This is going to be creepy as Hell.
…. Ahem. Anyway. Possible spoilers ahead — spoilers for the comics, anyway, not sure about the tv show.
So, in Marvel Comics earlier this century, they had a Marvel “Max” line — mature content. No nudity, but certainly rated R … well, R-ish. One of the headline titles was Alias — no, nothing to do with the TV show of the same name with Jennifer Garner (how’s that for 6 degrees of Marvel?).
Anyway, Alias focused around, surprise, Jessica Jones, a former superhero who was now a PI. She’s a drunk, she’s self-destructive, in a meaningless “purely physical” relationship with another hero, Luke Cage, just so she can feel something, (in quotes because they end up married with a kid by the end, if I recall correctly), and she’s a borderline basket case.
In short, she’s the poster girl for PTSD. What happened? What could destroy a superhero?
Enter, Zebediah Kilgrave, aka The Purple Man…
No, it’s not the dumbest villain name in comic books — I think that belongs to the Condiment King (yes, really) — but Kilgrave has two characteristics. 1) Yes, he’s purple. 2) He has mind control powers.
And, as you probably noticed in the trailer, Purple Man’s favorite trick is telling other people to kill themselves. Originally a Daredevil villain, Kilgrave makes Hannibal Lecter look downright charming and friendly.
And when she was a superhero, Jessica Jones was held captive by Kilgrave for over six months. Because he was having “fun.”
And that’s how the comic book opened. With the full-blown PTSD aftermath.
So, if you were casting someone who could kill you by talking to you, who would you pick? Every time I asked someone this question, I was told “Vincent D’Onofrio.” However, he’s playing the Kingpin.
So, who else? Who?
Who indeed?
Is there a Doctor in the house?
Yes, that’s right, David Tennant, possibly everyone’s favorite Doctor, will be playing Kilgrave. You might have noticed him in the trailer in a brief flash, or just heard his voice and went “I know him!”
And no, they’re not making him purple. In fact, I don’t even think they gave him directions. They just told him “Here are your lines, now make Hannibal Lecter look like a pansy.”
Mission accomplished.
As much as I liked Tom Hiddleston as Loki, I think Tennant is going to be the most terrifying on-screen Marvel villain ever.
Andy
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Yep. Full-on psychological thriller, where the mind games are incidental to the superpowers. That’s part of why I’m looking forward to this so much; the best superhero stories are the ones where the hero has to go outside his or her power-set to solve a problem. Putting a super-strong character who can fly up against an effective psychic (yes, I know, he’s not really a psychic, but for this purpose it’s the same) who can dominate almost any mind is definitely outside the power-set.
And I really wasn’t sure that Ritter could do the job, but that trailer nails it. If you told me she was playing a war vet, I could believe it. I’m thinking we’re going to see some related articles on PTSD once the show airs. I’m thinking of interviewing some, actually, once they see the show themselves.
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Whoa! Just, whoa!
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Amen to that.
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I’ve seen Tennant in a few non-Who roles (BBCAmerica is your friend) and he nails the subtlety needed for a psycho every time.
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True enough.
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Tennant is going to murder this role (pun intended).
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Wow, this looks like it is so well done! I think picking Tennant for the role of Kilgrave was a splendid decision on their part. This is going to be so terrifyingly creepy! ~AnneMarie
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Tennant as Kilgrave, Smith as Skynet, everyone remember Eccleston’s roles?
What is up with all Doctors going evil…
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Eccleston was Malekith in Thor 2 (a bit of a lackluster role, but definitely a villain). And the Invisible Man (from Heroes) was a bit of an antihero at times.
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Don’t forget his GI Joe role. 😉
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1) Because they don’t want to be typecast.
2) Because they’re British, they like having variety in their roles … I guess.
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Oh obviously. (I really need a tongue in cheek emoticon)
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