Sweet Christmas!

Luke Cage comes to a tv near you. Really enjoyed this one. Top notch all around.

As with the previous three Netflix Marvel efforts (2 seasons of Daredevil and the first season of Jessica Jones), this one ties to the overarching Marvel movie universe. This one never shows but does talk quite a bit about how living in a world populated by Iron Man and Thor is a game changer and that's actually somewhat integral to the plot.

The acting is great, with Alfre Woodward turning in a chillingly heartless turn as the supporting villain. Mike Colter as Cage is perfectly cast and Simone Missick rocks as Misty Knight.

The fights are much less super-fu than say Daredevil and more super punchy-crunchy. Colter does an excellent job of selling the impatience of a super powered dude faced with normal opponents who just don't get that they're way outclassed. Definitely fun to watch.

The only drawback is, much as the other Netflix efforts, that 13 episode commitment. The previous shows each could have trimmed a handful of episodes and not suffered, simply by jettisoning unimportant b stories. Luke Cage would have been serviced by tightening up the b story and trimming perhaps an episode or two in time by doing so. In this case the b story really works, and in fact is really only the secondary part of the main thread as opposed to an entirely separate element.

I've said it before but it's no less true now: I'd rather have a faster paced, tighter 8-11 episodes that tell the story well than a padded 13 episode season every time.

Worth your time and while Luke Cage is introduced (as is another main character) in Jessica Jones, you can jump into this with no background and enjoy it on its own merits.