‘She-Hulk’ Finally Gives 1 of the MCU’s Oldest Movies the Sequel It Deserves
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law isn’t only the eighth Disney+ series created by Marvel Studios. It also marks the final one of Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. So needless to say, fans are curious to see how it sets up Phase 5 and, more specifically, the role Jennifer Walters aka She-Hulk (Tatiana Maslany) might play in what comes next. But it also gives one of the MCU’s oldest projects the long-overdue sequel treatment.
‘She-Hulk’ centers on Bruce Banner’s cousin, Jennifer Walters
Maslany’s Jennifer Walters is an attorney who – after a car crash with her cousin, Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) – develops Hulk abilities of her own. The series will follow her attempts to balance both her legal career and her newfound superpowers. Ruffalo’s Hulk plays a mentor role in the first episode of the series, cautioning her about how her life is about to change.
Although Ruffalo receives IMDb billing as a “special guest star,” his character is the clear jumping-off point for She-Hulk. Until now, Banner is the only exposure MCU fans have had to a gamma-infused superhero. And the new Disney+ show could pave the way for a great deal of further exploration into the decades of Hulk-related storylines from the pages of Marvel Comics in Phases 5 and 6.
The Disney+ series also acts as a sequel to ‘The Incredible Hulk’
But as much as She-Hulk marks an introduction for the title character, it also carries the weight of continuing the Hulk mythos. After all, Bruce Banner – as initially played by Edward Norton – has been a part of the MCU since 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. Released just months after Iron Man changed superhero movies, the film is often overlooked even by fans of Marvel Studios. For a while, the MCU seemed to act as if The Incredible Hulk never happened.
Not only was Norton recast with Ruffalo, but the events and characters of that movie were barely acknowledged by the MCU for years. That began to change when William Hurt reprised his role as Thaddeus Ross in Captain America: Civil War. Then Tim Roth returned as Emil Blonsky aka The Abomination in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Roth returns for She-Hulk too, with the series seemingly bringing the MCU back to the dangers of being a Hulk.
Where will ‘She-Hulk’ leave the hero and her famous cousin?
Much of The Incredible Hulk centered on Bruce Banner’s struggle to control his transformations into the Hulk. But it also touched on his fear about what would happen if his gamma-powered blood got into the wrong hands. Ultimately, the Hulk leads to the birth of The Abomination. And though it’s only teased, Tim Blake Nelson’s Samuel Sterns is set up to become The Leader.
With Marvel’s Thunderbolts movie on the horizon, it’s possible – likely even – Hulk and She-Hulk won’t be the only Hulk-adjacent characters roaming the MCU. In the comics, Banner inspires a number of others to experiment with creating another Hulk. She-Hulk picks up that story from The Incredible Hulk, at last continuing a thread left mostly dormant for 14 years.
