Jessica Jones AKA The Spoiler-Free Review

Over the weekend, between sessions of writing my paper for school, I binge watched Marvel and Netflix's newest super hero drama Jessica Jones.  I have to point out that I wasn't going into the series blind due to the fact that I have some experience with the comics.  Since I'm a fan I was really excited for this show.  So, what did I think?

First, a brief explanation of plot.  Jessica Jones is a private investigator in New York city with super powers and a troubled past.  She's hard drinking, hard fighting, and doesn't take crap from anyone.  After finding her old nemesis/tormentor is back in town, Jessica has to decide what lengths she is willing to go to in order to settle the score.  Yes, that explanation was purposely as vague as possible.  Let's get into the meat of this show, the writing and acting.  

To start off, I just need to say whomever is in charge of casting for Marvel movie and TV projects deserves more money.  The actors cast to play these characters are always on point and Jessica Jones is no exception.  

Krysten Ritter who is most famous for her role in Breaking Bad does an amazing job of bringing the title character to life.  I must confess, I haven't seen her in many of her other roles so I'm not sure if this tougher than nails part is par for the course for her but in any case she captured the spirit of a person who is torn between duty and revenge.  She shows the pain that Jessica Jones has endured and the psychological scars she has because of it.  I really can't praise Ritter enough so I should probably just move on.

Rachael Taylor plays Trish Walker, the childhood best friend and for lack of better term side-kick.  Walker is also a big character in the Marvel comics but I won't get into that.  If you want to know you can look it up.  Taylor plays this part well and I never had a hard time believing that she cared about Jones.  She did a good job in her role, I don't really think she added anything above and beyond but the part didn't really call for it either.  

 I just want to start off by saying how happy I am to finally see Luke Cage in the Marvel Cinematic (TV Show) universe.  I've been a fan of this character for a long time and I wasn't sure if we were ever going to see him.  Again, casting was spot on with Mike Colter knocking it out of the park.  We don't see much of Luke in the season but something tells me that will be changing somewhere down the line.

Now, my Doctor Who fanboy is going to be showing a little bit, but I feel that David Tennant stole the show as the villain Killgrave.  Killgrave has the ability to control the minds of others.  All he has to do is tell you to do something, and you will.  One word and you're his.  Honestly, he's one of my favorite Marvel villains simply because he has the power of a god and he's rotten to the core.  My only really complaint about this portrayal in the show is that they try to make him a sympathetic villain when in the comics he's evil and he friggin loves it.  I will admit, it was a little hard to dissociate Tennant from the Doctor and I was a little uncomfortable at first.  Now, I can't imagine Killgrave being played by anyone else.  

The writing and story lines in the Marvel films and television shows have been superb and Jessica Jones does not disappoint.  While the Marvel films such as Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy showcase the bright vibrant areas of the Marvel Universe, the Netflix shows like Daredevil and Jessica Jones highlight the dark underworld.  This can be seen in the darker tone of the shows and grittier settings.  Marvel and Netflix have already announced a Defenders (the super hero team of Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Daredevil, and Iron Fist) show for the future and it's gearing up to be pretty amazing.  I'm still disappointed about the Iron Fist show being cancelled due to the fact that Netflix believed there would not be enough interest in the character.  However, we should get to see the character show up in a future episode of Jessica Jones, Daredevil, or the Luke Cage show that got approved.  I am very interested to see where the future takes Jessica Jones and what story lines they choose to tackle.  I can't recommend this series enough, which probably shouldn't be a surprise considering I watched the whole first season in a day.  You gotta love binge watching.

-Big O