Between Yelena Belova, Kate Bishop, Sam Wilson, Jane Foster, the upcoming Ironheart, and She-Hulk, it feels like Phase 4 has taken on the responsibility of finding new iterations of the heroes we first met in Phase 1.
While not all of their introductions may have been as seamless, or the presence quite as iconic (so far), they have each proven to be worthy of further exploration and more than capable of holding their own.
And She-Hulk: Attorney At Law proves that this new generation of classics could even be more interesting than their predecessors.
It’s hard to imagine what the tone of She-Hulk: Attorney At Law would be like without actually watching it. Even in the midst of the show, the revelations and sudden fourth-wall-breaking moments are not afraid of doing best by the character and her genuinely quirky origins.
Interestingly, it doesn’t attempt to walk the typical Marvel Cinematic Universe fine line of drama and comedy instead, leaning into an obvious sitcom-styled premise which somehow works even better for the universe.
She-Hulk’s best trait may actually be its balance of universe-wide story points—some as old as 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, and others as fresh as Shang-Chi—against its almost entirely character-driven plot which requires little background knowledge beyond what’s efficiently covered with conversational exposition.
She-Hulk also employs a simplified approach to her comic book origins, allowing more time to be spent on actual character development. Interestingly, the series has also boldly used a stable of guest stars from the larger MCU, and in a better capacity than the Disney+ Star Wars shows have.
She-Hulk does have the advantage of a tongue-in-cheek tone which allows for cameos and visiting characters to be outright acknowledged without the risk of these supporting guests from taking over the show.
A common gripe the show may encounter is the less-than-stellar CGI. However, for what is essentially a relatively high-budget television sitcom, the CG characters and motion capture of the characters are more than just functional.
While today’s audience, especially those of the Marvel persuasion, may be a tad spoiled by high-quality CGI, the fact remains that no badly-written content has been saved by CGI, and the inverse about well-written content being affected by mediocre CGI is true, too.
Regardless of the CGI-driven appearances of She-Hulk, Hulk, and the Abomination, the true stars remain the very much flesh-and-blood actors. Tatiana Maslany continues the MCU’s legacy of great actors joining the overall cast of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She is in great company with Jameela Jamil and Ginger Gonzaga also boosting the casting profile of the project.
MCU veterans Mark Ruffalo and Tim Roth round off the primary cast (for now), although this particular Hulk/Abomination pairing have yet to face off against each other.
And, being incredibly true to the MCU spirit, every episode of She-Hulk is accompanied by a mid-credits scene, so be sure to stick around beyond the ending each week. She-Hulk: Attorney At Law debuts on Disney+ on the 18th of August.