And here. We. Go! After ten whole episodes of gradually building dread and tension while Jessica Jones’ life was once again picked apart by a super powered antagonist who could get under her skin with unerring ease, it’s time for all these straining plot threads to simultaneously snap at the absolute worst moment. I’ve mentioned numerous times that this season of Jessica Jones may have been on the more deliberate side when it came to pacing, but it’s rather slow nature has been worth it when it’s ultimately proved to be one of the most consistent seasons that’s ever come out of the Marvel/Netflix union.
Well, all that build up has finally come to a head, and while we’ll have to leave Jeri Hogarth and the devestating fact she’s been conned on hold for the time being – because it’s time for the show to reveal a stealth antagonist who has been lurking under our noses for the entire time. Of course, while the promise of a new problem for Jessica is always good for some dramatic oomph, it’s the return of an old villain that ultimately seals the deal.
After killing the guard that has been torturing her incarcerated mother in an act of self defence, Jessica’s having something of a major mental health issue. Realising that her long standing fears have come true and she’s racked up her third murder after Reva Connors (mind control) and Kevin “Kilgrave” Thompson (execution), Jones realises that she has to make the death look like a suicide in order to get away with it. However, while going about the grim deed of mopping blood, wiping fingerprints and dropping the body head first off the roof, she finds that the stress has caused her to hallucinate Kilgrave, who picks the most inopportune times to offer advice, or throw her of her game.
Jessica’s mother, Alisa, figures out what has happened instantly, and is happier to recieve a guard that doesn’t deal out electric shocks at bed time, but her calm compliance is only on the condition that Jessica can smuggle her lover, Malus, out of the country to safety. However, thanks to the constant meddling of Trish Walker, all that now looks to be in jeopardy, as she’s used Malcolm to track down Malus in order to turn him over to the authorities. Or at least… that what she told Malcolm. What she actually wants to do is knock Malcolm out, tie him up in the trunk of her car and use Malum to finally give herself the superpowers she’s always wanted.
Going from adopted sister, to recovering addict, to full-blown powers junkie is quite the jump and after Malus’ experiments go horribly wrong, everything is thrown into a dangerous flux – but none of it could have objectively worse ramifications than Jessica (with some mental goading from an imaginary Kilgrave) threatening Malus’ life, who then sees the error of his ways and commits suicide. With her lover blown to bits by his own hand, Alisa finally snaps and even the guard who treated her nicely discovers how hot her explosive temper can burn.
There’s a trio of major things that occur this episode that we’ve been waiting for the entire season, and all three of them prove to have been well worth the wait. The first is the headlines grabbing return of David Tennant’s Kilgrave, who may only be a figment of Jessica’s traumatised imagination, but still proves to be an insanely welcome addition to the season. Snappily dressed and still armed with a dazzling array of withering put-downs, having him literally surround Jones and try to corrupt her thinking like a deranged Jiminy Cricket reminds us why he’s one of the best MCU villains of all time. No disrespect to Janet McTeer’s genuinely intimidating Alisa, but she’s a different kind of personal antagonist for Jones and the fact that our heroine still haven’t yet managed to exorcise the mental ghosts of her former abuser is wonderful, visual proof that she’s really hitting rock bottom.
But proving that she can’t be totally eclipsed by pithy comebacks delivered in an English accent, Alisa finally blows her stack after her beloved Malus bows out in a fiery explosion. The second we were told that the safety of her mad doctor boy toy was the only thing keeping her in jail, we all sort of knew that it was only a matter of time before he bit the big one, but now that it’s happened, it’s created something of a moral conundrum that’s gotten everything dangerously twisted. You see, anyone who has been paying attention to the show will know that Trish Walker’s addictive personality, coupled with a savior complex and her desire to be a control freak, made for a potentially lethal combination if it ever got out of control.
Well, we see just how much damage it can cause when it’s mostly her fault that everything gets out of hand the way it does – yes, Jessica can be maddeningly unwilling to communicate, and Alisa is a brutal murderer, but hiding behind a shield of righteousness when all you really want is illicitly sourced powers is the fastest way to Hypocrite Street there is. I have to say, even though Rachael Taylor plays her well, Trish has never been as punchable as she is here – but I guess that’s the whole point. Of course, after Alisa ruthlessly breaks out of jail, the already half-dead Trish is now in danger of becoming totally dead, and her machinations is going to have to force Jessica to choose between her shitty friend and her shitty mother.
Caught in the crossfire is the hapless Malcolm, but much like Trish, I don’t actually have much sympathy for the guy. Yes, he’s shifted from herion addict to sex addict, and yes, Jessica treats him fairly shabbily, but the fact that Trish managed to lead him by the weiner into betraying Jones so easily means that for once, Jessica’s probably better on her own. Better yet, now would be a good time to call one of the other Defenders – but thankfully, director Jennifer Lynch (daughter of David and prolific television director) keeps the stress so relentlessly claustrophobic, even a helping hand from the man without fear, or the living weapon of K’un-Lun would probably prove to be more of a hinderence than a help.
As we enter the final lap of Jessica Jones’ sophomore season, the influx of villains new and old proves that the show still hasn’t lost any of its impact, and with an upcoming choice to make between a conniving best friend or a monstrous mother, things will somehow be getting even harder for our P.I. in a pickle. But then, that’s how we like it – after all if Jessica isn’t routinely facing impossible moral choices that would turn most of us to huffing glue, is it even technically Jessica Jones?
After finally reaching the pivot point of the entire season, everything we’ve been working up to is finally ready to hit the fan with a whole load of damatic doo-doo to accompany it. It’s fitting that at her lowest ebb and on the cusp of her most difficult choice, Kilgrave was allowed to leer over her shoulder and sing “I Want Your Cray Cray” to her absolute disgust. It’ll be a shame if he’s only around for just the one episode, but I guess Jessica’s outnumbered enough as it is.
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