'Iron Fist' Season 2: Typhoid Mary's MCU Origin and Powers Explained

Iron Fist season 2 throws some game-changing twists into it's Marvel Cinematic Universe lore surrounding Danny Rand and his Iron Fist, but gimmicky twists aren't the real standout of the season: that honor goes to Alice Eve's debut as the MCU Typhoid Mary. A lot of Marvel fans have been wondering how the MCU is adapting the character of Mary, and thanks to Iron Fist season 2's release, we now have the answer!

Warning, this post contains SPOILERS!

Iron Fist season 2 introduces Typhoid Mary as "Mary Walker" a sweet girl from out of town, who hangs out in coffee shops sketching art. After Mary bumps into Danny Rand, the two strike up a friendship. However, in slow increments we learn that Mary isn't all that she seems; in fact, while "Mary," has been getting cozy with Danny and Colleen, "Walker" was hired by Joy Meachum and Davos to get tail Danny and prepare an extensive dossier on his movements, associates, and general habits. It isn't just Mary Malker playing both sides; as we learn, there are two distinct personalities in Mary Walker's head, "Mary" and "Walker," with the former indeed being a meek artist, while the latter is a former special forces operative who was discharged due to her mental condition, and has since gone to work as a "freelancer" for hire. As it turns out, Walker is highly-trained and skilled at everything from extraction and assassination, to martial arts combat; she eventually ambushes Danny and fights him to a standstill, drugging him capturing him for delivery to Davos, who uses a ritual to steal the Iron Fist!

After that, "Mary" and "Walker" butt heads what was done to Danny - and what to do now that Danny, Colleen, and Misty Knight are all on her tail. Walker feels that Joy and Davos are loose ends, but Joy manages to buy herself a pass from Walker's wrath. Walker tries to help Danny stop Davos, but in the struggle her "Mary" persona is triggered, abandoning Danny and forgetting Walker's pledge to help him. That move once again triggers a conflict between the "Mary" and "Walker" persona, and when Walker eventually takes control again, she finds a message from Mary that opens a startling new door in her mind: the realization that "Mary" and "Walker" aren't the only two personalities in her head. Following that lead,Walker gets Ward Meachum to dig up her classified military file, in exchange for saving Joy from Davos. That file reveals an origin story that connects back to both Avengers: Age of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War.

Walker's origin flashback reveals that her special forces team had a mission in Sokovia go very badly, ending with all of her squad being captured. The Sokovians brutally tortured and mutilated the POWs, repeatedly raping Walker and forcing her to listen to her teammates being executed. Walker eventually suffered some kind of mental break during a bad thunderstorm, resulting in her split personalities manifesting. One of those personalities then broke loose and murdered the entire camp of Sokovians, calling in for reinforcements to extract a bloody and confused Walker from the site, with no memory of the slaughter.

Iron Fist season 2 finale leaves Mary's story on something of a cliffhanger: she helps Danny and Co. bring Davos down, but still has little to no information about what her third personality is (though it's clearly the "Typhoid Mary" assassin persona). We also don't know when she was imprisoned in Sokovia, exactly, and whether or not it was before or after the events of Captain America: Civil War. It'll be interesting to learn if Helmut Zemo and his EKO Scorpion Sokovian kill squad were involved in her torture.

What do you think of this MCU version of Typhoid Mary? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

Iron Fist season 2 is now streaming on Netflix. Daredevil season 3 will premiere before the end of 2018.