Jill Valentine

Jill Valentine
Resident Evil series character
File:Jillvalentine-re3c.png Jill Valentine from Resident Evil 3: Nemesis.
First game	Resident Evil
Created by	Shinji Mikami

Jill Valentine is a video game character in the Resident Evil survival horror series. She is one of the protagonists in the original Resident Evil, where she is introduced as a member of the Special Tactics And Rescue Service (STARS). She returned as the protagonist in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, where she was no longer a member of STARS, merely a citizen trying to survive the viral outbreak in Raccoon City. Jill returned in Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles and Resident Evil 5, where she was a member of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance (BSAA). Portrayed by Sienna Guillory, she appeared in the second cinematic adaption of the series, titled Resident Evil: Apocalypse and is also the protagonist in Resident Evil: Genesis, the mobile phone adaptation of the series.

Character design

During development of the original Resident Evil, Jill was conceived as the weaker of the two playable characters, since she can take less damage than Chris Redfield. However, she was given more ammunition, two extra item slots, and access to other weapons to compensate for this.

The development team for Resident Evil 3: Nemesis commented that Jill was deliberately designed in a way to make her "Beautiful for everybody". This was so that she would appeal to a wide audience of both male and female gamers, as males would find her physically attractive while females would see her as a tough role model.

In the remake of Resident Evil, producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi said the team wanted Jill to be "a little cuter" so that "Her action and atmosphere has charm". However, so that she remains a "tough" and inspiring character, her body is designed to be "not skinny, more like muscular". Her facial appearance from the remake onwards is based on Julia Voth, as character designer Kenichiro Yoshimura said that he "made Jill's face as much similar as I could to the model actress face."

On the slight change of appearance for Jill and Chris Redfield in Resident Evil 5, production director Yasuhiro Anpo said that he tried "to preserve their image and imagined how they would have changed over the passage of time... we made a new design that retained their signature color - green for Chris, blue for Jill - to carry over the same look from the past. The facial structures are mainly based on the visuals of the GameCube version, and we added various details to these in order to develop a realistic structure."

Appearances

In video games

Jill Valentine first appears as one of two playable protagonists in the original Resident Evil. Along with Chris Redfield, she is a member of STARS' Alpha team, deployed to the Arklay Mountains. Alpha team is attacked by several undead dogs, and retreats to the Arklay Research Facility. Jill initially works with Barry Burton, as they inspect the mansion and discover its undead residents. She and Chris discovered that STARS leader Albert Wesker had betrayed them, and after defeating the Tyrant released by Wesker, Jill escaped the mansion along with Chris, Barry and Bravo team member Rebecca Chambers. Jill's appearance, starting from the remake of Resident Evil, was based on Canadian model Julia Voth.

Jill returns as the sole protagonist in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. She fights alongside Carlos Oliveira, a UBCS soldier who is attempting to escape Raccoon City. Jill encounters Nemesis, a super soldier created by the Umbrella Corporation. After several encounters with the creature, Jill is able to defeat it and escape Raccoon City before the city is destroyed. Jill then appears in Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles where she works with Chris Redfield to expose and destroy the Umbrella Corporation. She and Chris defeat Umbrella's newest BOW, T-ALOS, and survive the ordeal.

Before the events of Resident Evil 5 Jill had apparently died to save Chris during a confrontation with Albert Wesker. During the game, Chris finds out that Jill survived, but is now under Wesker's control. Chris and his new partner Sheva Alomar manage to subdue Jill and allow her to regain control and return to her normal self. Jill then worked with fellow BSAA agent Josh Stone to assist Chris and Sheva in defeating Albert Wesker once and for all.

Jill also appears as a character in Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes, where she can summon zombies to attack her opponent.

In film

Jill appears in Resident Evil: Apocalypse. In this version of the series she is a STARS member and foil to the main character, Alice. Jill, along with a group of survivors, try to escape Raccoon City, and is one of the few to make it out. Jill was set to appear in the sequel, Resident Evil: Extinction. However, Guillory had commitments to other work. Based on recent reports, she may return for Resident Evil: Afterlife.

In print

File:Biohazard3-comic-Nemesis.jpg

Jill and Nemesis in "Biohazard 3: Last Escape"

Jill appears in a 1999 Hong Kong Manhua adaptation of Resident Evil 3 by Lee Chung Hing, "Biohazard 3: Last Escape".

Jill also appears in mulitiple novels based on the Resident Evil series, particularly in those by S. D. Perry.

In Perry's novelisation of Resident Evil 3, Nemesis is immediately recognized as a modified Tyrant, which Jill Valentine dubs Nemesis after thinking about why it hunts her.

In Perry's novelizations, it is stated that Jill is the daughter of a professional thief Dick Valentine, and was his accomplice prior to her career in law enforcement, explaining her unrivaled infiltration skills and expertise at lock picking.

Portrayal

Jill was portrayed by an actress credited as "Inezh" in the live-action cutscenes of the original Resident Evil. She was voiced by Catherine Disher in Resident Evil 3 and Heidi Anderson in the remake of Resident Evil. Patricia Ja Lee provided the voice and motion capture work for Jill in Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles and Resident Evil 5. Actress Sienna Guillory portrayed her in the movie adaptation, Resident Evil: Apocalypse.

Reception

Since her introduction Jill has been received positively, described by sources such as Duluth News Tribune as the "best super heroine this side of Lara Croft". She was named as the "Sexiest Game Character" by News.com.au, which noted her popularity with both male and female gamers for different reasons. GameSpy listed her as one of their top ten women of gaming at number seven, stating "Even those of us who weren't big fans of the games, and their constant ammo shortages, will remember Jill."

UGO.com listed her thirty-ninth on their "Top 50 Videogame Hotties" article and as one their top eleven video game heroines, noting her as a core character of the Resident Evil series and citing her high popularity. GameDaily named her one of their favorite Capcom characters of all time, placing her 10th on their "Top 25" list while stating praise for her Resident Evil 3 attire. The sentiment was repeated in their "Top 50 Hottest Game Babes" article, which ranked her twenty-sixth on the list. She was featured in another list from GameDaily called "Babes of the Week: Brunettes", citing her role in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis as her greatest triumph. They also include her in a list of "Ten Babes Who Should and 10 Babes Who Shouldn't Meet Your Mom", stating that while she has questionable fashion sense, she is both noble and confident. In another article, they listed the "smart and sexy heroine" as one of their top 25 video game archtypes, using Jill as an example. Several other Top 10 lists have also ranked her as one of the most attractive female characters in video games, such as Spike TV and Virgin Media.

External links

• The Official Resident Evil Website
• Jill Valentine at Wikia