[Creator/TheoRossi Hernan "Shades" Alvarez]]. Apparently they've been keeping a low profile. Misty has been made lead detective on a citywide task force combating a new crime syndicate that's popped up in the months since Luke's arrest. Their conversation takes them to the charred remains of a parked car, which is decorated with flowers from an impromptu shrine. Misty explains that since Diamondback's arrest, Harlem has been hit by a string of suspicious murders that bear striking similarities: young black males in their twenties get recruited into some kind of mysterious well-paying job, move their mothers out of the projects into nice houses in Westchester County, then turn up dead. No one knows what the job is, and whether it's drug running or it could be something more sinister, Misty doesn't know. But the real kicker, is that this burned out car belonged to Sean Miller, and if that last name sounds familiar, it's because his sister was Candace Miller, the would-be witness who would've gotten Mariah convicted for Cottonmouth's murder had Mariah not ordered Shades to kill her. Candace and Sean had another brother, Cole, and last Misty heard, Cole wasn't exactly on the right side of the law. She hopes Luke can talk some sense into Cole before his mother loses her last child.

* TwoScenesOneDialogue: Combined with a MatchCut, we see this happen in Matt's introduction as we cut from him rehearsing his remarks in his apartment to him brutally cross-examining a plaintiff in court on the witness stand.

* OhCrap: Jessica's search for John Raymond leads her to an apartment full of crates. Crates that are full of ''explosives''. Whether or not they are going to go off is not the point. It scares Jessica enough to realize this is something that is better left in the hands of the cops.

** This is how we cut from Matt rehearsing arguments in his apartment to him cross-examining a plaintiff in court.