She-Hulk: Attorney at Law

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law
File:She-Hulk Attorney at Law logo.jpg
Genre	Action-adventure Comedy Legal drama Science fiction Superhero
Created by	Jessica Gao
Based on	Marvel Comics
Starring	Tatiana Maslany Jameela Jamil Ginger Gonzaga Mark Ruffalo Josh Segarra Mark Linn-Baker Tess Malis Kincaid Tim Roth Jon Bass Renée Elise Goldsberry Benedict Wong Charlie Cox
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of episodes	2
Production
Executive producer(s)	Kevin Feige Louis D'Esposito Victoria Alonso Brad Winderbaum Kat Coiro Jessica Gao
Producer(s)	Melissa Hunter
Production location(s)	Atlanta Los Angeles
Cinematography	Florian Ballhaus Doug Chamberlain
Editor(s)	Jamie Gross Stacey Schroeder Zene Baker Tim Roche
Running time	30–38 minutes
Production company(s)	Marvel Studios
Distributor	Disney Platform Distribution
Release
Original network	Disney+
Original release	August 18, 2022 (2022-08-18) – present (present)
Chronology
Related shows	Marvel Cinematic Universe television series
External links
[{{#property:P856}} Website]

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is an American television series created by Jessica Gao for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics featuring the character She-Hulk. It is the eighth television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It follows Jennifer Walters, a lawyer specializing in cases involving superhumans, who also becomes the green superhero She-Hulk. Gao serves as head writer with Kat Coiro leading the directing team.

Tatiana Maslany stars as Jennifer Walters / She-Hulk, alongside Jameela Jamil, Ginger Gonzaga, Mark Ruffalo, Josh Segarra, Mark Linn-Baker, Tess Malis Kincaid, Tim Roth, Jon Bass, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Benedict Wong, and Charlie Cox. She-Hulk was announced in August 2019, with Gao hired in November. Coiro joined to direct multiple episodes in September 2020, and Maslany was cast. By December, Roth and Ruffalo had joined the cast and Anu Valia was also set to direct. Filming began in mid-April 2021 in Los Angeles and Atlanta, Georgia, and lasted until mid-August. The subtitle for the series was added by May 2022.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law premiered on August 18, 2022, and will consist of nine episodes, concluding on October 13. It is the last television series of Phase Four in the MCU. The series received generally positive reviews, with particular praise for Maslany's performance and the lighthearted tone, though reception to the series' visual effects was mixed.

Premise

Jennifer Walters has a complicated life as a single attorney in her 30s who also becomes the 6-foot-7-inch (2.01-meter) green superhero She-Hulk.

