Marvel's Jessica Jones

[Perpetual Man]

I don't think this has a thread of it's own yet.

 

[Perpetual Man]

 

[Perpetual Man]

This is the second of Marvel/Netflix collaboration following in the footsteps of Daredevil. Pretty daunting shoes to fill, but it looks that it might just do it.

I particular like the Good Morning Teaser!

It comes fully birthed on Netflix on the 20th November.

 

[Perpetual Man]

A little background on Jessica Jones, I’m going to try and avoid any spoilers, but sorry if something slips out.

The character is what I would refer to a retroactive creation. Unlike the other Marvel characters in the Netflix stable who can be traced back years, Jones is a recent one.

She is, though, one of these that has been placed back in continuity so it looks as though she has been there for a lot longer than she has.

Daredevil can be traced back to the 1960’s, while Power Man (Luke Cage) and Iron Fist are from the mid 70’s. Jones on the contrary made her debut in 2001.

She first appeared in the Marvel Max (an older brand of comics – an attempt to emulate DC’s Vertigo range) title Alias, that ran for 28 issues, closing its doors in 2004.

It tells the story of a female Private Investigator, Jessica Jones who runs her own agency, Alias Investigations (badly). She is alcoholic and emotionally and mentally damaged. Just how badly this is and why is the thrust of the series and will probably play out in this screen version so it is stuff to keep quiet about.

The more mature themes and tone of the issue should really suit the already established feel of this part of the onscreen Marvel universe. If anything it is probably going to be a little darker than Daredevil.

The series was created by Brian Michael Bendis (who currently has his Powers show been shown on the Sony channel, I think) and artist Michael Gaydos.

Over the 28 issues it had 4 main storyarcs, Alias, Come Home, The Underneath and The Secret Origin of Jessica Jones. Following the end of the run Jessica refused to fade away and has become an active part of the main Marvel universe, although in what capacity I’m not going to say.

Done right, and Daredevil indicates it will be, this could be superb.

 

[Idoru]

Trailers look and it's got David Tennant in it. All the eps hit Netflix UK today so I'll definitely be checking it out over the weekend.

 

[Parson]

Tim, This looks good, but really, really, dark. I don't have Netflix, or I might well check it out.

 

[Perpetual Man]

I`d imagine it is going to be really dark too. Having read the comics so knowing how the story comes together I have an idea how it is going to pan out. It is not going to be an easy road but ultimately a rewarding one.

If it is as good asthe previous Daredevil series then it is going to be very good indeed.

I`m going to watch the first episode in a moment, if it is any good I hope you get an opportunity to watch it at some point, Parson.

 

[Bugg]

Watched the first two eps this evening. It took a while, but it really grabbed hold at the end of the first ep. Looking forward to watching more.

 

[Perpetual Man]

Just watched the first episode, and I'm with Bugg on this

 

[Perpetual Man]

I watched the second episode last night and it looks as though it is a show that is really starting to find it's feet.

The characters are well drawn and perfectly cast and although it is painfully dark in places there is still some light that shines through.

I feel that if Daredevil is the down and dirty party of the on screen Marvel Universe, then Jessica Jones is a few steps lower again, literally on the streets, while Daredevil at least took to the rooftops.

At one stage I thought that the producers had decided to drop superpowers all together or really downplay them. But this episode proved my worries unfounded. There is a drunken bar-room brawl that is just priceless.

The main protagonist, though, is dark and terrifying and if this is the episode that really addressed Jessica Jones having powers, and Luke Cage being more than just big, it also confirmed that Killgrave really can control people and in a short sequence we get to see just how terrible that is.

Although we don't see him directly we can tell it id David Tennant, but this is not anything like the Doctor. He falls into the evil role easily, this could well be a milestone for him. The moment he walks through an apartment controlling the people within with ease is sinister and stomach turning. Telling a young girl to lock herself in the closet, and his reaction when she tells him she needs to go to the toilet is probably more disturbing than anything more visceral.

This is really starting to show some serious potential.

"I'm unbreakbale." Heh.

 

[Jeremy M. Gottwig]

I let my Netflix subscription lapse, but I'm tempted to bring it back for this show.

 

[Perpetual Man]

If Marvel/Netflix can maintain the standard they have set with this and Daredevil, for the other series they have lined up it could well be worth it. (We also watched Sense8 on Netflix and enjoyed that too, but it was very ummm adult in places!)

 

[ctg]

I watched three episodes today and I have to say it's as brilliant as the DareDevil. There's so much dirt and crit in the streets of Hells Kitchen, but not once did they mentioned the man in red, only the big green guy and his group. Luke Cage comes out as very likeable character but the main reason to watch this is the strong female lead. Not that Mr David Tennant is doing bad as a villain. In fact, the lack of his appearance on the small screen only makes him and his story so much stronger, that you'll be shouting on the screen, when he appears. So, all of you, watch this series.

 

[The Bluestocking]

Watched the first two episodes - so far, so good but I'm still liking DAREDEVIL better at this point. Am reserving the rest to be watched in one long binge over Thanksgiving weekend.

@Tim James - I've tried to get into SENSE8 twice but can't get past the first episode. Not my cup of tea even though I absolutely adore THE MATRIX.

 

[Bugg]

Four episodes in and enjoying very much. I like that it's so low-key and has that noir-ish feel to it, and the undercurrent of paranoia. Haven't seen Daredevil yet - I've only just signed up to Netflix - so looking forward to seeing that after I've finished this.

 

[Perpetual Man]

@Tim James - I've tried to get into SENSE8 twice but can't get past the first episode. Not my cup of tea even though I absolutely adore THE MATRIX.

I can understand that, in places it is not easy watching and it is certainly not perfect. At some points I felt as though they were doing bits just to be sensationalist, from violence to sex there are some moments that might have gone to far. A shame because the central premise is a good one.

***

I'm up to episode 4 and it seems to be getting better and better. I never thought I'd have a problem with David Tennant, but in this he is genuinely menacing. A lot of thought has gone into just how perverse his use of his abilities could be there is almost something to relish in the way he uses them.

Suddenly everyone is a threat!

 

[Idoru]

I was binge-watching this till gone 2am this morning. I'm shattered. But the show is excellent. Krysten Ritter is fantastic as Jessica and David Tennant really is scary as the bad guy.

 

[Bugg]

Thought ep 5 was best I've watched so far.

Spoiler

'I'll go put on some pants'
'Good call!'

 

[Heir]

I was binge-watching this till gone 2am this morning. I'm shattered. But the show is excellent. Krysten Ritter is fantastic as Jessica and David Tennant really is scary as the bad guy.

They pulled it off so well. They both completely owned their characters. I personally liked it a bit more than Daredevil, mainly because I preferred the antagonist (though Fisk was still good). I think somewhere near the end though, when a certain character does a certain something in a restaurant, eh... there was something about it that I didn't find very convincing. It felt odd and cheap, but that aside, it's a brilliant series.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

I just finished the second episode, so I'm not quite up with you guys yet. Maybe later tonight, when my phone stops ringing.

I remember seeing a comment from David Tennant from some years ago, in an interview, I think, where he said he wanted to play a bad guy and was hoping someone would offer him that role -- I think he's found it!