Superheroes, action, comedy and feminism wrapped up in a legal series set in the Marvel Universe – can it work? It can.
With so many Marvel movies and Marvel series, it’s easy to lose track. Tatiana Maslany, leading actress in “She-Hulk: The Lawyer”, also had to find out. She’s glad Marvel producer Kevin Feige was lenient with her.
“Fortunately, he didn’t ask me to look at everything beforehand,” says Maslany in an interview with the German Press Agency in London and laughs. “I think he realizes it’s an enormous universe. I know some people have seen it chronologically from start to finish. I haven’t gotten that far yet.”
Eighth series from the Marvel Universe
“She-Hulk: The Lawyer” starts on August 18th on the Disney + streaming service and is the eighth TV series from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which also already includes 29 movies, all of which are more or less linked to each other. “She-Hulk” has direct ties to the “Hulk”, “Avengers” and “Doctor Strange” films and takes place parallel to “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”.
Attorney Jennifer Walters aka Jen (Maslany) is the cousin of Avengers member Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), who is known to turn into the Green Hulk when angry or stressed. When Jen and Bruce are injured in a car accident, their blood mixes – and Jen goes green and strong from now on. At least she stays sane as the Hulk.
In any case, as a woman, she is used to controlling her anger. “I do that all the time,” she explains. “When I’m being harassed on the street, when incompetent men try to explain my own field to me. I do it every day, otherwise they say I’m ’emotional’ or ‘difficult’.”
With feminist undertones
Author Jessica Gao peppered the series with feminist commentary and observation. But Maslany doesn’t want to describe “She-Hulk” primarily as a feminist series. “There are definitely feminist undertones,” she says, “but it’s not a show that’s trying to tell you how you should feel about anything. It’s also a comedy, so there’s nothing dictated here. It’s more like that “You’re on Jen’s side, you’re put in her shoes. It’s feminist in that we’re seeing this massive shift in her life from her perspective.”
Jen doesn’t want to be a superhero but wants to continue working as a lawyer in Los Angeles. But when an incident occurs at a court hearing, she takes action as the Hulk and becomes the star everyone calls “She-Hulk”. “Hopefully this name won’t stay, it’s so stupid,” she scolds in one episode.
Maslany also has mixed feelings about the name, which sounds like a “Hulk appendage”. “It’s so reductive,” she says, and laughs. “It’s annoying, but at the same time I love the name too.” The series cleverly plays with this ambivalence.
After the first four episodes, it is not yet clear where Jennifer Walters, aka She-Hulk, will go in the nine episodes. In her first case as a lawyer in green, she is assigned to represent Emil Blonsky, aka Abomination (Tim Roth), of all people, who once tried to kill her cousin (2008’s The Incredible Hulk, when Edward Norton played the role of Banner/Hulk). Has Blonsky actually changed as he claims? It remains exciting.
How do you actually date as a She-Hulk?
The funny series makes fun of itself throughout and surprises with original gags, guest appearances and side issues. Do female superheroes have health insurance? Did Captain America die a virgin? And how do you actually date as a She-Hulk? As in the comics, the main character breaks the fourth wall several times – maybe a little too often – and speaks to the audience. The subtle humor is funnier than the less subtle, but the mix is right.
The series also makes fun of internet trolls who complained about “She-Hulk”. After all, it is by no means a “product of gender madness” or the “gender change” of a popular superhero. The first “She-Hulk” comic was published by Marvel over 40 years ago, in February 1980, and was to be filmed several times. It is all the more gratifying that author Gao has now succeeded in making an adaptation that is both true to the original and contemporary.
The only point of criticism is unfortunately She-Hulk’s computer animation, which sometimes looks too artificial. This caused fan criticism on the Internet after the trailer was published. Let’s hope that Marvel has improved something. Because the almost 30-minute episodes with great attention to detail are really entertaining, entertaining and make you want more. By the way, you don’t have to be a Marvel connoisseur for this, but it helps.
PS: A warning: If you still want to watch the cult series “The Sopranos”, you risk some spoilers with “She-Hulk: The Lawyer”. Because one of the prominent figures is a fan of the popular mafia saga. (dpa)