We’ll admit we weren’t major fans of writer-director Zach Cregger’s feature debut, ‘Barbarian.’ While we appreciated its opening act and the film’s overall unpredictability, we were left dissatisfied by some uneven acting and a sense that it was two stories stapled together. Cregger’s second feature, ‘Weapons,’ is a whole different scenario. Once again Cregger experiments with narrative structure and tonal shifts, and while he occasionally loses his balance, he brings his various plot strands and character arcs together in a much more cohesive fashion while maintaining a better mix of dread and macabre humor.
This makes ‘Weapons’ one of the best horror outings of 2025 to date – not too shabby in a year that’s already seen the release of excellent genre fare like ‘Sinners’ and ‘Together.’ ‘Weapons’ may not have as much of the social commentary of those films, but it’s a frightening, gripping tale that still – in the tradition of authors like Stephen King – has something to say about small town paranoia and the mistreatment of children.
If you’ve seen any of the trailers for ‘Weapons,’ you know the premise: one night at exactly 2:17 a.m., 17 children from a third-grade class in the town of Maybrook all wake up in their homes and run off into the night, never to be seen again. A month later, law enforcement, school officials, and parents – led by the grief-stricken Archer Graff (Josh Brolin) — have no clues about what happened; only one child from the class, Alex (Cary Christopher), remains, while the town’s suspicions fall mainly on the class teacher, Justine Gandy (Julia Garner).
All that essentially happens in the first 10 minutes of the movie, with some of it narrated by a child who hints at the bizarre nature of the events to follow. And bizarre they are: ‘Weapons’ is the kind of movie that it’s better to see with as little foreknowledge as possible about what’s to come, and the film takes off in some unexpected directions from its initial setup before coming full circle.
Cregger relates this through a series of interlocking stories for each of his main characters – including Justine, Archer, a town cop and former lover of Justine’s named Paul (Alden Ehrenreich), a local homeless junkie named James (Austin Abrams), school principal Marcus (Benedict Wong), and Alex himself. Every story overlaps to some degree with the others, although told from the point of view of whatever character it’s focused on, and they all dovetail in the film’s third act. While this creates a bit of a repetitive rhythm as the movie goes on, each character’s tale varies enough from the others and reveals a bit more each time of the mystery at the movie’s center, keeping one transfixed as the horrific picture becomes clearer.
Cregger handles this looping structure extremely well for the most part, while also balancing a nicely expanding sense of dread and terror with moments of truly morbid humor that spring organically from the increasingly ghoulish situations he concocts. That tightrope act goes a little off the rails in the third act, as the violence escalates rapidly and some of the finale veers a touch too far into unintentionally comedic terrain – but not enough to dilute what’s come before. There are also a few plot holes along the way if one looks hard enough – but again, not enough to stop this from being an absorbing, scary trip.
Some of the film’s key sequences provide genuinely terrifying payoffs to the atmosphere that Cregger patiently builds in slow-burn fashion, aided by Larkin Seiple’s moody cinematography and an excellent, wide-ranging score by Ryan and Hays Holladay as well as Cregger himself. For most of its 128 minutes, ‘Weapons’ is a tightly-woven tapestry of horror that doesn’t over-explain itself and retains a singular filmmaking vision.
‘Weapons’ is the definition of an ensemble piece, with excellent performances from all involved. Julia Garner seems much more confident and well-cast here than she was in her previous horror outing, ‘Wolf Man,’ as Justine, the teacher with just enough of a murky past that her clear love for her students is used as a – dare we say – weapon against her. Josh Brolin is also reliably outstanding as Archer, the actor using the innate tension between his gruff, tough guy façade and empathetic interior to create a fundamentally decent human being who is pushed to his limit by the loss of his son.
