Jessica Jones fans have plenty to celebrate lately. Krysten Ritter recently reprised her role as the gritty private investigator in Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, where she reunited with Matt Murdock and hinted at a future with Luke Cage. But while the MCU gives us a taste, Marvel Comics is serving up a full meal with a fresh twist: What if Jessica Jones got bitten by that radioactive spider instead of Peter Parker?
The new one-shot, What If...? Jessica Jones #1, written by Justina Ireland with art by Dave Messina, drops today. It takes readers on a journey with The Watcher to explore an alternate reality where the hard-boiled detective becomes a very different kind of hero. The premise is simple but game-changing: the radioactive spider bites Jessica at Midtown High, setting her on a path that's both familiar and wildly different.
A preview of the issue shows a younger, more innocent Jessica—she says "fudge" instead of dropping f-bombs—getting bitten while trying to get a closer look at the experiment. The art style nods to classic Spider-Man comics, but the story quickly fast-forwards to a present-day Jessica who's trying to leave her "Spider-Girl" days behind. Instead of running a PI agency, she's working at Luke Cage's bar, pouring drinks and keeping her head down. But when a creepy patron starts prying into her past, she uses her powers to teach him a lesson—kicking out a leg of his bar stool and leaving Luke to clean up the mess.
This version of Jessica is still the surly, reluctant hero fans love, but her past as Spider-Girl makes her life even more complicated. The preview teases that a classic Spider-Man villain—the Green Goblin—returns to haunt her, forcing her to confront old trauma. Despite being out of fighting shape, she can't ignore the mystery, setting up a story that blends Jessica's signature noir grit with Spider-Man's iconic rogues' gallery.
The issue also ties into the broader Marvel universe in intriguing ways. For fans who've been following the MCU's street-level heroes, this comic offers a fresh take on a character who's always been defined by her resilience and cynicism. It's a fun "what if" that asks how Jessica's personality would change if she had Peter Parker's powers—and how it might stay the same.
If you're a fan of Spider-Man's upcoming big-screen adventures or just love seeing Jessica Jones in any form, this comic is a must-read. The preview gallery above gives a taste of the wild story, and the full issue is on shelves now.
