TheAbsolution
Member
Tennant was the best part of the show. I wish he had shown off his powers more.
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LTTP: Jessica Jones AKA Am I Missing Something? (Unmarked Spoilers)
- Thread starter HvySky
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heliosRAzi
Banned
I got bored with it and skipped to the ending. It would've been cooler if they had some more episodes dedicated to her solving mysteries.
Ninja Scooter
Member
You're not missing anything OP. It's a very dumb show that gets propped up because of it's (ultimately meaningless) association with the greater MCU.
broncobuster
Banned
That's exactly what it reminded me of. Wow. Things make sense now. But I'll be favorable and say it reminds me of Season 7.
I forgive a lot of bad storytelling and other awful shit in comic book movies so I have no trouble doing the same for JJ. Doesn't matter if it's a "strong female" character or not.
Agree with this, but those idiots hunting enhanced people were pretty funny.
A Link to the Past
Banned
I'm not going to argue that your points aren't fair (I don't agree with something and agree with others), but
Her immunity to Killgrave doesn't really qualify as a deus ex machina. It's established from I think the very first or second episode that she isn't under his influence anymore (though the viewer is not directly informed of this being the case until halfway into the season), and we see Killgrave at many points either lying about why he isn't controlling her or trying to keep himself from giving her orders, as it would reveal her immunity. I think that her immunity is adequately setup.
As far as the cast goes, I super disagree that Tennant stole the show (though I do agree that he's the highlight of the cast). Ritter I thought did a great job, as did the actors for Malcolm, Trish, and Luke.
Her immunity to Killgrave doesn't really qualify as a deus ex machina. It's established from I think the very first or second episode that she isn't under his influence anymore (though the viewer is not directly informed of this being the case until halfway into the season), and we see Killgrave at many points either lying about why he isn't controlling her or trying to keep himself from giving her orders, as it would reveal her immunity. I think that her immunity is adequately setup.
As far as the cast goes, I super disagree that Tennant stole the show (though I do agree that he's the highlight of the cast). Ritter I thought did a great job, as did the actors for Malcolm, Trish, and Luke.
I'd like to be able to say JJ could fixed by shortening the show to 6 episodes, but there is literally nothing there that tells me the people running the show had any idea what they were doing. They had no idea how to handle JJ and her super powers (2x4s!!!111) or make a coherent story. Even the one shot episodes at the beginning were dull as fuck. There are so many problems with the show outside of it's pacing.
I wrote a longer post but gaf mobile ate it
This really isn't a matter of taste, the show is objectively bad.
I wrote a longer post but gaf mobile ate it
This really isn't a matter of taste, the show is objectively bad.
Glad to know that I'm not going crazy and others share my thoughts on what went wrong with the show. All of my personal friends, and those at work, think the show's great and on par with Daredevil which was blowing my mind. It's a prime example of a show I really wanted to like, but fought me every step of the way.
As for the comment that Kilgrave's inability to control Jessica wasn't deus ex machine, you are right and I should probably think of a better way to describe it. It is similar though in that it's never actually explained and has no reason to exist other than to allow Jessica to ultimately triumph over Killgrave. I guess she's special or something, but again, when there's no in-universe reason for it unless you want to start theorizing (which you shouldn't have to), then it harms the story more than helps it.
Pacing is definitely a huge issue. A tighter six episode series would be a much better fit for the story they wanted to tell.
Edit:
The crazy thing is that they (Trish) do wear headphones in the season finale. That they waited until countless people had died over the course of the show to try something I'd assumed they would already be aware of is another example of the writer's not being able to capably work around Kilgrave's powers.
As for the comment that Kilgrave's inability to control Jessica wasn't deus ex machine, you are right and I should probably think of a better way to describe it. It is similar though in that it's never actually explained and has no reason to exist other than to allow Jessica to ultimately triumph over Killgrave. I guess she's special or something, but again, when there's no in-universe reason for it unless you want to start theorizing (which you shouldn't have to), then it harms the story more than helps it.
