Marvel's Jessica Jones Season One Review (Spoiler Free)
Marvel Television & Netflix continue setting up high-quality superhero series. Next in line is the adaption of Marvel heroine Jessica Jones.
Genre: Crime/Drama/Thriller
Created By: Melissa Rosenberg
Cast: Krysten Ritter, Mike Colter, Rachael Taylor, David Tennant, Carrie-Anne Moss & Eka Darville.
Network: Netflix
Average-Runtime: 60 min per episode.
Episodes Release: 20 November 2015
After the incredible quality of Marvel’s Daredevil blew me away, I was curious how Netflix and Marvel would treat the source material of a female heroine I never read or truly heard of before. Now, after finishing binge-watching this TV series during the weekend and after a day of evaluation, I need to say that Netflix and Marvel are on a roll!
Marvel’s Jessica Jones is a gritty, dark and brutal superhero series, just like the man without fear’s TV show that premiered early this April. There is a major difference though, whereas Daredevil was all about saving Hell’s Kitchen, Jones’ own television appearance feels most of the time hopeless, lost and very intimate. But it has a reason to be the way it is and that is due to Jessica’s past and the fact that she needs to deal with what she had suffered.
Bigger questions arise when I heard that Rachael Taylor was playing Jones’ bestie Patricia “Trish” Walker, who in the Marvel Universe throws on a costume herself and fights crime as Hellcat. Could we be facing a future Netflix production with Trish’s own attempt at heroism?
Marvel’s Jessica Jones revolves around a former superheroine of the same name, who was “abducted” and put under the mental control of another gifted human, known as Killgrave. One year after her successful escape, Jessica hung up her costume and opened a P.I. office to make a living. She is suffering from PTSD, reliving the horrible things Killgrave made her do in her dreams and forming a drinking problem.
After the presumed dead Killgrave returns, Jessica seeks help from her best friend Trish Walker, who she held on distance after her experience with the mind controller. Her path crosses several times with that of indestructible Luke Cage and N.Y. police officer Simpson.
Although I did not find it as good as Daredevil, Jessica Jones still is a strong TV series and keeps setting the stakes high for superhero television shows. The story is very dark, depicting the life of a broken woman with superpowers, as she tries to do right by helping others as redemption for what she did while under Kilgrave's mental influence. Consisting of a very grown-up and intelligent narrative, Jessica Jones is one of the better TV series currently on air.
The dialogue in the series is amazing, full of remorse, pain and hopelessness. The only character that manages to shine little rays of light through the series’ dark atmosphere is Trish, who never gives up on Jessica and sees the hero in her when no one else does.
The script also had its weaknesses though. The side plot concerning the very annoying neighbour Robyn, who is on the search for her missing brother, starts to irritate a couple of episodes in. This is mostly due to the reason that the character itself is incredibly annoying. I also found the ending and conclusion not really satisfying.
This might be Krysten Ritter’s best performance to date! Her portrayal of Jessica Jones was captivating and emotional; I understood why she pushed people away and tried to keep her life to herself. If somebody were to manipulate me by making me do things I would not want to, I would feel violated to the deepest level. It is no wonder she is unable to trust anyone, which also explains her aggressive and hostile behaviour.
David Tennant makes his first proper appearance as Killgrave around episode three. He made a fantastic depiction of a man who basically never grew up and actually still is a child entrapped in a man’s body. He has no remorse for killing people, unable to understand that what he did is wrong. He also does not take responsibility; truly believing that what he commands people to do is their actual wish.
Further characters that made appearances in the show were Mike Colter, as Luke Cage, a man going through his own mourning as he lost someone close to him in a freak accident, that might involve Jessica. Trish, played by Tylor, was also a supporting character, more upbeat than the others which made a nice contrast.
Carrie-Anne Moss was amazing as the soul-less lawyer with no remorse. She would walk over corpses to win a case and make a bunch of cash. She, therefore, makes use of Jessica’s methods but still doesn’t want to be linked to her to keep her immaculate reputation intact.
What really sold this TV show is the beautiful and uncommon cinematography. It is theatre-worthy, making use of unusual angles that give the viewer a very different perspective. The in-between shots of the city skyline distinguished themselves heavily from other TV series, something I have not seen up to now.
I did find some complaints on IMDb about the combat choreography, with some people complaining that it wasn't as realistic as in Daredevil. The fact is that Matt Murdock trained for years under Stick, while Jessica is a brawler who never needed to learn a form of fighting because of her sheer strength.
Verdict: Marvel’s Jessica Jones, while not reaching the heights of Daredevil, is still one of my new favourite series that debuted this year. It has a promising and interesting character, a very amusing yet incredible psychotic villain and strong supporting characters. The story is smart, gritty and to some level relatable, but what makes this TV show shine, is that we finally get to see the first true Marvel heroine! I will give Jessica Jones an 8.5 out of 10! What is your opinion of Marvel’s Jessica Jones? Do you share my thoughts or do you disagree with what I said? Leave a comment and thank you very much for reading. If you are interested in my previous review for the Daredevil TV series, click on the related posts underneath.