Here's The Reason Why Iron First Has A Huge Tattoo Across His Chest

As we gear up for the premiere of one of Netflix's newest original series, The Defenders, naturally, we have a lot of questions about the plot, characters, and origins of the story. This time around, the answers to all our questions are especially intriguing since this is a Marvel adaptation and, as everyone knows, Marvel characters have insanely intricate and nuanced back stories. So far, the question everyone needs a refresher on is about Iron Fist: What is Danny's tattoo on The Defenders?

Of course, Iron Fist's, aka Danny Rand's, two most defining characteristics are his iron fist (shocking) and the dragon tattoo on his chest. This being Marvel universe, the story behind both (it's pretty much the same story) is soooo dope.

You see, in Marvel's backstory for Danny, he earns the title of "Iron Fist" after he completes an ancient ritual of battling an immortal dragon named Shou-Lao The Undying (seems simple enough TBH); through the course of the ritual, Danny (like all others who have completed the ritual) attains mystical powers. His tattoo, however, came from his bare chest making contact with Shou-Lao during battle. A very simplified version, I know, but you get the picture.

Though this would be an AWESOME scene for any Marvel fan (or anyone, in general, really) to get to see unfold, we won't get to see it in live-action on The Defenders, the same way we didn't get to see it on Netflix's Iron Fist. Due to budgetary constraints, Netflix would not have been unable to produce the over-the-top scenes, which means it looks like we'll have to wait and *hope* The Defenders gets renewed for a second season with a bigger budget if we ever wanna see the story on-screen.

If we're lucky, we'll get to see more than just an allusion to Iron Fist's battle with Shou-Lao in Season 2 of The Defenders. Until then, I guess we'll have to be OK with just hearing about it.