TV Review: Marvel's Jessica Jones

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

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This is a spoiler free review of the second season of Jessica Jones.

SYNOPSIS: New York City private investigator Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter) is beginning to put her life back together after taking down her tormenter, Kilgrave. Now known throughout the city as a super-powered killer, a new case makes her reluctantly confront who she really is while digging deeper into her past to explore the reasons why.

REVIEW: After the incredible disappointment that was The Defenders, Marvel and Netflix have to try and bounce back to regain their fan's confidence. While The Punisher was good, the saga of Frank Castle did not feature any of the core team of vigilante superheroes from last year's event series. With Daredevil, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist all getting new seasons in the near future, the responsibility of picking up the pieces falls to Krysten Ritter as Jessica Jones. Picking up after the events of The Defenders, Jessica Jones drops us right back into the alcoholic P.I.s life as if we didn't miss a beat. With Kilgrave behind her, Jessica has to now contend with figuring out if the death of her family had anything to do with her superpowers. That's right, Season 2 of Jessica Jones is going to be something of an orign story. While you may roll your eyes and think that is a lazy route to follow up the first season, it works remarkably well and definitely fits in with our the current movement to empower women in Hollywood and society at large.

Over the course of the first five episodes of the second season, there are some noticeable changes made to the series. While it still retains the same tone and style as the first season, we now get a good amount of voice over from Jessica which gives the proceedings even more of a noir feel. Where the first season was focused on Jessica contending with her abuse at the hands of Kilgrave, the story was primarly centered on Jessica herself. The supporting characters all had their moments but they played secondary to Ritter's star-making performance. Now, everyone from Trish Walker to Jessica's new employee Malcolm get a lot more to do which only deepens the range of the story. Much like Karen and Foggy's extended arcs in Daredevil's sophomore run, Jessica Jones is now moving towards more of an ensemble cast. Even Carrie Ann Moss's Jeri Hogarth gets a bump up here with a integral subplot that is going to carry significance in the second half of the season.

There are new castmembers, some significant ones introduced in the first half of the season. Leah Gibson (RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES) and J.R. Ramirez (Arrow, Power) join in supporting roles that have implications for Jessica both personally and professionally while Janet McTeer plays a role that holds answers to just how she gained her abilities. I would not be surprised if more faces, familiar and brand new, showed up in the back half of this run but what we already have crammed into the first half opens up more than enough questions to sustain the entire season. My biggest qualm is that there seem to be multiple subplots that are introduced and too neatly resolved in the episodes I was given that, in hindsight, almost feels like it was filler. With the lean, 13 episode orders Netflix has sustained for their Marvel series, the showrunners still somehow manage to waste time on unnecessary elements instead of sticking with the core storyline.

Marvel and Netflix don't take many chances with the material for Jessica Jones' second season with the unraveling of the story following closely to the first season. Through five episodes, we see a lot of Jessica getting arrested, a lot of intervention by Jeri Hogarth to get her out of jail, and investigation into cases that eventually connect to the season-long arc. While I cannot delve into the story elements themselves, I can say that we do get to meet another Marvel Comics superhero who makes their MCU debut in a highly unconventional manner. While this is more of an obscure reference that even the most astute Marvel fan may miss, it does show the new direction that Marvel and Netflix are taking their street level heroes. Gone are the blatant call backs to the MCU as these shows have now settled into their own groove. They barely need to reference each other with The Defenders getting less reference this season than I had expected.

What will definitely catch the attention of viewers is that there are several story elements involving virtually every cast member that align with the current political climate in and outside of Hollywood. There seems to be a current of fear in the MCU regarding certain heroes and Jessica faces this intolerance head on multiple times. Despite Marvel regaining rights to use the X-Men and Mutants as well as the failed introduction of Inhumans to the MCU, it seems that these street level heroes get to represent the bias humanity feels towards those with powers. That, coupled with Jessica serving as a strong woman who intimidates many alpha male characters, makes this series the perfect representation of the Me Too movement. There are several moments early on in this season that almost made me wonder if the writers had gone back and rewritten elements in light of what has happened in the industry since late last year.

Jessica Jones' second season starts out much like the first. Once I finish the back half of episodes, I will write another review reflecting over the entire season. For now, I am content to say that it is no better or worse than season one. I am a bit disappointed they didn't take more chances with Jessica's storyline but I am happy to see a lot more going on in the lives of Trish and Jeri, both of whose actions could have devastating repercussions for Jessica and her search for how her powers came to be. Jessica Jones' second season was written by and directed by an entirely female crew which imbues the show with a vibe that just could not have come from a male-dominated creative team. This season is not likely to convert those who were unimpressed by the first run of episodes, but fans returning for more will not be disappointed.