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In “Whose Show Is This?“, the final episode of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, Jennifer Walters confronts K.E.V.I.N., the robotic creative force of the MCU. She peppers K.E.V.I.N. with a series of questions about not just what has happened in the previous seven episodes of her series, but also about the MCU in general. When she demands to know, “When are we getting the X-Men?” Walters turns toward the camera and delivers a goofy thumbs up, knowing that she’s speaking for the fans.
Or is she? She-Hulk: Attorney at Law remains one of the most divisive entries in the MCU. Well, divisive from a fan perspective. For Marvel Television chief Brad Winderbaum, She-Hulk is “one of our best-performing shows. It just hit the general audience.” Appearing on The Escape Pod, Winderbaum went on to say, “I love She-Hulk. I’d love to make more She-Hulk.” Do fans feel the same?
It’s hard to figure out what, exactly, fans want from She-Hulk. Unquestionably, She-Hulk suffered from bad faith viewers who would never be happy about a series with a woman in the lead, especially one who expressed sexual agency and happily shared a single night with Matt Murdock (whose own sexual trysts do not receive the same scrutiny). When you add in star Tatiana Maslany‘s outspoken defense of trans rights and refusal to debate those bad faith critics, people who were ready to hate the show found exactly what they were looking for.
At the same time, there are some legitimate complaints to be launched against the series. First looks at She-Hulk highlighted the series’ rough digital effects, which came at a time when the public had run out of tolerance for such shoddy visuals, especially as news of poor working conditions came to light. Further, there was the show’s sense of humor. Although She-Hulk has been a comedic character since the landmark John Byrne run in the 1990s, which the aforementioned meta-textual scene emulates, Attorney at Law had a very modern sense of humor that didn’t land with all viewers.
Finally, She-Hulk continued some of Marvel’s worst storytelling instincts, especially in relationship to the Hulk. Where Avengers: Endgame and even Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings promised us that Bruce’s Hulk condition and his withered arm were permanent problems with no easy solutions, She-Hulk reveals that it wasn’t a big deal, and he figured it all out off-screen. Then there was the tease at the end, which introduces Hulk’s son Skaar in an awkward family reunion, setting up a story beat that continues to go nowhere.
In short, there are lots of reasons—reasonable and horrible—to dislike more Attorney at Law. But Winderbaum insists that the show resonated with the larger public, and he may be right. Since her debut in 1979, She-Hulk has been a mainstay in the Marvel Universe, often carrying her own series and serving as a reliable member of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four.
Moreover, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law may have arrived at the height of superhero fatigue, but it did offer something different than the usual cape and cowl story. Beyond even its sitcom tone, She-Hulk was a legal show, and devoted time to Ally McBeal-like plots about frivolous lawsuits and weird partners. That’s not something you’ll get from even a Daredevil show, which also features a lawyer as a main character.
That last point may be all Winderbaum needs to justify a second season of Attorney at Law. The MCU has continued to grow and mutate since it started with Iron Man in 2008, and its closer to its comic book predecessor now. Not every comic book is for every reader, and sometimes the best comics—including the aforementioned Byrne run on She-Hulk—exist simply because a creative person really believes in the vision, even if no one else does.
Plus, if season 2 gives us another scene of the always-delightful Maslany making goofy faces while teasing Kevin Feige, then maybe all the other stuff is worth it.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is available to stream on Disney+.
The post Marvel TV Chief Wants More She-Hulk, Fans Are Less Sure appeared first on Den of Geek.
