If you’ve been on Disney+ recently, you probably have seen Marvel Cinematic Universe’s (also known as the MCU) newest show in one or two of the featured bars on the streaming service. She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is that show; it is the story of Jennifer (Jen) Walters, a lawyer who just scored a job at a law firm. This put her on an occupational path she had been working towards for years and the first ten minutes of the first episode established that new, exciting chapter of her life.
However, when a car accident involving her and her famous cousin, Bruce Banner (more famously known as the Hulk) causes her to develop what I, personally, am calling the “Hulk Gene”, her entire life is derailed. She has to take a break from work in order to learn the ins-and-outs of being a Hulk. In that process, Jen Walters explains to Bruce that compared to his journey controlling his Hulk alter-ego, her journey will be far shorter.
The combination of her genetics and her everyday life makes this possible. Jen explains to Bruce that the triggers that cause one to “hulk-out”, anger and fear, plague her everyday as a woman. This explanation is realistic and relatable for the women that make up the show’s audience. Hearing her talk about how merely being a woman in our world today makes her feel validated my feelings as well, showing that whether a woman is a superhero or not, she will always face the unfair tribulations that women do every single day. These elements make her origin story much more relatable and interesting, which is the reason why I like the show so much.
Building on this, throughout her journey, Jen constantly asks when she can get back to her job. Her requests are evidence of ambition, and also of how the MCU is finally emphasizing how women can lead two separate lives: one of a regular, working woman, and one of a superhero. Not only this, but a woman can not want the life os a superhero in order to lead a regular life. Jen Walters was on a normal, successful journey that she was very passionate about, and then she was involuntarily pulled from that track and thrown onto a new one. She had every right to be eager to go back to her job and avoid being a superhero. Anyone in their right mind would feel that way. Her eagerness to pursue her occupational dreams are admirable, making the show even more appealing for me.
Yet every great show has to have a fatal flaw. Game of Thrones had a rushed ending, eliminating all the best possible characters for spinoff seasons that had great potential (I’m talking about Dany). Jerry Seinfeld in Seinfeld is a horrible actor. The Office was reduced to ash without Steve Carell as Michael Scott. While the MCU may have nailed most aspects of She-Hulk, they missed on one thing: She-Hulk herself.
When you take a closer look at the design of Walter’s Hulk form, you’d notice the glaring differences—which I would call mistakes—between her and Banner’s Hulk. For one, she is standing at 6’7”, while Banner’s Hulk is standing at between 7-8’. That’s disappointing, and annoyingly obvious when it’s up on a screen. Just because she is a female version of the Hulk, doesn’t mean that she should be blatantly shorter than a male Hulk, should she? And then there’s the differences between muscle definitions. Banner’s Hulk is extremely muscular; in fact, the big green guy looks like he’s wearing one of those padded muscle shirts in an XXXL. Yet Jen’s Hulk looks like a woman who hits the gym 2-3 times a week and paints herself green as a hobby. It’s seriously disappointing. I was hoping for an absolutely jacked-out-of-this-world female superhero in this show, and all I got was a design of a gym rat that paints herself green on the weekends.
While her Hulk character design was disappointing, Jennifer Walter’s personality, mannerisms, and purpose have a good meaning and message for her audience. Her honesty about being a woman (mostly Marvel’s newfound writing skills in regard to women) is insightful and keeps up with modern culture. While Marvel may not have created the perfect female superhero, She-Hulk is evidence that the MCU is closing in on her.
