‘She-Hulk’ Episode 1 Recap: Marvel Easter Eggs and Post-Credits Scene

She-Hulk: Lawyer at Law The latest to hit Disney Plus is the Marvel TV series. It’s also the most widely comedic entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as aspiring lawyer Jane Walters transforms into a superstrong Green Giant to fight off bad guys (and sexism).

in me She-Hulk Review for CNET, I marveled at the show’s brutally smart streak, but I couldn’t help feeling that “it doesn’t have a proper legal drama, the thrilling action of a sci-fi show, or even the heart of other Marvel shows.” lacks a tasty trick.” Now that episode 1 is streaming on Disney Plus, what are your first impressions?

Here’s our recap of the series’ premiere episode and post-credits scenes, themes and Easter eggs, mystery spaceships, and exploration of Captain America’s love life. Episode 2 airs on August 25 and every Thursday (Watch full here she-hulk episode release date scheduleToo many spoilers to follow!

Show lawyer!

The series stars Tatiana Maslany, previously seen in the award-winning sci-fi show orphan black, HBO’s Perry Mason and Broadway Show Network. She begins the show by giving a speech about how even those who benefit from power bear a certain responsibility. Hmm, I’m sure that’s a shorthand way of saying it…

Delivered directly to the audience as the camera zooms out past law books and the Ruth Bader Ginsberg bobblehead, the speech is clearly intended to present the show’s manifesto, adding to Spider-Man’s famous adage, ” With great power comes great responsibility.” Whether this mission statement will be fulfilled in the series remains to be seen. To be honest, Jane Walters is an attorney practicing closing arguments for a court case, and that’s not a high bar for honesty. Does she really believe in this stuff? I hope so, because he is a hero.

Jane again addresses the camera at the end of the scene, setting up the first fourth wall breakdown of the show’s signature as she speaks directly to the audience. Chronologically, the first Fourth Wall break actually comes later in the episode and earns a double-take from both Bruce and Jane, a response that is pure fleabag. Perhaps there’s more to audience chat than simple one-liners?

She-Hulk’s Origin Story

We meet Jane for the first time when she already She-Hulk and then flash back to the moment he got the powers. This prevents us from spending much time with Jane before the powers-that-be. Yes, Cheetos with chopsticks and his Steve Rogers theory are fun, but what do these cute details tell us about our main character? If we have no idea who she was before, it’s hard to understand how the advent of superpowers rocked her world. For example, Jane later called the Avengers “the secret government contractor squad”. Imagine if she was a staunch anti-superhero before she gained power. What a plight that would be!

Anyway, we’re on a road trip with Cousin Bruce, aka Bruce Banner, aka The Incredible Hulk. His hand is in a sling since donning the Infinity Gauntlet in Avengers: Endgame and disfiguring his hand in the process of undoing Thanos’ finger snap. Banner was seen wearing a sling in a post-credits scene Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which came out a million years ago — wait, it was less than a year ago? Lie!

Anyway, it’s time for She-Hulk’s origin story, the event that irrevocably changes his life, the moment that will forever dominate his story, when the themes contained within the character are expressed in a pivotal exercise. goes, and – yes, a spaceship crashes the car, and Jane gets some brusque blood on it.

Wait, isn’t it? Is that the original story? uh, ok.

When an injured and battered Jane breaks into the sports bar’s bathroom, a group of partying ladies are shocked by her state. But they immediately come to her aid in what seems like the sweetest and truest moment of the premiere episode. Jane then crawls to the Hulks at some closing time, but Bruce can go to all the promising young women before him.

Where did the spacecraft come from?

Weird things happen to you when you’re the Hulk.” This includes traffic being cut off by a vehicle that’s definitely not designed for the highway. The spacecraft that caused the Hulk’s fender-bender was a Sakaran Class A courier craft , meaning the realm came from the planet where Banner and Thor acted as gladiators for Jeff Goldblum’s Grandmaster in the film. Thor: Ragnarok, But what message could it carry, and who could try to reach the Hulk who was once the champion of that strange planet’s territory?

