SHE-HULK EPISODE 2 REVIEW

 

            Now that’s more like it! Any complaint I had about Episode 1 was obliterated for Episode 2 (although my new complaint is you have a fourth wall-breaking character and you didn’t take advantage of that for the “Previously On” segment? C’mon!).

Jen's new normal.

            As I figured, they rushed through She-Hulk’s origin to get it out of the way. The second episode was much better paced. I enjoyed the story and the multiple excellent jokes (including a particular subtle “literally” joke) so much that I didn’t realize how quickly the time went by.

Starting to regret life choices.

            There isn’t much I can say that doesn’t fall into super spoilery territory as the story beats were minimal and concise. It is cool to see The Incredible Hulk become more integrated into the MCU, what with an episode of What If? depicting a scene from the film and now Tim Roth’s Abomination appearing in two Phase 4 projects. I guess that means either Universal’s stranglehold on the Hulk rights is beginning to lessen or Marvel legal has figured out ways they can reference it that won’t bring about lawsuits. I don’t know, I’m not familiar with the whole situation beyond the fact Marvel couldn’t do another solo Hulk movie if they wanted to.

Tim Roth returns!

Anyway, for hardcore MCU fans, this episode ties into Shang-Chi while referencing Eternals and firmly establishes the show’s place in the Phase 4 timeline. This will likely also lead into the expected appearance by Benedict Wong as his character, well, Wong as established by the various trailers for the show. Loved the introduction to Jen’s family (don’t recall if we ever saw much of them in the comics—at least not in any of the comics I’ve actually read), and as a tall person of some considerable strength I totally felt the end credits scene. And I’m loving Tatiana Maslany, especially her voice. It’s a good fit for the character! If she has any interest in voice work, I wouldn’t mind her continuing on as the voice of Shulkie in other projects.

"Yes, I'll be representing Marvel in all matters relating to The Incredible Hulk."

Overall, this episode was a marked improvement over the last, and if this is indicative of how the rest of the series is going to go this could be on track to take my top spot in the Disney+ spin-offs (y’know, if I played favorites. Which I don’t.). Also, keep an eye out for an X-Men Easter egg!