Pacing is definitely a huge issue. A tighter six episode series would be a much better fit for the story they wanted to tell.
Edit:
The crazy thing is that they (Trish) do wear headphones in the season finale. That they waited until countless people had died over the course of the show to try something I'd assumed they would already be aware of is another example of the writer's not being able to capably work around Kilgrave's powers.
I think the word you're looking for is "contrived".
Lol, yeah, that works!
BlueTsunami
there is joy in sucking dick
Foggy is awesome. All the foggy haters need to wise up.
SchrodingerC
Member
Foggy definitely got pushed aside in season 2, and constantly screwed over by his co-workers.
Stumpokapow
listen to the mad man
It's about as good as most of Marvel's TV and film output, yes.
Foggy is legit the worst part of DD hands down. THE WORST.
I liked it on my first watch. Then I sat on it a bit. Then I realized I liked the very beginning. The first few episodes were good but the rest. What a meandering piece of shit. Seriously, no joke it was a terrible show after we got the set up and Killgrave was introduced. Tenant was the only good thing in the show aside from Luke and Jessica's thing at the beginning. However after he comes into the picture the show goes off the rails as in it just stops.
Its literally spinning its wheels for... 6 or 7 episodes before things happen. When those things do happen its so badly done and poorly thought out that it really killed any excitement or interested they could have built. I won't even get into the side characters, the cast, etc. Overall it felt like they had a great premise and squandered it by having no clue what to do with the characters. Then they go and kill off Killgrave when things were getting interesting... then again that whole final battle or fight or whatever was terrible.
Now we get to the problem with the choreography. Its fine if Jessica isn't a trained fighter but she can't throw a punch? She should be knocking peoples heads off and instead most fights consist of her just grabbing people and throwing them lightly. It was the weirdest thing and it happens so often. Even the fight with Luke was still this weird stilted thing which did nothing for selling it.
I don't know what they were thinking with a lot of the show. It was a mess.
Its literally spinning its wheels for... 6 or 7 episodes before things happen. When those things do happen its so badly done and poorly thought out that it really killed any excitement or interested they could have built. I won't even get into the side characters, the cast, etc. Overall it felt like they had a great premise and squandered it by having no clue what to do with the characters. Then they go and kill off Killgrave when things were getting interesting... then again that whole final battle or fight or whatever was terrible.
Now we get to the problem with the choreography. Its fine if Jessica isn't a trained fighter but she can't throw a punch? She should be knocking peoples heads off and instead most fights consist of her just grabbing people and throwing them lightly. It was the weirdest thing and it happens so often. Even the fight with Luke was still this weird stilted thing which did nothing for selling it.
I don't know what they were thinking with a lot of the show. It was a mess.
heliosRAzi
Banned
Ugh, JJ should've been trained in SOMETHING. It doesn't have to be anything flashy. Just boxing would have been fine. Then the fights won't feel like a holding pattern.
There is NOTHING legit good about Daredevil S2 past the Elektra introduction or so. Every single interaction she has with Matt brings the show down, the horrible Punisher/Karen plotline with his old war buddy. Resurrected Nobu showing up all menacing, then getting beaten by Matt in 2 seconds flat, then fighting Matt and Elektra at once and holding his own without problem then getting stomped after he kills her.
The writing was below mediocre
JJ S1 is well above DD and DD S1 is better than JJ S1.
A Link to the Past
Banned
Yeah, I'd say that unexplained is a happy medium. The show could have spent more time filling itself with detective work and her trying to figure out what causes it, rather than simply "this is just how it works".
Also yeah, that's a huge plothole. Will, Trish, and Jessica definitely would be wearing them more often. I was going to say that the parents could wear headphones, but the point was to have them interact so I guess that's fine.
Mix Master
Member
Should've been cancelled to make way for a Moon Knight show, last 5 episodes were a regret. shame
Two episodes were boring. The rest was on point. If Marvel would just make 10-episode seasons this wouldn't be a problem.
