- "All right, listen up, everybody. I know you don't wanna be here, but it seems that you are all of interest to some pretty powerful and dangerous people. Now, to protect you, I need your cooperation. Sit tight for now. We'll have more answers soon."
- ―Misty Knight
Take Shelter is the fifth episode of the first season of The Defenders.
Synopsis[]
Elektra's loyalties are questioned, Colleen clashes with an old acquaintance, and Luke proves he knows how to take a hit.
Plot[]
In preparation to fight the Defenders at Royal Dragon, Sowande and Madame Gao ready their henchmen, arming them with guns and knives. Meanwhile Murakami travels alone, reaching the rooftop of the restaurant, ambushing them from the top. Confused, Danny Rand and Matt Murdock engage Murakami in the battle, while Jessica Jones and Luke Cage struggle to take down Elektra. Alexandra Reid stands in the background before subtly leaving through a back door. Though Rand and Murdock manage to knock Murakami off his feet, he soon retreats. Sowande's men join, firing at the building. Gao pulls a pistol of her own and kills one henchman, reminding Sowande that they are required to capture the Iron Fist alive. Alongside Stick, the group is circled by fighters and they initiate a brawl. Stick presses that they fight together, but Murdock goes after Elektra by himself. Murdock disarms Elektra and pins her to the wall, persuading her that he was not going to fight her. The two move the fight to the back of the restaurant, where Murdock continues to plead for her to remember him, calling out her name again. Elektra freezes, and Murdock slowly approaches her, asking what they had done to her. Soon, Murakami enters the scene, commanding her to kill him. Elektra hits Murakami, projecting him into the brick wall and leaving him unconscious before vanishing.
Sowande manages to lure Cage outside Royal Dragon. With a few strikes, Cage flops into the street, soon carried away by the front of an oncoming truck. Rand overpowers the soldiers inside, but upon going towards Gao, he is projected backwards and stunned. Gao orders her henchmen to restrain him, but are interrupted by the arrival of Stick and Jones, whom shoves Gao aside and defeats the henchmen before leaving through the back entrance. While Stick uncovers the drainage and demands the group retreated to the sewers, Rand gets the stunned Murdock, and they retreat.
Later, the Defenders reach Chikara Dojo, to get shelter away from the Hand. They are alerted of the arrival of Cage who boasts about capturing Sowande.
In the penthouse, Elektra sharpens her sword. Reid appreciates her skills and tells the story of her first life: raising a daughter who eventually died and her enlightenment from a pilgrimage to K'un-Lun. She then informs Elektra that if she is unable to kill those she is tasked to, then she is useless to the Hand. As Murakami enters and asks to speak with Reid, she passes him aside. Both Murakami and the Black Sky stare at each other before he leaves.
Strapping him down to a chair in an abandoned building, the Defenders make advances to interrogate Sowande on the Hand's current operations in the city. Instead, he taunts them on their futile efforts to stop them, citing that they plan to harm their loved ones like Claire Temple and Trish Walker. When Sowande begins making references to Kilgrave, Jones punches him unconscious, angered by his obsessive prying.
While Stick stays to watch over their captured victim, Cage awakens Temple at her mother's apartment, informing her that the Hand may target her. Rand and Colleen Wing talk about Stick's intentions of "getting to Iron Fist" before the Hand. Soon, a group of Hand cars drive past them, and Rand knocks them out. Wing goes a different direction to follow a disturbance. She finds her old master, Bakuto, who is somehow alive, despite his death at the hands of Davos not too long ago. She tries to fight him, but he slashes her with a knife across the stomach and prepares to kill her. Luke Cage then steps in with Temple, and he disarms Bakuto. When Bakuto flees, Temple and Rand get Wing somewhere safe.
Murdock meets with Karen Page and tells her that he wouldn't come to her if it wasn't important. He tells her that he is Daredevil again which makes her angry. He tells her she needs to go with him to hide out at somewhere safe for a while.
Cage goes to see Misty Knight and tells her about the Hand's plan. He asks for her help.
Jones interrupts Walker's meeting to get her somewhere safe, but they are ambushed by Murakami. As they try to escape from Murakami, Daredevil arrives and rescues them.
