SPOILER She-Hulk (2022)

I know very little about the character of Jennifer Walters, so I was excited to learn more with She-Hulk... but I really wasn't sure what to expect.

Spoiler: episode one spoilers

A lot has been made about this show being a "sitcom" from those who have seen early previews of the first four episodes, and maybe that'll come more into fruition in later episodes... but so far, I think it's not particularly more of a sitcom than anything else Marvel has done.

And yet... it's really good! It's great to see Ruffalo return to his role, and Tatiana Maslany has already sold me on her character. Really, I hope that these two get more screentime together, because their chemistry is great- and to sell us on the Hulk and his long lost cousin in only twenty minutes is quite an achievement. But even so... I'm happy to see Jennifer on her own, too.

Which leads me to one thing I really like about the show- Jennifer's commitment to being an attorney, even in the face of her... hulkening? It seems all too often that the MCU characters ditch their jobs the moment they get their superpowers, unless they're a scientist or something. Seeing Jennifer literally balance these two things will be interesting, and if today's closing scene is a sign of what's to come, I'm all in. (I know Daredevil was also an attorney, but personally I feel like this is very much the difference between Batman and Tony Stark as billionaires, or at least their movie versions- their stories are still wildly different).

Speaking of that final scene, this really brings me to something I wish the D+ shows did more, something that I feel should be their strength- building the world outside of apocalyptic cataclysms. When we get three or four Marvel films a year and each has its own world or universe-ending catastrophe, do we really need Moon Knight or Ms. Marvel also saving the universe too- especially when they'd fit in so well with a more grounded, city approach? These shows should feature the new, grounded tier of superheroes. While the Avengers are now like these legendary figures that defeated Thanos and are now gathering in a shadow war against Kang, these newer characters should start filling out the Marvel universe. As heroes become more commonplace, we get a more comic book world, almost like something from the show Invincible, where heroes and villains skirmish on a relatively common basis and the stakes are not always set to 11.

So, seeing Titania (as I'm led to believe, at least) burst into a court room with no context and start a brawl with Jennifer? That's so cool, that's exactly what I want from these shows! More of that please- and as we have eight more episodes to go, I think that might just be what we get.

 

Another week, another great episode!

Just a string of random thoughts this time (and this is the last week I'll be putting the spoiler tag on- it's already in the thread name AND in the first post, so I'm really just doing this as a final precaution.

Spoiler

- Still doesn't feel particularly sit-commy yet, at least not compared to many other MCU projects (and especially WandaVision).

- I like the direction of Jennifer becoming an attorney for superpowered people!

- Titania being an influencer is interesting. I don't know much about the character- is that lifted directly from the comics, or a more modern interpretation?

- Still very much loving how this fits in with the MCU. I feel like it's been ages since we've seen a classic superhero news footage montage that wasn't some super dark, apocalyptic thing.

- Was about to cry foul about Shang Chi using Abomination they way they did when it seemed he was still in prison, but the end tied this up nicely. Also, I think it's clear that She Hulk will tie up how he seemed so much more chill in Shang Chi. Hopefully we'll get a "Fury's Big Week"-style timeline for this phase at some point, though, because it's starting to get a little confusing.

- Speaking of Abomination, it was really great seeing Tim Roth as Emil again.

- Finally... seems clear Hulk is on his way to Sakaar, almost certainly due to a certain son having been born... I wonder- could this lead to the rumored World War Hulk project? I was really skeptical at first, but having him off world again seems to make this much more likely. Perhaps he'll be attached to another hero's movie again? All of a sudden, the Thunderbolts movie starts to make a lot more sense, especially if they recast Ross for a Red Hulk.

 

Another week, another great episode.

So far, I'm liking how each week has felt pretty distinct. That's not always the case with the D+ shows (Falcon and Winter Soldier all runs together for me), but given their length it tends to be the case.

Just a few random thoughts after today:

- Seems like they're really leaning into the fourth-wall breaking stuff a little more now. Makes sense to wean the audience onto it, since it's kind of a new thing for the MCU, but I like it!

- I'm loving how this show builds not only its own world, but the MCU too. I know I've said this in the thread before, but it really is a big strength in what makes this show work for me. Maybe this sounds weird, but it's kind of evocative of Age of Ultron for me- I'll try to explain. Age of Ultron came at a point that the MCU was pretty established in its world and characters, yet not so over-committed to wrapping up its first arc story yet. We had the original Avengers working together as a team from the very first scene, and only added to the roster throughout the movie. As far as "Avengers" branded movies go, it's the only one that occurs in what we'd think of as a "normal world" (as a storytelling term, not literally. The first movie is the intro, and Infinity War/End Game is more of the later plot, but Age of Ultron shows the Avengers actually in their element). This current wave should have much the same feeling, but it's been hit or miss... but so far, She-Hulk has consistently nailed it.

