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AKA: A Review
The Marvel Cinematic Universe represents perhaps the greatest money-making movie franchise in the history of cinema, pumping out one high-budget, high-grossing action spectacular after another, all set in a single cinematic universe replete with crossovers, cameos, and team-ups. It came to the small screen with Marvel’s Agents of Shield and Marvel’s Agent Carter, and the debut of Daredevil on Netflix earlier this year saw them break through into Internet-only entraining. The concept of an interconnected cinematic and TV universe offers viewers an analog of the traditional comic book experience. Everyone can have their favorite characters and follow them in their various appearances, appreciate the work of various artist each offering their own interpretation of the iconic characters in discrete stories that, together, help create an overarching fictional history filled with action and delightful melodrama.
A few weeks ago Netflix released the second of its four superhero shows: Jessica Jones (while under development, the show was titled “AKA Jessica Jones and the episodes all begin with the “Also Known As” abbreviation). Who is Jessica Jones you may be wondering? Well, until I saw the show I didn’t really know much about her. She isn’t one of the famous Marvel characters, not even one of the famous B-list characters like Luke Cage or Iron Fist (who will each get their own Netflix show in the coming years). But, her obscurity works for the show brilliantly. Knowing who Daredevil was, who his villains were, and what to expect plot-wise, I watched his series with anticipation for a fidelity to the comics. Jessica Jones was a blank slate to me, so there was nothing to anticipate, only a story to experience. And what a story.
Netflix’s Daredevil clearly establishes a gritty, almost Noir-like felling for the world of Hell’s Kitchen following the events of the first Avengers movie. That tone that is carried on — and expanded in — Jessica Jones, who like all good Noir characters, is a private investigator. Her jobs mostly consist of following cheating men around and getting pictures of them in the act. She lives in her office, and seems to subsist on a diet of booze and cigarettes.
She has powers of course — mostly super strength with some limited flying (or rather jumping) ability — but she doesn’t have a supper shield, or mystical martial arts training: she is just a woman trying to make her way in a world were things are far more crazy than anyone realizes, and who happens to be able to lift the back of a car off the ground without straining herself. She’s seen what kind of things are out there in the world, and all she wants to do is keep her head down and have a normal life as a hard drinking, antisocial, private investigator. But, things are never that easy, and she soon realizes that she can’t run from the reality and evil that is out there.
Jessica Jones offers a dark and twisted tale with a terrifying villain played brilliantly by David Tennant. Its story is far more engaging and realistic than that of Daredevil though still offering fans plenty of supper powers and comic book fantasy. If anything, its more subdued nature enhances the impact of both Jessica’s powers and that of her arch-nemesis. If you have Netflix and you enjoy either Noir, comics, suspense, or gritty action I highly recommend seeing Jessica Jones.
What did you think, Ricochet? Remember to keep you comments spoiler free or offer fair warning.
[Editors’ Note: For another take on the series, see Titus Techera’s post “Jessica Jones: Feminist” on the member feed.]
“Jessica Jones Netflix.” Licensed under Fair use via Wikipedia.
Published in Entertainment
Thanks for the review. I wanted to give it a shot and was excited to hear it was coming out.
But when I saw the first few shots of the first episode where they establish the character, it seemed like another gritty anti-hero/hero deconstruction angle pulling down heroes from their pedestal MIXED with paparazzi-ish secret celebration of dirty deeds.
I saw Daredevil, Dexter, and Breaking Bad, so I’m not sure why this particular issue is so offputting. But so far I’ve taken a pass.
I read some of Powers by Brian Michael Bendis (creator of Alias, and Ultimate Spider-Man) when it came out around year 2000, and it is also dark gritty superhero stuff. So maybe I am assuming too much.
It will always be there on Netflix if I change my mind, I guess.
Thanks for avoiding spoilers.
p.s. I thought the comic was called “Alias” not “AKA”
Super. One ‘p’. Unless you’re saying she makes a lot of dinners.
