Fanfic Recs / The Defenders (2017)

Proof that the remaining 10% is worth being ganged up on by the Defenders here.

These are recommendations made by tropers for The Defenders (2017) fanfics, all of which have to be signed to stay on the page. Feel free to add a fanfic of your own to the list, but remember to use the template found here.

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Authors and Websites

None yet.

General Fics

Stories focused on the family and the friendly relationships of the cast. Plot-focused stories or light day-in-the-life stories. Pretty much anything that isn't focused on romance.

Hard Things by whitchry9

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Complete
• Synopsis: After Midland Circle, Melvin Potter notices things don't get back to normal, not completely. And then he ends up meeting the other Defenders, who turn out to be nice and helpful, even if they try to hide it.
• Comment: This one is a sequel to Soft Things, a Daredevil (2015) fic about Melvin's relationship with Matt, and explores how Melvin is dealing with Matt's presumed death. Plus, Melvin's friendship with Matt's new friends is quite sweet and admirable to watch.

The Waiting is the Worst by citysonfire

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Complete
• Synopsis: What if Ward Meachum had been present when the Defenders were moving to shelter their loved ones at the precinct? This fic explores that answer.

Point-Blank by fearlessinspace

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: In progress
• Synopsis: After Midland Circle, Matt comes back to the land of living, sees his own tombstone, has some real one-on-one talk with Karen and Foggy, looks for whoever saved him and gets into a lot of emotional shit as he works to rebuild things.

Take it Easy on My Heart by smilebackwards

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Completed
• Synopsis: A rewrite of the finale to have it where Matt didn't stay behind to deal with Elektra and as a result, he returned to be reunited with Karen and Foggy after Midland Circle was destroyed.

Soliloquy by Shadow_Chaser

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: In Progress
• Synopsis: Rather than wait for Matt, Jessica and Luke to come to Danny's rescue, the Hand's leaders decided to go after their loved ones at the precinct. An AU for the last two episodes of The Defenders. Trope page here.
• Comments: This fic fixes many of the perceived issues with the Hand and their plans. Essentially, The Hand bring the fight to the heroes rather than the reverse, and the heroes' loved ones get more involved in the plot. Details of the The Hand hierarchy are also more fleshed out. In spite of the changes, several key elements are unchanged, as Misty still loses her right arm and Matt is still presumed "killed" in the destruction of Midland Circle.

Denial, Then Anger by enthusiasmgirl

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Complete
• Synopsis: Foggy tries not to deal with his feelings about Matt. Until, finally, it's Jeri Hogarth of all people who forces him to.
• Comments: The author notes having created this fic to accomplish a few goals: 1) Explore Foggy's reaction to Matt's "death, 2) Explore Foggy's working relationship with Jeri Hogarth, and 3) Answer some unresolved questions and feelings about Jeri's love triangle subplot in Jessica Jones (2015) season 1.

Devil You Know by gaelicspirt

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Complete
• Synopsis: Sometimes the only way to find balance is to trust someone unstable. Matt’s world is swiftly turning sideways and the people he once turned to are not the ones who can save him this time.
• Comments: This is partially a missing scene fic with a bit of AU. It's a "missing scene" by showing what happened between the police finding Matt, Jessica and Luke at the abandoned theater and Matt waking up in the precinct. It's an "AU" and "fix-it" in the sense that some of the characters' actions and dialogue after Foggy joins Matt in the office are moved around, to give Matt more room to process Stick's death and having to save Danny (primarily, Jessica joins Matt and Foggy in the private office once her interrogation is done, while the conversation is also consolidated with the later scene of Foggy slipping Matt the gym bag with his Daredevil suit).

Missing Pieces by whitchry9

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Complete
• Synopsis: Brett Mahoney has always been good at solving puzzles, so when Matt Murdock is still missing weeks after the events at Midland Circle, he starts investigating. It turns out none of Murdock's friends are too concerned, and their behavior is even outright suspicious. Brett starts putting the pieces together. The more he collects the more he thinks there's something really wrong with the picture he's getting. And Matt Murdock is looking more and more like a murder victim.

Aftermath by tryptophan

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Complete
• Synopsis: A series of short fics that document how characters deal with Matt's "death", and return.
  • Wake: Deals with the immediate aftermath and how people in Matt's orbit react to the news
  • Lest The Spark Go Out: How Matt ended up in the convent, and possible theory on where the writers are taking Elektra
  • Her Station Keeping: Matt's mother staying vigil by her son's bedside
  • Damn Right He'll Rise Again: In which Matt informs his friends that he’s not dead.

Enough To Go By by ZoeWiloh

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Dormant; last updated January 2018
• Synopsis: A month after The Defenders, Matt is finally ready to let his friends know he's alive. Except maybe he's not. He hopes Jessica can help him back into his life, preferably as quietly as possible. After putting his friends through so much, he's hesitant to simply announce his homecoming to everyone. But like always, people are finding out whether he wants them to or not. All Jess can think is, “That bastard owes me for this.”

Shipping Fics

Stories focused on the romantic relationships between the cast.

Working Together by raise_a_glass

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Dead; last updated November 2019
• Pairing: Danny Rand / Colleen Wing
• Synopsis: When Danny finds out that Davos wants him dead, the other Defenders step up to offer help.
• Comments: This fic is primarily Danny and Colleen-centric, but each of the other Defenders and their supporting casts get to play large roles. The story takes place in a slight AU where Matt made it out of Midland Circle with the others, just so he can play a part in the story. It also does a good job highlighting the many mental health issues that Danny is facing. TV Trope page here.

Just in Case by igrockspock

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Complete
• Pairing: Foggy Nelson / Marci Stahl
• Synopsis: Foggy tries to cope with Matt's "death" and hide the truth, but Marci is able to see through his lies.

Could We Start Again, Please? by BecauseImClassy

• Recommended by: dmcreif
• Status: Complete
• Pairing: Matt Murdock / Karen Page
• Synopsis: In the days following Midland Circle, Karen is trying to resign herself to the fact that Matt is gone, until she receives some shocking news.
• Comments: Written by an author that, feeling bad for Karen and Foggy and the place they're in post-Defenders, felt Matt should inform them that he's alive as soon as he's recovered enough to contact them, as well as dig into Karen's feelings, and bring her and Foggy back together with Matt. It also attempts to resolve a lot of the issues that Matt and Karen will have to resolve in Daredevil season 3, including Karen coming clean about Wesley's death, as well as interpreting what Matt's feelings for Elektra are. It is obviously non-compliant with what Karen is doing during the events of The Punisher (2017).

Crossovers