Who Is Marvel’s She-Hulk? Here’s Everything We Know From the Comics
It's not easy being green.
On May 17th, 2022, Marvel gave us the first taste of Tatiana Maslany’s Jennifer Waters with the official She-Hulk: Attorney At Law trailer. She-Hulk is another Disney+ Marvel TV series set to hit the platform in August. Like most of Marvel’s other TV series, it will bring back some familiar faces from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), as well. In addition to Maslany portraying Walters (a.k.a. She-Hulk), Mark Ruffalo, Benedict Wong, and Tim Roth will be reprising their roles as Bruce Banner, Wong, and Abomination, respectively.
Still, the one character we were the most excited to see is She-Hulk herself. As seen in the trailer, Walters isn’t the typical superhero, nor does she want to be. Instead, she’s enjoying her life as a single attorney in her 30s. However, her career, relationships, and life are complicated by the fact that she shares the same condition as Banner—the ability to transform into the Hulk. Her variation of the Hulk isn’t as extreme as Banner’s, with her transforming into a 6-foot-7 green Hulk with enhanced strength. And she still seems to retain her personality, even when transformed physically into She-Hulk.
Fortunately, Walters isn’t alone and has the guidance of her cousin, Banner, to help her navigate her Hulk identity. Walters certainly has a lot on her plate with being a Hulk, a lawyer for superhumans, and coming to terms with her superhero identity. As we prepare for her adventure, here’s everything you need to know about Walters.
Who is Marvel’s She-Hulk?
Like Banner, Walters didn’t ask for her powers—they came unexpectedly. She was Banner’s young, smart, and unassuming cousin who lost her mother at the age of 17. Then, while working as a lawyer in Los Angeles, Walters was shot by operatives of crime boss, Nicholas Trask, and seriously injured. The crime boss was seeking vengeance after having previously crossed paths with Walter’s father.
On that same day, Banner had been visiting Walters to tell her he had become the Hulk after being hit with gamma rays. As the only family member around at the time, he provided his own blood for a life-saving blood transfusion for Walters—leading to her gaining some of his abilities. However, since she received her powers from a blood transfusion (rather than from direct exposure to gamma rays), her powers are reduced. This is why her size and appearance are more humanoid than the Hulk. However, she’s still super strong. Her powers get stronger the more emotional she is, and when emotions are high, she is easily one of the strongest women in the Marvel universe.
Her first-time transformation into She-Hulk is when the mobsters come back to try to finish her off. Fueled by anger, she transforms into She-Hulk and quite easily takes down the mobsters, as well as Trask himself. Initially, like Banner, her transformation is difficult to control and occurs unexpectedly as the result of anger. In the MCU, we see Banner’s inability of control quite clearly as he frequently struggles to either turn into, or out of, the Hulk. However, She-Hulk’s powers actually take a surprising turn from Banner’s in the area of control.
She-Hulk or Jennifer Walters?
As will likely be explored in She-Hulk, Walters slowly learns to come to terms with her She-Hulk identity and learns to control her transformation. Once in control, she even decides to remain as the She-Hulk permanently, thus, embracing her true identity. When accepting a position as a lawyer in the Superhuman Law division, though, she had to agree to work as Walters, rather than She-Hulk. This led to her finally finding a real balance in her identity and accepting herself as both Walters and She-Hulk.
This balance for Walters wasn’t always easy, as she did sometimes have to choose between being the world’s superhero, or the world’s best lawyer. She wielded immense power in both of her identities and worked as a force of good. As a lawyer, she represented individuals such as Michael Morbius, Maise Brewn, and Speedball. One time, she even defended Captain America against Marvel’s other top lawyer – Matt Murdock—and she won. As a lawyer, she is fully devoted to justice and frequently fights for the rights of minorities, the mentally ill, and superhumans.
As a superhero, She-Hulk fought valiantly and was, at various times, a member of the Avengers, Defenders, Fantastic Force, Fantastic Four, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Sadly, there were several instances in which she was mind-controlled into causing immense damage or had her powers taken away. In these instances, she would go back to lawyering full time, but she’d always eventually return as She-Hulk. Hopefully, the MCU’s She-Hulk will find a similar balance to her comic counterpart in both embracing her identity as a powerful superhero and as a top-notch lawyer.
(featured image: Marvel)
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