It’s been three months. She-Hulk and Jack may not be able to touch each other, but they’ve decided to try to make the best of it … and it hasn’t been easy. But that’s not the only complication in Jennifer’s life, as a new villain has leapt into the limelight — and we’re all left to wonder whether he’s merely annoying, malevolent or … a potential new love interest? She-Hulk #11 is written by Rainbow Rowell, drawn by Andrés Genolet, colored by Dee Cunniffe and lettered by Joe Caramagna.
Armaan Babu: I know I have my problems with this series — it’s far from perfect — but I want to say, I love this book with all my heart, and I’m so glad there’s a place for it in the current lineup of Marvel comics. This issue, the book starts heading in a new direction, with a new artist and colorist, a new villain and new bumps in the road of Jack and Jennifer’s rocky romance. The important thing to know, however, is that it is still your go-to comic for romances and super-powered punching, and really, what more does one need?
Stephanie Burt: More jokes? More angst? More characters whose feelings might change as the plot changes, not just two? I like this book just fine, for the reasons you gave, but it’s vanilla ice cream with sprinkles at this point, and we have seen — in Runaways — Rainbow Rowell write five-flavor sundaes. With pineapple.
[Grote’s note: Folks, I’m eating breakfast while I edit this. Stop making me hungry for ice cream.]
A Ben & Jenny’s Clobbering Spectacular
Armaan: It’s time for us to break the first and second rules of the Fight Club, Stephanie, and talk about She-Hulk’s gathering of the Marvel’s bruisers! We check in with She-Hulk and Titania, squaring off against the Thing and Volcana at their Fight Club — not to forget poor Mayor Luke Cage, standing on the sidelines waiting to be tagged in. I’m delighted we’re getting back to this, and not just because I’ll take any excuse to have Ben Grimm grace the page.
Stephanie: He’s the best Thing going. Sorry, I’ll show myself out now.
Organizing a hero fight club does seem like something our She-Hulk would do, and I can absolutely see Ben — who’s been in so many cosmic capers and no-win situations over the past 40-odd years of real time — taking a Lyft all the way uptown, or downtown, or across town, for this straight-up, no-consequences punch-up experience. I do wonder whether Jennifer has legal clearance to run a fight club on a construction site in what seems like it might be Manhattan. She’s not exactly a secret-identity hero, and I can see this recreational activity throwing a wrench into her lawyer job.
Armaan: I feel she’d have worked out some kind of deal. Or Titania probably knew a guy who knew a guy … she does have an in with a certain Wrecking Crew.
Much as I enjoyed the previous artist, Takeshi Miyazawa, this opening scene is a really great showcase of what Andrés Genolet brings to the book. The art is livelier, and there is a fantastic sense of motion to everyone. The buildup to Ben and Jenny’s runup to each other and that first, satisfying blow to the face really sell the energy of the fight. There’s a playfulness to it — it’s not slapstick, but it’s fun. Makes you really appreciate a medium where people can get quite bodily bonked by a great big Titania-thrown boulder and still be OK.
How are you enjoying the new art, Stephanie?
Stephanie: It’s … fine? It’s dynamic, for sure, but it looks rushed. There’s a lack of detail I find disturbing. And I’ve seen better Things. Stranger Things. You know how American TV cartoons sometimes look weirdly simplified until you realize the schedule and the technical requirements of animation mean that nobody gets to hold a feather up close, or wear a paisley shirt? This art gives me that feel. Notice that the wine bottle has no label, the indoor walls have almost nothing on them except for simple line art and box cabinets, and Jack’s hoodie conveniently covers the parts of his armor that make him time-consuming to draw.
The dialogue, on the other hand, slaps. Danny Rand, a megamillionaire last I checked, doesn’t want to pay to join this fight club? Sounds like he doesn’t want to admit, in front of all these well-muscled heroes, that he no longer has Iron Fist powers! (He doesn’t. I think? The one Iron Fist of Earth-616 is now Lin Lie, whom Danny’s been training.)
Armaan: I haven’t been keeping up with Iron Fist. Poor Danny! No wonder he doesn’t want the T-shirt, it’d probably make him feel even worse.