At the precinct, all of the people the Defenders have close relationships with are gathered. Temple stitches up Wing and talks to her about her past, while Walker and Malcolm Ducasse gossip about Page and Foggy Nelson, and how they could be involved in this threat.
Meanwhile, Madame Gao and Bakuto discuss their rivalry. Murakami enters and tells them about the reemergence of Daredevil, which Gao dismisses saying he hasn't roamed the streets in months. Murakami assures her that he saw him with his own eyes. With Daredevil in the equation, Gao becomes worried because of Elektra's intimate past with Murdock.
Daredevil strangles Sowande with his billy club to get him to talk about Elektra. As Daredevil gets angrier, Jones tries to get him to stop, but he doesn't. Daredevil then gives last push out of anger, knocking Sowande unconscious. Stick urges Murdock to tell the team the truth. Murdock tells them about Elektra, her death, and her resurrection, while Stick discloses his past relationship with her. Cage and Jones argue with him about his intentions. Sowande uses this opportunity to break out and get Rand in a chokehold. Stick walks over and easily decapitates Sowande, much to everyone's disturbance.
Elektra sneaks out to Murdock's apartment, sensing a familiarity in the place. She slowly walks around and reaches his bed, where she sits down and falls asleep on, feeling the comfort of Murdock from her past life.
Cast[]
Main Cast:
- Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock/Daredevil
- Krysten Ritter as Jessica Jones
- Mike Colter as Luke Cage
- Finn Jones as Danny Rand/Iron Fist
- Eka Darville as Malcolm Ducasse
- Elden Henson as Foggy Nelson
- Jessica Henwick as Colleen Wing
- Simone Missick as Misty Knight
- Ramon Rodriguez as Bakuto
- Rachael Taylor as Trish Walker
- Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page
- Élodie Yung as Elektra
- Rosario Dawson as Claire Temple
- Scott Glenn as Stick
- Sigourney Weaver as Alexandra Reid
Guest Stars:
- Wai Ching Ho as Madame Gao
- Yutaka Takeuchi as Murakami
- Babs Olusanmokun as Sowande
- Maggie LeVine as Detective (uncredited)
Appearances[]
Locations[]
- New York City, New York
- K'un-Lun (mentioned)
- South America (mentioned)
- New Jersey (mentioned)
Events[]
- Excavation of Midland Circle
- Ambush at the Royal Dragon
- Rescue of Trish Walker
- Attack on John Raymond (mentioned)
- New York City Earthquake (mentioned)
- Attack on K'un-Lun (mentioned)
- Kidnapping of Jessica Jones (mentioned)
- Attack on the Hand (mentioned)
- Duel at Bethesda Terrace (mentioned)
- Duel of Harlem (newspaper)
- Battle of New York (newspaper)
Items[]
- Stick's Katana
- Colleen Wing's Katana
- Daredevil's Suit
- Daredevil's Billy Club
- O'Harren's Scotch Whisky
- Trish Talk (mentioned)
- Resurrection Elixir (mentioned)
Concepts[]
Creatures[]
- Leviathans (newspaper)
- Mice (mentioned)
Vehicles[]
To be added
Organizations[]
- Defenders
- Hand
- Chaste
- Alias Investigations
- Rand Enterprises
- New York City Police Department
- New York Bulletin
- WNEX New York
- Hogarth, Chao & Benowitz
Mentioned[]
- Alexandra Reid's Daughter
- Cole Miller
- John Raymond
- Kilgrave
- Soledad Temple
- Claire Temple's Aunt
- Hulk (newspaper)
- Abomination (newspaper)
- Bill Clinton (newspaper)
- Monica Lewinsky (newspaper)
Trivia[]
- Take Shelter is the only episode of The Defenders where the fifteen members of the main cast appear.
Music[]
| Song title | Artist | Location(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 68: IV. Adagio - Piu Andante - Allegro non troppo, ma con brio - Piu Allegro | Johannes Brahms |
|
| Restaurant Fight | John Paesano |
References[]
External Links[]
| Season One | The H Word • Mean Right Hook • Worst Behavior • Royal Dragon • Take Shelter • Ashes, Ashes • Fish in the Jailhouse • The Defenders |