Late To The Party

For months I've been hearing how good the TV show Jessica Jones is, but I only just got around to watching it.  And since it's on Netflix, I can watch its first season--13 episodes--at any pace I choose.  So far, I've seen the first three hours.

Jessica Jones is based on the Marvel character, but since I've never read any of her adventures, it's all new to me.  Perhaps fans of her comics know what's coming, or at least know what's in the past, but I am blissfully ignorant.  In fact, until she demonstrated her powers halfway into the first episode, I wasn't even sure if I was watching a superhero show.

Jessica Jones is a cynical private eye who takes sleazy jobs and seems to have a sad and bitter past.  Among the characters in her life are Trish Walker, an old friend who now hosts a popular radio show; Jen Hogarth, a powerful attorney who sometimes hires Jessica; Luke Cage (I'm sure some of you Marvel fans recognize that name) who owns a bar and is sometimes used as a booty call; and Kilgrave, a man with the power to bend other minds to his will, and who once had Jessica under his control.

Though there's action in each episode, the whole show (as much as I can tell) is a long reveal, as each episode teaches you more and more about the characters, though perhaps at a certain point we'll know everything about the past and live strictly in the present.  The main plot of the first season seems to be the return of Kilgrave, whom Jessica thought was dead.  He's back in town (the town is New York, by the way) and using more and more people to do his bidding while Jessica plots to bring him down.

Krysten Ritter (of Breaking Bad) is solid as Jessica.  She plays hard-bitten well enough to hold the show together.  The rest of the cast--including Carrie-Anne Moss, Rachael Taylor and Mike Colter--have had less screen time to establish their characters, though three hours in they're starting to make a clear impression.

So I like it.  I wouldn't call it a revelation, but it's better than most police and/or super hero dramas out there.