BTW, there's a tracked and demonstrable phenomenon that women protagonists are given a disproportionately less fair shake by audiences than men protagonists. That might have something to do with it.
BTW, there's a tracked and demonstrable phenomenon that women protagonists are given a disproportionately less fair shake by audiences than men protagonists. That might have something to do with it.
toastyToast
Member
Remember that time when Jessica's neighbors knocked her out when it was a really shitty time for her to get knocked out? Yeah
SoulUnison
Banned
This has been my opinion on every MARVEL Netflix show so far.
6-8 episodes of plot stretched over 13 episode seasons.
OP, you're not wrong. Most people think this show is garbage. The characters and writing are dumb as shit.
See this other thread: LTTP: Marvel's Jessica Jones or when a show is longer than it should be
And my rant after watching one of the last episodes:
See this other thread: LTTP: Marvel's Jessica Jones or when a show is longer than it should be
And my rant after watching one of the last episodes:
andythinkpad
Member
This show is only good if you cut out the 5-6 middle episodes.
That's probably the only way to enjoy the show.
That's probably the only way to enjoy the show.
You know I actually like Jessica and Killgrave but it felt so small scale a lot of the time and honestly it felt like they showrunners didn't know what to do with these characters and it was just a lot of this cat and mouse game between JJ and Killgrave that started to ring hollow very quickly. They just didn't give the cast much to do and really stretched things thing out and the fact a lot of the side characters were terrible on all front didn't help.
They should have had her solving some crimes or something, give her some Scooby doo work, it did wonders for shows like Buffy, just a couple of interesting throw away cases, something other than overexposing Killgrave. I felt he was better partially in the shadows instead of wearing out his welcome and becoming more of a manchild with terrible powers than a really impressive villain. They really mishandled a lot of things.
I was hoping they would have the Kingpin intervene in some manner as I would expect him to shield himself from Killgraves power while also putting it to better use than a fool like Killgrave ever would. I guess we kind of got something similar in DD S2.
I liked it in part because of the weird-ass pacing. Sometimes it's fun to watch something a little out of step with convention. I didn't feel as if it completely missed the target when it comes to story telling, it was still firmly in the orbit of conventional linear TV. It's less out there than something like Twin Peaks.
Using superheroes to tell an allegory of an abusive relationship where the protagonist feels trapped and powerless, only to break free and still be stalked with police and other literal superheroes being unable to help at all might be a little heavy handed, but I think it works and is compelling. We don't often see a story from the perspective of a woman being stalked. All the stuff about people being "incompetent" and the bad guy "slipping through the cracks at the last moment" seems really cheesy, but in a lot of ways, I imagine that's what it feels like for real life people dealing with abusive partners/parents.
The show works better if you look at its larger themes and don't poke its plot for being imperfect. Nothing was stopping Prof. X from finding Kilgrave with Cerebro and sending out Jean Grey to melt him. I can buy that the people in Jessica's immediate orbit are not at the top of their class.
The other thing I really liked was Kilgrave's character. Imagine someone who's gotten everything from everyone ever since they were a child. How could they not be an insane villain? A pretty simple premise followed to its logical conclusion. He is a perfect analog to the private-school dude-bro date-rapist.
It's a funky show that is different and doesn't really care that it's different. We're in a golden-age of TV. You look at the networks and see all the CSI and Law and Order shows and you can see they're just trapped in a mediocre quagmire. The best stuff is happening on Showtime/HBO/AMC and has been for the last decade and still going on. But what really excites me is Netflix. They're really unconventional in their programming, for better and for worse. Even something like HBO, there is a sense that despite the creative freedom they're pushing for, there are people at the top making sure their product is palatable. Netflix feels like they're dropping off sacks of money at the door and are walking away. This period of hectic freedom will end sooner than later, and I'm fully happy to embrace these more unconventional, oddball shows.
