"Jessica Jones" Recap: "AKA WWJD?"

Written by Scotty

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

As Kilgrave has made an open promise to Jessica, he is looking forward to having a house guest.  When Jessica arrives at her childhood home, she sees that Kilgrave has pulled out all of the stops to making it look like the house she lived in several years ago.  With his own staff working in the house, Jessica finds out that they are not being held under mind control, and neither will she for the time being.  Kilgrave wants to find a way to make Jessica fall for him, but as she is late for dinner, he is starting to understand how hard life is for people that don’t have his powers.

Drinking her dinner, Jessica sees that not everything that Kilgrave has stated is true as he has a contingency plan for her getting out of hand.  Promising not to act out again and heading to bed, Jessica finds out that there is a bomb in the basement of the house and has to alert her host.  Seeing that Jessica has some feelings for him, Kilgrave starts to extend the leash he has given her and puts his guard down.  That might not be enough for Jessica as she is still wanting to prove that he is able to control people’s actions with his powers.  As a new day has started and Jessica is having problems facing her past, her old neighbor comes over and asks about what the young couple is up to.  Knowing Jessica since she was a baby, Mrs. De Luca is trying to find a way to live in the past and brings up Jessica’s dead family. 

Kilgrave sees what is happening and puts an end to the conversation by sending the woman back home.  Not wanting to hurt Jessica in any way, he is ready to put his cards on the table and shows her what made him the man he is today.  Without a doubt, Kilgrave’s childhood was hell, being experimented on by his parents, he never had a childhood, much less anyone to show him right from wrong.  Watching the news as a hostage situation is taking place, Jessica challenges Kilgrave to be the hero rather than the villain.  Using his power, Kilgrave is able to free the family that is being held by their father, and when he is ready to make the situation end in his normal manner, Jessica steps in and has Kilgrave release the father from certain death and turn himself into the police.

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Seeing that he can be the hero, Kilgrave is ecstatic over his revelation, and believes that he may be able to even up the body count that he has left in his wake by saving many more.  Even though this does not add up, Jessica is now faced with a decision that can will change her life.  Keeping an eye on Kilgrave day in and day out does not float her boat, but she would have the power to make the world a better place with his power.  Asking Trish for advice, Jessica knows what the answer is and heads back to Kilgrave’s home to offer her solution.  Bringing dinner for everyone in the house, she is opening the next door in her life and knows that even though it will be difficult to walk through, she can carry anyone out.

Trish is having a breakdown of her own.  When she did not get called by Simpson, she fears that he has been taken by Kilgrave, but the mind controller knows nothing about it.  Trish is worried about her friends and what they have encountered by way of the mad man and when she sees Simpson walking home with some old military buddies, she has a feeling that something is afoot.  Simpson wants to have Kilgrave taken off of the face of the planet and when he has his chance to end the game, Jessica will not allow it for Hope’s sake.  As long as Kilgrave is alive, they can prove the young girls innocence, but if he is dead, well, everyone that has been controlled by him to do something bad will still be held accountable for their own actions.

This is a brilliant episode since you get to see how Kilgrave was created.  With all of the tests being done on him as a child, the moment of his change to protect himself was great and he has carried the power to this day.  He has opened his home and arms to Jessica to try and win her love, and when he agrees to become the hero with her by his side, Jessica has no other choice but to trust him.  After her talk with Trish about what is happening, Jessica comes up with a plan of her own, but has no ideas what safeguards Kilgrave has set up in the event of him being abducted again.  Will Simpson is working on his own time and after confronting Jessica about their being a bomb in the basement, he is starting to see where her allegiances are.  Then there is the divorce settlement going on between Jeri and Wendy, I am not a huge fan of this storyline, but after watching Kilgrave receive the text for help from Jeri, I know that it is going to play a role in the ending of the series, but to what length, I do not know. We are starting down the back half of the series and I know that I will want more when it ends.

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