I hadn’t heard of Jessica Jones prior to the series, but I enjoy a good superhero, so I wasn’t surprised that I liked it. It started a bit slow for me, but after a few episodes I warmed up to it. I did have some problems with it, however.
** Minor spoilers below **
I didn’t buy the mechanism given to explain how the villain’s power works. I don’t know how (or if) it was explained in the comics, but this was weak, even by genre standards. But even accepting the mechanism at face value, there were some pretty simple and obvious ways to thwart it that were overlooked by the main characters. That’s required, to some extent, to drive the action, but still…
I was confused by Luke Cage’s power. Impenetrable skin doesn’t make one imperviousness to pain or grant super strength. Did I miss something? Because he seems to have better powers than the headliner.
I also wasn’t knocked out with Kristen Ritter in the roll of Jessica, which surprised me because I quite liked her in Breaking Bad. Maybe I was expecting too much. She was fine, but didn’t dazzle me, and I like my superheros to dazzle.
There were a few other small problems, but there always are with these things. I still give it a thumbs up, though not as far up as Daredevil, which I thought had a lot more mood and character.
I’ve watched through episode four so far, and I’ve been impressed. The elephant in the room though (here, and throughout the Marvel Universe stories) remains: Where is everyone else? There are references to the Avengers, but where is Spiderman? The Fantastic Four? And especially, the X-Men? Doesn’t this whole story seem like a job for Professor Xavier much more than Jessica Jones? I suppose that would be too easy, so… back to the willing suspension of disbelief.
I would especially want to praise the work of Krysten Ritter, who manages to portray her character as both morally ambiguous and reluctantly heroic at the same time. A huge leap from Don’t Trust the B, not to mention her earlier roles in Gilmore Girls and Veronica Mars. She really is a talented actress in both comedic and dramatic roles.
Maybe I’ll come back to this later, but that will raise the question of the decade: In a world of streaming television, what is the statute of limitations on spoiler alerts? Am I out of line if I mention that Rocky beats Apollo Creed in Rocky II?
I thoroughly enjoy it, usually watching one episode per day. Which means the season is nearly at an end, for me. Ritter is terrific and her look is comic-book fun, almost anime. Her features are so contrasting and exaggerated that she almost appears drawn. The dark humor and reluctant heroism keep me watching. The casting seems nearly perfect; nobody seems to be shoe-horned into their role.
The AKA is actually a reference to how the Episodes int he show are named. But you are right the comic where she first appeared was called Alias.
To be honest she she does come off as one of those anti-hero/heros but this time I think they do it well, and she has a real character arc that unfolds over all the episodes. You don’t really start understanding everything that has brought her to the this point until well into the show, needless to say I think she has good reasons to be dark and gritty, life has not been very fair or good to Jessica Jones.
I’m five episodes in and find it engrossing.
One thing in particular I’m enjoying about the Netflix series is how well-done the villains are. They’ve invested a great deal of effort into writing them and both D’Orfino and Tenant have just been fantastic. Also, their (relative) small-scale ambitions — i.e., not actively trying to take over/destroy the whole world — make them much more compelling.
Also, one thing other thing I’be very much liked about Jones: it’s not not an origin story, or at least not in the typical way. By the time we meet her, Jessica already has her powers and has experienced the trauma that drives the story. We are seeing a new side of her as she tries to figure out what to do with herself, but it’s hardly the obligatory “this is how she became a superhero” stuff that’s become so tedious in the past few years.
See I liked Jessica Jones more than Daredevil. Daredevil seemed more over the top to me, and I think it will only scale up, if they bring in Bullseye, and Elektra, and all that lot. I think it is that simplicity that made me like it so much. One simple, psychotic, and terrifying bad guy, one simple mission to stop him. Daredevil is all over the place with several evil gangsters, each with their own plots, some mystical blind assassins, a King Pin love story, not that I didn’t like the show but it felt more ad hock to me than Jessica Jones. I guess they are setting up things for future seasons of Daredevil and he certainly has more material to draw from, but still.
