We have crossed the halfway point with She-Hulk: Attorney at Law as it continues its weekly episodic release on Disney Plus.
The series has followed Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany) as she continues to adjust to her new Hulk powers thanks to her cousin Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo). This show embraces the sitcom format as it adheres to 30-minute episodes and a comedic tone.
So far, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the fresh approach to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the first four episodes thrived in their lighter formats. Does the fifth episode live up to its predecessors?
Warning: The review may contain light spoilers if you haven’t seen the first four episodes. Be sure to check out our reviews for the first and second episodes as well as the third and fourth.
Synopsis
Jennifer finds herself on the defending side of the law as Titania (Jameela Jamil) sues her for copyright infringement on the name “She-Hulk.” Titania, who was recently released from jail after a run-in with She-Hulk in the first and second episodes, is using the name to sell her shoddy beauty products.
Jennifer reluctantly enlists the help of fellow GLK&H superhuman division attorney Mallory Book (Renée Elise Goldsberry) to defend her in court. Book thrives in the role and crafts a solid defense for Walters.
While Walters is wrapped up in the lawsuit, her friends and coworkers Nikki Ramos (Ginger Gonzaga) and Augustus “Pug” Pugliese set out to find the perfect outfit for Walters that will service both her Hulk and human forms.
Their search brings them to designer Luke Jacobson (Griffin Matthews) who initially doesn’t want to work with Walters but changes his mind. The episode ends with an easter egg to a long-awaited arrival.
Breakdown
This episode was the weakest of the run so far, in my opinion. I don’t think it did anything bad, per se, but it just didn’t connect with me like previous episodes.
My main complaint is it felt like nothing really happened. Granted, sitcoms can feel that way as there can be little to no story progression outside of a short arc, but I didn’t feel like we went anywhere.
We got the return of Titania, which felt like an afterthought after her initial debut. Jamil plays the role well and very similar to her character Tahani from The Good Place. I doubt we’ve seen the last of her.
The shining part of this episode was Goldsberry’s Mallory Book. We saw her briefly in the third episode but she really shined in this episode.
Goldsberry has drawn fame as she played the role of Angelica Schuyler in the hit Broadway play Hamilton. She brings all the confidence and swagger to this role and really stands out in the episode.
One of the fun parts of seeing street-level heroes is the impact the larger heroes have on the world. Pug was on a mission to find the Iron Man Threes shoes through his “drip broker” Alonzo. We later see him posing with a replica of Captain America’s shield and Thor’s hammer.
It will always be funny to me when She-Hulk shows grown men fanboying over super heroes. It’s one of the many reasons street-level heroes are some of my favorites. We get to see the impact the heroes have on everyday citizens.
Verdict (3 out of 5 stars
She-Hulk has yet to have a bad episode, in my opinion, but this one was definitely its weakest.
It showcased some great characters and offered a fantastic tease to future characters to arrive. The overall episode, however, felt stagnant and didn’t progress the plot too much.
I’m hoping this episode is the calm before the storm as it definitely inclined my eye to future episodes, especially to a personal favorite character of mine.
Furthermore, the comedy felt a bit flat and that is what has carried past episodes so well. By no means was this awful, but when you compare it to its predecessors, it fell a bit short.
Featured Image: Marvel (via Collider)
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