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eesh25's review
3.0
Read 5 of the 9 Issues
Jessica Jones is one of my favourite shows, and I was so disappointed when it got cancelled (finger crossed that Disney renews it). And after I watched the final season and saw that the comic book series the show's based on was on KU, I thought, why not? I've read some manga before, I didn't think there would be much of a difference. But it's actually quite different.
Before I share my opinions though, I just want to say that this is my first comic book. And even though I don't mind occasionally reading things with lots of drawings, I do prefer to read novels. So this "review" is highly subjective and comes from someone who knows nothing about comics.
Now, back to the Alias. I liked it, but it's not really my cup of tea. There's a reason I only read the five of the nine Issues in the volume (they conclude the first arc, as far as I know). And it's because I couldn't get into the style of storytelling. This isn't your usual superhero story, it's much darker. Though, I have zero problems with that. I've watched the show, so I knew what I was getting into. But the art is also darker (by that, I mean the colour choices) and... I don't know, it's not very expressive. You'd think that, because it's in colour, that wouldn't be the case. But I found manga art to be a lot more alive.
Also, there's so much text. Very little of it is actual dialogue, mostly it's Jessica's narration or the news playing in the background. All of it's significant, of course, but if I wanted to read that much, I would've just read a novel. In fact, I think this would be great as a novel. It's not an action-filled story.
Jessica is a Private Investigator, and these five volumes follow her as she's hired to find some woman's sister. When it turns out that something shady is going on, she starts looking for who's really behind her being hired. It's a mystery. Jessica isn't a superhero, but a PI who doesn't talk much. It's her thought process that's important, and that'd come across better in prose. But I'm biased.
All complaining aside though, I liked the story with Jessica's investigation. And I was pleasantly surprised by how much it ties into the Marvel universe, with mentions of Steve Roger, the Fantastic Four, Tony Stark, Carol Danvers, and several others. I also love Jessica as a character, but I loved her before reading the comic, too. The show does a great job of keeping Jessica true to her comic book self. And I noticed that there are scenes and lines lifted right off the page.
...And that's all I have to say. 107 pages aren't much, after all. The series is only 28 Issues, so I might end up reading them all. But I can't say for sure. In the meantime, I wanna know, from a comic book fan, what Alias is like compared to other Marvel/superhero comics. I've heard it's a bit different.
Jessica Jones is one of my favourite shows, and I was so disappointed when it got cancelled (finger crossed that Disney renews it). And after I watched the final season and saw that the comic book series the show's based on was on KU, I thought, why not? I've read some manga before, I didn't think there would be much of a difference. But it's actually quite different.
Before I share my opinions though, I just want to say that this is my first comic book. And even though I don't mind occasionally reading things with lots of drawings, I do prefer to read novels. So this "review" is highly subjective and comes from someone who knows nothing about comics.
Now, back to the Alias. I liked it, but it's not really my cup of tea. There's a reason I only read the five of the nine Issues in the volume (they conclude the first arc, as far as I know). And it's because I couldn't get into the style of storytelling. This isn't your usual superhero story, it's much darker. Though, I have zero problems with that. I've watched the show, so I knew what I was getting into. But the art is also darker (by that, I mean the colour choices) and... I don't know, it's not very expressive. You'd think that, because it's in colour, that wouldn't be the case. But I found manga art to be a lot more alive.
Also, there's so much text. Very little of it is actual dialogue, mostly it's Jessica's narration or the news playing in the background. All of it's significant, of course, but if I wanted to read that much, I would've just read a novel. In fact, I think this would be great as a novel. It's not an action-filled story.
Jessica is a Private Investigator, and these five volumes follow her as she's hired to find some woman's sister. When it turns out that something shady is going on, she starts looking for who's really behind her being hired. It's a mystery. Jessica isn't a superhero, but a PI who doesn't talk much. It's her thought process that's important, and that'd come across better in prose. But I'm biased.