Cast and characters

• Tatiana Maslany as Jennifer Walters / She-Hulk:
  A lawyer for the firm Goodman, Lieber, Kurtzberg & Holliway (GLK&H) who specializes in cases involving superhumans and becomes a large 6-foot-7-inch (2.01-meter), powerful, green-hued version of herself, similar to her cousin Bruce Banner, after getting accidentally cross-contaminated with his blood. Maslany called the character "the antithesis of most superhero narratives" since Walters does not want her abilities. She continued that Walters has a "great element of denial in her that's relatable", and Maslany tried to reject the changes in the character for as long as she could to create a "fun tension" between Walters and She-Hulk. Maslany was also inspired by the music of Sophie, which she described as a combination of "organic and electrical, industrial-type sounds that felt connected to She-Hulk". She also liked the duality of a "woman occupying two different bodies", especially since modern-day culture has an obsession with a woman's body and felt the commentary from the series was "very prescient" and "rife with interesting nuance". The character Elaine Benes from Seinfeld served as a "touchstone" for Maslany. Head writer Jessica Gao wanted to create a character that had a "well-rounded life" that then has to deal with the unexpected addition of super powers to her life, exploring her emotional and mental response. 6-foot-7-inch (2.01-meter) Maliah Arrayah served as the on-set reference and body double for She-Hulk. Director Kat Coiro and Maslany were able to learn how Arrayah "moved through the world" at her height as well as the struggles she faced.
• Jameela Jamil as Titania:
  A social media influencer with incredible strength who is obsessed with She-Hulk, ultimately becoming her rival. Gao wanted to modernize the character and give her "a little more complexity", gravitating towards being interested in social media and maintaining her brand. Jamil described the character as annoying and weird, stating that she "almost doesn't need to use her strength; she could just annoy you to death". She added that the character is "all narcissism and ego" who believes herself to be the strongest woman in the world before being publicly humiliated by She-Hulk, which makes Titania hold a grudge against She-Hulk. Titania is not featured prominently in the early episodes of the series because the writers "wanted to seed her in there" as a way to "preserve" from the comics how she is "this gnat that was always buzzing around She-Hulk" to take her down and never trying to attempt outright destruction. Jamil trained in jiu-jitsu, kickboxing, and kung fu for the part.
• Ginger Gonzaga as Nikki Ramos:
  A paralegal and Walters' best friend. She helps Walters "let loose and color outside the lines", with Maslany noting Ramos "reminds her that there is a life outside of her job" and that She-Hulk can be "embrace[d]" and "part of her identity as well". Gonzaga said Ramos has a "sardonic personality" and does not aspire to be an attorney since she enjoys being a rule breaker.
• Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner / Smart Hulk:
  An Avenger, genius scientist, and Walters' cousin who, because of exposure to gamma radiation, typically transforms into a monster when enraged or agitated, but has since managed to balance his two sides with gamma experimentation, enabling him to combine his intelligence with the Hulk's strength and physical stature. Living off the grid in Mexico, Banner decides to train Walters to become a superhero, starting from "a predisposed idea that her experience is going to be exactly the same as his", ultimately realizing that her experience is different "physically, literally, and mentally because of how they have operated differently in the world as men and women". Coiro enjoyed seeing Banner "get completely thrown off his game" in teaching Walters and realizing she is able to also teach him, with Ruffalo adding Banner is excited to have another person now who can relate to being a Hulk.
• Josh Segarra as Augustus "Pug" Pugliese:
  A member of the legal team at GLK&H, who works with Walters and Ramos. Segarra said that Pugliese cares for his co-workers since they "make him part of their family", and is supportive of Walters when she is She-Hulk or not.
• Mark Linn-Baker as Morris Walters: Walters' father and Banner's uncle.
• Tess Malis Kincaid as Elaine Walters: Walters’ mother and Banner’s aunt.
• Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky / Abomination:
  A Russian-born former officer in the United Kingdom's Royal Marines Commandos who had combined a modified version of the super soldier serum and gamma radiation to transform into a humanoid monster similar to the Hulk following experimental treatment. He is one of Walters' clients, who becomes the owner of a wellness retreat called "Abomaste" after reforming. Coiro described Blonsky as "very tricky character—he's not necessarily to be trusted and you get the feeling that he's a con artist". Because the character was taken in "a very different direction" from Roth's first portrayal in The Incredible Hulk (2008), he did not approach the role as a reprisal of the character but rather finding a new version to "play around in that".
• Jon Bass as Todd:
  A potential suitor for Walters who recently decided to try online dating. Bass described Todd as a "billionaire playboy philanthropist douchebag" who is looking to emulate Tony Stark "but comes off as Jon Bass", adding that Todd "is used to getting whatever he wants, but he's a total creep who starts popping up everywhere". Co-executive producer Wendy Jacobson said the character was social commentary on misogyny, cancel culture, and the "unfair views of women".
• Renée Elise Goldsberry as Mallory Book:
  A lawyer at GLK&H who is threatened by Walters becoming the new head of the superhuman law division. Goldsberry said that Book has a lot of pressure on her to achieve perfection, and after initially seeing Walters as a threat, Book finds "some value" in a relationship with her after seeing her humanity.
• Benedict Wong as Wong:
  The Sorcerer Supreme who previously encountered Blonsky. Gao enjoyed having Wong be "fun and be part of a silly thing where the universe isn't at stake" on the series compared to his past performances where he was more dramatic.
• Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock / Daredevil:
  A blind lawyer from Hell's Kitchen, New York who leads a double life as a masked vigilante. Maslany called Walters and Murdock best friends, while Coiro said the two "match each other's wits". Gao stated that they have a commonality in both being lawyers who are also superheroes. The writers initially believed they would not have been able to feature the character in the series, and were eventually told the studio was able to use the character with Cox returning to the role from Marvel Television's Netflix series. Featuring Murdock in the series allowed the writers to have the character "play in the tone" of the series and explore a "lighter side" to him from his darker portrayals previously.