The underrated Alden Ehrenreich uses his chameleonic skills well as the equally vulnerable Paul, while Austin Abrams and Benedict Wong offer some of the film’s more humorous moments. And Cary Christopher is heartbreaking as Alex, the little boy suddenly left alone by nearly everyone in his life. Each of these characters gets more development than is often usual in horror films, which only adds to the viewer’s investment when all are placed in peril. And there’s one other performance about which we’ll say little – except that it’s thoroughly chilling.
While the horror genre itself is not having as dependable a year as usual at the box office (sorry, Blumhouse), Warner Bros. Pictures is bucking that trend: following the surprising ‘Final Destination Bloodlines’ and the transcendent ‘Sinners,’ this is the studio’s third creatively successful fright fest in a row.
What makes it even more gratifying is that this is a wholly original and personal piece. The menace at the heart of ‘Weapons’ is one that other films have touched on before, but not quite in a scenario and setting like this. In that sense, ‘Weapons’ and ‘Barbarian’ do share common ground – the idea that evil can spring from the most unexpected places at random moments, albeit after festering out of sight for years. It’s a worldview and an approach that Zach Cregger is, pardon the expression, weaponizing to create some of the most interesting work in the genre right now.
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What is the plot of ‘Weapons’?
One night, all but one child from Justine Gandy’s (Julia Garner) classroom mysteriously run off into the night. Justine and the rest of the community are left questioning who – or what – is behind the children’s disappearance.
It’s fair to say that the Marvel movies, specifically the Marvel Cinematic Universe releases, have reached “cultural event” status. And there’s a strong case to be made that the MCU is a currently a pop culture juggernaut, the likes of which we haven’t since the original ‘Star Wars‘ trilogy hit theaters for the first time.
It is a great time to watch the Marvel movies in order now and you can watch them all on Disney Plus in 4K format. You can even plan virtual Marvel movie nights with your friends using Disney+ GroupWatch feature.
(L to R) Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan in ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’. Photo: Marvel Studios.
During World War II, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is a sickly man from Brooklyn who’s transformed into super-soldier Captain America to aid in the war effort. Rogers must stop the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) – Adolf Hitler’s ruthless head of weaponry, and the leader of an organization that intends to use a mysterious device of untold powers for world domination.
The story follows Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) as she becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races. Set in the 1990s, Captain Marvel is an all-new adventure from a previously unseen period in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
After being held captive in an Afghan cave, billionaire engineer Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) creates a unique weaponized suit of armor to fight evil.
Scientist Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) scours the planet for an antidote to the unbridled force of rage within him: the Hulk. But when the military masterminds who dream of exploiting his powers force him back to civilization, he finds himself coming face to face with a new, deadly foe.
With the world now aware of his dual life as the armored superhero Iron Man, billionaire inventor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) faces pressure from the government, the press and the public to share his technology with the military. Unwilling to let go of his invention, Stark, with Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and James ‘Rhodey’ Rhodes (Don Cheadle) at his side, must forge new alliances – and confront powerful enemies.
Against his father Odin’s (Anthony Hopkins) will, The Mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth) – a powerful but arrogant warrior god – recklessly reignites an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans as punishment. Once here, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth.
When an unexpected enemy emerges and threatens global safety and security, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), director of the international peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., finds himself in need of a team to pull the world back from the brink of disaster. Spanning the globe, a daring recruitment effort begins!
When Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey Jr.) world is torn apart by a formidable terrorist called the Mandarin, he starts an odyssey of rebuilding and retribution.
Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos… but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith (Christopher Eccleston) returns to plunge the universe back into darkness. Faced with an enemy that even Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.
(L to R) Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson in ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’. Photo: Marvel Studios.
After the cataclysmic events in New York with ‘The Avengers’, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), aka Captain America is living quietly in Washington, D.C. and trying to adjust to the modern world. But when a S.H.I.E.L.D. colleague comes under attack, Steve becomes embroiled in a web of intrigue that threatens to put the world at risk. Joining forces with the Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Captain America struggles to expose the ever-widening conspiracy while fighting off professional assassins sent to silence him at every turn. When the full scope of the villainous plot is revealed, Captain America and the Black Widow enlist the help of a new ally, the Falcon (Anthony Mackie). However, they soon find themselves up against an unexpected and formidable enemy—the Winter Soldier.
