''Jessica Jones'' is an
American comic book
An American comic book is a thin periodical originating in the United States, on average 32 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publication of ''Action Comics'' ...
series published by
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
, featuring
Jessica Jones
Jessica Campbell Jones Cage is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Gaydos and first appeared in ''Alias'' #1 (November 2001) ...
as its protagonist. Initially published as a
tie-in
A tie-in work is a work of fiction or other product based on a media property such as a film, video game, television series, board game, web site, role-playing game or literary property. Tie-ins are authorized by the owners of the original prope ...
to the 2015–2019
Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by ...
(MCU)
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
television adaptation of the same name, the series was written by
Brian Michael Bendis
Brian Michael Bendis (; born August 18, 1967) is an American comic book writer and artist. He has won five Eisner Awards for both his creator-owned work and his work on various Marvel Comics books.Bendis, Brian Michael and Oeming, Michael Avon, ' ...
with art from
Michael Gaydos
Michael Gaydos is an American comics artist.
Career
At Marvel Comics he has worked with Brian Michael Bendis on ''Alias,'' the last storyline of its follow up, '' The Pulse'', and the current sequel comic, ''Jessica Jones''. He has also illustra ...
. The series ran for 18 issues as part of both Marvel's
Marvel NOW!
Marvel Now! (stylized as Marvel NOW!) is a comic book branding for the relaunch of several ongoing comic books published by Marvel Comics, that debuted in October 2012 with new #1 issues. The relaunch also included some new titles, including ''Un ...
and
Marvel Legacy
Marvel Legacy is a 2017–18 relaunch of a line of American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is concurrent with All-New, All-Different Marvel and Marvel NOW! 2.0.
Publication history
On April 22, 2017, Marvel Comics announced Marvel ...
relaunches and lasted from December 2016 until May 2018, when Bendis left Marvel for
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
. A digital exclusive relaunch with
Kelly Thompson
Kelly Thompson is an American writer of novels and comic books. She is best known for the ''Jem and the Holograms'' comic with co-creator and artist Sophie Campbell, a modern re-imagining of the 1980s cartoon of the same name, the Eisner-nomi ...
taking over from Bendis and Mattia de Luis taking over from Gaydos occurred in July 2018.
The series is the third to feature Jones as a protagonist following ''
Alias
Alias may refer to:
* Pseudonym
* Pen name
* Nickname
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Alias'' (2013 film), a 2013 Canadian documentary film
* ''Alias'' (TV series), an American action thriller series 2001–2006
* ''Alias the ...
'' (2001–4) and ''
The Pulse'' (2004–6), which both featured Bendis and Gaydos on the creative teams (Gaydos drew the last four issues of ''The Pulse'').
Publication history
The relaunched series was announced by Marvel in July 2016 with a release date that fall. The idea to bring back Jones in the comics was brought on through conversations Bendis had with
Melissa Rosenberg
Melissa Anne Rosenberg is an American television writer, television producer, and screenwriter. She has worked in both film and television and has won a Peabody Award. She has also been nominated for two Emmy Awards, and two Writers Guild of A ...
, the creator of Netflix's ''
Jessica Jones
Jessica Campbell Jones Cage is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Gaydos and first appeared in ''Alias'' #1 (November 2001) ...
'' adaptation. Said Bendis, "Any time two writers are sitting there, talking about the character, both writers are formulating a pitch. You can’t help it. It’s the way your brain is trained. After talking about Jessica at WonderCon, I emailed Melissa later in the week and went, “Shit, I think I might have to do this. I’m thinking about doing the comic again, because the last conversation we had made me think of this.”
In an interview with
Comic Book Resources
''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion.
History
Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...
, Bendis discussed how the new portrayal of Jones would be influenced by the changes in the
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is a fictional shared universe where the stories in most American comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Comics take place. Super-teams such as the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Guardians of ...
since 2004: "A lot has happened in the Marvel Universe over the past ten years, cosmic and seismic events. We’re all normal people, too, and that allows for unique mysteries and detective stories, ones that I’m going to lean into. With that came this overwhelming feeling that “something happened, and no one is talking about it.”
After Bendis' departure, many expected the series to be cancelled as part of a wave of Marvel cancellations in late 2017. The final issue, released in March 2018 (cover dated May) noted that the series would continue, "
eaving Jonesto an all new team next issue." The series has been compiled into three
trade paperbacks
A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, ...
, released in May and November 2017, as well as in April 2018.
Two months following the first volume's conclusion, a new serial run of ''Jessica Jones'' debuted as a digital exclusive written by
Kelly Thompson
Kelly Thompson is an American writer of novels and comic books. She is best known for the ''Jem and the Holograms'' comic with co-creator and artist Sophie Campbell, a modern re-imagining of the 1980s cartoon of the same name, the Eisner-nomi ...
and illustrated by Mattia de Luis.
Reception
The series holds an average rating of 7.8 out of 10 on comics
review aggregation
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
website
Comic Book Roundup
a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...
, indicating generally favorable reviews from 149 critics. The first and last five issues were received well, but issues 6 to 11 had more mixed reviews. Of the first few issues,
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
's Jesse Schedeen said "It's been a long time coming, but Jessica Jones has the solo book she deserves again. And with both Brian Bendis and Michael Gaydos back at the helm, this new series has little trouble recapturing the appeal of its predecessor. The fact that so much about Jessica's life has reverted to the old status quo isn't a drawback, but rather one of the book's main selling points." Issue #7, which had the lowest score of the series at 6.8, was described by ''Graphic Policy'' as "...convoluted, unrealistic, and hackneyed. It is the epitome of what men think women want and are like. Bendis portrays Jones as a one-dimensional, agencyless, manic pixie detective for hire in her own story."
Sales
The comic's first issue was the 22nd best-selling comic of October 2016, with 74,291 estimated sales. The series stayed in the
Diamond Comic Distributors
Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. (often called Diamond Comics, DCD, or casually Diamond) is an American comic book distributor serving retailers in North America and worldwide. They transport comic books and graphic novels, as well as other po ...
top 100 list until May 2017, when it dropped to 115th. After a jump to 46th in October 2017 with 43,392 sales, the series fell to 113th the following month. The comic's final issue was the 112th best-selling comic of March 2018, selling 17,553 issues.
Collected editions
References
{{Luke Cage
American comics titles
Comics by Brian Michael Bendis
Comics about women
Comics set in New York City