She-Hulk, the latest new hero to join the MCU, is gearing up for her big debut Disney+ series. It's a major role for Tatiana Maslany, who won an Emmy Award for her time on Orphan Black, and an exciting time for fans of the big green superhero lawyer.
For fans of Bruce Banner's cousin, Jennifer Walters, the streaming series will likely include many easter eggs and characters such as Titania (played by Jameela Jamil). However, there are still over 40 years of She-Hulk history for longtime readers to brush up on before the show airs. The character has also been reinvented and reworked countless times over her tenured history, offering many comics for new fans to jump in on.
Mentions of assault ahead. Please proceed with caution.
10 Savage She-Hulk And The Creation Of A New Hero
Criminal lawyer Jennifer Walters is accidentally turned into a 6'7" green giant after receiving a blood transfusion from her cousin, Bruce Banner. While she may not be as massive as her hulking relative, she's just as strong and angry, especially since she resents Bruce for turning her into a monster.
These inaugural issues by Stan Lee and John Buscema introduced us to her career as a lawyer, her early heroics, and the giant robots that wealthy lawbreakers build to try and take her down.
9 She-Hulk Joins The Fantastic Four When The Thing Quits
Seemingly unsure what to do with a second Hulk character after her solo series, She-Hulk joins The Fantastic Four in the 80s, written by John Byrne. Taking The Thing's place following a series of torturing events that led Ben Grimm to quit the group, Walters helps the fantastic family cope with a miscarriage, an evil father, and even more giant killer robots.
She-Hulk also spends her Fantastic Four days romantically linked to Olympic decathlon athlete Wyatt Wingfoot, who helps her beat down a sleazy paparazzi photographer in the standout Fantastic Four #275.
8 The Sensational She-Hulk Broke Barriers And Comic Codes
Fantastic Four writer John Byrne gave Jennifer Walters her second solo run in The Sensational She-Hulk, known for its comical fourth-wall breaks. At 60 issues before its cancellation, it was the longest-running solo series for a female superhero at the time.
The run not only had a guest star in almost every issue, as well as wacky villains such as the Toad Men from Outer Space, but The Sensational She-Hulk often got in trouble from the Comics Code. For example, issue #40 featured five full pages of the character jump-roping in the nude with sensitive areas blurred out, as Marvel attempted to sell She-Hulk as their sexiest heroine.
7 The Trial Of She-Hulk Almost Wiped The Character Out Of Existence
She-Hulk returned to being a functional lawyer within the pages of Dan Slott's run, which helped reestablish the character within the Marvel universe. In addition, she was given a tremendous supporting cast, including the android Awesome Andy and Augustus "Pug" Pugliese, a co-worker with a big crush on She-Hulk.
Dan Slott almost wiped She-Hulk from reality when she had to defend herself in front of the Time Variance Authority (TVA) for committing a time-travel crime. Knowing how Hawkeye would die in the future, she attempts to tell him of the event and almost loses her life. Slott's run also sets up Fantastic Four's Reckoning War, an event that wouldn't take place for another seven years.
6 Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Superhero Space Lawyer, What Can't She-Hulk Do?
Dan Slott's She-Hulk run was re-upped in 2005 for a second series, sending Jennifer Walters far off into the cosmos for the trial of Starfox, Thanos' brother. Unfortunately, it's not a great time for the Titan's comic book history, as he is accused of sexually assaulting a woman. So naturally, She-Hulk has trouble acting as just an impartial bystander.
She-Hulk also marries J. Jonah Jameson's son during this time, but they separate after he becomes part-wolf, part-space god. She joins up with S.H.I.E.L.D. after and helps them take down some of Marvel's largest, beastly foes, including the Abomination and Wendigo.
5 She-Hulk Gives Up Everything To Become A Bounty Hunter
Taking over from Dan Slott beginning with She Hulk (2005) #22, Incredible Hulk writer Peter David spent some time on the She-Hulk side, where he wrote Jennifer Walters as a bounty hunter for C-list villains. Taking on Titania, the Absorbing Man, and a massive alien named Kodor, She-Hulk also tries to figure out what she wants out of life, and why she ended up in this profession.
During David's run, she also partners up with Jazinda, a super-healing Skrull who later plays a part in Marvel's Secret Invasion, which is currently being adapted for a live-action Disney+ series in Phase Four of the MCU.
4 The Only Way To Stop A Red She-Hulk Is With A Green One
In the 2012 miniseries Red She-Hulk, Bruce Banner's love interest Betty Ross is turned into the Red She-Hulk. Modeled after her father, General Thunderbolt Ross, and his similar transformation into the Red Hulk, the new Hulk variant causes problems for the Avengers.
From She-Hulk #58-67, various heroes such as Metal Man, Thor, Captain Marvel, and Iron Man attempt to investigate and fight Betty Ross before they are forced to bring in Jennifer Walters for a She-Hulk brawl-off. Though Betty would later become the monstrous Harpy within the pages of Immortal Hulk, it was an interesting time in She-Hulk comics that brought Jennifer Walters back to the world of superheroes.
3 She-Hulk Opens Her Own Law Firm
Though Jennifer Walters may be Marvel's second-most-famous lawyer behind Daredevil, she spends her time specializing in superhero-related cases, differentiating herself from her Hell's Kitchen peer. However, that doesn't stop the two lawyers from teaming up during Daredevil writer Charles Soule's run after She-Hulk quits her firm and establishes her own office.
She-Hulk also befriends Patsy Walker, a.k.a. Hellcat, gets mixed up in Doctor Doom's family drama, fights her arch-nemesis Titania once again, and even defends Captain America from a wrongful death lawsuit.
2 After Civil War II, She-Hulk Rages Out
After Bruce Banner is killed (momentarily) following the events of Civil War II, Jennifer Walters finally gets her first book under the Hulk name, written by Mariko Tamaki. Losing control of her ability to transform back into a human when she's not in Hulk form, Jennifer Walters starts envisioning a rampaging "Gray Hulk" in her nightmares.
The Leader--a classic big-brained Hulk villain--eventually captures and forces her to rage out, unleashing the Gray Hulk and sending Jennifer into a fit of rage and destruction. This would become the character's M.O. during her tenure on Jason Aaron's Avengers run for the next few years until she finally quit the superhero squad to focus on her career as a lawyer once again.
1 The She-Hulk Readers Deserve In 2022
Though readers are just a few issues into Rainbow Rowell's 2022 She-Hulk run, the latest installment of the superhero lawyer's saga reestablished her career, her supporting cast, and even the comedy lost by her seemingly endless fits of rage throughout the late 2010s.
Now taking care of a mysteriously resurfaced Jack of Hearts, Jennifer Walters is finally in a position in her life where she can confidentially and securely help others. It's also excellent timing because it seems like she's about to have a significant caseload.