Jessica Jones (Netflix Original Series: 2015)

It’s no secret that I really enjoy superhero movies and Tv shows and I do agree there is an abundance of them currently but I feel Netflix truly have the best of the bunch currently as well as the best format. Jessica Jones is the second of four Marvel characters to get their own original series which first began with Daredevil in early 2015, this will be followed by Luke Cage later this year and eventually Iron fist which will then bring them all together in their own Avengers style show called The Defenders.

Jessica Jones follows the title character, a sometimes hero sometimes Private Detective after a tragedy struck her early on during her superhero career, Jessica attempts to rebuild her life but is drawn into something much bigger when an old acquaintance shows up in Hells Kitchen New York. The show was put on Netflix in Late 2015 and followed the same release schedule as most of their original series in that all the episodes of the season were put online at the same time.

What I like about Jessica is that although her power set is something you’d probably consider to be overpowered at times with super strength and ‘flight’, in this show it’s pretty grounded. She doesn’t really show off her leaping much which is fine and although she is physically strong It is not so much that she can just beat anyone super easy like Superman, she generally struggles when there are quite a few people against her at once. Whether this was done just to create actual threats towards her I don’t know but I felt it worked well, I wouldn’t want her to be overpowered and just wrecking shit all over, at that point put her in the Avengers or something.

Saying that though there were a few examples where she seemed to be utterly incapable against some people which felt odd considering it was one on one at the time, While she has a more grounded power set its not an excuse to make the minimal combat scenes lack in the way they do, I feel the focus of the show was more on her Detective work which was fine and I enjoyed that but if you’re dealing with characters with these kind of powers then don’t treat the audience like idiots.

I felt she was a good example of a female ‘superhero’, yes the focus was on her past issues and ongoing problems but that made her a much more real character with a lot of substance, this goes for Daredevil too actually. There was no reliance on her just being some 10/10 super sexy hero who can ‘do stuff just as good as the boys can’. She’s her own kind of ‘hero’, a lone wolf type who isn’t really sure she even wants to be a hero. She doesn’t like to compare herself to the Avengers or better known heroes, she tries to live a much more normal life.

With that though I do find Jessica Jones feels the most far removed from the MCU, this is not a bad thing in anyway though. It is a very different show from even Daredevil and I did struggle at times to imagine them running into each other, if not for Claire (the Nurse from DD) showing up I would honestly believe there was no connection at all other than a few references here and there. I feel as the shows continue and they do eventually cross over they will alleviate that feeling for me but at times I hope they really keep them away from any of the movies, the Netflix series just always seems so much more ‘grounded’ in reality which is not something everyone wants from a superhero piece of media but I feel it works.

I liked that there was no real origin story for a change, there were super brief scenes of her as a teen first finding her powers and an off hand comment and lead about how she may have originally got them in the first place but other than that there was nothing really, it was oddly refreshing to just be thrown in at the deep end.

Although I said the show was grounded there were some really 'Comic booky' moments like the Cop taking a bunch of pills to gain super strength and shit, like that’s something to me that belongs in Agents of shield or the proper MCU, it just felt really out of place at the time when we’re dealing with all this serious shit this dude just pops a few pills and goes all semi Hulk mode.

Moving on I have to say the casting was really good! David Tennant was perfect for the role he played as I’ll discuss later and Krysten Ritter as Jessica fit really well too! I’m not familiar with the character too much but I felt she is great at coming across as a dry and sarcastic person but also having the range to become super emotional and supportive of her friends throughout the show, you can tell just by the way she portrays the character without her saying so that she is an individual who has been through a lot and continues to punish herself for the mistakes of the past.

The supporting cast were some of the best parts of the show though, Jessica's crazy acquaintances in the apartment were really comical at times, especially the Sister as she just wouldn’t leave Jessica alone and always came out with bizarre statements about Jessica and her own Brother. She began just as a sort of background character but as the show progressed she became a lot more important to the central plot and played that off really well, especially her more emotional scenes when talking about her deceased Brother.

I think my favourite side character was Jessica's friend Malcolm played by Eka Darville. He started off as just some Junkie we would see laying out across the hallways who wasn’t really all there but was always helped by Jessica no matter what. Even when he was like this he was always a friend to her and her to him, but as the plot continues we find out he’s actually been working for Kilgrave to spy on Jessica for him, the worst part being he is doing it due to his addiction and is in no way under the control of Kilgrave at this point. He does eventually go clean as a means to repent and at that point becomes a much better character all around, someone who feels helpless as he has no powers but is able to use his gift of helping others to bring victims together as a means of closure.