- Wrecking Crew got wrecked. I totally forgot they were gonna be in this, but now I do recall that they were reported as being comic relief in this show. I wonder if that'll always be the case, or if they'll actually manage to do something at some point. Personally, I don't mind if they're just bumbling buffoons the entire time. Though I do wonder who their boss is... Kingpin, maybe?

 

This week was a lot of fun, as always.

Wong was a delight, and his weird friendship with Madisynn was pretty funny.

Between the almost overly comic side characters like Madisynn and Donny Blaze, the frustrated and funny dating takes, and just the general tone of the episode, I'd say She-Hulk has finally started to step into its role as the MCU's sitcom that was advertised.

Just a few random thoughts:

- I doubt that Donny Blaze has any Ghost Rider connections. He's a comic side character, and I kinda doubt we'll even see him again at all. Maybe I'm wrong, but I'm not gonna hold my breath.

- Not really sure how Titania can sue Jen for the "She-Hulk" thing, when Jen didn't even call or brand herself that anyway. But I'm looking forward to her return, regardless.

- Not that I want this show to be constant cameos, but this episode I kinda realized how that would make sense. If Jen is going to be representing supers, it makes sense we'd see a lot of characters we already know. This would be a great way to introduce new smaller characters to the MCU that would be unlikely to get their own show or even a teamup, but could build up the world further (thinking characters like Speedball). Otherwise, I could see her also representing some other more lighthearted characters like Hawkeye or Kate, Yelena, Shocker, one of the Guardians, Jack Duquesne, etc.

Or, if they wanted to do something REALLY crazy, she could be defending a certain Nathaniel Richards from a lawsuit from the Stark estate due to Richard's use of "Iron Lad". This could be a fun callback to the current Titania storyline, while also a kind of ominous teasing of another Kang variant.

 

yeah, I think so. Was kinda surprised that it didn't have one... thought we had an understanding, She-Hulk!

This week's episode was all right. Titania is an appropriately annoying villain, and I expect we'll see more of her in the future.

I also really liked how Walters' online dating failures paid off in a pretty humorous way.

The Daredevil tease was neat, but it's also cool that the MCU now has its Edna Mode variant! I wonder who else they do costumes for?

 

Yeah, people really love the old Netflix Daredevil show, and I just don't get it. I've seen the first season and about half of Jessica Jones, and while there were a handful of good moments, the thing was WAY too long.

I don't think Disney Plus has necessarily nailed their pacing yet, but Netflix's was awful too- show was a total snoozefest. So, I'm at least excited to see this character in a different format.

 

Today's episode was interesting!

I'm sure fans were salivating at the Daredevil tease from last week, but honestly I think Jen's explanation was very funny- weddings do seem to come at the most inconvenient times! (Though to be honest, it's quite rude of Lulu to inform Jen that she's a bridesmaid seemingly the week before the wedding- but that's a sitcom trope if I've ever heard one, so it fits).

I'm glad Titania and She-Hulk's fight in the courtrooms (both literal and figurative) finally moved outside it. Still, seems like no one is a physical threat for Jen, which I suppose makes sense. While it would've been nice to see Titania throw down a little harder, it's kind of funny to see her taken down so humiliatingly and easily- she wasn't even hit, she tripped herself!

I'm a little confused at Lulu's appreciation of She-Hulk in the end. Not really sure where that came from, but she looked kinda drunk, so maybe that's it? Still, seems like an odd way to end the episode.

Once again, part of this show's charm to me is how comic-bookey it feels. I doubt we'll ever get a Great Lakes Avengers movie, but She-Hulk is happy to give us a Mr. Immortal episode all the same. This show has filled the rosters of Marvel perhaps better than any other MCU project before, and I love it. Really makes me want a Season 2.

And that final shot! I won't say much now, but it seems to imply that the leaks may have been right...

 

She-Hulk continues to impress me with how well it builds the MCU out of its bounds! We got Man-Bull, El Aguilar, Porcupine, The Saracen, the return of the Wrecking Crew... it's hard to tell who will ever reprise their role and who might reappear in future projects (my guess is there's a lot of one-offs) but She-Hulk stands to be one of the most prominent addition of iconic characters ever if some of these characters do carry forward.

Other thoughts-

- huh? I really expected there to be some sort of trap at the retreat. Did I miss something, or did it really go as smoothly and wholesome as it seemed?

- oh my god, I don't care about Josh. The show didn't do a great job building him up, before the breakup

- only two episodes left, and Daredevil still hasn't made an appearance. I feel it'd be a bit odd for him to be in the finale, so I expect maybe it'll be next week? OR, how funny would it be if he's saved for some brief post-credit scene in the finale, with Jen breaking the fourth wall to sarcastically remark on how much of the audience watched the entire show for a ten second shot? I know it'd make some people mad, but it'd make the right people mad at least.

From the rumors

Spoiler: rumor for season finale

One of the weird guys from the dating sequence will be infused with the hulk blood and become a weird reddity kind of Hulk for Jen to fight in the final episode. From this episode, seems like maybe it'll be Josh