Additionally, Drew Matthews portrays Dennis Bukowski, a lawyer with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office, Steve Coulter appears as Holden Holliway, a partner at GLK&H and Walters' boss, and Nicholas Cirillo portrays Ched, Walters' cousin. Brandon Stanley plays Eugene Patilio / Leap-Frog, an individual wearing a frog-themed costume, Patty Guggenheim appears as Madisynn, a drunken victim of magic who becomes a foil for Wong, Rhys Coiro appears as the magician Donny Blaze, while David Otunga plays one of Walters' dates. Anais Almonte, and Griffin Matthews have been cast in undisclosed roles. Also slated to appear in the series are Porcupine, a rogue weapons designer in a self-made battle suit that resembles a porcupine, and the Wrecking Crew, a group consisting of four criminals wielding enhanced construction tools as weapons. Megan Thee Stallion appears in an undisclosed role.

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
1	"A Normal Amount of Rage"	Kat Coiro	Jessica Gao	August 18, 2022 (2022-08-18)
Before a court case, lawyer Jennifer Walters tells the viewers about an incident a few months earlier where she and her cousin Bruce Banner were in a car crash. While attempting to get Banner to safety, Walters was cross-contaminated with his blood, causing her to transform into a Hulk. Banner took Walters to a secret laboratory in Mexico, where he trained her to control her new powers. She was able to effortlessly handle his training regimen, but she rejected the idea of becoming a superhero full-time. Banner tried to stop her from leaving, and the two fought until Banner reluctantly accepted Walters' wish to return to her legal career. Back in court, Walters is interrupted by superpowered influencer Titania, who violently bursts through a wall. Walters transforms, defeats her, and returns to normal to make her closing argument.
2	"Superhuman Law"	Kat Coiro	Jessica Gao	August 25, 2022 (2022-08-25)
Walters gains public notoriety after defeating Titania and is dubbed "She-Hulk". However, the case is declared a mistrial after the defense successfully argued that her fight with Titania influenced the jury, and she is fired from the district attorney's office. Unable to find other work, Walters is offered a position by opposing counsel Goodman, Lieber, Kurtzberg & Holliway (GLK&H) and impulsively accepts. On her first day, GLK&H partner Holden Holliway informs her that he wants her to head up their new Superhuman Law Division and work as She-Hulk full-time. Her first case is to represent Emil Blonsky / Abomination at his parole hearing. Though initially reluctant due to Blonsky's past attempt to kill Banner, Walters gets Banner's approval and she accepts the case. However, she soon learns that Blonsky escaped from prison and participated in an underground fight club.
3	TBA	Kat Coiro	Francesca Gailes & Jacqueline J. Gailes	September 1, 2022 (2022-09-01)
4	TBA	Kat Coiro	Melissa Hunter	September 8, 2022 (2022-09-08)
5	TBA	Anu Valia	Dana Schwartz	September 15, 2022 (2022-09-15)
6	TBA	Anu Valia	Kara Brown	September 22, 2022 (2022-09-22)
7	TBA	Anu Valia	Zeb Wells	September 29, 2022 (2022-09-29)
8	TBA	Kat Coiro	Cody Ziglar	October 6, 2022 (2022-10-06)
9	TBA	Kat Coiro	Jessica Gao	October 13, 2022 (2022-10-13)

Production

Development

By July 1989, the character Jennifer Walters / She-Hulk was expected to appear in the television film The Death of the Incredible Hulk (1990). The character ultimately did not appear, and a proposed television series featuring She-Hulk at ABC was canceled a year later. In 1991, a film based on the character entered development at New World Pictures with Larry Cohen serving as director, and Brigitte Nielsen set to play She-Hulk. Nielsen participated in a promotional photoshoot, but the film ultimately did not materialize.

In August 2019, Marvel Studios announced at the D23 conference that She-Hulk was being developed for the streaming service Disney+, to be set in their shared universe the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Shortly after, Jessica Gao was approached to pitch for the series. Gao had previously met with Marvel Studios to pitch for Captain Marvel (2019), Black Widow (2021), and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), which did not pan out, and had expressed her desire to be approached about a potential She-Hulk project each time. She was one of the first creatives to include the character in her pitches to the studio, doing so in her Black Widow one, which Marvel Studios executive Brad Winderbaum felt was more of a She-Hulk film featuring Black Widow. Gao believed her past pitches allowed her to build her relationship with Marvel Studios, so by the time she pitched for She-Hulk, Feige and the other executives knew the type of writer she was, her humor, and "the quirks and nuances" she put into her scripts. Her pitch for She-Hulk had included Bruce Banner and Emil Blonsky / Abomination, despite being unsure if they would be able to appear; her pitch also featured more of Blonsky's trial than what is shown in the series. Gao was hired to serve as the head writer in November 2019.

In September 2020, Kat Coiro was hired to direct the first and final episodes plus four others, and to executive produce the series, while Anu Valia had also joined as a director by December 2020. Valia said she was directing a few episodes of the series and described Coiro as the series' "visionary leader". Coiro ultimately directed six episodes, with Valia directing three. In May 2022, Marvel revealed the series would be titled She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. Banner has a line in the series, "She-Hulk attorney at law, it's got a nice ring to it". While working on the editing of the episodes, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige heard that line and felt it would be a "great title for a show" and that they should alter the series to it. The subtitle is briefly changed to Attorney for Hire in the second episode.

The series consists of nine 30-minute episodes, after originally being announced to be consisting of ten episodes; Feige had previously said these ten episodes would equal approximately six hours of content. Marvel Studios' Feige, Louis D'Esposito, Victoria Alonso, and Winderbaum serve as executive producers along with Coiro and Gao.

In February 2021, Feige stated that some of their series, including She-Hulk and Moon Knight (2022), were being developed with the potential to have additional seasons made, in contrast to series like WandaVision (2021) which were developed as limited events that lead into feature films instead. Coiro echoed this in August 2022, stating the series could get a second season, or the character could appear in films. Gao had an idea and premise for what a second season could entail, but focused on telling a complete story with the first season. She was hopeful some of these ideas and material cut from the first season would be able to appear in future projects.

Writing

Francesca Gailes, Jacqueline J. Gailes, Melissa Hunter, Dana Schwartz, Kara Brown, Zeb Wells, and Cody Ziglar serve as writers on the series, many of whom come from a sitcom background. Francesca Gailes also serves as story editor. By early May 2020, work on the series' scripts had ended. Feige described the series as a "half-hour legal comedy" that would be faithful to John Byrne's take on She-Hulk in Marvel Comics, with star Tatiana Maslany calling it "this really absurd take on a legal show". Gao added that She-Hulk: Attorney at Law was "threading a fine line" of being a sitcom while still existing within the MCU, likening it to the series Ally McBeal, though that series was not a major influence for the writers given many were not in the right age demographic to have experienced that series when it was originally airing. Gao said it was "tricky" balancing tone of the series between the comedic and meta elements with the expected action and drama being within the MCU. Other influences were Legally Blonde (2001) and the series Seinfeld and The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story. The series adapts a "case of the week" procedural format while still featuring some serialized elements that contribute to the season arc; Gao implemented this format due to her wanting the audience to enjoy each episode as a complete story.

The various comic series featuring the character from Stan Lee, Byrne, Dan Slott, and Charles Soule are referenced in Attorney at Law, with Gao "cherry-pick[ing]" various elements from each and "fus[ing] it all together so that it really felt simultaneously like a culmination, but also completely its own thing". Most of the series draws from the storyline of Slott's run with elements from Byrne's, with some elements from Slott's run including Walter's law firm Goodman, Lieber, Kurtzburg, & Holliway and their use of pre-existing comics as legal research material.

The series incorporates Jennifer Walters' self-awareness and meta nature from the comics. Coiro said there were "some big surprises" regarding the fourth-wall breaking, with Valia adding it was "very fun, very cool", and Maslany saying it was a good mechanism to "bring the audience in" to the story. Gao, Coiro, and the writers discussed how much of the meta nature should be featured, discussing options such as would she talk to the camera, directly to the audience, or another person "more behind the scenes", and if there was another meta element. Initially Walters was constantly breaking the fourth wall, which Marvel Studios felt was too much, resulting in the writers being asked to do a version with editors' notes, a tool used in the comics to clarify story elements, appearing for Walters to interact with. The editor's notes were ultimately scrapped for her just breaking the fourth wall, but not to the extent that was originally conceived. Gao's initial pitch for the series had included Fleabag and Better Call Saul as references for how to portray Walters breaking the fourth wall, with Maslany believing the Attorney at Law scripts drew from Fleabag's "irreverence and sense of humor".

The series takes a "high-concept, extraordinary idea" that becomes grounded in Walters' life, with Gao interested in exploring "that little slice of life" outside the normal huge scale and action of the MCU. Including Walters' family helped keep the series "intimate and centered on" her life, with Gao interested in exploring the family dynamic when a Hulk exists in that family and then a second one gets added to it. With the series also exploring dating for a modern woman, Maslany enjoyed how Walters' dating life "was just as much of a stress as potentially becoming one of the Avengers". Having a majority of women on the writing staff allowed them to take their different points of view to create a "well-rounded female perspective" in the series and discuss what it was like to be a woman, and what that meant if they became a public superhero. Gao explained that "a lot of commonalities and a lot of themes emerge[d]" that the writers were able to put into the series. Gao crafted a season arc for Walters' about accepting her new life as She-Hulk.

Attorney at Law is set "a relatively short amount of time" after Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings in the MCU. Gao avoided discussing the Blip given other films and series have "already covered that territory" and the events have been accepted and people of the MCU are moving on. The majority of episodes feature mid-credits scenes. They were derived from Gao's love of end credit scenes, not just within the MCU, since they reward audience's patience and are "like an extra special little treat". Additionally, it allowed the writers to include more jokes into the episodes.

Casting

Mark Ruffalo, who portrayed Bruce Banner / Hulk in the MCU films, said in November 2019 that he planned to meet with Feige about making an appearance in the series. In March 2020, Ruffalo confirmed that he was in talks to reprise his role in the series. That September, Deadline Hollywood reported that Tatiana Maslany had been cast in the lead role of Walters, but Maslany denied being cast and said the report was "a press release that's gotten out of hand" and "not actually a thing". The Hollywood Reporter reaffirmed Maslany's casting in November 2020, and Feige officially confirmed it the next month, along with Ruffalo's involvement and the casting of Tim Roth in the series. Ruffalo was reported to have a "small role" in the series. Roth reprises his role as Emil Blonsky / Abomination from The Incredible Hulk (2008). Maslany was initially hesitant to join large-scale or franchise projects given her desire to perform in ones "focused on character" and tended to "guarantee" collaboration. Deciding to audition to the role, Maslany enjoyed Gao's script and was excited by the challenge the role could bring to her and believed it would bring "a little bit of a shift" in her life. She later stated she "flat-out lied" about denying her casting as she was unsure what she was allowed to say.

In January 2021, Ginger Gonzaga was cast as Nikki Ramos, Walters' best friend, and Renée Elise Goldsberry was cast that April as Mallory Book. Jameela Jamil was cast in June 2021 as Titania, with Josh Segarra joining the following month as Augustus "Pug" Pugliese. In May 2022, Benedict Wong was revealed to be reprising his MCU role as Wong, while Jon Bass was revealed to be part of the cast as Todd.

Anais Almonte joined the cast by June 2021, while Nicholas Cirillo, David Otunga, and Griffin Matthews were revealed to be part of the cast in May 2022. That July, Drew Matthews was revealed to be playing Dennis Bukowski. The following month, Mark Linn-Baker was revealed to be playing Morris Walters, Brandon Stanley was revealed as Eugene Patilio / Leap-Frog, Patty Guggenheim was revealed as Madisynn, and Rhys Coiro, Kat's husband, was revealed as Donny Blaze. In August, Megan Thee Stallion was revealed to be cast in an undisclosed role.

Feige also teased appearances from other MCU characters given Walters' work as a lawyer for superheroes, with Maslany confirming there would be "some really fun characters" in the series that Walters was defending or going up against in court. Characters debut in the series from the comics that have yet to appear in the MCU. Charlie Cox was revealed to be appearing in the series in his MCU role of Matt Murdock / Daredevil in July 2022.

Design

Ann Foley served as the costume designer, after previously working on the Marvel Television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Daredevil's costume is similar to the red one he wore in Marvel's Netflix television series, but with an updated color scheme to include the yellow helmet and accents from the character's debut comics design in Daredevil #1. Marvel Studios had clear intentions as to what his costume would look like for the series. Gonzaga provided input into Ramos' wardrobe since she enjoys and knows fashion. She said that Ramos' wardrobe "can't be too crazy" given she works in an office, but was able to make it "cool and edgy". The series' end credits are in the style of courtroom sketches.

Filming

Filming began on April 10, 2021, in Los Angeles, and began on April 12 at Trilith Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, with Coiro and Valia directing episodes of the series, and Florian Ballhaus and Doug Chamberlain serving as cinematographers for Coiro and Valia, respectively. The series was filmed under the working titles Libra and Clover. Filming was previously expected to begin on July 6, 2020, but was postponed to March 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coiro worked to visually keep the comedy of the series balanced with the expected cinematic scope of the MCU, stating, "We obviously are exploring themes and we're exploring tone and we're exploring very everyday comedic moments, but we still need it to feel like it's part of the MCU." Roth initially found it difficult to return to the character but was able to approach the role with more humor after watching and beginning to work alongside Ruffalo. Jamil said she would be filming her scenes until the week of August 15, and filming for the series wrapped by that date.

Post-production

Visual effects for the series were created by Digital Domain, FuseFX, Soho VFX, Trixter, Wētā FX, and Wylie Co. Coiro discussed the digital character of She-Hulk, believing some of the initial negative reactions to it in the marketing was because "she is so different" than other digital characters, as she does not have the same "grisliness, harshness, [or] bulkiness" as characters like Thanos or Hulk do. She added that the creatives were focused on achieving detail in She-Hulk's facial expressions and her "nuances of reaction", and credited Alonso for her "incredible eye" in helping to design the character. As well, the creative team focused on strength over aesthetics, studying musculature and woman athletes rather than bodybuilders. Coiro explained, "So she doesn't have a bodybuilder's physique, but she absolutely has a very strong physique that can justify the actions that she does in the show. I think people expected a bodybuilder and for her to have these big, massive muscles but she looks more like Olympians."

Gao noted that, despite Feige encouraging her and the writers to feature She-Hulk as much as possible in the series, when it came time to start filming, it was requested that some of the scenes with She-Hulk be changed to ones with Walters. She added that "a lot of things... had to be changed at the last minute" because of this shift, and even while editing the episodes, a number of shots were cut that featured She-Hulk due to budget constraints.

Music

Amie Doherty was revealed to be composing the score for the series in July 2022. The series' main theme was released as an eponymous single by Marvel Music Hollywood Records on August 18.