She-Hulk Smash (Patriarchy)

Jane wakes up in a mariachi-themed cabana/bunker decorated with a broken Iron Man helmet. It is revealed that when Bruce inflicted the Hulk-ness on Jane, he instead healed her gauntlet-dry hand. This hardly seems appropriate, but then this would not be the first relationship where the woman gives more than the man. I’m not reaching there for the subtext, by the way: During the training montage in which we learn more about Jane’s abilities, the themes of the series crystallize as well.

The series has a lot to say about being a woman, and a woman in particular, in the public eye. The power fantasy of the superhero genre is often said to fascinate children because it is about becoming bigger and stronger and claiming control of the world. The Hulk’s story intricately complicates this fantasy by explicitly combining physical strength and violence with fear, anger, and pain. By placing Bruce next to Jane, She-Hulk makes this latent fiery power an explicitly male thing and compares it to the female experience.

Bruce tells Jane that the Hulk starts out with anger and fear. Jane responds is the baseline for everyday feelings for any woman. The episode is also called “A Normal Amount of Rage”. Boom — he is The true origin story of She-Hulk.

“When people start seeing you as a monster,” even Bruce warns Jane, “that never goes away.” Watching the series see a woman reluctantly pushed into fame, this line resonates with many women who have been viciously treated for daring to live their lives in the public eye. Women like Britney Spears, Monica Lewinsky and Pamela Anderson They were branded and stigmatized for their behavior – often through bizarre double standards – but in recent years they have been justified.

i always get angry

Remember when Mark Ruffalo first played the Hulk in The Avengers? One of the moments that sealed this perfect casting was when he revealed his sad secret: that he was always angry.

And yet, have we really seen Ruffalo’s banner performance worse than the rumored gloom? It’s interesting to see if the arrival of a fellow Hulk brings up the conflict in Banner. We catch a glimpse of it when Bruce hits Jane with a rock in a fit of jealousy, but I guess it should be funny (probably back to the “Punny God” gag when swatting Loki in “The Avengers”). calling).

The argument between Jane and Bruce is basically the creation of the inevitable fight scene. Anyway, I’m sure the conflict in Ruffalo’s banner will develop into later episodes. For an uncontrollable rage monster, Bruce Banner has been great for far too long.

court in session

And so we’re back to testing. Before Jane can make her argument, Jameela Jameel bumps into a wall. She plays Titania, a superpowered influencer who originally appeared in the comics as a willowy woman given to Doctor Doom during the Secret Wars storyline.

If the TV version follows a similar origin, that makes Titania an interesting mirror to She-Hulk as a normal woman who is bestowed with great power.

Reluctantly, Jane Hulks goes out in public for the first time and stops Titania. Hopefully, he doesn’t come back to bite her in spandex.

Captain America f–!

A scene after the credits of Episode 1 sees Jane suppressing her theory about Captain America’s sex life. She’s only pretending to be drunk, because the major advantage of Hulkdom is that the brewery is all buzzing and there’s no ice. Anyway, Bruce confirms that Steve Rogers lost his virginity to a girl on the USO tour in 1943. Star Spangled Man With A Plan Actually! A pretty blonde autograph hunter catches Steve’s eye at 2:30 in this song from the 2011 film The First Avenger—maybe she was the lucky lady:

she-hulk random thoughts

• Hulks are created by lethal doses of gamma radiation, but only when a rare combination of genetic factors synthesizes the gamma radiation into “something else”.
• When Jane breaks Bruce’s glasses, it seems pretty obvious that he’s wearing them just to show that he’s the smart Hulk.
• Maybe it’s just me, but does it ever look for a second like they’re actually in Mexico? Or even outside?
• Nice bit of Disney cross-brand synergy with the mention of Pixar. Jen calls the moment Bing Bong jumps off the wagon at Inside Out and oh great now I’m crying.
• Spandex is the Hulk’s best friend.