Netflix & Marvel’s Iron Fist Recap Episode 5; Under Leaf Pluck Lotus (Spoilers)

Reviews, Spoilers, Top Story

We open with 3 women in business casual walking in runway model sync down a busy street dragging wheelie suitcases that have the wingless dragon logo on them. They’re saleswomen, meeting various drug dealers marketing a pure opiate no one can develope a tolerance for. The blonde offers a free sample to a drug addict for one dealer, and he orders as much as she can sell when the addict raves it’s like his first time. Opening credits.

Danny is in his office at work looking at the test results of the drug sample that was in the bowl he got last episode. As it turns out it’s the same drug the women are pimping. It’s an opiate that isn’t opiate based and is technically legal because no actual opiates are used to make it. Joy shuts down some people trying to get compensation from Rand Industries. Danny confronts Ward about the synthetic heroin and Ward brushes him off. Danny grills his assistant for shipment info at the pier and leaves an oragami flower on her desk. Joy is feeling guilty about her actions, and Ward questions why she would care. He says she’s both a good person and a good business woman and has to make hard choices. She wishes she could help those people. Ward says it’s up to chance.

Speaking of, Danny is out on the sidewalk looking at the delivery note. The woman Joy met with earlier approaches him and tells him about a chemical plant his company owns making people sick. She saw the story about his drug pricing moment and wants him to help. He swears he’ll try.

Colleen is at her dojo training someone and hey there Night Nurse! Claire has decided to take some self defense lessons and conveniently become the binding thread for the Defenders later this year, as Danny shows up with takeout to ask Colleen for help, and thus now Claire knows all the main players. Also, given my brain damage I am RIDICULOUSLY happy I remembered Rosario Dawson’s charachter’s name without having to google it.

Ward sees security video of the mother of a sick child approaching Danny and loses his shit. He and Joy talk about damage control and Joy thinks they should just follow Danny’s lead. Ward thinks she’s acting out of a guilt complex. She says it’s in the company’s best interests to do the good pr thing. Ward says Danny is a space cadet. Joy leaves to gather the board. Ward looks at the synthetic heroin packet Danny left him and takes some pills to destress, when he gets a text from dad saying to just do as Joy asks. Waresponds in epic comedic fashion by flipping the bird to every surface in his office that could potentially be hiding a camera.

Dinner at Colleen’s starts awkwardly, but Danny talks about food in the monestary and sneaking out to eat donkey meat with a friend since the monks were vegetarian. Colleen is surprised to learn he took a vow of chastity while training. Finally they get to why Danny wants her help. Claire decides to excuse herself and take a few dishes with her for later. Danny tells Colleen about the Hand’s drug operations through Rand without naming them. He wants her to help him prove the drug trafficking is really happening. He wants her to watch his back while he intercepts a shipment to get proof. She thinks he’s crazy, but he tells her the heroin will hurt her students. He also awkwardly says he bought her building. She demands he fix her sink.

Ward is running a meeting with the board without Danny, and is trying to convince the board to NOT settle, despite the bad publicity it will bring them. The board fears it will cost them big in the long run but Joy backs Ward saying if he thinks it’s worth the risk they should trust him.

Danny is impressed with Colleen’s real katana and asks her to show him her style. She shows off a little. Then they have duelling nunchuku showoff sessions, though neither was impressive. Seriously Buckethead is better.

Ward is feeling pretty proud of himself for defying Harold and fighting the class action suit, but stares troublingly at the heroin packet. Danny and Colleen arrive at the pier in black hoodies to find guards with machine guns. He tells her she can go home if she’s not up for this but she stays. The romantic tension between them feels very forced and drags the scene down as they creep slowly closer to the shipment, talking about how much they suck at talking.They ninja hop shipping crates and dodge guards to get a vantage point, but the shipments appear to just be basic medical supplies. Danny sneaks down to get a closer look, sure that there’s more to it.He gets himself locked in one of the shipping containers while Colleen watches helplessly.Colleen sees a security vehicle and heads towards it.She knocks out the driver and follows the truck carrying the shipping container Danny is now trapped in.

Meanwhile in the container, Danny discovers a false back wall in the container containing an imprisoned chemist. The chemist’s guard attacks Danny and a fight ensues, with Danny trying to keep the chemist safe.Danny breaks the guard’s arm but the guard manages to stab the chemist. Danny dispatches the guard and tries to save the chemist. He iron fists his way out of the shipping container and they leap onto the car Colleen commandeered, and take the bleeding man to Claire.

Joy finds an empty pill bottle on Ward’s desk and finds him on his office couched stoned off his ass. He clearly took the heroin. She wants him to get his head straight and he just cackles. High as a kite, Ward babbles about who he’s really trying to hurt and shush he’s listening, and Joy is just more confused.

Claire patches the chemist up as best as she can using Danny’s credit card to prevent his lung from collapsing. He says the Hand has his daughter. Upon hearing the Hand Claire loses her shit and tells Danny he just started a war with them, reminding us of the events from Daredevil season 2 that lead her to quit her job at the hospital. Danny swears he’ll find his daughter and they realize he makes the heroin to protect her. Claire says a west end rich kid can’t handle this but he says he knows this is the one thing he knows he can do better than anyone else, that he’s trained his whole life for it. Colleen offers to go with him .

The shadow lady is looking at the damage Danny did to the container as her goon describes what he saw. Still in shadow and completely concealed from the audience, she puts the goon on his knees and shoves a katana through the back of his neck and out through his mouth. End of episode.

See you soon for episode 6!

Penny is a now divorced intersexed disabled lesbian in BC Canada. She's been watching wrestling and reading comics since she was a kid, and knows her stuff. She lives with her pets and passes her free time writing, drawing, doing paid photoshop work (including logos done for Pulse's Own Mike Gojira), and is a part-time Queer model.