Dear friends,

If only I could blame the dog for the lack of blog posts! Unfortunately I am not allowed to have pets in the household (somehow I ended up writing poets instead of pets – cue existential crisis).

What in fact took place is just as outrageous though. I somehow managed to lock myself out of the blog and then proceeded to do the same with the email account associated to it. To give you an idea of how things are going at the moment, I also seem to have forgotten the password that gives me access to all accounts at work.

With a bit of optimism still in me, and an extra key just in case, I might just make it to Edinburgh in one piece. First escape of the year, mid-January, of course it had to be to Scotland.

“Jessica Jones: Alias [Vol.4]” by Brian Bendis & Michael Gaydos

I only realised I had no clue about how exactly Jessica had obtained her powers the moment I opened this last volume. It was a first step down a memory lane that grew into quite an experience. Again, they managed to create an emotional balance that had its peaks without ever being too much of anything. There was time, and space, for the whole spectrum to play out.

That said, I must confess I shuddered when Killgrave was first mentioned. I believe he was disturbingly well portrayed throughout the TV series, having left quite a dent behind, and was certainly not expecting his written version to feel even creepier. It was one of those surprises that I could have lived without, but that I am now embracing.

“Jessica Jones: Alias [Vol. 3]” by Brian Bendis & Michael Gaydos

“I hate buildings.”
“You hate buildings?”
“And yet I live in New York City. So imagine how it is to be me.”

I never thought I would end up finding such a relatable character in the superhero universe. That said, please do bear with me, I haven’t been this excited about a character in quite a long time. You see, I tend to read my way into novels, their characters becoming like distant family, faces that you can’t quite picture, but voices that you would recognize just about anywhere. I believe this particular medium, the way the writing is combined with the art and spread across the page, dilutes the barrier between where the reader stands and where the text exists, blending them into one final composition that wouldn’t otherwise exist. Mind you, I think this event is valid for any relationship between reader and text, the latter assuming many different forms, but there is something magical about this one in particular.

“Jessica Jones: Alias [Vol. 1]” by Brian Bendis & Michael Gaydos

I seem to have fallen in love with my very first comic book. Mind you, I have enjoyed the ones I have read up until this point, but for some reason I seem to have connected with Jessica Jones in a different way.

I have given the matter some thought. Could this be because of the television series? While I understand how the physicality of it could help create the bond, I don’t think that’s quite the case. I have read Wynonna Earp and, even though I have enjoyed it, I didn’t find myself as… invested. To be honest, though I find Jessica Jones’s adaptation to be visually beautiful and thought-provokingly disturbing, I can’t help but favourite the written version over it. There’s something about it… can’t quite put my finger on it!