Since Marvel/Netflix debuted the 13-episode series Luke Cage this past Friday, you're probably all caught up and done with your binging, right? If not, you should probably just quit reading now since we're going to be delving into spoiler territory concerning Mike Colter and his title hero. If you are caught up, or simply want to know more about the comic book history of the character and his small-screen adaptation, then you've come to the right place.

As he often does, Mr. Sunday Movies has rounded up all the Easter eggs and comic book character explanations needed to guide you through your second Luke Cage watch; we've included his video below, but make sure to check out Evan Valentine's villain explainer here. Speaking of villains, EW has a chat with the intimidating comic book criminal Cottonmouth, a.k.a. Cornell Stokes (Mahershala Ali) as well as a follow-up with Diamondback / Willis Stryker himself, Erik LaRay Harvey. Elsewhere, THR catches up with NYPD Detectives Rafael Scarfe (Frank Whaley) and Misty Knight (Simone Messick) to see what they make of all the criminal activity and superhero showdowns on Luke Cage.

For more of our previous coverage on all things Luke Cage, check out the following links:

• ‘Luke Cage’ Review: Netflix Delivers the Hero We Need
• ‘Luke Cage': Mike Colter and EPs on Why the Marvel Series Is a Western, Season 2, and…
• Watch: ‘Luke Cage’ Opening Credits Show Harlem in Mike Colter’s DNA
• ‘Luke Cage’ Jumped Ahead of ‘Iron Fist’ Because of the Character’s Popularity on ‘Jessica Jones’
• Final ‘Luke Cage’ Trailer Goes After the King; Best Not Miss

All the spoilers follow below!

Easter Eggs

Mahershala Ali on Playing Cottonmouth

Ali was one of the highlights of Luke Cage for me, at least for his time on the show. Despite being set up as the main antagonist, a man with the unfortunate moniker of Cottonmouth, he's put out of commission by his own blood roughly halfway through the season. Here's what Ali had to say about reading that reveal in the script:

“When [Netflix] approached me about Luke Cage, they gave me the arc, and for the first time, I found myself excited by a character’s departure, because I felt like this was something I could give my all to for a period of time before saying ‘peace’ to him, you know?” he says. “I could let go and move on to the next thing. It was like shooting a film, as opposed to stepping into another marriage that you never know how long is going to work out. It gave me a certain freedom to try to do my best work and make peace with it once he… Experiences his demise.”

Ali shared some more insight into Cottonmouth's lot in life:

“Cottonmouth is not the person he wanted to be,” he says. “Cottonmouth is the result of having to react to his circumstances. He had to, in some ways, take control of the situation and own his circumstances. But as a result of that, he became a person he didn’t intend to become.”

For his time, Ali played Cottonmouth in a big way, owing to the gangster's bigger-than-life personality:

“I had so much space with that character. He has a sense of hypermasculinity but a deep sense of vulnerability, and that was exciting to me,” Ali says. “The things he does, the choices he makes, feel so different from the choices I would make, so when I would go home at night after having just beaten someone’s face in…” He laughs nervously. “That was just a little bit hard to shake off.”

 

Frank Whaley and Simone Messick on Detective Rafael Scarfe's Reveal

Tied into Cottonmouth's arc, which was revealed in yet another of the show's surprise moments, was the involvement of Detective Rafael Scarfe. Playing both sides of the law ultimately cost Scarfe his job and his life. Whaley reveals just how much he knew about his character's twist based on available scripts:

"Honestly, we knew very little going into each episode. We read each script at the beginning of production of each episode. So no, I didn't know this twist [going into the series]. We were all shocked at the table read. I was glad, because I loved that reveal. It's fun to play that kind of villainous side. It gives the guy a certain amount of complexity that you can toy around with and play with. I was glad to have that."

Much like Ali had an opinion on his clearly villainous character Cottonmouth, Whaley had his own thoughts on whether or not Scarfe was squarely on the villain's side:

"That's a good question. I don't. And it's not really my job to judge him like that. But I would say that he's a very conflicted guy and probably has a lot of issues coming into the show with some stuff in his past that led him down that road. I know that he's solid with his partner. I think he has a good heart. But I think there's a dark side to him.

"Maybe he's a little bit greedy and bitter about certain things. But I think there's good and evil in everyone. I don't like to think of him as purely evil. None of that stuff that he does is justified, but I see his relationship with his partner and I think that, in the end, he feels horrible about betraying her and how the way things turned out."