I don’t want to say much about Luke Cage as he will have his own show soon but I liked him, he wasn’t overused so there is much to see when he gets his own show but he was certainly a welcome edition, you still don’t know much about him at this point which is great, using this show as his introduction and prologue to a degree was a wise choice especially considering the links between him and Jessica. Mike Colter was a great match and generally looks like the character too!.

Trish was an alright addition I didn’t dislike her or particularly enjoy her too much she was just kind of there but she brought enough to the show to warrant her being such a large part of the plot, she was a good support for Jessica and did not just stand by and let Jessica handle everything she actually helped in a lot of circumstances.

As I said with Fisk in Daredevil the Netflix shows so far have way more compelling villains than anything the movies have ever thrown at us, Kilgrave is no exception, I feel Tennant was the right choice for this character and the changes they made to him compared to the comics worked very well, I really think having him have pure purple skin would be laughable and make the serious subjects dealt with in the show seem almost trivial at times. Netflix seems to know that the audience needs to see why a villain considers themselves to be in the right, we need to see their motives and aspirations rather than just have them as a threat to the world for reason X Y and Z.

Tennant really is the strongest point of the show, although he’s a really horrible human being in it he also comes across as so likeable. He essentially plays a man that always gets his own way thanks to his powers obviously, but when he doesn’t get his way he acts like a petulant child. It’s quite funny to see but shows the extent of Kilgraves powers, mentality and overall grip he wishes to have on others. I think it was good to have a villain with some form of power set this time around, he felt like a true threat to someone with super strength rather than someone who could match her physically.

I did enjoy when he was being used by Jessica in a total role reversal with him using his powers to aid others. Although he enjoyed it and got a true rush from it he only did it to please Jessica and that really did not last long but it made for a number of great scenes. I was surprised how ruthless he could be when he wanted to though, the way he would take out anyone without question if he needed to, being so bold as to just go into a police station and make them all put a gun to their own heads.

This was a truly great villain all the way through, the only disappointment being he kind of died like it was no big deal, it just happened in a second, of course it was building up to it but I just felt perhaps it was too soon to kill off such a great character, perhaps have him in prison and return a few seasons later, but at least he will not be shoehorned in later I suppose.

The support group aspect was great, to see all these people come together because they were used by Kilgrave and showing the mental effect that actually had on people was cool, you never really see people deal with the aftermath of attacks or incidents with super villains or even super heroes, exploring that was a nice touch I thought. More so because it showed just how serious or trivial some of these victims were to Kilgrave but how it still effected them none the less. Jessica shunning away from this group overall was good too, it showed her focus on trying to bring him to justice rather than dwell on the past and stay a victim.

I had never heard of Jessica Jones until this series, I was vaguely familiar with Luke Cage and I have no idea who Iron Fist really is but I’m really happy this focus on lesser known characters is happening, I hope after these initial series we will see the adaptation of more, especially if Netflix is in charge. It may even be worth Netflix doing a series on Black Widow or Hawkeye, they are both characters I have little interest in but I feel these shows could make them as compelling as Matt Murdock and Jessica easily.

I  feel that a lot of people did not give this show a chance, it’s not as good as Daredevil by any means but it is still worth a watch for sure, I did feel that it had a poor start as it just did not seem to really go anywhere almost like we were dawdling before Kilgrave shows up, I think this is a point that a lot of people chose not to go to because the start was so poor, which is a shame… I’d say if this was you please continue at least until Kilgraves in it more and then decide if you want to continue on.

I feel like the show ended just as it really got going, it really did start slow and turned into a really captivating story once Tennant was featured more heavily, I loved the direction it went in towards the end and hope it can be replicated in season 2 and when Jones joins the Defenders but I worry it will not. Truthfully I still do not know much about the character and her story or villains save for a few things I've read online about pre-existing characters so hopefully a second season will have the same sort of tone and talent as this one.

Overall I’d say Jessica Jones is worth a watch if you enjoyed what Netflix did with Daredevil, you have to remember this is a different show with a different theme and feel it will not be just like Daredevil it is it’s own thing. It does have a poor start but if you can get past it you are in for a real treat, especially with Tenants performance. I feel this was a decent season overall and a second has been confirmed,  I do wonder where they will go with it but I’m excited to see that, I hope they have a few more crossovers before the defenders comes around even if they are brief, having Claire from Daredevil become a character that is appearing all over is a great start to this.

Daredevil (Netflix 2015)

This week I'm reviewing a new 'Netflix Original' series that you've probably seen mentioned across the internet recently, Daredevil. This series revolves around the Marvel character and protector of Hells kitchen in New York as he begins his crime fighting career and becomes a well known vigilante in the area. We see him progress as he defeats petty criminals to Mafia, Yakuza and Drug lords all revolving around antagonist Wilson Fisk.

