All caught up? Good, then let’s keep going. “A.K.A WWJD?” is an episode in which Jessica deals with the fallout of a huge decision she made in the previous episode. Has she let Kilgrave win?
1. Insert New Way To Say Kilgrave Is Creepy
Jessica has decided to give in to Kilgrave’s demand and has moved in with him to help keep everyone safe. After last episode when he declared his creepy devotion to her, she’s gone to the house he bought but there’s an even creepier twist – he has recreated her childhood home down to the finest detail. Jessica tries to get ahead of this though and demands some things. She doesn’t want him to touch her and he agrees not to use his powers on her but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have fail safes. He has a housekeeper and chef under his control in case Jessica does anything “out of line” or tries to leave which forces her to always act the hero. People, this isn’t how you make someone fall in love with you so don’t do it. Like Krysten Ritter and Mike Colter, there is a certain level of chemistry between Ritter and David Tennant but it’s different. They play off of each other very well and the hate is very easy to believe. I’ll get into this a bit more later but there’s a feeling right now that Kilgrave has won and this is Jessica’s life now. The moment she walks into the house there’s this overwhelming feeling of dread and it’s kind of tough to see how she can get out of this without anyone else getting hurt.
2. Sympathy For The Devil? Nope, just kidding.
Kilgrave can’t use his powers on Jessica but that doesn’t mean he’s done trying to manipulate her. Jessica is rightfully miserable about her situation and she lets Kilgrave have it in regards to what he did to her. Kilgrave has the gall to say that he didn’t rape her under his control and this makes Jessica even more furious. Yes, Kilgrave, you absolutely did rape her. Using your mind control doesn’t make the yes mean yes. However in his mind, because of his powers, he claims he can’t tell the difference between when someone is saying yes cause they want to or yes cause he made them. He takes this even further by finally showing Jessica what was on that yellow flash drive. Kilgrave, or Kevin, was experimented on when he was a child and he was never really taught right from wrong. Look, in real life it’s very possible that someone could be damaged and a part of an abusive cycle that they need help breaking but Kilgrave is not one of them. There’s nothing to indicate that because he outright says that his mind control was an implied yes from Jessica when they were together. Kilgrave is playing a game with Jessica and wants to manipulate her into sympathy and it almost works. All this helps make Kilgrave an even better villain cause there’s no way you can genuinely like this guy.
3. What Would Jessica Do?
One of the biggest lies victims tell themselves is that they can change their abuser into someone else. They tell themselves that by staying they can make them better by influencing their decisions and that’s what Jessica tries to do when she takes Kilgrave to a hostage situation involving a family and persuades him to save the day with his powers. Jessica is a hero and this is what she thinks she should do because by staying with him and using him like this, she could make up for all the lives he took and ruined. After going back to see Trish she realizes that something else needs to be done and she can’t give up her life to fix what he has done. She has to get justice and in the end, she drugs him and flies off with him. That’s what Jessica would do because she’s not a helpless victim. She’s taking a stand just like she has from the beginning and it’s what makes her heroic. This is going to have major repercussions for everyone and it’ll shape what happens in the rest of the season. With a few episodes left, I just hope the season can keep itself from sputtering out.
Continued below4. Will Wants To Be A Superhero, Maybe
Will is way over his head in this episode. He’s found where Kilgrave is hiding and sees that Jessica has moved in with him. The problem here is that he’s so ill equipped to handle what Kilgrave can do and it’s making him a little annoying. He wants to kill Kilgrave probably more than anyone else does but he’s so stubborn that his failure is too obvious. It also doesn’t help that he’s not all that likable. It’s clear that he’s being set up for a heel turn but right now he really comes off like a guy who wants to be superhero of sorts. His bomb idea ends up being the worst idea because it comes right back to bite him when the bomb is used against him by the nosy neighbor. Kilgrave is always one step ahead and eventually, I hope, Will will understand this.
5. Flashbacks
One of the things Jessica Jones has done nicely is used flashbacks in a way that don’t take up too much time from the main plot. In this episode we get a lot more about Jessica’s childhood, the accident that changed her life and some time of her growing up with Trish and her mom. It’s used in a nice way that adds something to the plot but what’s really entertaining is seeing how the bond between Trish and Jessica began. Jessica has always been a protector despite what she’s been put through so I like how it all comes full circle.
What did you think of this episode? Let me know in the comments below!