Light years from Earth, 26 years after being abducted, Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) finds himself the prime target of a manhunt after discovering an orb wanted by Ronan the Accuser.
When Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth’s Mightiest Heroes are put to the ultimate test as the fate of the planet hangs in the balance. As the villainous Ultron (James Spader) emerges, it is up to The Avengers to stop him from enacting his terrible plans, and soon uneasy alliances and unexpected action pave the way for an epic and unique global adventure.
Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, master thief Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Doctor Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.
Following the events of ‘Age of Ultron’, the collective governments of the world pass an act designed to regulate all superhuman activity. This polarizes opinion amongst the Avengers, causing two factions to side with Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) or Captain America (Chris Evans), which causes an epic battle between former allies.
Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) aka Black Widow confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises. Pursued by a force that will stop at nothing to bring her down, Natasha must deal with her history as a spy and the broken relationships left in her wake long before she became an Avenger.
Following the events of ‘Captain America: Civil War’, Peter Parker (Tom Holland), with the help of his mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), tries to balance his life as an ordinary high school student in Queens, New York City, with fighting crime as his superhero alter ego Spider-Man as a new threat, the Vulture (Michael Keaton), emerges.
Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’
King T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) returns home to the reclusive, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda to serve as his country’s new leader. However, T’Challa soon finds that he is challenged for the throne by factions within his own country as well as without. Using powers reserved to Wakandan kings, T’Challa assumes the Black Panther mantle to join with ex-girlfriend Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), the queen-mother, his princess-kid sister, members of the Dora Milaje (the Wakandan ‘special forces’) and an American secret agent, to prevent Wakanda from being dragged into a world war.
After his career is destroyed, a brilliant but arrogant surgeon (Benedict Cumberbatch) gets a new lease on life when a sorcerer takes him under her wing and trains him to defend the world against evil.
Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is imprisoned on the other side of the universe and finds himself in a race against time to get back to Asgard to stop Ragnarok, the destruction of his home-world and the end of Asgardian civilization, at the hands of a powerful new threat, the ruthless Hela (Cate Blanchett).
Just when his time under house arrest is about to end, Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) once again puts his freedom at risk to help Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) and Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) dive into the quantum realm and try to accomplish, against time and any chance of success, a very dangerous rescue mission.
As the Avengers and their allies have continued to protect the world from threats too large for any one hero to handle, a new danger has emerged from the cosmic shadows: Thanos (Josh Brolin). A despot of intergalactic infamy, his goal is to collect all six Infinity Stones, artifacts of unimaginable power, and use them to inflict his twisted will on all of reality. Everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment – the fate of Earth and existence itself has never been more uncertain.
After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War, the universe is in ruins due to the efforts of the Mad Titan, Thanos (Josh Brolin). With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers must assemble once more in order to undo Thanos’ actions and restore order to the universe once and for all, no matter what consequences may be in store.
Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) must confront the past he thought he left behind when he is drawn into the web of the mysterious Ten Rings organization and his father, Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung).
Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and his friends go on a summer trip to Europe. However, they will hardly be able to rest – Peter will have to agree to help Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) uncover the mystery of creatures that cause natural disasters and destruction throughout the continent.
Tom Holland in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a super-hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man. Teaming with other Multiverse Spider-Men (Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield), they must now work together to take out the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina), Electro (Jamie Foxx) and other Spider-Man villains from around the multiverse.
The Eternals are a team of ancient aliens who have been living on Earth in secret for thousands of years. When an unexpected tragedy forces them out of the shadows, they are forced to reunite against mankind’s most ancient enemy, the Deviants.
Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), with the help of mystical allies both old and new, traverses the mind-bending and dangerous alternate realities of the Multiverse to confront a mysterious new adversary.