All complaining aside though, I liked the story with Jessica's investigation. And I was pleasantly surprised by how much it ties into the Marvel universe, with mentions of Steve Roger, the Fantastic Four, Tony Stark, Carol Danvers, and several others. I also love Jessica as a character, but I loved her before reading the comic, too. The show does a great job of keeping Jessica true to her comic book self. And I noticed that there are scenes and lines lifted right off the page.
...And that's all I have to say. 107 pages aren't much, after all. The series is only 28 Issues, so I might end up reading them all. But I can't say for sure. In the meantime, I wanna know, from a comic book fan, what Alias is like compared to other Marvel/superhero comics. I've heard it's a bit different.
ifollowedthatrabbit's review
4.0
I really liked this.
Jessica Jones is, definitely, not your average superhero. She swears like a pirate and don't want to use her super powers.
She lives a lonely life, doesn't have many friends, and she doesn't hang around with the rest of superheroes, except for Carol (who wants her to find a boyfriend).
The story is quite interesting and I liked the dialogues, they are quite natural, so the characters seem real.
Jessica Jones is, definitely, not your average superhero. She swears like a pirate and don't want to use her super powers.
She lives a lonely life, doesn't have many friends, and she doesn't hang around with the rest of superheroes, except for Carol (who wants her to find a boyfriend).
The story is quite interesting and I liked the dialogues, they are quite natural, so the characters seem real.
annamickreads's review
5.0
If you don't like Jessica Jones, I don't like you
But in all seriousness, Vol. 1 doesn't even get into Jessica's past with Kilgrave yet and she's already a very well-rounded character. When Jessica Jones was first created, I don't think there was a character like her; someone who had gone through trauma as a superhero and literally BECAUSE she was a superhero, and decided to give up the life. Many superhero stories don't really focus on the trauma of living a super-lifestyle (how does Steve Rogers not literally have decades of PTSD like Bucky?!?)
What makes Jessica such a great character is that even though she's been kicked by life more times than I can count, she still cares about doing the right thing and helping people, just in her own way. Vol. 1 explores Jessica in a few cases as someone tries to force her hand to make a difficult decision, but she sticks to her moral guns even when it threatens her personal life. That's just who she is.
** side note, the way BMB writes Luke Cage tho irks me because no white man is justified to include the n-word in their dialogue, thanks for coming to my TED talk
But in all seriousness, Vol. 1 doesn't even get into Jessica's past with Kilgrave yet and she's already a very well-rounded character. When Jessica Jones was first created, I don't think there was a character like her; someone who had gone through trauma as a superhero and literally BECAUSE she was a superhero, and decided to give up the life. Many superhero stories don't really focus on the trauma of living a super-lifestyle (how does Steve Rogers not literally have decades of PTSD like Bucky?!?)
What makes Jessica such a great character is that even though she's been kicked by life more times than I can count, she still cares about doing the right thing and helping people, just in her own way. Vol. 1 explores Jessica in a few cases as someone tries to force her hand to make a difficult decision, but she sticks to her moral guns even when it threatens her personal life. That's just who she is.
** side note, the way BMB writes Luke Cage tho irks me because no white man is justified to include the n-word in their dialogue, thanks for coming to my TED talk
sarahnich3's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
fogisbeautiful's review
5.0
I feel strange reviewing this book on it's own without the second volume. I read them one right after the other because I just could NOT put them down. I loved that this felt like a more gritty indie-type comic, but there were references to the greater Marvel universe all over the place! It was an interesting take on the super-hero genre, a more down-to-earth, this-is-how-it-REALLY-happened, kind of story. The art is beautifully done, Jessica feels like a real person, it really is pretty awesome :)
philster666's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
trashgobby's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
duparker's review
4.0
Much better than the TV show. I liked the gritty story and the art is basic and sympathetic to the story it helps tell. I really enjoyed the stark feel to it; similar to the Criminal series, noir & reality combined.
scottyoung02's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Fun mix of Law & Order with superheroes. I really enjoyed the noir style and the fact it didn't rely on heavy backstory understanding.