Daredevil is the first of four miniseries planned in conjunction by both Netflix and Marvel which is set to include other heroes such as Jessica Jones, Iron Fist and Luke Cage, the plan being to have all of these characters meet up to form an Avengers style team up series, The Defenders. I think this was a wise move by both Marvel and Netflix as perhaps these characters would not have been popular enough alone to make their way to the big screen, it really does make you appreciate these perhaps lesser known heroes.

In a way it kind of reminds me of the 90's Marvel cartoons that all kind ofcrossed over from time to time, in fact most people who watched those as kids will probably be watching Daredevil, it's almost as if Marvel is growing up with the more mature format of shows like this but unfortunately it doesn't seem as though the movie side of things will become more mature any time soon, but then this series probably wouldn't stand out as much if the films delved into the subjects we're familiar with in this show.

I'm quite pleased that Netflix has delved into producing some Superhero based content, and with DC releasing multiple series such as Arrow, Gotham and The Flash there was no doubt that Marvel would be soon behind them especially as the world of movies is becoming dominated by yearly Superhero based releases. I feel as though this partnership between Netflix and Marvel is fantastic as Netflix Originals are becoming increasingly popular with titles such as Orange is the new black and House of Cards being in their third seasons.

But with Netflix originals the entire series is usually released on the same day, which some find to be great and some find to be a problem. I personally find it to be great because I don't have to wait weekly to continue a show I'm hooked on and if I don't watch to 'binge' on the entire show I can just watch maybe 2 or 3 episodes every other night or so, it's completely up to the viewer. Some however would like this weekly gap between episodes because they feel it ruins the discussion on the show in that the first week or so everyone will be talking about it but shortly after discussion may be non existent.

A point that I really enjoyed about this show was that it doesn't focus much on the origin story of the characters in the first episode. It's more interspersed throughout the show, it is only during episode 7 that we see how Matt began to hone his skills and use his heightened abilities to his advantage due to his training from Stick and right after that with episode 8 we take a look in to Fisk's past and a glimpse into how he became the man he is today. I believe having the show give little parts of a characters past every few episodes is great, especially in a time where Superhero movies are taking over and some are even being rebooted multiple times at this point.

A lot of people already know most Heroes origins and don't need them to be the focus of the film or show at this point, having them be interspersed really works well as it gives a chance for the first episode to be more action packed and grab the viewer rather than having to adhere to the same old story and boring audiences, in terms of movies this works well because it doesn't have to eat up too much time and allows the film to stand on it's own more as a new story featuring that hero. Of course with the likes of Luke Cage and Iron fist their series may focus more on their origins as they did not have a movie featuring them like Daredevil did.

This also leads into the pacing of the show which worked rather well, of course with movies we have around and hour and a half or two hours to get the entire plot set up and resolved while sometimes leaving some room for a sequel to be set up. With television we can take our time and while Daredevil is a shorter 13 episode show it really does seem to make use of its time having the story slowly unfold and showing the progression of the character as he builds himself as well as friendships around him that benefit his vigilante career. On the opposite side we see this almost untouchable Fisk at the height of his career slowly start to lose his grip as enemies conspire against him and our protagonists close in on him.

In terms of the casting and characters I generally can't complain I find Charlie Cox to be a great Matt Murdock and while portraying a man who seems to be disabled he really does bounce off the other cast members with witty comments and comedic timing, In the Daredevil roll I feel he also works well as he can portray this angry character who will do whatever he can to help his city without going to Christian Bale levels of trying to be this intimidating character. I feel like Cox relies on his mostly calm portrayal to put the fear into his enemies until he really has to turn up the heat. The fact that he can put this across while only having half of his face visible half the time is fantastic, although I don't feel it works as well when he gets his proper costume later on.

I also really enjoyed Elden Henson as Foggy, I believe he works so well as a comedic relief and as a close friend to Murdock, the way they bounce off one anther is great and the emotion between the two during episode 10 where Foggy finds out Daredevils identity really shows how close they really are. We see a friend worried about his 'blind' business partner and best friend along with the state he has found him in after an intense battle with Nobu. I felt the flashbacks to when the characters first met in this episode were hilarious at times and a nice change of pace to the violence and more action orientated scenes of the series.

Now Vincent D'Onofrio as Fisk is an overall amazing presence in the show and quite possibly one of the best representations of a Marvel villain we've had on our screen in some time. Fisk is presented quite well at first as this charismatic guy who loves art and even the odd flirt with the right woman, but we soon see a much more darker side to him when he begins to cave in the head of a man who 'embarrassed' him while he is on a date. We slowly see why this man is so revered and respected in the criminal underworld as well as seeing how manipulative he can be when he begins to play other gangs off against Daredevil by making them believe he was the one to kill certain members.

