In many ways, Just to Get a Rep wraps up the big character arc that spans the first half of Luke Cage.
It builds upon Step in the Arena by allowing Luke to embrace his superhero persona and craft something bigger than himself. This is the point at which Luke fulfils the character arc established in those early scenes with Pop back in Moment of Truth, using his gifts to make the world a better place for other people. Appropriately enough, Luke publicly accepts the mantle of hero at the memorial service held in honour of Pop. Standing up to Cornell; standing up for the community; rallying the church. This is really the end of Luke’s hero’s journey.
There is just one slight problem with this, and it comes down to the biggest problem with this thirteen-episode season as a whole. There is simply too much storytelling real estate to fill with the character and story arcs. So, although Luke has effectively completed his hero’s journey, this story continues for two more episodes. To be fair, Manifest is an episode clever enough to work on its own terms as a coda to this opening half of the season, but it does leave Suckas Need Bodyguards feeling rather redundant.
This is a shame, because Just to Get a Rep has the makings of a great season (or even mid-season) finale. Unfortunately, the season order means that there are still two whole episodes to go.
Filed under: Television | Tagged: just to get a rep, luke cage | Leave a comment »
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