Missick has her own take on the duplicitous character who played opposite her own stalwart police detective:

"I don't consider him to be a bad guy," Missick says. "He just made some bad choices. I look at how he is with Misty, and I think that's genuine. I had no idea this twist was coming, and I still can't believe it. And the way it's revealed was just so perfect. It really makes for a jaw-dropping moment. I'll never forget the way we all reacted to learning about it. I wish I could tell Misty because she has no idea."

Erik LaRay Harvey on Diamondback

Name-dropped quite frequently in the earlier episodes, Diamondback, the man pulling the strings behind both Cottonmouth and Shades (Theo Rossi), finally stepped out into the streets about halfway through the season. Harvey played an unhinged version of the comic book character who has curious ties to Luke Cage and his true past. But he and the cast knew from the get-go that Diamondback wouldn't be seen on-screen for a while:

That’s happened to me a couple of times even in stage and theater work, when someone bows out or they get replaced or whatever… but [on Luke Cage], they all knew, all of the cast members knew that I wouldn’t be coming in until episode 7. We did an initial cast dinner before they even started episode 1, you know, at this really secretive restaurant in Brooklyn. [Laughs] I met everyone there and was like, “Okay, see you guys in a couple of months! You guys go first!” [Laughs]

 

That was sort of a blessing in disguise too because in a new show, there’s always working out the kinks and getting familiar with everyone, so when I stepped on to the set, that process had already been explored. It was just a nice environment to work in and everyone was really gracious.

Harvey also talked about crafting his character, his movements, and his fighting style based on his comic book persona:

I did in a sense. The fight coordinator wanted to know my ideas on the style of fighting, and I said, “Well, I am playing a [character named after a] snake, so…” [Laughs] I was pretty much like, “How do I develop the character? What qualities should I bring into him?” [We decided on] quick, really fast dabs and slithers, because he’s very elusive. We worked all of that into the style of fighting and from my theater background. I’ve taken many fight classes, so it was something that I was well-versed in.

Harvey got to deliver his own reveal to Luke in the very same episode in which he debuted, a reveal that has interesting implications for the pair:

Yeah! That just brings on a whole new set of dynamics to work with. My character had been called a bastard his whole life. How does that make a person operate? How would you feel if your childhood was illegitimized and ignored and swept under a rug? That’s what drives Willis and that’s the backdrop of this story and that’s where a lot of pain comes from. You know, he’s a very pained guy. I don’t look at him as a villain, I just look at Willis as a man who’s going through a lot of painful and traumatic experiences. He gets sent away because of his father’s actions and then once he’s in the jail system, he just gets tortured. After all that, his mind’s been twisted and warped, and he’s developed this sensitivity that’s almost psychopathic.

That relationship impacts how Harvey sees Diamondback's approach to hunting down Luke:

Well, in a sense, this is a game to him. I think truly deep down, inside, he still loves Carl. That’s the funny thing about family, right? You hate ‘em but you love ‘em. You love ‘em but you hate ‘em. [Laughs] It’s one of those situations. He remembers a loving time they had before they had the mess, so [the thinking] is partly like, “I really need to hurt him but I don’t want to kill him.” So it becomes this game, and I think the smile is just the mask he wears with everyone. It’s not genuine. He’s not trying to be nice or to befriend anyone. It’s just his way of dealing with his pain. He smiles through his pain.

Much like Batman was forced to don an armored suit when taking on Superman in the DC Comics, so does Diamondback have to employ technology to go toe-to-toe with Luke. Here's Harvey's response to stepping into Diamondback's rather extreme costume:

They were trying to incorporate as much of the original character as they could, so the color scheme is the same. In the comics, it was just, like, his regular clothes. He went out every day in that green jacket, that was just his look! Lookin’ like a pimp daddy. [Laughs] But this suit he wears in the show is more armor. It allows him the ability to go into a fight with Luke and not get hurt. He can be punched, but he can hit as well, you know? Once he’s got that suit on, he gets on equal terms [with Luke], which is something he’s always wanted to be. He’s always wanted to be seen as an equal and he never had a chance. Anytime he does, he really enjoys it, and he’s a happy man.

Finally, Harvey reveals just how much he knows about the future of his character and whether or not he knows what's coming next:

I do not. Marvel is secretive. They left it open-ended — I’m just so glad they didn’t kill me off! [Laughs] But I think it’s been a challenge to Marvel, because here we are talking about how this story is about family. What should Marvel do with the brother of Luke Cage? That’s a good question, and I don’t know [the answer], they haven’t told me. All I know is I’m in a hospital bed. What is [the doctor] going to do? What’s he there for? I’m really interested to see if any of those questions will be answered.

Hopefully we'll find out in a future season of Luke Cage or on the upcoming series The Defenders. Be sure to share your thoughts and predictions in the comments below!