As to the super powers not making a whole lot of sense, well if you over think these things you never come off well. I have a high level of tolerance, but you are right, there would have been some good ways to fight off Kilgrave that they didn’t use or could have used earlier. I for one never knew why they didn’t gag him.
I agree. The origin story thing is a major crutch, though often it is the only good story line a super hero has.
Yah, that is the one issue to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The rights to all the characters don’t actually belong to Marvel Studios. The X-Men and Fantastic Four and Spider-Man all belong to different studios. Having been sold off in the 90’s before Marvel was bought by Disney. In some ways keeping things less cluttered is a good thing, in others I think it will pose a problem. For instance how will Civil War work with out a large mutant population to be the target of government action? Oh well… that is business for you.
Though I think this is the reason Guardians of the Galaxy has such potential. Because it is all happening in space far far away you can basically ignore all the contradictions back on Earth it is a blank slate of sorts.
Also I think in the comics Jessica Jones actually gets help from the X-Men to deal with her PTSD from dealing with Killgrave.
Well I think we are certainly still in it as it hasn’t been that long since the show aired, people might still be finding it. My rule is if it is over a year old it really is your problem for not having seen it so far. But, the again it is also a contextual thing. If you know someone hasn’t seen it spoiling a movie or show is just mean to do.
I watched the first two episodes, and I don’t care for it much.
We get it Marvel. This is cable TV and your characters can have S-E-X. From the opening, to the frequent sex scenes, it seems more obsessed with being ultra-soft soft core porn than being a super hero story.
Loved it. I enjoyed the character development of the supporting cast – even the attempts of the villain to be less villainous.
The reason why Quicksilver and Scarlett Witch were retconned in Avengers 2 is that Fox owns the rights to any and all mutant characters. So Whedon had to make them “Enhanced” via experiments of Baron von Strucker to keep all the legal stuff in line. Magneto couldn’t be daddy anymore. In the last X-Men flick, Quicksilver is still a mutant.
Only a limited number of characters in Jessica Jones are even aware of Kilgrave and his abilities. Even if one of those characters had the Avengers on speed dial, it’s well established in the show that looping anyone additional into the situation is exceedingly dangerous, let alone people who have powers.
Yeah, this is why I’ve taken a pass. I’m tired of the de-heroic “Oooo, Edgy!” thing. Comic book characters are shown breaking a bed having sex. Excelsior.
You’re right, but one correction: The Spider-Man rights do indeed belong to Sony, but Marvel and Sony recently made a deal to share a new film version of him played by Tom Holland. Expect him to appear in next year’s Captain America: Civil War, followed by his own new solo film, which will take place in the MCU, and which Marvel is helping produce.
Also, I agree that the X-Men are probably better off in their own movie universe. In a lot of ways, they’d make more sense as their own thing in comics too. Having dozens of in-universe powered people beloved by the public kind of undercuts the idea that mutants are feared and oppressed.
Personally though, I’d love for Marvel to get the Fantastic Four rights back, not only to finally show how to make a quality film with the property, but also because the rights would allow them to use Doctor Doom, Galactus, and Silver Surfer in the wider MCU.
^This. On both points. I am sick, sick, sick of origin stories. The best thing about the X-Men is that most of them don’t have origin stories. They were just born that way.
By the way, Stan Lee himself has said that the origin stories he came up with were never intended to be significant or interesting. You have to explain where a superhero got his powers, so Lee would just say “bitten by a radioactive spider” or “exposed to gamma rays.” He knew those explanations made no sense at all, but who cares? Not Stan. Just get on with the story already.
Uncle Walt would throw up if he could see what Disney Inc. has become.
As for the “AKA” and not “Alias” moniker, the latter was a Disney/ABC production starring Jennifer Garner that ended its 5-year run in 2006. Industry trades have reported that the studio is interested in a reboot. They want to keep the confusion down to a minimum.
