Six months ago, prior to New York Comic Con, things were looking bleak for Marvel’s roster of solo female titles. ‘Red She-Hulk’, ‘Journey Into Mystery’, and ‘Captain Marvel’ were all coming to an end. But then huge announcements were made as a new volume of ‘Captain Marvel’ and new solo books like ‘Black Widow’ and ‘Ms. Marvel’ were on the way. While all three of those new comics are great, one of my favorite new books from the All-New Marvel NOW line is ‘She-Hulk’ from writer Charles Soule and Javier Pulido.
After spending some time with the FF, Jennifer Walters is heading into business for herself in her brand new solo series that finds the Incredible Hulk’s sensational cousin kicking butt inside and out of the courtroom. In the first three issues, She-Hulk has established her own practice, hired a couple of employees (including her friend Hellcat), and found her first client: Kristoff Vernard, the son of Doctor Doom who is looking to defect to the United States rather than to unwillingly take the throne of Latveria. Ms. Walters certainly has her hands full in one of the most entertaining and visually exciting comics available right now.
The first thing that I found enjoyable about the third issue of ‘She-Hulk’ is the interesting panel layouts. Not many comics on my pull list utilize a two-page layout for a good amount of an issue. It was a cool storytelling choice from the writer and the artist that opened up a lot of opportunities for really cool looking pages from Pulido, whose style fits perfectly with this series and She-Hulk’s Amazonian stature. I’m a big fan of the cartoony look of the book, especially the facial expressions when the characters are in shock.
The next thing that I loved about this issue, and really the series as a whole so far, is the writing. There’s a really great balance of comedy, lawyer talk, and superhero banter. At first glance, one might make the comparison of this series with Matt Fraction’s ‘Hawkeye’. ‘She-Hulk’ even features an artist who recently lent his skills to Team Hawkguy. The book takes a fan favorite hero and shows off what she does when she isn’t an Avenger (or Defender or whatever team she’s on this month). However, it very much steps into it’s own and distinguishes itself apart from everything else out there thanks to it’s witty dialogue and interesting stories. This book is the best thing that Soule is writing for Marvel right now.
When it comes to ‘She-Hulk’, the bottom line is that it’s just a really fun comic book. If I had to describe what this series is comparable to, I would say that it’s a great amalgam of ‘Archie’, ‘Hawkeye’, and ‘Hulk’. It’s probably one of my favorites on my pull list at the moment and you should be picking it up if you’re not already.
Final Score:
SHE-HULK #3
Written by Charles Soule
Art by Javier Pulido & Muntsa Vicente
Cover by Kevin Wada
