Another character who can sustain a TV show but not a regular comic, the page version of Jessica Jones has the additional hurdle of remaining strongly identified with one writer, her co-creator, who's now under exclusive contract to the competition. This is, I believe, her first post-Bendis miniseries, initially digital-only. Kelly Thompson writes, which makes sense; why wouldn't you give a female lead with an engaged crossover audience to a female writer, and one with form writing a sort-of-superhero female PI at that? Although Jones is a somewhat more scuffed-up, not to mention more competent, investigator than Kate Bishop, and this series is definitely a bit darker in tone than Thompson's Hawkeye or West Coast Avengers, opening as it does with Jones tied up in another hero's costume by an unseen assailant, then flashing back to her finding a body in her office, which turns out to be a former client on whose boyfriend she previously failed to dig up any real dirt. The direction it takes from there is interesting, at once much as you'd expect (a story about shitty, entitled men and the women they harm) and really not (because this is, after all, a superhero universe, where weird shit happens as a matter of course). Indeed, the power level of the threat initially feels like a misstep, something liable to unbalance a fundamentally street-level character, before the degree to which it ties in with her backstory and recurring themes clicks, and the whole thing is revealed as a wonderfully crafted piece. It feels more actively feminist, not to mention more deeply into detective skills, than the previous Jones comics – but these are very much tweaks, rather than any major reinvention. Similarly, the art from Mattia de Iulis and Marcio Takara is often very reminiscent of the work of Jones' other co-creator, Gaydos, which helps maintain a sense of continuity. Still, I can't picture any of those other runs teaming Jones up for a couple of issues with foul-mouthed monster-hunter Elsa Bloodstone (whose Nextwave swearing protocols are maintained – and I'd love to know what she said to those snakes). Because for all that it's a serious book, there is still a carefully sustained element of comedy here too, not least in the domestic dynamic with Luke Cage. Pretty much exactly what you'd want from a 616 Jessica Jones book (or at least what I'd want from same), and I know there's at least one sequel already available - set up in the last issue of this, which until then has been a fun coda about baby Dani's birthday party - but I really hope more are in the works from the same team.