D'Onofrio plays both the respectable and the villainous sides of Fisk so incredibly well and while his attempts at romance can be a little cringe worthy at times overall we see a complex man with a motive not dissimilar to Daredevils, the cleaning up of the city, it's just the way in which the characters attempt to do it that differs.

Moving back to the brief flashback aspect of the show I feel like a lot of flashbacks in some series feel forced and are just used to eat up time but in this series they really matter to the overall development of the characters, such as Matts training, his time with his father and his opening up to Foggy. I feel that because these are split in to different episodes it honestly makes me care more about the character, I would hate to have all this spill into one origin episode.

This show in many ways does feel like Marvels take on Batman in that it focus' on a man with pretty basic 'powers' who wants to turn his city into a positive place free from the crime that has become rampant over time, both will do whatever it takes to combat these crimes but also stick to a strict code that they will not kill a criminal, which in Matt's case is more due to him being a man of the law. Both seem to go by the 'this is my city' mentality in that they are a lone protector, which is strange in Daredevils case seeing as he shares the city with not only some of the Avengers but soon the likes of the Defenders.

The more I think about it this series is almost like Batman Year One, in which we see the beginnings of Batman but more so his training and first few attempts at becoming a vigilante, in this comic there are no real villains other than common criminals and a few key characters surrounding the situation This series is the same, it's the beginnings of Daredevils career and doesn't delve to deep in to his rogues gallery, choosing to focus more on common criminals and a few gangs. Now while I have never read a Daredevil comic in my life I do read a lot of Batman and I'm aware that Frank Miller, who did some of the best Batman stories including Year One but before this he worked on Daredevil so perhaps this is why there are a lot of similarities between to two over the years.

What I really enjoy about the Daredevil character is that he is a lot more grounded, he doesn't have a power on the level of the likes of the Hulk or Thor and he doesn't deal with the threats they do and I feel this makes him a lot more human, even more so than the likes of Tony Stark. He can't easily take out a bunch of enemies, he even has a lot of trouble against some of them and when he gets hurt, he really gets hurt which we can see an example of during episode two when he fights against a large number of enemies whilst being highly fatigued.

We see this character progress both mentally and physically throughout the show but what I really enjoyed was how he progresses visually. In a world where people are already aware of these flashy superheroes and their eye-catching outfits it was quite funny to see people comment Daredevils first costume saying it sucks or even leaves him open for certain attacks. Towards the climax of the show we see him take on this advice and don a costume a lot more similar to what we'd expect although it is a little more practical with some armour plating here and there.

During the beginning of his career we see Daredevil become quite sadistic in the way he deals with criminals, he really doesn't seem to give a shit what happens to them as long as they live, it's almost as if he enjoys the pain he gives to criminals, which he shows by throwing people off of buildings or even impaling them. This is one of the aspects of the show that makes it stand out more compared to the rest of the universe it's set in. The show really does not shy away from brutal beatings and some gore, especially when Fisk is involved.

Honestly there was not too much I did not enjoy about this series, but this is not to say it is perfect. I did find some issue with the character of Karen Page, I thought she was alright in the first few episodes but slowly found her annoying over time, I felt like she could be removed altogether and have Foggy fill her role somewhat and it wouldn't take anything away from the series, she just felt like our bridge into the Ben Urich Character.

As much as I enjoyed Vincent D'Onofrio in his portrayal of Fisk I did find the focus on him and Vanessa a bit much, I understand it's to show everyone has a weak point and that he could be this nice guy on the outside but remain the same man he has always been on the inside but I just found the scenes with them both in to be almost like a goofy nerd who has never spoken to a woman in his life just falling over himself, desperately trying to impress. I found myself laughing at him in these scenes more than anything, but again I don't know much about the character outside of the old Spiderman cartoon so perhaps I'm just not informed enough about how he usually acts around Vanessa in the comics.

In all, Daredevil is a fantastic series that delves into the darker tones of the Marvel universe and is not something you'd really expect given the track record of the other Marvel TV series Agents of Shield. While this does rely on the cinematic universe for its setting it quickly becomes its own thing which doesn't need to rely on goofy references every few minutes like Gotham. In fact id argue this could be a great starting point to that universe as you really do not need to know anything before going in to it, perhaps this would be perfect for those who dislike the movies but still like the characters.

Having the show avalible on Netflix you could easily watch the entire series at any point you wish and with a second series announced already for 2016 it's clear these new batch of shows being produced are on the right tracks and may even begin to rival the cinematic universe itself in terms of popularity, I really cannot wait to see where they go next with Jessica Jones which I believe is being filmed at the moment, it's clear the bar has now been set high.