Jessica Jones: A Fighting, Rape Survivor Superhero
Jessica Jones, the character, can be described as a female version of the superhero type of Batman. Her fortitude to fight to save humanity is born from her own unfortunate life experiences. Marvel Comics’ Jessica is grown up in the new Netflix series portraying the character. The TV show is certainly not for youngsters, as the storyline and episodes reveal a totally adult plot, exposing scenes of a sexual nature, as well as a raping super villain.
A Twitter Jessica Jones tweet on October 12 teased, “Meet #JessicaJones. She has gifts, but she’s not big on sharing.”
Meet #JessicaJones. She has gifts, but she's not big on sharing. Exclusive concept art from #NYCC. pic.twitter.com/0P6sIrN7aj
— Jessica Jones (@JessicaJones) October 12, 2015
The Netflix audience meets Ms. Jones, played by Krysten Ritter, long after her days of having a crush on Spiderman’s Peter Parker. She has given up her employ as a superhero to work as a private detective. The audience is clearly shown that the raven beauty’s superheroine days are not fully behind her with the introduction of super bad guy, Zebediah Kilgrave, otherwise known as the Purple Man.
Jessica Jones’ Kilgrave is, perhaps, one of the most evil of super villains ever portrayed. Instead of this bad entity going on killing rampages, he chooses to play with minds at his will. As detailed in the Chicago Tribune, his evil powers enable the immoral Kilgrave, played by David Tennant, to take over his victims complete minds for time periods and from a specific distance.
The plot of the series brings to light the ravages of sexual assault, and the results of removing a person’s ability to have free will of their own body. The audience is given a fly-on-the-wall view of a support group that has formed with people who Kilgrave has attacked, including Jessica. Whether a rape or another reason to abuse his casualties, the prey of this evil entity feel hopeless and helpless when under his control. Jessica wants to put a stop to Kilgrave’s powers, unlike his other victims, who are more fearful of being attacked again.
The Jessica Jones’ storyline is rife with thoughts on why people who have been victimized by rape and other attacks are so terrified to face their attackers in order to get justice. The depraved monster of Kilgrave is even more scary, since he does not have a special type of victim that he chooses. He seems to have no particular sexual preference, nor reason for his misdeeds. Men, women, children, and elderly are all targets of the master villain.
Jessica Jones, the character, goes to extreme in fighting to escape the control that this enemy has on her, but still cannot forgive herself for not escaping his controlling clutches quicker. Survival and surviving is a key element in the Netflix series. The show focuses on the evils against one’s own moral code, that someone may be forced to do when being controlled by another due to a hostage situation, rape, abuse or, in the case of the TV series, in the grips of a mind-controlling criminal.
Krysten Ritter and her show have certainly won the hearts of the critics and public. She tweeted out, “Woo! RT @Variety: Review: #JessicaJones is one of the year’s most distinctive new dramas.”
Woo! ????RT @Variety: Review: #JessicaJones is one of the year's most distinctive new dramas https://t.co/NWrla1gpEZ pic.twitter.com/G0iG7uJXtX
— krysten ritter (@Krystenritter) November 17, 2015
The show also touches on how victims, such as Jessica, will sometimes overcompensate for what they have been through. One can clearly see the Gothic-looking woman struggling with her own demons, as Jones makes poor decisions when it come to drinking and having mindless sexual encounters when she is under her own control.
Marvel’s Netflix series showcases how once a person is victimized, his or her entire thought process becomes a casualty, as well. This gives the audience a concept to ponder — even if the victim is still not physically under the control of their attacker, can they still say that their actions are a result of them being victimized? The grown-up comic book heroine performs as a superhero for the show, as well as a statement on the plight of survivors of abuse, rape, and hate crimes. Victims due to hateful villains around the world finally have a superhero to speak out for them in Jessica Jones, the character and the Netflix series.
[Image via Jessica Jones / Netflix]
