'Iron Fist' Recap: 'Eight Diagram Dragon Palm'

Written by Scott Edwards

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

With the Meachum’s not willing to give up a piece of the Rand Empire to Danny who is back from the dead, they have turned to trying to make him disappear. Removing any record of their childhood friend from the files, they know it will be next to impossible for him to prove who he is to the courts. But with help from his new lawyer, Jeri Hogarth, Danny has an ace in the hole, a childhood fingerprint on a ceramic bowl he made for Joy as a child. Seeing that this new evidence is troubling to Ward, Danny has decided to follow the business man to the penthouse that has more secrets than he will know what to do with.

Waking up in Harold Meachum’s penthouse, Danny is surprised to see his father’s best friend alive and kicking. Being welcomed back with open arms, Danny finally feels like he is back home. Telling Danny the story about how he died and came back to life with help from the Hand, Harold is ashamed that he will forever be in debt to the group and will do anything to get out of it. With Danny’s story from the hospital, being the Iron Fist and sworn to destroy the Hand, the young man may be the only hope Harold has of seeing the world again, especially his daughter. Telling Ward to drop the case against Danny and to welcome him back to Rand Enterprises, a new fighter has been added back to the company that desperately needs one.

Being found out by her students, Colleen is ashamed of herself and wants it all to go away, but one of her students has posted the video of her beating a man twice her size to try and help encourage business. Not knowing what to do, Colleen is still having problems with money so she decides to train for her next fight, not knowing where or when it will be. Finding the fight club on a roof top, Colleen asks two of her opponents for double the pay and is granted her wish. With the money now rolling in, she is shocked to see that she is needed for help once again by the now billionaire Danny Rand and his friend Joy.

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After signing all of the forms that bring him back to power at Rand Enterprises, Danny shows up for his first meeting late. Listening to the sales pitch being proposed by Ward, Danny is shocked that his company is going to try and profit off of the misery of others. Demanding that the company’s new drug be sold at cost to the masses to save lives and swinging around his 51% stock holdings to make it happen, the business is set to lose millions of dollars on the drug's release once it hits the street. The money does not matter to Danny at all, but Ward is sure to make a stink about his new boss to the board when the company starts to lose money hand over fist.

Wanting to get Danny away from the meeting scene, Joy promises to tell him everything that she knows about the pier purchase that the Hand had her father push for. Knowing little about the area, much less why Rand Enterprises needed it, she does not have the answers, but there is someone that does. When triads break into Danny’s apartment, he will do anything to protect his childhood friend, (I guess they are friends again) from any harm coming her way. Finding out where the triads hang their hat, Danny pays the gang a visit and throws out that he knows the Hand is behind the pier purchase and they back away. But they know more about the Hand than they are willing to say and while Danny is still looking for answers, he may find something more deadly instead.

Okay, I think this is best episode of the series thus far. You get to have two ghosts meet on the physical plane, well, just Danny and Harold reunited for the first time without drugs involved. What I liked most about this is that Danny was greeted with open arms, something that Ward seems to frown upon and if you know much about Ward, he was never coddled by anybody when growing up, he was just told to grow up. I am sure if Ward had resentment toward Danny as a child, it is about to get much worse as an adult. Danny finally gets to reconnect with Joy and thanks her for helping him with his lawsuit, even though now it was not needed. The two have plenty to catch up on, but they also need to figure out why someone has put a target on her. Harold gets his reward for the pier purchase from the Hand, and it is touching, especially to see his fatherly love has never gone away. Colleen is kicking butt and taking names in the ring, but who knows when her luck is going to run out, because it most certainly will soon. The story took a 180-degree turn in this episode as Danny has been welcomed back to the family. Now I am not sure where it is going to head next, but I still want to see the Hand and how they react when they find out that Danny is the Iron Fist and has been taught how to destroy them.  

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