Jessica Jones Appreciation 2019

[Inversed]

spoilers:

I'm actually not entirely sure it really is The Purple Man still alive, since the final page reveal of issue 2 seems to confirm its someone else pulling all the strings.

end of spoilers

[WeArentVenom]

spoilers:

Why would they even think that Danielle could be Kilgrave's kid? Dani is 100% biracial.

end of spoilers

[brer rabbit]

spoilers:

Why would they even think that Danielle could be Kilgrave's kid? Dani is 100% biracial.

end of spoilers

It's implied that due to the purple man's powers that Zebediah is making Jessica and Luke (anyone else) believe that biracial but she could actually be not. (think Mastermind who has Illusion creation, Memory alteration, and erasure powers)

Also Kelly Thompson gives a replies from her Tumblr about doing this storyline other that this maybe her last one.

Q:
Kelly! I feel like the first two chapters of Purple Daughter are the best thing you've ever written (yet). I mean, I,was already a fan, but this is on another level altogether. I was a bit weary of one more return trip to the purple trauma (I'd like to see Jessica's story move past that), but you've made the most of it and are probably writing Jessica's most important and meaningful story. Marvel did right when they put you on this series. Long may you write Jessica!

KT:
Thank you. I think I agree. Fortunately I had an amazing partner (Mattia) to rely on for the visuals…that writing wouldn’t have been possible without Mattia.
I hear you on not wanting Jessica to be defined by Purple Man…but I have two (primary) thoughts that led me to doing this story now.
1) This is comics so someone was always going to bring back Purple Man stories…and as he’s Jessica’s nemesis, it felt to me like that should be her story.
2) Trauma is a scar that never goes away. And Jessica has very big trauma and a very big scar. She is not defined by Purple Man (she’s worked very hard not to be) but it’s naive to act like it’s something that just “goes away when the story is over” - ESPECIALLY with a character like Purple Man and the type of trauma and powers that he has. So I felt it was an important story for us to tell. If I’d felt confident that we were going to keep going on for a couple years of issues, I probably would have waited to tell that story, but since I was only confident we were getting 12 issues, I knew it had to be now.

[millernumber1]

It's implied that due to the purple man's powers that Zebediah is making Jessica and Luke (anyone else) believe that biracial but she could actually be not. (think Mastermind who has Illusion creation, Memory alteration, and erasure powers)

Also Kelly Thompson gives a replies from her Tumblr about doing this storyline other that this maybe her last one.

Q:
Kelly! I feel like the first two chapters of Purple Daughter are the best thing you've ever written (yet). I mean, I,was already a fan, but this is on another level altogether. I was a bit weary of one more return trip to the purple trauma (I'd like to see Jessica's story move past that), but you've made the most of it and are probably writing Jessica's most important and meaningful story. Marvel did right when they put you on this series. Long may you write Jessica!

KT:
Thank you. I think I agree. Fortunately I had an amazing partner (Mattia) to rely on for the visuals…that writing wouldn’t have been possible without Mattia.
I hear you on not wanting Jessica to be defined by Purple Man…but I have two (primary) thoughts that led me to doing this story now.
1) This is comics so someone was always going to bring back Purple Man stories…and as he’s Jessica’s nemesis, it felt to me like that should be her story.
2) Trauma is a scar that never goes away. And Jessica has very big trauma and a very big scar. She is not defined by Purple Man (she’s worked very hard not to be) but it’s naive to act like it’s something that just “goes away when the story is over” - ESPECIALLY with a character like Purple Man and the type of trauma and powers that he has. So I felt it was an important story for us to tell. If I’d felt confident that we were going to keep going on for a couple years of issues, I probably would have waited to tell that story, but since I was only confident we were getting 12 issues, I knew it had to be now.

Yup, as I thought. And good reasoning.

[brer rabbit]

Kelly Thompson really doubts we're getting a Season 3.

Q:
You're not optimistic about getting a Season 3? :0 that's ... definitely worrying.

KT:
Well. It’s a niche title with a solo character and those are always tough sells in this market if your name isn’t Batman, Wolverine, or Spider-man. Additionally, JJ is part of the Marvel Digital Only initiative which is basically a “test program.” AND I am concerned the show will be canceled given what seems to be happening with the Marvel Netflix shows and that’s not great for us either. So all those things are worries for me.

We’ve sold very well digitally judging by the “Top 20″ Comixology rankings - we’ve hit the top 10 a few times and have always at least been in the Top 20 - but since digital numbers aren’t released it’s hard to know what exactly they mean. We also haven’t had a lot of promotion (see again, MDO initiative is a “test program” and test programs have bumpy roads).

So yeah, I’m worried. In fairness, I worry about ALL my books.

