TV Review: Marvel’s Iron Fist – S1 Episode 10 “Black Tiger Steals Heart”

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

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EPISODE 10: "Black Tiger Steals Heart"

SYNOPSIS: Exhausted with fighting, Danny tries to recharge with Bakuto's help. Meanwhile, Rand's management gets another shakeup.

REVIEW: So Colleen Wing is a member of The Hand. But, she isn't really a bad guy because, as Danny puts it, she is part of "The Good Hand" rather than "The Bad Hand". Bakuto, it turns out, is the true leader of The Hand and supplants Madame Gao fairly easily. The question now becomes whether Bakuto is a part of the whole heroin distribution branch of The Hand or if he has ulterior motives all his own. All I know after watching "Black Tiger Steals Heart" is that this series has no idea what it is trying to accomplish. The narrative is all over the place and our characters seem to switch goals as arbirtrarily as we switch clothes and the writers have somehow diminished one of the best characters on this series to a cliche. Overall, the introduction of Davos to the story is a welcome one but it almost feels like too little too late. With only three more episodes left in the season, the shift from Gao to Bakuto feels like a last ditch effort heading to the final goal of Iron Fist's freshman run.

Waking up at Bakuto's complex, Danny is welcomed by Colleen to the one place she considers home and family. From the get go, the compound feels sinister with happy teenagers, including those trained by Colleen, who are eerily reminiscent of the Foot Clan from the original TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES movie. Bakuto helps Danny recharge his chi while also showing him footage of his precursor in footage of another Iron Fist from 1948 battling Chinese soldiers. It is cool to see an old school version of Iron Fist in a more traditional costume from the pages of Marvel Comics, but the focus here is on Bakuto wanting Danny to join them and train soldiers to help their end goal. It remains unclear what that goal is but once Danny investigates the building where Gao is being held, he realizes Bakuto is not a friend.

Danny is shaken to learn that Colleen is fully aware she is a member of The Hand but insists Gao is from a splinter faction of the group and that Bakuto has sincere intentions. Danny has been raised to know The Hand is evil but Colleen posits that maybe he was brainwashed into a single-minded focus against The Hand. The problem with this revelation is that Colleen has always been a strong are sure-minded character but this episode transforms her into a weak and subjugated version of herself. While she somewhat redeems herself by the end of the episode, it becomes clear that she has to change her mindset if Danny will ever forgive her. But, Danny may have trouble with that after realizing that Bakuto has been surveiling Harold Meachum. It is unclear if Danny realizes that Meachum and Bakuto are partnering but it doesn't look good.

This episode also does not feature an appearance by Ward, who is still incarcerated. This gives Harold time to reconnect with Joy and explain everything to her. When Danny calls Harold to tell him about Gao being supplanted by Bakuto, Harold is celebratory but when Joy does not reciprocate, he smashes a bottle in a rage. It seems apparent that Joy will soon find out about her father's darker side. For now, Harold is given an offer by Bakuto to return to public life in exchange for a continued arrangement between Rand and The Hand. Harold accepts and heads to Rand where he shoots Lawrence in the head. Killing a board member allows Joy to get the Board to vote the Meachums and Danny back into control of the company. When Joy confronts Harold about whether he had anything to do with Lawrence's death, Harold lies and says he did not. Clearly, Joy is either going to the dark side like Ward did or this will not end well for the Meachum family.

Enraged at learning about The Hand under Bakuto's leadership, Danny fights Colleen's sensei. As he tries to escape, he is aided by Davos. Calling Danny "the worst Iron Fist", Davos reveals he was sent to bring Danny back to K'un-Lun. With alarms blaring, the pair fight The Hand in a narrow hallway during a well choreographed fight. With the entire compound on alert, Daryl and the students descend on Danny and Davos. Unwilling to fight Daryl, Danny pushes him while Bakuto is able to stab Danny in the side. Clouded by anger, Danny is unable to summon his chi which forces him and Davos to fight for their lives. Eventually, Colleen comes to her senses and opens the gate long enough for the three of them to escape, but she goes her own way to contemplate her decisions. Davos tells Danny he must return to K'un-Lun but first they must patch Danny up.

Another episode that manages to bungle the Iron Fist story by introducing a bunch of nonsense too late in the game. Now, Gao is not in power and Bakuto is? Do either of these groups have anything to do with the same Hand that Matt Murdock has been fighting? I keep expecting Bakuto to reveal that he was the figure Stick was talking to at the end of Daredevil's second season but we don't have anything yet. I do like that Davos, Danny's childhood friend and son to Lei Kung, is not the biggest fan of Danny leaving K'un-Lun. Hopefully this all means Danny is heading towards regaining what his true purpose and goal is as Iron Fist and will be able to channel his anger and his chi into the right mindset to bring justice to everyone and save his family's legacy once and for all.

NEXT ON MARVEL'S IRON FIST: "Lead Horse Back To Stable" – Claire uses her improvisation skills, and Colleen gets conflicting information. Danny yearns to be more than just a destroyer.