Episode 13: “You Know My Steez”
The final episode of Luke Cage is the boss battle between Luke and his brother Diamondback. They brawl on the streets of Harlem, equally strong thanks to Diamondback’s fancy new suit. Luke seems like he’s out for the count, until he is inspired by Claire to get one final punch in. Diamondback is knocked out (and looks pretty badly injured) and Luke is once again brought to the police station to explain his version of events.
This time though, Luke is deemed an innocent man. Mariah is also free to go, now that the only witness connecting her to her cousin’s murder is dead thanks to Shades. Misty is left disheartened by the whole justice system and angry at herself for everything that has gone wrong. Out of all the characters in Luke Cage, Misty seems most damaged and changed by the series end. She started out as a police officer who believed in the law and in doing what was right but, because criminals like Mariah and Diamondback didn’t play by the same rules and won, her faith is shaken. It will be interesting to see what direction her character goes in, especially since we know she is going to appear in The Defenders. Does this mean Misty is shedding her law abiding persona to fight crime on her own terms?
The season finale wraps up many loose ends while still giving us big questions to answer before we see Luke again in The Defenders. Mariah has outed Luke as escaped convict Carl Lucas which means he has to go back to jail as we see at the end of the episode. Is a certain blind lawyer going to help get him off? Or will the devil of Hell’s Kitchen just come to break him out? Will Luke be in jail during the entirety of Iron Fist and therefore not be able to meet his bro Danny Rand? Is Luke going to keep getting coffee with Claire or will working with Jessica Jones rekindle their romance? And what are Dr. Burstein’s plans for Diamondback? Looks like we have a lot to think about as we eagerly await the release of the next Marvel and Netflix team up Iron Fist.
Luke Cage is currently available to stream on Netflix. Iron Fist premieres on March 17th, 2017.