It’s not all brawl, however. Were this any other group of people, we might have had this scene at a brunch, or a bar, or even over dinner — but when all your best friends are indestructible behemoths who prefer punches over punch, you gossip over your love life while battling things out in an unused construction lot. Aside from Patsy Walker, She-Hulk hasn’t told anyone she’s dating the long-lost Jack-of-Hearts — or even that he’s back to life.
Stephanie: Ben has heard she’s dating someone, though. He just dunno who.
Armaan: I’m curious as to what you think about why they’ve been keeping it a secret this long. I know Jack’s been reluctant to return to his former life, especially with his powers under control … but this seems like a long time to keep someone a secret.
Stephanie: We can No-Prize it: Maybe Jack doesn’t want anyone to know he’s dating Jen because he wants to manage his return to Earth on his own terms. Or maybe Jen wants to wait till she’s won a big case before telling the world she’s got a new bf, since she’s maybe sorta a big enough hero for gossip columns? Or Jen’s just so used to romances going wrong that she doesn’t want to jinx this one by going public about it.
Armaan: The thing is, everyone knows there is a secret now. It comes up a few times in the issue — which means it’s likely only a matter of time before anyone finds out, and I wonder, when the time comes, whether the decision will be in Jack and Jen’s hands, or if it all comes out in the most disastrous way possible. Speaking of Jack, though …
Culinary Tragedy
Armaan: A tired Jennifer returns home to Jack, who is cooking dinner — something she doesn’t seem to be altogether enthusiastic about, and it’s a little while before we see why. The thing I was worried about most has happened — Jack has lost his ability to taste anything. It’s a small thing, but it broke my heart because of what it meant to him. A life unshackled by his powers. Finally free to enjoy it, to be able to eat, to taste, to cook and know the satisfaction of a well made meal.
That’s gone now, but Jack is still trying to make it work. Despite being distanced from flavor, he’s doing his best to enjoy it … largely in denial about how empty it feels because he can’t bear to let it go, because he still hopes, somehow, that if he keeps trying, he will find a way for it to bring him the same joy it used to. A perfect metaphor for his relationship with Jennifer — something the book draws direct attention to in a deeply heartbreaking moment.
Stephanie: The key, repeated line here: “I don’t want to give this up.” The poor guy. (And he was an English major, too. We’re supposed to share our taste.)
Armaan: Despite the youthfulness and liveliness Genolet brings to their faces, there is a tiredness here, when they let their smiles drop. It’s the same tiredness we opened this series with, back in issue #1 — the tiredness of people who aren’t in the worst shape of their lives, but are tired of trying to find happiness in a world that seems determined to keep them at arm’s length from it.
Stephanie: Well put! They’re trying so hard they can barely tell if they succeeded. Is this life what happiness means? Or is this life the kind of thing you settle down and settle for when real happiness has faded away, or launched itself beyond your reach?
Armaan: I really enjoyed this whole scene. The two have a comfort, an intimacy with each other. Jack is trying to keep everything in control, to keep Jennifer from danger, but Jennifer know’s she’s strong enough to risk a little danger for the sake of love — for something as simple as placing her hand on his knee. There’s still some push and pull there, and it can’t be long before that strain on the relationship snaps. The only question, though, is what’s going to break through when it does?
Stephanie: We’re not going to find out this issue! I do like how Genolet renders their worried, tired faces. And their postures. Look at what happens on her face when she places her hand on his knee.
Armaan: It’s lovely stuff, and I’m glad Genolet’s going to be sticking around for a while on the book.
Beatdown Brawl at the Baxter Building
Armaan: Wherever this relationship is heading, that journey’s being put on hold. Jen’s still on call for superheroic whatnot, especially when it’s the Fantastic Four calling. Needing a little extra security at the Baxter Building after a few alarms, they called in Jennifer to help stand guard over the lab. Before that, She-Hulk and Sue Storm talk about Jennifer’s newest relationship, and the mystery around it. From Jan to Patsy to Sue, this series has been giving us quite the tour of Jennifer’s many friendships, and while their interactions are usually brief, it’s always something I enjoy seeing.
Stephanie: I’d love to see more of them. More of Patsy, and much more of Sue, who ought to be a bigger deal throughout the Marvel Universe at this point. She’s one of the few grownups whom everyone probably ought to trust. (As opposed to Reed.) (Unless there’s a lot of FF I don’t know. Wait, there’s a lot of FF I don’t know!)
