When Netflix announced that the Marvel series would be leaving the platform in March, there was some worry about where they would end up. Due to Marvel Studios regaining distribution rights in early 2021 to the likes of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and Punisher, The Defenders series was forced to switch over to Disney+ for the time being.

Adjustments introduced to the Marvel Netflix illustrates when they were brought to Disney+ were surprising.

After only a few weeks on Disney+, viewers began to notice inconsistencies between the shows on Netflix and those on Disney+. There was a lot of time and effort put into making sure that Netflix’s credit was replaced with a Disney logo for each of the six Defenders-centric shows’ opening titles.

The Punisher’s Stan Lee tribute and Reg E. Cathey’s Luke Cage tribute were also removed from Disney+. It’s not clear why this error was made, but it appears to have been fixed.

Marvel Netflix Show Restored Stan Lee’s Tribute

The tributes to Marvel legend Stan Lee and Luke Cage actor Reg E. Cathey have been added to the episodes of The Punisher and Luke Cage on Disney+.

The Punisher’s Season 2 finale on Disney+ now features a title card reading “In Loving Memory of Stan Lee.”

Just a few months after Lee’s passing, the second season of The Punisher was released in January 2019. Frank Castle shoots down a group of people before the tribute appears, but that scene is particularly brutal.

Additionally, the “In Memoriam” for Reg E. Cathey, the actor who played Reverend James Lucas in seven occurrences of Luke Cage, has been restored to its Season 2 finale spot.

Disney+ Restores Marvel Legends Tributes with New Episodes

After Disney+ restored Stan Lee’s tribute, the question remains as to why they were excluded in the first place. No one can say for sure if the expulsion or restoration of these homages was done on purpose or was simply an oversight on the part of the streamer.

Many people wondered if the tribute to Lee in The Punisher was cut because of the violent scene that preceded it. Although Netflix removed the original version of the tribute card, it is still available in the same location. As if that wasn’t confusing enough, Jessica Jones left a tribute to Lee unnoticed.

More likely, there was an error in the transfer of video files between streaming services, and a version of the episodes without tributes was mistakenly uploaded to Disney+. Regardless of the cause, Disney quickly remedied this omission from the film.

In anticipation of its family-friendly streaming service, some feared Disney would censor the content of The Defenders shows. However, aside from minor inconsistencies like this, nothing appears to be amiss.