Marvel Studios is notoriously coy when it comes to the canonicity of its non-MCU TV shows, but Wonder Man Episode 4 may have delivered one of the most meaningful connections yet. With the introduction of Doorman (and, more importantly, the Darkforce and the Darkforce Dimension), Disney+ might have opened the door for one of Marvel’s most overlooked shows to finally matter again.
In the episode, Wonder Man adds context to the in-universe entertainment industry’s policy of not hiring superpowered actors, stepping away from Simon Williams’ (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) story to focus on a bizarre and tragic tale detailing DeMarr Davis’ (Byron Bowers) transformation into the superpowered Hollywood favorite, Doorman.
But it’s the catalyst to DeMarr’s transformation that has Marvel fans talking—and spotting connections to a forgotten Marvel show, reigniting conversations about its canonicity within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Cloak & Dagger’s Darkforce Connection Explained
Warning - The rest of this article contains spoilers for Wonder Man.
The mysterious Darkforce makes its official MCU-proper debut in Wonder Man Episode 4 as a viscous black substance leaking from a Roxxon dumpster in a shadowy alleyway. When DeMarr Davis touches the strange black goo, he’s ripped from reality and transported to the Darkforce Dimension. He emerges changed, able to phase through solid matter and act as a living gateway between spaces.
While this marks the Darkforce’s MCU debut, the odd substance isn’t new to Marvel’s television projects. Years before Marvel Television’s shows set within the MCU, Cloak & Dagger built its entire story around it. In the 2018–2019 Freeform series, Tyrone Johnson (Aubrey Joseph) gained the ability to manipulate Darkforce after surviving an energy explosion caused by the collapse of the Roxxon Gulf Platform. That event tethered Tyrone directly to the Darkforce Dimension, granting him teleportation, shadow manipulation, and the power to drag others into that same void.
The similarities between Wonder Man and Cloak & Dagger don’t feel coincidental. Both origins are tied to Roxxon, a corporation that has existed in the background of the MCU for years. Both involve exposure that happens by chance. And in both cases, the Darkforce Dimension is portrayed as a separate plane of existence with its own unique properties.
It’s also worth noting that the Darkforce also appeared on Agent Carter and Agents of SHIELD, two ABC shows whose canonicity has long been the subject of intense debate among fans. Across all those shows, the Darkforce is volatile, corruptive, and highly unpredictable. Wonder Man continues that tradition instead of reinventing it.
Could Wonder Man Make Cloak & Dagger MCU Canon?
Rather than rebooting the Darkforce with a new explanation, Wonder Man introduces it with no explanation regarding its origin or properties. This choice allows the MCU’s Darkforce to exist alongside the existing Marvel TV canon without friction. And that opens the door for Cloak & Dagger in a way Marvel Studios has never done before.
If the Darkforce functions the same way across these stories, then Tyrone Johnson’s powers don’t need recontextualizing. They already fit. That doesn’t mean Cloak is about to join the sprawling cast of the next Avengers movie, but it does suggest Marvel Studios is getting more comfortable acknowledging its older shows in subtle ways.
For years, Cloak & Dagger occupied a strange middle space—well-liked among fans and thematically rich but largely forgotten after Marvel Studios ventured into television a few years later. Wonder Man Episode 4 may have just given the show a lifeline by creating space for it to be canonized without retconning any of its story. And in the MCU, that’s often how canon quietly becomes official.
