If you've been following my articles for awhile, you might notice that I have a trend of writing listicles that feature a certain super-powered Marvel detective with a Netflix show of the same name.
From preparing to study abroad to surviving Sunday nights in college, I've utilized gifs of Krysten Ritter's resourceful detective with a bad attitude over the past year. The first season of "Jessica Jones" was released on Netflix in late November of 2015. I remember binge-watching it over the last few days of winter break during my freshman year of college and completing it on a snow day the first day of the spring semester.
Not to sound too clichéd, but even with the inclusion of more superpowered ladies in the past few years, Jessica was still different. Somehow more authentic than the female superheroes I'd grown accustomed to seeing on the silver screen, and I absolutely fell in love with her.
I've always been a sucker for mystery shows and at least a casual fan of Marvel superhero movies, so this series seemed like a perfect mix of the two. I must admit, I initially did watch the show for its villain, Kilgrave, played by the ever-charming, David Tennant, but who I ultimately stayed for was Jessica herself.
To be clear, Jessica Jones is not your typical superhero and this is not your typical superhero story. Sure, she has super strength but doesn't advertise it. In fact, one of the things I like most about the series, compared to other characters such as Daredevil or Iron Fist in the Marvel/Netflix universe, is that there are no costumes. No instances of the protagonist with special abilities purposefully showing off what they can do and actively seeking out crimefighting.
Jessica is a self-employed private investigator at Alias Investigations (the name of the comic her character first appeared in 2001) but prefers to use methods of deduction to do her work as opposed to utilizing her abilities. That being said, when things get rough, she certainly does not shy away from proving to baddies that she's not to be messed with.
Perhaps what is so intriguing to me about Jessica Jones is not that she's a total badass (although I admit, that is the reason I cosplayed as her at a convention in Philadelphia last year). Ultimately, her story is that of an imperfect person trying to overcome her own personal traumas and I've found that to be oddly hopeful and satisfying. In season 1, Jessica is forced to confront the man who raped her and in season 2 she must finally come to grips with the most haunting parts of her past.
She wrestles with obscene amounts of guilt, PTSD, and even faces discrimination because of her abilities. Not to mention her favorite method of coping with these conflicts is by drinking full bottles of whiskey, but it's her almost painful humanity that makes her so relatable and such a fantastic character to follow.
She's incredibly guarded, given her past experiences, but is revealed throughout the show to truly give a damn about people. She doesn't want harm to come to the people around her and truly does take drastic, although sometimes impulsive, decisions to ensure others' safety.
Plainly put, Jessica Jones is the kind of character that everyone can relate to on some level. She's definitely not always likeable, but the moments when she shows that she truly does "give a damn" are when her true morals shine through. She's flawed, she's super-powered, but most importantly, she's a human being just trying to do the right thing.
Hey, watching her punch assholes' faces into the cement, is pretty damn satisfying.
