You’ll Like Her When She’s Angry She-Hulk: Attorney At Law is a fun lighthearted legal comedy that establishes itself within the MCU. It explores the complicated & comical duality of the character which is relatable & is fully self-aware whilst also breaking the fourth wall.

Synopsis

In Marvel Studios’ “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,” Emmy® Award-winning actress Tatiana Maslany stars as Jennifer Walters—an attorney who specialises in superhuman-oriented legal cases. She leads the complicated life of a single, 30- something who also happens to be a green 6-foot-7-inch super-powered hulk.

The nine-episode comedy series welcomes a host of MCU vets, including Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk, Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky/Abomination, and Benedict Wong as Wong, as well as Jameela Jamil, Josh Segarra, Ginger Gonzaga, Jon Bass and Renée Elise Goldsberry. 

Created by Stan Lee and John Buscema, the character was first introduced on Feb. 10, 1980, in “The Savage She-Hulk” comic series. She-Hulk went on to become a member of the Avengers in 1982 and was featured in the “Fantastic Four” series beginning in 1984. Writer/artist John Byrne infused the character with her signature fourth-wall-breaking sense of humour in his “Sensational She-Hulk” comic series that ran from 1989- 1994, and the character has made regular appearances in various forms ever since.

Review

“She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” is the seventh live-action series from Marvel Studios that’s debuting on Disney+ it explores the complicated and comical day-to-day life of Jennifer Walters who must navigate the fallout as well as the dynamics of becoming superpowered- both as herself but also as She-Hulk. We also get to see a commentary of grounded topics being portrayed as she advances into her career while making time for dating, catching up with friends, and going through workplace prejudice, in fact, a lot of the humour comes from these grounded scenarios. Walters learns that balancing her new duality and powers isn’t as easy as it seems. And as I mentioned earlier these aspects of her character as so relatable to the audience watching. She is driven to become a lawyer by a passion to dispense justice and create a more equal society. 

Jen aka She-Hulk is a character that’s full of contradiction, she’s completely fixated on work, and yet has this huge heart. Throughout the series, you’ll see that she loves being She-Hulk, but at the same time resents it. The series perfectly captures Jennifer’s courtroom antics and episode one titled “A Normal Amount of Rage” fully establishes the character and her world through an episodic story. 

Tatiana Maslany is INCREDIBLE! and such perfect casting, Maslany takes the character to a whole new level and makes the role her own. She-Hulk is so different from anything we’ve seen in the MCU, she brings so much humanity and complexity to the character that you no doubt feel for her. I also love that throughout she breaks the fourth wall and interacts with the viewer, she certainly has a sense of humour and I also love that she’s super confident in herself. Ultimately her story is a modern legal comedy about a professional woman in her 30s that’s navigating her professional career and personal life. 

Adjusting to Life as a Superhero

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law reveals that Jennifer gains the Hulk’s incredible strength following a serious car accident and her subsequent efforts to help her cousin, who happens to be none other than the Hulk, Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo). Ruffalo returning to his iconic role becomes her unwanted mentor and this series has given us the best version of Smart Hulk that we’ve seen so far. We witness how much of his life has been affected by the Hulk as he doesn’t want his cousin to struggle with her newfound powers like he did, after all, she saw what happened to her cousin and how it ruined his personal life in a lot of ways. So in the beginning, she’s very resistant to them but both quickly realise that her Hulk is very different from Banners. 

I loved the family dynamic the two actors had throughout the first episode. The script is well-written as it perfects sarcasm and banter but also this lovingly antagonistic sort of sibling relationship between them both. The characters have obviously been brought up and grew up very close so it was fun to see them make fun of each other and fight as there’s plenty of action. And for the first time, Ruffalo gets to share the stage with Maslany who’s in the same mocap suit. 

Expanding The Marvel Cinematic Universe

Joining Maslany in the cast of the series are a host of talented performers—some portraying fellow attorneys, some acting as clients, plus a few family members, friends and surprises.

Nikki Ramos is Jennifer Walters’s closest confidante and paralegal, providing unending support and most sage advice in both personal and professional matters. Jen can always rely on her fun, sarcastic and always fashion-forward friend who’s not afraid to colour outside the lines. Ginger Gonzaga is another fabulous addition to the show and she fills the character’s stylish shoes gracefully. She is certainly the best friend to have around as through work Jen can get fixated so Nikki consistently reminds her that there is a life outside of her job and to embrace the She-Hulk side of herself, her wardrobe is cool and edgy and she is a paralegal. 

Making an entrance at the end of episode one was Jameela Jamil’s character, Titania a narcissistic social media influencer who also happens to have superhuman strength. 

The series also has messages on the responsibility of those with powers and the people that possess them. Do they refrain from using their powers or do they have a duty to protect those without abilities? 

 Cameos, post-credit scenes, and references do feature as “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is extremely self-aware and self-deprecating. 

Verdict

“She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is easily one of my favourite MCU shows, it does a great job at establishing itself within the timeline and truly takes advantage of a universe where anything can happen. We witness superheroes in a grounded world post-blip as the series gives a new perspective, especially from She-Hulk’s point of view. There’s something for everyone to enjoy as it’ll pleasantly surprise people with a smashing start. Can’t wait to see where the next episode goes!.