She-Hulk #5 – Review

By: Charles Soule (story), Ron Wimberly (art), Rico Renzi (colors)

The Story: Now adding another person to those who must not be named.

The Review: You’ve probably heard of cops and criminals who run into each other so often that there’s an almost friendly tension between them. Familiarity, it seems, breeds friendship as much as contempt. I imagine that if superheroes and villains were real, they’d probably have the same dynamic. At some point, those repeated encounters, which so often turn out the same way—the villain caught, defeated, humiliated—would have to strip away the pretensions and B.S. for a straighter relationship.

Which is basically how Jenn and Herman Schultz (a.k.a. Shocker) play it in this issue. Having gotten to the point where Jenn can just show up on Herman’s doorstep to ask some questions, sparring each other is an unnecessary formality (and a futile one; Herman has a flee-on-sight rule for Hulks of any size, color, and gender).* Instead, they talk shop amicably over Chinese food (Jenn’s treat), charming Herman into cooperating with her investigation into the mysterious Blue File.

Their entire interaction is rather serene, leading Jenn to voice the point that all superhero fans think of at least once in their lives: all the fighting that usually goes on seems so tragically unnecessary. Pointing out the ingenuity of Herman’s self-made vibro blasters, she remarks, “I just don’t get you guys sometimes. If you can do this, you don’t have to do what you do. You could be so much more.”

The moment is ripe for Soule to really tackle the rationale of criminal behavior or the potential for reform, but instead he cuts the discussion short with Herman’s flip response: “You know, I look at you, you spent all that time, all that dough, to become a lawyer…I mean, hell. I look at you and think…wow, she could be so much more.” What does that even mean? Is he saying that Jenn’s wasting her talents as a lawyer? Is he saying she’s a failure as a lawyer? Or is it just a smack at lawyers in general?

Anyway, Herman offers little insight into the Blue File. It’s Angie and Patsy who uncover a few concrete details for us to work with. The issue leaves Angie’s discovery in the dark, but in the process of making it, she reveals not only a dedication to her job that should put all other paralegals to shame, but a clear demonstration of power we’ve suspected since she cleared out the competition for her position with Jenn. As for Patsy, she’s not the subtlest or most skilled of investigators, but she gets the job done, revealing the issue’s biggest tidbit: the danger of mentioning the name of the Blue File plaintiff, George Saywitz. That ought to put a roadblock in Jenn’s investigation, which is already working its way uphill.

I know, in the interest of artistic objectivity, I should keep my prejudices about an artist’s individual style to myself, but geez—Wimberly’s art ain’t very pretty, is it? The scraggly lines, elongated limbs, and sometimes body-deforming choices of perspective all combine to make you work a bit too hard to see what’s going on. Against Wimberly’s figures, Renzi’s colors seem loud and harsh on the eyes, and even though the storytelling is perfectly fine, the visuals themselves are hard to take.

Conclusion: The art leaves a little to be desired, but the plot thickens considerably in spite of it.

Grade: B

– Minhquan Nguyen

Some Musings: * Herman has a similar rule for “Thors,” e.g., “The fat one with the red beard, the hot blonde gal, that weird one with the horse face.”)

– For anyone judging Tigra’s scanty choice of wear: “Honey, I’ve got a fur coat on all the time. I’d pass out if I dressed up.” You tell ’em, girl.