A new Hulk takes the spotlight on Marvel’s latest Disney+ series

“She-Hulk: Attorney-at-Law” stars Tatiana Maslany in a series that goes against the MCU grain

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Courtesy Disney/Marvel Studios

Tatiana Maslany stars as She-Hulk, a new MCU hero who represents superpowered individuals as their lawyer.

Marvel has recently released a mini series about the enjoyable, fourth wall breaking, hulking attorney . . . She-Hulk.

Currently four episodes have aired on the Disney+ streaming platform, and five more are still on the way. So far this show is exceptional.

It’s been a while since a Hulk-related character had the spotlight for themself*. She-Hulk takes a step further into not only Marvel’s phase four, but also the Hulk legacy. For an older generation of Marvel fans, She-Hulk is a staple of the comics. Now, with her own series, she is being introduced to a new generation of Marvel fans.

* Remember 2009’s “The Incredible Hulk”? Bet you don’t. Thankfully, this show does.

In this series, Tatiana Maslany* stars as Jen Walters, an everyday assistant district attorney. One day, while hanging out with her cousin, Bruce—you might know him as the Hulk—they get into an accident and she ingests his gamma-radiated blood, turning her into a Hulk. It’s as goofy a comic book premise as there is, but it works, and Jen finds herself trying to balance her new life as a lawyer and a Hulk. Eventually, she discovers her niche as a lawyer for other super-powered individuals, which gives the show a “case-of-the-week” feel that is a breath of fresh air in an MCU that feels the need to serialize every moment that you practically need an encyclopedia to keep up with it all.

* Maslany, who some might remember as Sarah Manning and a slew of clones in the BBC series “Orphan Black” is beyond charming as Jennifer Walters, who constantly has to put up with a bunch of stupid men while smiling the whole time.

Now, what can I really tell you about She-Hulk that you most likely haven’t already heard? You probably already know that its focus is on comedy, but it also has some serious elements. For Jen Walters, she is struggling with her identity as a newfound Hulk. Her conflict revolves around a world that is constantly trying to define her, and because she looks so remarkably different in her She-Hulk form, she finds herself often at odds with . . . herself.

For some viewers, they are at odds with the CGI in this show, especially that of She-Hulk. She-Hulk is a fully CGI character who looks like a green Megan Thee Stallion*. This reliance on CG does have some small issues. It looks clunky from time-to-time, not to mention it does have a tendency to overly sexualize She-Hulk, whose body proportions just so happen to mirror a super model.

* Crazily enough, Megan Thee Stallion gets one of the best cameos of the year in episode four of the series. Not just delightful, but oddly controversial, too.

Additionally, the show does undermine Bruce Banner’s/The Hulk’s story a bit. When we last left Hulk in “Avengers: Endgame,” he had found a perfect synthesis between his identities as Banner and Hulk. When we encounter him in “She-Hulk,” he’s so much more Banner that it is almost like Hulk no longer exists.

While I am enjoying this series, there are those who have some problems with it. Older MCU fans, specifically. These older fans expect this new series to be another “Iron Man” or “Endgame.” Those movies had a seriousness mixed with levels of snark and irony, whereas “She-Hulk” is much more sincere, and slight. This series isn’t trying to be like what came before. It’s far more “Law & Order” than it is “Iron Man.” And it’s good for Marvel to try new things like this, because it keeps their formula fresh.

Halfway through this season, “She-Hulk” is in a decent spot and I’m really excited for the last few episodes to see what they bring to the MCU.

 

“She-Hulk: Attorney-at-Law” streams Thursdays on Disney+.