I have not yet watched any Jessica Jones, but I must say I was a little disappointed with the first few episodes of Daredevil. As a very loyal fan of Agents of Shield, I was expecting a little more humor thrown in to the dark world that is Hell’s Kitchen post Avengers. Does Jessica Jones continue along the same lines as Daredevil, or is there a slightly happier medium between dark and light in the new MCU small screen productions?
Though it’s got some good jokes, JJ is very dark. May not be your cup of tea (my wife asked if she’d enjoy it; I responded that it’s “Top of the Game of Wires”-type show and she said “Ah, not for me.”)
It’s odd how DC’s movies are veering very dark these days while its shows are much brighter and fun, while Marvel is largely going in the other direction.
Without spoiling anything: JJ is dark, to include the humor. The best way to describe the darkness is “unrelenting.”
I like JJ, but it was dark. I had to take a couple of breaks and couldn’t just binge it.
Two other thoughts:
-This isn’t exactly a spoiler, so hellooo? Sniper rifle? I know you’re all cool with super-strength and whatnot, but given Kilgrave’s powers nobody thinks stand-off is a good idea?
-Luke Cage was done very well. If they come up with an as-good Iron Fist, I’m stoked for the match up.
I’ve heard enough good things about the show to give it another chance, but I wasn’t thrilled by the first two episodes. JJ seemed to be a rather unpleasant person, with all the standard noir tropes bolted on an attractive young woman in the hopes that the result is Gritty and Dark. Look, she’s badass! She drinks and lot and puts men in their place and says world-weary things afterwards! At least there’s the hint of superpowers, so it’s not completely ridiculous when she beats up people 4X her size, as is common in modern entertainment these days.
It seems like someone else’s wish-fulfillment. I’ll give it another go, but it didn’t impress me like Daredevil’s first few eps.
I think it has considerably less sex than Game of Thrones or House of Cards, but yes it is there. Frankly, I don’t think they over do it, but I do agree that now shows are becoming far to dependent of sex scenes for space filler and audience titillation. But then again the same can be said for the violence on some of these shows. But then again these are shows for adults. If you want more clean fun I might recommend Super Girl.
Also — based on the first few five episodes — it’s generally been rather unsexy sex.
I think Daredevil starts of stronger but finishes weaker, while Jessica Jones keeps ramping up. You don’t get a full picture of who she is and what has happened to her until much later in the show, so in the first few episodes she seems more cliched, but by the end her character makes more sense. Like I said they are fairly subdued about her powers, but she is supposed to be fairly strong, like bend steel bars without breaking a sweat strong. What I like is that all she really has is her strength she isn’t also some supper karate champion. No flips, no kicks, just some good old punching.
Yah, second on the need for ranged solutions in this show, but they did want him alive for good reasons…
Also I agree that Luke Cage was fantastic, and I’m actually excited to see his show now. I don’t know much about Luke or Iron fist, and I think that will be good. I think considering how good Daredevil and Jessica Jones have been I have high hopes for Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Defenders.
It is a dark show, maybe darker than any other Marvel Cinematic Universe production, but I think that is a plus. What they need to do is offer a wider range of genera with these production. I think horror, suspense, noir, are all really good fits for super hero stories. People can then gravitate to the kind of stories they like, but still be able to set foot into this lovely little world they are creating.
I think you really need both kinds of productions. For me the most successful Marvel movie I think was Guardians of the Galaxy. Which is anything but dark, but I think Jessica Jones is my next favorite, and it is probably the darkest thing they have made. The problem I think Marvel has is that really their most fun and up beat characters are not really in their possession. While Spider-Man has some dark elements to it generally I view him as one of the more lighthearted Marvel heroes. Also the Fantastic Four would be a great fit for just fun family friendly sci-fi adventures.
Hard to do this with no spoilers, but…I think a lot of the sex (denigrating, loveless sex), the drinking, and all of Jessica’s self-destructive behaviors are intrinsic to the plot. The show is about her trauma suffered interacting with Kilgrave, and her responsibility and desire to keep others from suffering what she suffered. There is only one crime that comes to mind in association with all the victims engaged by Kilgrave, and self-destructive behavior is a classic after effect of that crime.