Jessica Jones: Review: Series 1 Episode 4: AKA 99 Friends

Two steps forwards, one step back for Jessica, while Trish makes a new friend…

Trust – the earning of it, the keeping of it and what happens when it’s gone – is clearly going to be one of the central motifs of this series, amply displayed in the stronger plotline of the hour, the relationship between Trish and the policeman who had been sent to kill her by Kilgrave. The element of doubt remains even after Trish has let him into her apartment – note the way in which she doesn’t move her hand away from the gun even when they’re chatting about the most mundane matters. Trust also goes to the heart of Hogarth’s relationships with everyone… particularly Jessica!

Jessica Jones steals a march on one of the elements of Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice in this episode, with the motivation for one character the devastation wrecked by the Avengers during the Battle of New York. That was the catalyst for Hell’s Kitchen’s development in Daredevil, and it’s good to see that the consequences are going to be a running theme through the Netflix shows. I’m inclined to take Jessica’s line about there being 99 gifted people in this borough alone to be on a par with her laser eyes comment in the opening episode – not to be taken seriously. (And for those wondering if this is the effects of the Terrigen gas from Agents of SHIELD, no it’s not: as the hospital records showed, Jessica Jones is set in February 2015, some weeks before SHIELD’s battle with the Inhumans.)

It’s a very Tennant-lite episode, but that doesn’t mean Kilgrave’s presence isn’t felt – from the small child he uses to pass a message to Jessica to the accounts given by the “support group” of their time with him. It’s interesting that the character has been developed sufficiently in the first three episodes that you can tell instantly what the clue is that Jessica picks up on when the survivors give their testimony.

Verdict: A slower-paced but no less enjoyable instalment. 8/10

Paul Simpson