Jessica Jones: Was introducing a certain character the right decision?

Jessica Jones introduced a new, powerful character in season 2. Was the addition the right decision?

Spoiler Warning

In the second season of Jessica Jones, a powerful new character was introduced. At first, she was masquerading as Dr. Leslie Hansen. After getting into it with Jessica during a meeting that was intended to be with Trish, her backstory starts to unfold.

To get to the point, the character we see at that meeting turns out to be Jessica’s mother, Alisa. We don’t find this out until “AKA Facetime” and her name is actually a nod to Brian Michael Bendis’ wife. In the comics, Jessica’s biological mom is left unnamed and Alisa Jones is her adoptive mom.

Was introducing Alisa the right decision?

This is a bit of a loaded question, but it’s one that deserves an answer. In some ways, Alisa gave us a deeper understanding of Jessica. Everything changed with Stirling’s death and things went downhill from there for her. Things change again when Jessica finds out that Alisa is the one who killed him, too.

Marvel’s Jessica Jones Photo: David Giesbrecht/Netflix via Media Center /

Trish’s mom, Dorothy, might have given Jessica a home, but she was never much of a mother to her. Arguably, she wasn’t much of one to Trish, either. For once, Jessica has a chance at a mother-daughter relationship again, but her mother is on a killing rampage. Not only is she on a rampage, but she’s manipulative. Jessica knows that her mom needs to be put away and it takes her longer than it should to turn her in the first time. Later, she starts helping her get away instead of doing what needs to be done. It winds up just being another unhealthy relationship in her life.

Watch your favorite shows on fuboTV: Watch over 67 live sports and entertainment channels with a 7-day FREE trial!

While Alisa did serve some purpose, I still liked the idea of not knowing much about Jessica’s biological mother in the comics. In the show, having Alisa be even more powerful than Jessica is an interesting decision. However, we ultimately know that Jessica is going to have to deal with losing her all over again.

Must Read: Luke Cage Season 2: Release date and expectations

In the end, Alisa only causes more pain for Jessica and that’s not what family is supposed to do. Because of her mother, she pushes Malcolm and Trish away. She still has Oscar and his son at the end, but there’s no indication of how long that will last. Alisa tears apart everything that Jessica built either directly or indirectly.

Jessica Jones season 2 could have easily explored Jessica’s past without resurrecting her mother. Even though the season picked up the pace by the end, a lot of the story with Alisa felt drawn out. It wasn’t all bad, but they could have pushed the same story with IGH forward in a different way that better suited the characters without Alisa.

Also, Stirling’s death isn’t the sole thing that could’ve sent Jessica down a darker path. Plenty of other events could have the same effect. In fact, her encounter with Kilgrave is more than enough reason for why she is the way she is. They didn’t necessarily need to pile even more on.

So, was it the right decision? No, but they worked with what they had and made it interesting enough by the end.

Season 2 of Jessica Jones is now streaming on Netflix.

Home/Netflix