Volume 35: She-Hulk: Single Green Female

She-Hulk: Single Green Female

Author: Dan Slott  |  Illustrators: Juan Bobillo / Paul Pelletier

"Your bed should come with air bags."

"Sorry, sweetie. Little involuntary muscle spasm."

SGF was my first, and to date only, She-Hulk book. It was less of a traditional superhero story and more of a self-discovery comedy, which is not at all what I expected. Based on the cover art I feared it was going to be just Hulk with tits, a prospect I was not at all excited by. (I'm not dissing Hulk, btw, but unimaginative gender swaps.)

But Shulkie isn't like her cousin Bruce Banner/Hulk at all. She can transform at will and afterwards keeps all her faculties intact; a situation that gives the writers much more leeway.

She uses her brain as much as her brawn to solve problems and defeat foes. It's nice to see a female character that isn't defined simply by her impossible cleavage and scant attire. Her sex appeal is still a factor, but it's addressed in a comical way.

Her human side is Jennifer Walters, a practising lawyer. Jennifer's a petite girl with a well-developed inferiority complex. When called upon by a prominent law firm to work for them she assumes it's the brawny She-Hulk they want, because it's always She-Hulk they want, never the brainy Jennifer.

There are some fun cameos from the Avengers. In fact, fun is what the book is all about. It recognises the absurdity that's a large part of the Marvel Universe and plays around with it. There's a progression arc that ties it all together, but mostly each story is self-contained.

The artwork is occasionally inconsistent, and I don't just mean the changeover from Juan Bobillo to Paul Pelletier. It's distracting but it doesn't interfere with the storytelling, and, to be fair, both artists provide some fantastic facial expressions.

It's not a AAA title and it won't send huge continuity ripples through the larger universe, but it's an entertaining read from beginning to end and a nice change of pace from the usual Marvel fare.

The book collects together She-Hulk (2004 series) #1–6.

Verdict: