She-Hulk: Attorney at Law has started its nine-week run on Disney+, offering up a different sort of experience for Marvel fans around the world. The streaming series is the franchise's first straight sitcom, feeling more like an episode of Ally McBeal than the typical MCU fare.
The half-hour legal comedy has taken fans by storm, introducing the world to Jennifer Walters (played by Tatiana Maslany), a Los Angeles-based lawyer who can Hulk-out just like her cousin Bruce Banner. The project has been praised for its commentary on the superhero genre as a whole and "feel-good tone."
But this new Disney+ series also features something a little more abstract to set itself apart that fans may have noticed. For those that haven't been able to put their finger on what makes She-Hulk feel so different, one of the series' major creative has broken down the specifics.
A Different Approach for She-Hulk
In a new interview with Total Film, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law director Kat Coiro broke down what makes the Disney+ series feel so different when compared to other MCU projects.
Coiro specifically called out the lack of "a ticking plot clock" in the show, which is unusual for a Marvel Studios episodic title considering that most of them have been structured around a storyline with a stronger sense of urgency:
“So much of what I think is fresh about the show is it really is about a woman living a very regular life even though she happens to be imbued with these superpowers and so, while we play into some of the tropes of the genre – like villains! – we have the luxury of a series that doesn’t have a ticking plot clock."
The director remarked that She-Hulk is "really about getting to know the characters" something that audiences "never get to see when something is totally plot-driven:"
“It’s really about getting to know the characters and getting to see these moments you never get to see when something is totally plot-driven. So we tease Titania. She will come back but she doesn’t need to come back immediately, and that way we get to really get to know our characters.”
Showrunner Jessica Gao also spoke with Collider on the subject, telling the outlet that while the first four episodes of the series focus mainly on Jennifer's everyday life, "at the very end of the fourth episode" fans will get a tease that " there’s gonna be bigger conflict:"
"At the very end of the fourth episode, we set it up where there’s gonna be bigger conflict. You’ll see what that conflict is in the very next episode. We’ll start to see Titania a lot more. But with the first few episodes, we just wanted to seed her in there because in the comics she was this gnat that was always buzzing around She-Hulk. It was never like, 'Oh, Titania’s gonna destroy the city.' It was always, 'Titania has come up with yet another way to come after Jen.' That’s really what we’ve tried to preserve in the show."
Is Different Okay in the MCU?
No matter what one thinks about She-Hulk, there is no denying that the series is different. The Tatiana Maslany-starring venture is unique amongst its MCU brethren and some fans will love that, while others will not.
Gao and Coiro have been very forthcoming with their thinking behind the series. Making it feel more like a super-powered slice of life has been their goal since day one, and many would agree that they have succeeded in that.
But according to Gao, it will not be this way for the entire run of the show. While the characters are the focus, there will be some conflict coming forward in the form of Jameela Jamil's Titania. The character has had a brief appearance in the project thus far, but will seemingly become more integral to the overall plot as things move forward.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is available now on Disney+.
