Robot heads, dangerous blood, and…Bing Bong?
All these references in the first episode of "She-Hulk" mean something big.
Viewers who are otherwise unfamiliar with She-Hulk may be surprised when Jennifer Walters
looks directly at the camera and says,
"It's true, I am a Hulk."
Longtime Marvel Comics fans, however, will happily recognize She-Hulk breaking the fourth
wall to acknowledge she's a fictional character.
As head writer Jessica Gao revealed to Total Film, the fourth wall-demolishing series "Fleabag"
is a major influence on "She-Hulk: Attorney at Law."
But Jennifer Walters has been having metafictional adventures since John Byrne's "Sensational
She-Hulk" #1 hit the stands in 1989.
Gao told Variety that Jennifer's rule-breaking irreverence is rooted in Byrne's reinvention
of the character.
The episode's opening scene sets the tone for the series with even more comic book references.
Nikki Ramos, Jennifer's paralegal and best friend, suggests she show a savage look, a
nod to Jennifer's very first Marvel Comics series, "Savage She-Hulk."
Jennifer's rehearsed closing argument for an upcoming case also includes the phrase,
"Those with the most power have the most to answer for."
That sounds quite similar to Spider-Man's motto,
"With great power…"
"...comes great responsibility."
A flashback reveals She-Hulk's harrowing origin.
While on vacation, Jennifer and her cousin Bruce Banner encounter a spaceship from the
planet Sakaar — where Hulk found fame as a gladiator in "Thor: Ragnarok" — which
forces their car off a cliff.
Jennifer pulls Bruce from the wreckage, inadvertently mixing his blood with hers and triggering
her first transformation into She-Hulk.
This scene is a dramatic update of She-Hulk's origin as first depicted in 1980's "Savage
She-Hulk" #1.
There, Bruce gives Jennifer an emergency blood transfusion after she's shot by a mobster.
The danger of anyone potentially coming into contact with Bruce's blood is established
in 2008's "The Incredible Hulk," in which Bruce is hiding in Brazil and working in a
bottling factory.
Blood from his cut finger contaminates a bottle of soda, which then gives an elderly man,
played by Stan Lee, gamma sickness.
So Jennifer's inadvertent blood transfusion is a callback to a significant moment in Bruce's
early history and a modernization of her classic comic book origin.
This time, Jennifer becomes She-Hulk because she risks her life to save Bruce, giving her
more agency and control over her story.
After her first night as She-Hulk, Jennifer wakes up in an isolated beach house in Mexico
where Bruce has taken her to recover.
Walking around the house, she sees a battered gray and gold head belonging to an Iron Legion droid.
Developed by Tony Stark, the Iron Legion appears in 2015's "Avengers: Age of Ultron" as a peacekeeping
force that aids the Avengers on an early mission to Sokovia.
After Tony and Bruce design the advanced A.I. system Ultron, it gains self-awareness and
activates inside an Iron Legion droid.
Ultron leads the rest of the automated army to attack the unprepared Avengers.
In the basement laboratory of the Mexico beach house, Bruce explains to Jennifer that the
house was a gift from the now-deceased Tony Stark, and that they spent time here in the
years following the Blip.
Tony's influence is visible throughout the house, especially in the Stark tech used in
the lab and the initials he carved into the bar.
"Tony mostly drank.
Sat around, complaining about Steve."
"Oh, Steve."
The Iron Legion helmet is a bittersweet reminder of the two Avengers' combined hopes and failures.
"She-Hulk: Attorney at Law" is adept at dropping pop culture references, including nods to
other Disney properties.
In the premiere, Smart Hulk explains that Jennifer's transformations are triggered by
intense emotion.
In an effort to gauge her transformational threshold, he traps her in a booth with buzzing sawblades.
But Jennifer has a better idea:
"Put on a Pixar movie.
When Bing Bong jumps out of the wagon in 'Inside Out.'"
"No!
Oh!
Bing Bong!"
Pixar likely needs no introduction.
The animation studio has produced some of the most widely beloved and tear-jerking family
films of the last three decades.
This is a sly bit of corporate synergy — Pixar and Marvel are both owned by Disney — but
it also means much more.
"Inside Out," specifically, stars Riley, a young girl struggling with a move.
She's steered through life by the personified emotions of joy, sadness, disgust, fear, and anger.
One of the movie's biggest themes is the danger of allowing one emotion to dominate the others
— something of particular relevance to the Hulks, whose transformations are triggered
by fear and anger.
The scene with Bing Bong, Riley's imaginary friend, that Jennifer mentions symbolizes
the loss of childhood innocence.
Like Riley, Jennifer is adjusting to a significant change in her life — but where She-Hulk
is concerned, the growing pains are very literal.
The first episode of "She Hulk" features a confrontation between cousins Jennifer and
Bruce guaranteed to leave Marvel fans smiling.
Not only does the audience get to see the two jade giants square off for the first time,
Bruce unleashes a classic Hulk move that hasn't been seen on-screen since 2008's "The Incredible Hulk."
"For the record, I really didn't want to do this."
At this point, Bruce slaps his palms together, creating a blast of wind powerful enough to
send her flying.
This is Hulk's famous thunderclap attack, first used to devastating effect in 1962's
"Incredible Hulk" #4.
It creates a shockwave powerful enough to strike down enemies, level cities, and even,
in 2011's "Incredible Hulks" #634, put the formidable dragon Fin Fang Foom out to pasture.
But the thunderclap can save people, too.
In the movie "The Incredible Hulk," he claps to extinguish the flames engulfing a downed
helicopter, saving Betty Ross and Thunderbolt Ross.
After picking herself up, She-Hulk tries her hand at the thunderclap, with less-than-perfect
results. She soon gets the hang of it, allowing her to show Bruce what his signature move feels
like on the receiving end.