With Daredevil burning up Netflix viewers' queues and more Marvel heroes on the way, we thought it might be time to offer a few suggestions on who to bring into the streaming world next.
Luke Cage, Jessica Jones and Iron Fist are already coming to Netflix, and then joining up with Daredevil to form the Defenders. Clearly, Marvel and Netflix are using the television format to showcase the "street-level" side of superheroics. It's not about the flashy effects and world-in-jeopardy stakes of Marvel's movies. It's more about the war on crime and one hero just trying to save his own neck of the woods.
With that in mind, we humbly submit that any or all of these heroes would make great additions to Netflix's library.
1. Punisher
The three previous Punisher movies took the concept of the crazed vigilante in a skull t-shirt and turned him into a celluloid laughing stock, so thankfully Marvel has the rights back. This dark anti-hero would fit nicely with the street-level Marvel heroes Netflix is pursuing. Plus it'd be cool to see Frank Castle on screen with, you know, an actual character arc.
2. Runaways
A feature film came very close to happening a few years back, but since it's been canned, let's have a TV series instead. This family unit of teens who run away together after discovering their parents are a cabal of supervillains are among Marvel's best new characters of the 21st century. Yeah, the visual effects budget on a team show could be a stumbling block, but Runaways was never about the teens' powers or abilities. It was about the characters, and these endearing, witty youngsters just beg for a live-action adaptation.
3. She-Hulk
Jennifer Walters is much more than just "a female version of the Hulk." She's able to Hulk-out without losing her mental faculties or devolving into a rage monster. Which is helpful, since she's also a trial lawyer who frequently represents superheroes in court. With the right actress, no CGI would be required. But it would require dipping a toe into the kind of witty comedy that Marvel Studios so far has avoided.
4. Moon Knight
Yeah, it's a gimme. After all, he operates only in the P.M. hours, given that his mission is to protect all who travel at night. Think Batman, but decked out in white. There's also a mystical element involving the moon god Konshu that could be new and different territory for Marvel to explore in a live-action setting.
5. Elektra
She'll probably be in a second season of Daredevil, so a spinoff is pretty much a no-brainer.
6. Cloak & Dagger
If you want to "street level" heroes, you can't get much more street than Cloak & Dagger. This twosome started out as a pair of homeless teenagers who are abducted and injected with a powerful drug that gives them unique powers based on darkness and light. As a result, they devote their lives to fighting illegal drugs and those who peddle them.
7. Bucky Barnes
Everybody's assuming that once Chris Evans' Marvel contract runs out, Sebastian Stan is the next logical candidate to take up Captain America's shield. But we have no idea what Marvel's plans are, and if there are no intentions to bring Bucky into the Avengers, then a Winter Soldier series on Netflix would be brilliant.
Think of it this way. If she weren't part of the Avengers, Black Widow would be a perfect candidate for a street-level "super-spy" show. Since she's unavailable, Winter Soldier would fit that niche nicely.
8. Heroes for Hire
Another easy-to-justify spinoff from Netflix's current roster, this team used a rotating lineup of heroes who worked for clients in need of protection and investigation. The original team included Luke Cage and Iron Fist, who are getting their own shows already. So might we humbly suggest an all-female group consisting of Misty Knight (P.I. with a mechanical arm), Colleen Wing (ninja/samurai), White Tiger (cat-like speed and agility), Black Cat (cat burglar with a heart of gold) and Silver Sable (mercenary).
Elektra, Moon Knight and Punisher have all joined up with Heroes for Hire at one time or another, so... Hello, crossovers.
9. Spider-Woman
Jessica Drew was writer Brian Michael Bendis' original inspiration for Jessica Jones; in fact, he wanted to use her for his Alias comic book, but Marvel said no. So he created Jones, another character coming soon to Netflix. Drew has a distinctly different power set than Peter Parker, and nothing in common with him except the name. But there's plenty from her history to draw on, most notably her origin tale, in which she begins her career as a Hydra agent before signing on with the good guys.
10. Taskmaster
Tony Masters is one of the world's most deadly fighters, and a mercenary for hire. His "muscle mimic" abilities allow him to precisely recreate the fight moves used by others and add them to his own abilities. He's been used for multiple purposes -- everything from villainy to training up-and-coming heroes -- and retconned out the wazoo. We're imagining a show where he's Marvel's version of Deathstroke.
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