*Warning: This piece contains spoilers for the first episode of She-Hulk: Lawyer*
In a breath of fresh air, She-Hulk: Lawyer brings a very light and comic side to the Disney+ series from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Complete with a self-aware edge, fourth-wall breaking and a plethora of Hulk antics, this premiere of She-Hulk defines an encapsulation step for the rest of the series to follow.
The episode begins with Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany) – a lawyer specializing in superhero cases – practicing to argue the case of a big case. After a co-worker jokes about her being “fat” during the trial, Jen addresses the camera and tells us how she gained her hulk powers.
We cut to a few months ago where Jen and her cousin Bruce Banner (Marc Ruffalo) are traveling. Suddenly, a spaceship rams into their path, causing them to veer off course and have a nasty car accident. Helping Bruce out of the wreckage, Jen ends up getting Bruce’s blood in an open cut, spreading gamma poisoning and causing her to flee and flee into the nearby woods.
Jen stumbles upon a bar where female patrons comfort her and help her clean up. She borrows one of their phones to call Bruce to come get her. While waiting outside for Bruce to arrive, Jen ends up being called by a rowdy group of men. When they advance on her, she transforms and lunges at them before fainting.
Jen wakes up in Mexico in Bruce’s secluded lab under a serene hut. We find out that this is where Bruce spent a lot of time during the Blip and created the lab with the help of Tony Stark. Bruce, now in Smart Hulk form, puts Jen through a test to see how easily she can transform into She-Hulk. She transforms and slips away, and Bruce is surprised to find that Jen and She-Hulk can exist at the same time, unlike how Bruce and Hulk weren’t able to co-exist at first. Bruce attempts to train Jen to become a superhero, much to her chagrin.
During the training that followed, Bruce and Jen engage in activities such as throwing rocks, balance exercises, dialectical behavior therapy, and consuming immense amounts of alcohol. Jen eventually tires of training and wants to resume her life outside of Mexico. After a heated altercation between him and Jen, Bruce eventually relents and lets Jen go while offering his support if she ever needed it.
Back in the present, as Jen is about to begin her closing argument, the trial is interrupted by Titania (Jameela Jamil) crashing into the wall and disrupting the courtroom. In full view of the court and audience, Jen transforms into She-Hulk and defeats Titania with ease. The episode ends just as Jen is about to deliver her closing arguments.
Episode one of She-Hulk: Lawyer brings a new kind of charm to the current MCU slate. While this first installment didn’t turn out to be lackluster, it came across as a little less ambitious than other recent Marvel projects and is much easier to pull off, which is very refreshing. Although the main plot of the episode is wrapped up nicely at the end, there are still some unanswered questions: why did this alien ship interfere with Jen and Bruce? Why did Titania interrupt the trial? What were Jen’s closing arguments? Maybe episode two will bring us some solace and these remaining questions will come to an end.
You can stream She-Hulk: Lawyer now on Disney+
