What I’m Watching: Jessica Jones

Jessica Jones: Season 1, Episode 11 “AKA I’ve Got the Blues” (B+)

This show, or at least its protagonist, doesn’t stop for anything, not even sleep. That’s extremely detrimental, of course, as she managed to get hit by a car among other incidents over the course of the hour and definitely wasn’t operating at full capacity. I found the flashbacks shown in this episode to be among the most effective ones yet showcased on this show, mainly because it explained how Jessica and Trish became the close friends with harsh outlooks on the world that they are today. The abuse Trish’s mother inflicted on her daughter had seemed purely emotional up until this point, but it’s clear that it was very physical and psychological too. Trish discovering Jessica’s powers and calling her a “good kind of freak” was a nice moment, and Jessica chose exactly the right time and way to show her adoptive mother what she could do. That background was especially helpful as it related to Trish bravely ingesting the red pill Will had taken to go toe-to-toe with him even with the risk of not remembering to breathe, which of course kicked in just a few minutes later. We didn’t have to see Kilgrave for his presence to be felt in this hour, though Jessica had to first deal with Will and then with trying to warn the invincible friend of hers we haven’t seen in a while: Luke, who is just about the best ally she could want at this point. Malcolm not doing anything when he saw that someone was in Jessica’s apartment was a sad moment since his worldview and optimism has been irreparably shattered.