Armaan: You’re absolutely right, she really should be!
Stephanie: We also hear that Reed has become an all too serious board game inventor, making up rules she can’t understand, so she just nods and smiles to keep the family game night going. As a Friend of Board Gamers, I can say this bit rings true.
Armaan: A tired Jen falls asleep on the job (guard duty is no easy feat, staying vigilant through boredom) and almost misses the thief trying to burgle his way into the building. Sorry, no, did I say trying? With roguish arrogance and cheery banter, he completely wipes the floor with Jen. As far as I can tell, this is a completely new character, who’s eager for the hero-villain banter but misses out on the most important part of it: proudly declaring his supervillain name in a specialized font before explaining his entire powerset throughout the fight.
Honestly, does no one respect traditions any more?
Stephanie: To be fair, the specialized font became optional in June 1983, though the requirement returned temporarily between 1992 and 1996. But this dude won’t even give us a name. I’m curious! I suppose that’s the point. Also he seems lab-confected to be a hottie, if you’re into clean-shaven white dudes. Dudes who can punch Jen into next week. Maybe he’s been watching footage of their fight club?
Armaan: This is a fun fight. Whatever other powers this mysterious blue-and-gold man has — the standard super strength, agility and durability seem to apply — not only does he hold his own with She-Hulk, he’s confident right from the start that he’s going to win this fight. She-Hulk does manage to rip his mask off, mid-fight, to reveal … some guy. This brings me right back to that brilliant Justice League Unlimited moment when Lex Luthor switched bodies with the Flash. And just like Lex Luthor … Jennifer has no idea who that guy is.
Stephanie: I really do have no idea who this is. If you know, please contact ComicsXF post haste. The gold designs on his blue chest-piece look vaguely West Asian or Middle Eastern. Maybe he goes by Calligraphy Man?
Armaan: The issue ends somewhat abruptly (as issues of this series often do), with a defeated She-Hulk having been tossed out of a very high window, but the scene has done its job. There’s a mystery here, and there’s a rather cheery, smug but handsome face attached to it. So what do you think, Stephanie? Is there room for a little enemies-to-lovers romance here, tempting Jennifer away from the relationship she’s having trouble with? Or is this leading to something else entirely?
Stephanie: If we’re getting a romance arc, we should learn not just who Smug Dude is but why he’s breaking into the Baxter Building to steal “the thing I come for,” as he says. It’s a Thing in a High Risk Lab, perhaps sponsored by MacGuffin Industries. I’m all for arcs where seeming villains turn out to be doing the wrong thing for the right reasons, or maybe doing the right thing for reasons that had to stay secret until next issue, but there’s just so little information here about anything — who, what, why — that I’m not yet hooked. Can we see more fight club?
Also: since we’ve got Sue here, and Ben Grimm, and we’ve seen Reed in earlier issues, and She-Hulk stories have so often intersected with the FF, do we want to see more Fantastic Four business in this title? Do we think it’s coming? (Rainbow Rowell has spoken somewhere about her wish to stay in her corner, with her favorite characters, rather than entering Crossoverland.) Would more FF business give the book more depth, or just muck it up? How much more can the plot do with Jen and Jack’s finally calm, and yet still secret, romance?
Armaan: We’re probably only going to see sporadic guest appearances, but now you’ve got me hoping Jennifer shows up in the current Fantastic Four run, which has been great so far.
I feel like this comic is going to be revolving around Jen and Jack’s romance for quite a while yet — but I seriously doubt it’s going to remain calm for too long.
Last Minute Legal Notes
- It should be noted that this series ignores a bit of continuity set in place by Dan Slott’s Reckoning War, in which She-Hulk and Jack of Hearts were fighting alongside each other and honestly rather couple-like there, in public for everyone to see.
- Someone call Kieron Gillen and have him recreate the ridiculously overcomplicated board game Reed Richards made for his family, because that may frankly be one of the most interesting things Reed has ever invented. Its rulebook will be terrible, no doubt, but I want to read it nonetheless.
- Sue says the Baxter Building is “swimming with marines.” Is that a pun? Does Sue make puns?
Stephanie Burt is Professor of English at Harvard. Her podcast about superhero role playing games is Team-Up Moves, with Fiona Hopkins; her latest book of poems is We Are Mermaids. Her nose still hurts from that thing with the gate.
