She-Hulk: Attorney at Law's second episode has established the main idea of the series after the first episode cleared up Jen's backstory.
Jen gets hired by a separate firm to run a new branch devoted to defending superhumans in court after she was fired from hers for hulking out during a trial. The second episode, "Superhuman Law," settles into full-blown sitcom mode with jokes about pointless listicles, The Silence of the Lambs, and Jen's parents using her newfound superhuman strength to help with household chores. In contrast to the pilot, which was essentially a half-hour flashback bookended with brief legal work.
The overused, hilarious superhero name gag is not used in this episode. Jen doesn't engage in a lengthy, pointless discussion about how ridiculous the term is after being nicknamed the She-Hulk by media sources. Maslany says it all while sighing and giving the camera an angry look as she hears patrons at the bar shouting the name "She-Hulk."
She-Hulk will have several MCU cameos that will give serious figures like Matt Murdock a humorous makeover to fit the humour of the show, as promised to fans. Tim Roth returns as Emil Blonsky, the antagonist from The Incredible Hulk, who is held captive in a cutting-edge maximum-security facility, in "Superhuman Law."
Blonsky was a detestable opponent in his previous appearance, but he now claims to have changed and asks Jen for help setting up parole. Roth has a lot of fun playing a sillier version of Blonsky who has turned to spiritualism and is trying to make right with his former adversaries.
Compared to the heavily CGI-reliant first episode, the second episode's director Kat Coiro adds more visual flair. A fantastic montage shows Jen being turned down for job after job while the background changes continuously in front of her. The backdrops get darker and more washed-out as the rejections mount and Jen looks more and more defeated. This is how to use bluescreens artistically and not as a crutch, note to other MCU filmmakers.
The use of the fourth wall breaks is interesting. There is a meta-reference to the Hulk recasting this week. The Incredible Hulk's actions, according to Bruce, happened so long ago that "I'm an entirely different guy now, literally." Jen squints at the spectators and exclaims, "Hah." The MCU hasn't addressed Edward Norton's transformation into Mark Ruffalo in ten years. Finally, a small detail in the MCU has been addressed. As fans have wondered for many years why there was a recast and it was never mentioned. Especially, now all the different Spiderman’s have been incorporated into the MCU universe.
Jen addresses the camera while speaking to herself. Jen will let us know if she is feeling nervous, insecure, or frustrated about something. She confides in the audience that she will be wondering about what she just said for the rest of the year after saying something embarrassing to her new boss. This sets Jen's fourth wall breaks apart from Deadpool's and greatly contributes to the fact that she is so likeable and appealing.
Compared to last week's origin story, this episode moves forward much more quickly because of its linear story structure. The Abomination breaking out of prison and participating in an underground fight club are just two of the humorous conflicts that can be found in Jessica Gao's script as it swings from story point to plot point.
Jen's new boss also made alienating the Hulk form a necessity for her job (as seen in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings). She-Hulk is constantly moving, whether it's through storytelling in the scene cuts between scenes or workplace walk-and-talks.
There is no filler in these half-hour episodes, in contrast to some of the dragged-out episodes of Marvel's hour-long dramas. Every time a scene doesn't actively advance the plot, it's because a joke is being used in its place. Marvel fans will enjoy the show if it keeps up its momentum over the next seven weeks.
Performance | 3.9/5 |
Enjoyment | 4/5 |
Overall Rating | 4/5 |