Using superheroes to tell an allegory of an abusive relationship where the protagonist feels trapped and powerless, only to break free and still be stalked with police and other literal superheroes being unable to help at all might be a little heavy handed, but I think it works and is compelling. We don't often see a story from the perspective of a woman being stalked. All the stuff about people being "incompetent" and the bad guy "slipping through the cracks at the last moment" seems really cheesy, but in a lot of ways, I imagine that's what it feels like for real life people dealing with abusive partners/parents.
The show works better if you look at its larger themes and don't poke its plot for being imperfect. Nothing was stopping Prof. X from finding Kilgrave with Cerebro and sending out Jean Grey to melt him. I can buy that the people in Jessica's immediate orbit are not at the top of their class.
The other thing I really liked was Kilgrave's character. Imagine someone who's gotten everything from everyone ever since they were a child. How could they not be an insane villain? A pretty simple premise followed to its logical conclusion. He is a perfect analog to the private-school dude-bro date-rapist.
It's a funky show that is different and doesn't really care that it's different. We're in a golden-age of TV. You look at the networks and see all the CSI and Law and Order shows and you can see they're just trapped in a mediocre quagmire. The best stuff is happening on Showtime/HBO/AMC and has been for the last decade and still going on. But what really excites me is Netflix. They're really unconventional in their programming, for better and for worse. Even something like HBO, there is a sense that despite the creative freedom they're pushing for, there are people at the top making sure their product is palatable. Netflix feels like they're dropping off sacks of money at the door and are walking away. This period of hectic freedom will end sooner than later, and I'm fully happy to embrace these more unconventional, oddball shows.
I think pretty much everyone agrees with this para. It did start well, but OMG so dumb, then dumber, and then the dumbest fucking end.
QuantumZebra
Member
I thought JJ1>DD1>DD2
Why?
Because I liked them in that order.
Why?
Because I liked them in that order.
the black pearl
Member
Jessica Jones sometimes teetered on being corny to me. And a couple scenes are cringeworthy. But I thought it has higher peaks than Daredevil.
Jessica is incredibly strong. But she's not trained and doesn't have much endurance or durability. So the fight scenes made sense.
Series really should have been eight episodes long or had some fun filler thrown in. The central premise just wasn't enough for 13 episodes. I checked out when the support group sprung Kilgrave.
Best villain though.
Series really should have been eight episodes long or had some fun filler thrown in. The central premise just wasn't enough for 13 episodes. I checked out when the support group sprung Kilgrave.
Best villain though.
Yeah, it seems like the general consensus is the season was too long to support the story they had to tell. I thought the quality dropped off a cliff around the time Jessica goes to her old house with Kilgrave, and bottoms when the support group springs Kilgrave and clubs her with a 2x4. There was somewhat of a recovery after, but not a lot.
As you said, they could have had a solid series with 8 episodes or so and dropped the use of stupidity as plot device needed to stretch things out.
SJRB
Gold Member
When Kilgrave escapes the sound-proof room, Jessica conveniently gets pinned down by an injured 65-year-old man so Kilgrave can escape.
Her powers make no sense and seem only as strong (or weak) as the script requires. As a viewer it is impossible to know how strong she is or what her capabilities even are because they fluctuate so heavily. For this reason the viewer never knows how high stakes actually are.
D
Deleted member 1235
Unconfirmed Member
it was slightly too long and the people that told you it was better than daredevil need to lay off the crack.
not a bad show though, killgrave was boss.
not a bad show though, killgrave was boss.
#Ninjas
Apparently my friends wanted me to suffer.
See I get that she's not some bad ass fighter who can take out an army by herself. However everything about the fight scenes including the filming and everything else was pretty limp. Watch JJ throw guys into the walls in a random hallway. Now watch her throw guys around a hospital. Now watch her get tased and throw guys around. Now watch her throw guys around in a warehouse. Nothing was done with any flair or tension, it was very rote stuff that never really felt like it didn't sell any of the fights. This isn't even counting how her powers just seem to come and go when the story required and that was sloppy in its own right.
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