Rainbow Rowell and Andrés Genolet are back in action with Sensational She-Hulk #1 from Marvel. And despite the new number one, it’s more of the best romance book on the stands.
We reviewed the book on the Stack podcast. But in the interest of highlighting more about the title, here’s a summary of the conversation with our thoughts. And if you prefer the longer audio version, that’s below as well!
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Sensational She-Hulk #1 Review:
After the previous She-Hulk title ended, we’re picking right up where we left off. Shulkie is dating Jack of Hearts. She’s hanging out with her Punch Club. And she’s trying to balance being a lawyer and a superhero in what host Alex Zalben calls “the best romance comic on the stands.”
Jumping all the way to Editor Nick Lowe’s note at the end of the issue, the hosts discussed how Lowe owned rebooting with a new number one just because they wanted more eyes on the book. Said Justin Tyler, “I am very down for that. Because this book is very good. More people should read it. Let’s do a [new] number one every week or month if we have to.”
Comparing it to Disney+’s streaming series of the same name, Pete LePage said the book has “that big She-Hulk energy.” Appropriate, because showrunner Jessica Gao contributes the back-up to the issue. Tyler called the story a fun “little sketch of a superhero story, [and I’m] down for it.”
But in Tyler’s mind, the main story is where it’s at. “The romance is all there,” Tyler said. “I love this love story. I love the workplace comedy stuff. They’re doing this while also maintaining some real superhero bonafide, one of my faves of the week.”
LePage agreed, calling the book a “slice of life of what it’s like to be She-Hulk,” and as our resident romance expert was nervous about where things are going with She-Hulk and Jack of Hearts.
“What I’m a little worried about is this romance,” LePage said. “I’m pulling for [it] so hard. It just never seems to be on stable ground, and that’s given me a little anxiety.”
Zalben felt that’s exactly where you want a rom-com to live, noting that the book is, “like Pushing Daisies meets superheroes.” He also lauded using the tension of Jack of Hearts causing She-Hulk’s worst day ever back in Avengers Disassembled as another source of tension. “They have all this baggage, all this backstory. They also have a very sexy height difference going on.”
“Hashtag short king,” quipped Tyler, before calling the pairing “the new Rogue and Gambit.”
And finally, Zalben added that Genolet’s art is extremely inclusive, and beautifully captures all different body types. “Particularly with a She-Hulk book [it usually looks like] they’re naked but their clothes are painted on, very superhero art… [Here] Jack of Hearts is this tiny cute little guy. She-Hulk is a big lady. Volcana is a different size. So is Titania, and everybody else… [A] great book, back to front.”
Sensational She-Hulk #1 Official Synopsis:
THE SENSATIONAL SHE-HULK IS BACK! Jen Walters is dusting off her adjective and kicking off a new era! The best hero slash lawyer in the Marvel Universe is going to remind you why she’s so SENSATIONAL, going up against her deadliest challenge yet! PLUS: MARVEL STUDIOS SHE-HULK series writer JESSICA GAO makes hers Marvel in a short story with the Jade Giant!