[Mike_Murdock]

The hope is that the digital-first program is a way to keep it going longer, but we'll have to see.

[brer rabbit]

So Kelly Thompson gave an interview to Marvel.com about Jessica Jones.

Marvel.com: Can you give us a hint at what’s coming up in JESSICA JONES: PURPLE DAUGHTER #2? Will we get to see the Purple Children in action?

Kelly Thompson: Jessica’s investigation to get to the bottom of what’s happening to Danielle gets some serious heat in issue #2. The first half is tilted more toward investigation but the second half is a whole lot of throwing down as Jessica tries to literally fight her way to an answer. We’ve also got a Daredevil cameo, Iron Fist cameo, we get more Kara Killgrave, and Emma Frost rolls in to try to steal the show as a badass guest star! You’ll definitely get to see more of the Purple Children, but I don’t know if I’d call it “action.”

Mattia De Iulis: In JESSICA JONES: PURPLE DAUGHTER #2 there’ll be several circumstances that will keep you breathless. From an emoziona [exciting] perspective it will be a really intense season because evil will strike hard on the one person who Jessica loves most: Danielle. Kelly wrote a really engaging story. I’m not afraid to say that her script touched me several times while drawing. The Purple Children, and many other Super Heroes who will appear in this volume, will play a key role!

Marvel.com: In issue #1, Jessica sought out the Purple Man’s daughter, Kara Killgrave, desperate to find out why her daughter is now purple-skinned. Kara seemed pretty genuine in issue #1, but the question remains: Can she be trusted?

Kelly Thompson: I think Kara has a lot of empathy for Jessica and what she’s going through, especially since she’s dealt with Purple Man herself quite a bit. It’s that empathy that allowed Kara to let Jessica get away with pretty terrible behavior in issue #1. But the question of whether she can actually be trusted is very much still up for grabs.

Mattia De Iulis: Kara Killgrave, despite herself, bears a name that will mark her for life, in the eyes of Jessica at least. The latter, however, may also need her as it is the only link and the only track she can follow in this hell that Jess is experiencing.

Marvel.com: In the second half of issue #1, we saw that Luke takes Dani away for her safety while Jessica investigates this maddening mess. Will Jessica and Luke band together in issue #2 or will Jessica be teaming up with others to help her in this investigation?

Kelly Thompson: Luke definitely shows up in a big way in issue #2, and while I’d call some of it “banding together” the rest of it is… definitely NOT banding together!

Mattia De Iulis: I can’t say too much since I don’t want to spoil anything, but I can tell you that Jessica won’t be alone. As Kelly revealed during the previous weeks, we’ll see Emma Frost, and I can assure you that was a really fun character to draw alongside with Jessica.

SETTING THE STAGE
Marvel.com: Can you tell us more about the parallel pages in chapters 1 (couch scene) and 2 (bedroom scene) between Jessica and Luke, and how this layout came to be?

Kelly Thompson: I wanted something very quiet and still and simple—something that would let Jessica and Luke’s trauma speak volumes—so we stripped away everything we could. This “second season” was such a tough arc to write, and I knew so much of it being “right” was going to fall on Mattia’s shoulders – and we talked about that. But I knew he was up for it… and he impressed me so much. I never could have done this without him.

Mattia De Iulis: These pages were born with the intent to bring out the emotions from Jess and Luke. They are both wrecked and the layout means to mark this distance (both physical and emotional) that, despite everything, stands between the two. Kelly and I worked closely in such circumstances, more than usual since we wanted to deliver this emotional charge to these two pages. We are very satisfied, in the end they came out just as we wanted!

Marvel.com: What was the hardest part about establishing these heart-wrenching moments with Luke and Jessica?

Kelly Thompson: For me, the hardest part was pulling back and writing less and trusting Mattia to tell the story with his art. It’s a time when Jessica needed to be more quiet, so I couldn’t rely on her words as much as I usually would.

Marvel.com: Does it get easier as you write and draw the series to portray their stories even though they are so emotionally charged and heavy from past baggage?

Kelly Thompson: I felt very in Jessica’s head (in a good way) after the first “season,” so it was pretty easy to stay there. That said, this was a very emotional story to write, definitely the toughest and most emotional and finely balanced scripts I’ve had to do thus far in my career.

Marvel.com: We saw some familiar locations in issue #1, Alias Investigations and Hell’s Dive Bar are a couple that come to mind. How did you go about capturing the old and new settings?

Kelly Thompson: Mattia is incredible at capturing mood and tone. And his incredible colors tell a story all their own.

Mattia De Iulis: I have studied Jessica's office thoroughly to make it coherent in all situations. I even created a real 3D model! Generally speaking I am a detail-oriented guy, always trying to catch the right atmosphere, from characters to setting, for the scene that I have to represent.

