In 1980, Stan Lee and John Buscema would debut a certain new addition to the Marvel Universe. Once upon a time, Jennifer Walters was an ordinary lawyer...with a bit of an extraordinary relation. She happened to be the cousin of one Robert Bruce Banner, aka the Green Goliath, the Smashing Machine, the Incredible Hulk.
When an attempted mob hit resulted in her getting grievously injured, Bruce Banner was forced to perform an emergency blood transfusion on her to save her life. Banner's gamma radiation-infused blood would transform the mousy lawyer into a green-skinned green-haired powerhouse in her own right. She's been savage, she's been sensational, but through it all, she's been known as the She-Hulk.
She-Hulk would be the last Stan Lee co-creation Marvel would debut for over a decade. The character was inspired by the success of the Bill Bixby/Lou Ferrigno Incredible Hulk TV show, as well as the Bionic Woman TV series. Marvel was concerned that the TV show producers would try and create a female version of the Hulk, much like the producers did for the Six Million Dollar Man. That's right, Jen Walters literally came about for the sake of Marvel having the rights to a female version of the Hulk.
Despite that, the She-Hulk has gone on to be one of the Marvel Universe's most beloved heroines. She's served as an Avenger, a member of the Fantastic Four, a Defender, and a Heroine for Hire. And much like her cousin, her gamma-based mutation has taken her from being a green super-strong supermodel to a monster and back again.
Since she's getting her own mini-series on Disney+ (marking her debut in the mighty Marvel Cinematic Universe), I thought it would be fun to take a look at a comic starring the Gamma-Green Glamazon. This comic is actually the first issue of her second solo series. Her first one, Savage She-Hulk, went from 1980-82, lasting 25 issues. From there, Jennifer would go on to be a part of the cast of the Avengers, and after the events of the first Secret Wars, would join the Fantastic Four as their resident powerhouse for a while. In 1985, she would be a central character of one of Marvel Graphic Novel #18: The Sensational She-Hulk. John Byrne wrote and drew the graphic novel, which alongside her appearance in Avengers #233 (July 1983), helped begin Byrne's long association with the character. The graphic novel's title would be reused for her second series, which lasted 60 issues. At the time, it was the longest-running Marvel comic book centered on a female hero.
In the years since, She-Hulk has gone on to appear in numerous other media outside of comics, like cartoons and video games. And so, with that out of the way, let's look at Sensational She-Hulk #1!
The cover is a John Byrne piece. It's a simple cover, but it's become one of Marvel's more iconic comic covers, having been homaged in other comics. it does help set the tone of the series, having Jennifer break the fourth wall.
"Second Chance"
Writer: John Byrne
Penciler: John Byrne
Inker: Bob Wiacek
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Letterer: John Workman
Editor: Bobbie Chase
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco
The story begins with our heroine, Ms. Jennifer Walters, working out at a circus.
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| "488...489...490...500!" |
You see, due to our heroine being...a bit more physically powerful than the average person, she has special needs when it comes to working out. And using elephants on an improvised barbell is perfect for that.
Despite this, Jen points out that she's not even close to the physical feats her cousin Bruce could pull off as the Hulk. We get a flashback to the Incredible Hulk posing as a robot called Mechano all the way back in Avengers #1 (September 1963). However, our heroine falls into a bit of a trap. You see, this circus is not an ordinary circus. It's the Circus of Crime, and it's led by a Maynard Tiboldt, aka the Ringmaster.
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| "I think I'll make you do the Dance of Joy!" |
Using the hypnotic disk in his top hat, the Ringmaster has got Shulkie under his spell. One of the Circus members points out that the group owes three million dollars to an unknown party. Elsewhere, a group is observing the Circus. One of the group members has reservations about this plan, but another tells him not to worry. It'll be fine.
While under the spell of the Ringmaster, She-Hulk tells the Circus of Crime of the origins of the Incredible Hulk. This leads to telling them of how she became the She-Hulk, thanks to a blood transfusion from Bruce to save her life. Since then, Jen's served as a member of the Avengers and then the Fantastic Four. During her time with the FF, she got an extra dose of gamma radiation, which caused her to lose her power to shift between her She-Hulk and human forms. She's now stuck in the form of the She-Hulk.
There's a lot of money for the Circus of Crime involved in this. They were hired to "test" She-Hulk for unknown reasons. Around a cool three million, according to Eliot Franklin, aka the Clown.
Tiboldt figures that there's a way to make a little extra off her in the process. All Jen needs is a new look.
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| "Just to let you know Maynard, my usual fee will be doubled for this job. LOT of makeup." |
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| "Please keep your hands and feet in the stands, folks." |
Using her strength (and a little help from the Ringmaster's hypnotic hat), the hypnotized She-Hulk shakes the loot out of the circus-goers' pockets. After the show, the Circus is counting up their ill-gained money, when a wild circus wagon careens towards them. However, it's easily handled by Jennifer. The Ringmaster believes that the newly-returned Princess Python caused it, as she was none-too-happy with them bringing She-Hulk in. Bruto, the Circus's resident strongman, notices that a gorilla has escaped. The Ringmaster sends Jennifer to recapture it...only for Bruto to remember the Circus has no gorillas.
The gorilla is able to get past the disguised She-Hulk, and get the Ringmaster's hypnotic hat. It's revealed that this gorilla can also talk. He uses the hat to free the heroine from Ringmaster's control. She then realizes who the Circus of Crime are and easily traps them for the arriving police.
At the police station, Jennifer is able to get cleaned up and some proper clothes. She goes to see the Circus of Crime members in the holding cells. Remember that three million dollars that the Clown mentioned earlier? Well, that was going to be their payment for testing She-Hulk's powers. They have no idea who hired them, as the deal was done through intermediaries. Jennifer grumbles that it'll take another two issues for her to learn who hired them...but we get to learn on the very next page.
Back at the unknown location, it was revealed that one of the figures watching Shulkie was the one who alerted the police. Her capturing the Circus allowed the gorilla to escape unnoticed. The gorilla then removes his head, revealing it was a mask. And the villains stand revealed, just like Jennifer promised.
Ruby Thursday! Shrunken Bones! Gorilla-Man! Chondu the Mystic! They are...the Headmen! A group of minor villains, the Headmen first appeared in Defenders #21 (September 1974).
I enjoyed this comic. This comic basically sets the tone for Byrne's run on the book. It's not quite got the comedic tones yet, but it does have a couple of things that are associated with this era: The usage of obscure Silver Age-era (and the more...wackier) villains, and She-Hulk breaking the fourth wall. Yeah, Deadpool is more known for doing that these days, but She-Hulk did it first. In fact, she points it out in one of her win quotes (against Deadpool, naturally) in Marvel vs. Capcom 3.
If you want to read this for yourself, I highly recommend tracking down the 2011 trade paperback The Sensational She-Hulk by John Byrne Vol. 1. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves, and each other! Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, wear a mask, and get your vaccine/boosters! See you next time!
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