Finally, Marvel Studios is bringing to life a project that was set in motion back in 2017. However, nearly a decade later, it’s clear that the long-awaited reunion of The Defenders will not unfold as fans expect. This corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe started on Netflix, and Marvel was involved in this process before its parent company began producing its own content for the streaming service Disney+. The studio took its time to gather the pieces of the "Defenderverse," but with Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, the entire team is finally coming together. Now the question is where the Defenders will fit into this new era of the MCU — especially with major crossover stories on the horizon.

The Disney+ original series Daredevil: Born Again primarily follows Charlie Cox's Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil. However, most of the main characters from The Defenders are now part of the series. Season 1 saw Jon Bernthal return as Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, and this character will make his big-screen debut in the Spider-Man: Brand New Day film later this month. Earlier this year, Season 2 brought back Krysten Ritter as Jessica Jones and introduced Mike Colter as Luke Cage. Now, leaked set photos indicate that Finn Jones will return as Danny Rand, aka Iron Fist, alongside Élodie Yung as Elektra. This means the full roster of Defenders is coming back, even if they aren't all in leading roles.

It's hard to believe how much the production, distribution, and consumption of entertainment have changed in the last decade, but The Defenders could be one of the best examples of where we’ve come. In 2015, the MCU was the biggest box office hit on the big screen, but presenting that same continuity on television was an innovative idea. Marvel planned to produce and release series that shared continuity with the films by making a deal with Netflix, but at that time, no effort was made for the stories to intersect. While the gritty and realistic Netflix series occasionally referenced the Avengers' adventures, they were almost entirely separate in other respects.

Back then, each main character had their own series, each consisting of 13 episodes; this means we spent over 65 hours with them before they ever met. With two seasons of Daredevil, the time we spent with Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist was quite extensive. Now, it’s hard to imagine a broadcaster investing so much time and money.