Marketing

The first footage of the series debuted on Disney+ Day on November 12, 2021. The teaser ends with Walters saying to the audience, "Don't make me angry; you wouldn't like me when I'm angry" alongside Ruffalo as Banner, which is a homage to an episode of the 1970s live-action television series The Incredible Hulk in which Bill Bixby, who portrayed David Banner, says the line; Ruffalo was in a similar pose and costume as Bixby. Feige and Maslany debuted the trailer for the series on May 17, 2022, at Disney's upfront presentation. The trailer was criticized for its visual effects, with many fans online expressing their disappointment. Despite this, Charles Pulliam-Moore of The Verge called it "simply smashing" and highlighted the trailer's visual effects, adding that "the show's clearly going to be Jennifer's to own as she embarks on her own path to heroism". Zachariah Kelly of Gizmodo Australia felt the trailer "does not disappoint at all", calling the scene where She-Hulk cradles "her Tinder date like a baby... absolutely hilarious", and enjoyed having more context to the clips first seen in the Disney+ Day footage. Meanwhile, Richard Trenholm and Joan E. Solsman from CNET described the trailer as "hilarious" and wrote that it "sells the playful tone of the upcoming show". TechRadar's Stephen Lambrechts meanwhile opined that the trailer was faithful to comic book runs of the character, though he acknowledged criticism surrounding the use of visual effects. The trailer was viewed 78 million times in the 24 hours after it was released, which was the second most views for an MCU Disney+ trailer in a 24-hour time-frame, only behind The Falcon and the Winter Soldier's Super Bowl LV trailer.

The series was promoted at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con with Coiro, Valia, Gao, Maslany, Gonzaga, and Jamil alongside the release of the second trailer. Andrew Webster of The Verge felt the trailer had "more lighthearted tone than the first [one],... [with] some legal drama". Edidiong Mboho of Collider stated that the trailer set the "comedic tone mixed with the epic" of the series. Jacob Sarkisian of Digital Spy found She-Hulk's fourth-wall breaking the "eye-catching feature of the trailer". Similarly, Daniel Chin of The Ringer highlighted the "comedic tone that's true to the fourth-wall-breaking nature of its source material" of the trailer and felt it revealed more about the plot. A poster also released at Comic-Con featured a hotline number that had a pre-recorded message from Walters describing the services her law firm provided superpowered individuals. An episode of the series Marvel Studios: Legends was released on August 10, 2022, exploring Banner using footage of his MCU film appearances. Disney created an ad on Tinder meant to represent a dating profile for Walters, while a faux commercial for Walters' law firm Goodman, Lieber, Kurtzberg & Holliway was released ahead of the series' premiere, which Cameron Bonomolo from ComicBook.com described as a "Better Call Saul-style advertisement". Ahead of the release of the second episode, a Twitter account for Titania was created, while a video was released of the character covering real-world posters for the series with her own and spray-painting her name on them.

A QR code was included in the first two episodes linking viewers to a website to access free digital comics featuring She-Hulk that updated weekly, which was first introduced in Moon Knight. The comics released for the episodes, in order, were Savage She-Hulk #1 and She-Hulk (2004) #1. The "Marvel Must Haves" merchandise program, which reveals new toys, games, books, apparel, home decor, and other merchandise related to each episode of She-Hulk following an episode's release, started for the episodes on August 19, 2022.

Release

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law held its world premiere at El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on August 15, 2022. The series debuted on Disney+ on August 18, 2022, and will consist of nine episodes, concluding on October 13. It was originally scheduled to debut on Wednesday, August 17 with releases weekly on Wednesdays, before moving to weekly releases on Thursdays. It is the final series in Phase Four of the MCU.

