The Character of Danny Rand

A few weeks ago I wrote an article called ‘The Character of Chuck Bass‘, inspired by one of the best TV characters I’ve ever seen. People seemed to really like it it and I had some great responses. A few days ago I binge-watched the new Netflix TV show ‘Iron Fist’. I kinda wanted to do a review, but I thought that was a it too ordinary and I really felt like writing something fresh. So, I thought, I’ll continue my saga of character analysis articles and talk about Danny Rand a.k.a. Iron Fist a.k.a. The Living Weapon. Enjoy.

Critics have been bashing on the character development of Danny Rand ever since the show came out. And while I do think that his the development was not perfect, I think that’s what made him such an interesting character to watch. Danny Rand doesn’t follow any frames when it comes to development. He’s very rash, makes bad decisions at times, his actions at times contradict exactly what he was doing a few episodes ago, but those are the things that make him such a realistic character. Think about it. You can describe most fictional characters with a few sentences, but when it comes to actual people, the frames are not so tight, are they? Real people contradict their beliefs and ideals all the time and so does Danny Rand and that’s exactly makes him a very interesting character to watch. I certainly do not think that the writers of ‘Iron Fist’ did that on purpose, no, they were just very sloppy (with the whole show, although I generally enjoyed it), but out of their carelessness came out something awesome, realistic, and extremely original.

Another thing I liked about Danny Rand is that he was very flawed. Before I say anything else, I just have to say that I think all the Marvel Netflix superheros are extremely flawed (unlike most other Marvel superheros) and that’s generally the thing that makes them so interesting to watch. Danny Rand can’t control his emotions and thus makes very rash decisions. He also behaves in very inadequate ways at certain times. He’s also been brain-washed to hate this one group of people, although that kinda works in his benefit at the end. And again, Danny Rand does not follow his principles all the time, he doesn’t follow a given path, he forgets things, he’s extremely selfish at times, he constantly shifts his main focus, and he is overall contradicts himself 24/7. But those things make him 100 times more interesting to watch than any other movie superhero.

Of course, as a superhero, Iron Fist does have some great sides. He’s probably the only character in the entire show that doesn’t f**k things up intentionally. Of course, he makes mistakes, but that’s a entirely different thing from screwing with people’s lives on purpose. He also generally thinks logically and overall makes better decisions than the rest of the characters in the show. Also, one thing I can say with absolute certainty about Danny Rand is that he’s not scared. I know that’s basically a requirement for any superhero, but it’s just very evident how much Danny cares about destroying the enemy and how he’s willing to do absolutely anything about it. Also, I have to say, Danny Rand is not afraid to fight off, verbally of physically, anyone, regardless of whether it’s friend or foe.

I don’t want you getting the idea that Danny Rand is this perfect character after reading this article. No, what people are saying is very true, he is indeed developed badly and his persona just seems to be… weird… and not in a good way. But you know what? It works. The writers f***ed up, but they, I don’t know how, actually made something awesome. The character is extremely cool to watch, but also the whole concept I’m talking about is astonishing. It’s just so interesting, to me at least, to watch something like this, to watch a character that’s badly written, turn out great. While I was watching the show, I found it so fascinating to just observe where the writers made mistakes and try to figure out why and how it actually works. It’s all just a very awesome paradox. Out of the whole thing, you get one of the most realistic and original characters I’ve seen on TV. I had an absolute blast watching Danny Rand.

What did you think of ‘Iron Fist’? What did you think of Danny Rand? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Don’t forget to like and share this article if you enjoyed it!

Thanks for reading,

Pouty Boy

Tags: analysis, character, danny rand, defenders, finn jones, iron fist, kun lun, marvel, netflix, superhero