After his retirement is interrupted by Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale), a galactic killer who seeks the extinction of the gods, Thor Odinson (Chris Hemsworth) enlists the help of King Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), Korg, and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), who now wields Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor. Together they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher’s vengeance and stop him before it’s too late.
On a dark and somber night, a secret cabal of monster hunters emerge from the shadows and gather at the foreboding Bloodstone Temple following the death of their leader. In a strange and macabre memorial to the leader’s life, the attendees are thrust into a mysterious and deadly competition for a powerful relic—a hunt that will ultimately bring them face to face with a dangerous monster.
Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M’Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T’Challa’s (Chadwick Boseman) death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda.
On a mission to make Christmas unforgettable for Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), the Guardians head to Earth in search of the perfect present. The special follows Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) as they set out to give Quill the best Christmas ever, after discovering that Yondu (Michael Rooker) ruined the holiday for him as a child.
Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), still reeling from the loss of Gamora (Zoe Saldaña), must rally his team around him to defend the universe along with protecting one of their own. A mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.
Super-Hero partners Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), along with with Hope’s parents Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) , and Scott’s daughter Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton), find themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought possible and pits them against Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors).
Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), aka Captain Marvel, has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol’s estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris). Together, this unlikely trio must team up and learn to work in concert to save the universe.
After meeting with newly elected U.S. President Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford), Sam (Anthony Mackie) finds himself in the middle of an international incident. He must discover the reason behind a nefarious global plot before the true mastermind has the entire world seeing red.
After finding themselves ensnared in a death trap, seven disillusioned castoffs must embark on a dangerous mission that will force them to confront the darkest corners of their pasts.
Against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel’s First Family is forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, while defending Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner).
(L to R) Benedict Wong and Liam Cunningham talk ‘3 Body Problem’.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Benedict Wong and Liam Cunningham about their work on ‘3 Body Problem’, the book the series is based on, how they approached playing their characters, and shooting the game sequence.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Wong and Cunnigham, as well as Jess Hong, Jovan Adepo, John Bradley, Alex Sharp, Rosalind Chao and Zine Tseng.
Moviefone: To begin with, Benedict, were you familiar with the book the series is based on before you signed on for the project?
Benedict Wong: No, I wasn’t. I met the guys on Zoom whilst I was filming ‘Doctor Strange.’ I was just immediately very suspicious, why did they need three showrunners for this project? Then delving deep into the first novel is so dense, this science and this world of the game world. I was thinking, I don’t even know how this is going to be filmed. It’s such a challenge. I just picked up the gauntlet and ran with them.
MF: Liam, did you read the book before you started shooting?
Liam Cunningham: No, I’m going to wait till I’m done. I generally don’t do it. Even the last project I did with David and Dan (‘Game of Thrones’), I never read those books. I didn’t want two voices in my ear. My blueprint was the scripts and that’s what I was employed to deliver. If I read the books, if I’d had trouble with any of it, I would’ve used that as a reference. But that’s when I think I might be in trouble when I must go somewhere else for information. So, I didn’t want two voices in my ear, the book voice and the script voice. So, I am going to keep that treat until we’re all done on this. Then I’ll sit down on a beach somewhere under a palm tree and I’ll dig deep into the book.
MF: Liam, can you talk about your preparation and approach to playing this role?
LC: We do enormous amounts of preparation. Enormous amounts, but we prepare for the scene. Our showrunners are very good at formulating a character that is not about, he went to school here or anything like that. In fact, I had a couple of small questions, but I don’t think I ever talked about where he comes from.
MF: Benedict, how did you prepare to play your character?
BW: I think the world builds around you and within this center of your universe, you have everyone at your command. The calls that you make are answered and there’s so much power within that, and that builds that level of who this person is. We did get the blessing of Cixin, the author, and he knew that this was going to be inspired from the books because they were telling a global story but then it still had this Asian spine of myself, being from Manchester and Jess (Hong) being from New Zealand, and then the character of Ye Wenjie played by Zine Tseng and Rosalind Chao. But to tell much more of a global story of look, we have someone who’s Irish in command with this duo and its fascinating to watch because it’s almost like, well, how did they get there? And they have every right to get there too.