COLLABORATION STATION
Marvel.com: You both worked together on JESSICA JONES: BLIND SPOT. What’s it like teaming up again and do you have any habits or traditions forming together?

Kelly Thompson: Speaking for myself, I think we’re a wonderful team. I think we’re very in sync – there’s actually very little conversation (via email) because Mattia just GETS it. He perfectly understands the scripts and the things I’m trying (even the subtle things), and he takes everything and makes it so much better. It’s truly a joy to work with Mattia.

Mattia De Iulis: There’s a great team spirit between us. I really enjoy working with [Kelly and editor Alanna Smith], and I cannot think of a better team to work with! This obviously facilitates and stimulates the creative process at the same time, there’s a continuous exchange of ideas! There was a moment, immediately after sending me a very demanding screenplay, in which Kelly even apologized, being afraid of putting me on the spot (since the script had less dialogue, and this would have emphasized my skills in character acting, expressions and body language). But she believed in me, and in my skills, and I think I managed to do a good job (also because drawing the emotional side of the characters is one of the parts of my work that I like best). Kelly and Alanna always made me feel like I was home!

Purple children
Marvel.com: How do you work with the letterer, VC’s Cory Petit, and what are some lettering elements that blew you both away?

Kelly Thompson: Our fearless editor Alanna Smith keeps us apart! Why do you deny our love, Alanna!?! In my experience thus far it’s pretty common for there to be a separation there – probably letterers want to be protected from crazy writers. But Cory is fantastic, he’s put up with a lot of weird lettering demands.

Marvel.com: Can you tell us what you like about Martin Simmonds’ covers and how you both work with him?

Kelly Thompson: Like with Cory, Alanna keeps us apart. But Alanna’s a great editor and I trust her implicitly, with good reason – look at those covers! Martin has done a fantastic job of capturing the noir of Jessica Jones and the horror.

Mattia De Iulis: Martin is a great cover artist. I love how he portrays a whole story in a single illustration! Honored to have his work also in this second season!

Marvel.com: What was the editing process like for these double-sized issues?

Kelly Thompson: Well, our team is pretty small because Mattia does art and colors. We mostly work with Alanna really. I know there are a ton of other people helping the Jessica Jones sausage get made, like our graphic designer Carlos Lao, and of course Executive Editor Tom Brevoort watching over us all. But part of a finely-tuned machine means I have the luxury of not having to examine each individual part.

CREATORS’ CONTEXT
Marvel.com: Why did each of you want to work on this story in Jessica and Luke’s life (and piggybacking on that, why can’t they/we have nice things)?

Kelly Thompson: I think it’s important to show that trauma never leaves us. You just keep dealing with it, keep surviving. Especially with something like what Jessica went through and a character like Killgrave, nothing is sacred, truth is an illusion. That’s a heavy thing to live with. And that’s Jessica’s life. It’s part of why she’s such a powerful survivor.

Marvel.com: What or who did you want to explore in issue #1 versus #2?

Kelly Thompson: Issue #1 was really about establishing what had happened to tear their lives apart, and the trauma of that. It was important to me that we really FEEL that. We needed that beat, even though Jessica is still investigating and trying not to succumb… trying not to step off the ledge, that beat of her feeling that trauma. But issue #2 is a lot more hi-octane as Jessica’s investigation both deepens and she literally starts fighting back in a big way.

Mattia De Iulis: These two seasons are quite different, both in the themes and in the emotional intensity (the ending of the first season had already meant to do so). In the first season we highlighted a problem that should not exist: violence against women. And who better than Jess and her friends to act as spokespersons for a similar story? In the second, evil approaches her family, striking Danielle. Kelly gave me the chance to explore Jessica's human side to the core and, for me as a big JJ fan, it was exciting because I found myself drawing an intense and powerful story!

I really love the fact that Kelly points out that Kara is suppose be a good, kind, emphatic person even with a heritage and powers that should be evil that makes the core of her character.

[XPac]

It's nice that Kara seems to be a good guy again (I hope). Her last couple appearances in Alpha Flight didn't do her any favors.

[juan678]

[juan678]

[Mike_Murdock]

What's that from?

[WeArentVenom]

What's that from?

It's the preview for Deadpool #9 out next week.

[Hypestyle]

It's the preview for Deadpool #9 out next week.

hopefully Jessica stomps on it a good while before giving it back to him. And hopefully she overcharges him.

[brer rabbit]

Preview pages for Jessica Jones “Purple Daughter” #2 (of 3)

[brer rabbit]

You get the feeling that Jessica is about to snap from the pressure of it all.