Reception

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law: Critical reception by episode

Percentage of positive critics' reviews tracked by the website Rotten Tomatoes

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an 88% approval rating with an average rating of 7.50/10, based on 399 reviews. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the series a score of 67 out of 100 based on 26 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

The series' first four episodes were reviewed by critics. Daniel Fienberg at The Hollywood Reporter called these episodes "broad, bright and eager to serve the audience with a wink and a nudge" though lacking "stakes or a distinctive style". He felt the series' writing for characters previously seen in more dramatic situations, and the Easter eggs and cameos would be divisive with viewers. Writing for Rolling Stone, Alan Sepinwall said attempting to be a half-hour comedy series produced "mixed but mostly positive" results, but believed the series had a harder time distinguishing itself within the MCU than the character's comic series because the MCU had a lighter tone already compared to the other comics being published around She-Hulk's runs, which made the contrast of her comics more apparent. He also noted the MCU was "drastically less populated" in regards to characters that could be featured, with Slott having an "enormous toy box" in the comics to feature a wide array of characters. Sepinwall said the humor of Attorney at Law was "softer than what you find in the more overtly ridiculous MCU films like Thor: Ragnarok or Guardians of the Galaxy" and did not become consistently funny until the fourth episode.

Joelle Monique at TheWrap called the series "a delightful break from the cutesy family fun and intense heroic introspection" of the previous Marvel Studios Disney+ series, praising Maslany's performance and noting it was "incredibly rewarding as a long-time fan of the franchise" as well as those who enjoy legal television series. Richard Roeper from the Chicago Sun-Times gave the episodes 3 out of 4 stars, praising Maslany and believing She-Hulk: Attorney at Law "plays like a 21st century take on a 1980s TV show" and felt like "one of those 'cameo every week' kind of shows, with gratuitous but entertaining fight sequences sprinkled in between the courtroom antics and the comedic byplay". The Verge's Charles Pulliam-Moore said the series a "surprisingly refreshing spin" on the Marvel Studios Disney+ series, one that felt "like the precursor to something new yet very familiar". Arezou Amin of Collider gave the first four episodes an "A–", saying they were a "delightful ride" and was hopeful the final five episodes would be equally charming.

Caroline Framke of Variety said in her review that the series was "charming enough as it bounces from one hijink to the next, especially in Maslany's capable hands. But between its obligations to the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe, a far more limited budget than its film peers, and attempts to infuse Jen's story with dated #girlboss energy, She-Hulk also represents an unsteady balancing act that needs more time than it likely has to settle into its own groove." She also noted having Walters be able to have more control over She-Hulk than Banner with Hulk because of her daily experiences as a woman keeping her emotions in check was "an undeniably effective way to make the She-Hulk experience markedly, urgently different from that of" Hulk's. Framke also called the story's approach to Walters' job and dating life, and the series' costumes, "several steps out of date", and wished for a more innovative approach to the fourth-wall breaking, that has become more commonplace in media since Byrne introduced it to the character in the comics back in the 1980s. Giving the series 2.5 stars out of 4, USA Today's Kelly Lawler said She-Hulk: Attorney at Law "oh-so-close to being a great show, but doesn't fully commit to any of the three or four different shows it's attempting", wishing it committed better to the legal comedy, with more fourth-wall breaking and the examinations of regular humans in the MCU. Despite this, Lawler felt Walters was "a very appealing protagonist", with praise also going to Maslany, and that the series had "some well-placed humor", believing if Attorney at Law "leans into its strengths, it could be a really unique, fun take" on the MCU. Kirsten Howard from Den of Geek enjoyed that the woman characters were portrayed as "smart, strong, and girlbossing it", but, like Framke, added it was "a rather rote narrative" that felt "dated as all hell, [and] speaks to how far behind the MCU is with female superhero representation that it feels the need to catch up in such a lazy and clichéd way". They also felt the second, third, and fourth episodes were "too fluffy [and] too hackneyed", criticizing the comedy, procedural elements, and infrequent fourth-wall breaking that ended up being "jarring".

The response to the series' visual effects were mixed, with some reviewers feeling it was an improvement over what was featured in the trailers, while others called it distracting and entering the uncanny valley. Some were critical of it, but believed it did not detract from the series, with Howard stating some visual effects in the later episodes leaned towards "Polar Express territory". Howard also felt it would have been "a pretty powerful statement on its own" to have a fully realized She-Hulk character model against the Hulk model.

Future

In November 2019, Feige stated that after introducing She-Hulk in the series, the character will cross over to the MCU films.

External links

• at Marvel.com
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law at IMDb
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law on Disney+