MF: Finally, Liam, can you talk about shooting the game sequences?
LC: It was very much what the guys are very good about it, but they kept it to a minimum. So, these cinematics as they call them, the room we were in was very high-tech. It wasn’t that volume that they used on ‘The Mandalorian,’ that semicircular LCD wall. It was a very particular lighting setup on an enormous level. They gave us this huge amount of room to wander about in this place. There were minimal sets. What you hang your hat on is what happens. What’s the information that’s given? You’re seeing this AI representation of whatever word the threat is. So, there was a certain amount, and you did have to use an enormous amount of your imagination and paint the pictures in your head, which can be interesting if it’s very important to the storytelling. It was a joy to do. It was quite a challenge, but a real joy.
Ye Wenjie (Rosalind Chao) is an astrophysicist who saw her father brutally murdered during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Later, she was conscripted by the military because of her scientific background and sent to a secret radar base in a remote region. Her fateful decision at the base echoes across space and time to a group of scientists in the present day, forcing them to face humanity’s greatest threat.
Launching on Netflix with all eight episodes on Thursday March 21st, ‘3 Body Problem’ represents two gigantic challenges all at once: how do the creators of the ‘Game of Thrones’ TV adaptation follow their mammoth fantasy undertaking, and how do they do it using one of the most acclaimed science fiction novel series of recent years?
As it turns out, the answer is: with an abundance of brains and style, putting together a quality cast and fully using the resources offered by Netflix’s deep pockets to bring the novels’ story (or at least the first in the ‘Remembrance of Earth’s Past’ trilogy, which in book form is known as ‘The Three-Body Problem’) to life.
‘3 Body Problem’ is excellent right out of the gate, even more so than ‘Thrones’. It’s audacious, detailed, emotional and sweeping, hooking you with a teasing mystery (at least for those who have not read the books) that slowly and logically unfolds.
A hefty challenge is that a chunk of the narrative revolves around some big physics concepts, but the show smartly explains them in ways that anyone can understand. You won’t feel like you have to have ‘A Brief History of Time’ open on your lap as you watch.
The story weaves its way towards big revelations, but never feels out of reach, grounding its concept in human behavior and satisfying character interactions –– the main group all feel like people you want to spend time with as you take this journey alongside them.
D. B. Weiss and David Benioff know plenty about adapting sprawling stories with big casts, but here, even more than with ‘Thrones’, they smartly choose to follow a (relatively) small group so as to keep viewers engaged.
So while the story trips through two different time periods and focuses on a few different places across the planet (plus an advanced, immersive video game system that becomes key to the plot), you’re never left wondering who is doing what and why.
Working alongside fellow showrunner Alexander Woo (‘True Blood’), they stay mostly faithful to the book while making necessary changes for the new medium. Thanks to certain moments, they do get to indulge in what you might expect given their previous show –– the series kicks off with some serious head trauma and there is some nudity (though not sexual) in a future episode.
And with luck, they’ll avoid the pitfalls of ‘Thrones’ controversial final season, as the ‘Remembrance’ novel trilogy has an actual ending (no disrespect to George R.R. Martin there).
The show employs ‘Thrones’ veteran director Jeremy Podeswa plus Minkie Spiro, Derek Tsang and Pixar leading light Andrew Stanton, who has been building his live-action directing career steadily with the likes of ‘Legion’ and ‘For All Mankind’, and they all contribute some fantastic visuals as well as subtle and entertaining character work.
There are moments in this series that will have your jaw drop, though we won’t spoil anything here –– trust us, though, you’ll be sorely tempted to watch all the episodes as soon as possible.
Having clearly been happy with a lot of their cast on ‘Game of Thrones’, a few of key actors carry over here.
John Bradley plays Jack Rooney, a man who has hit it rich with his snack business but is still close to his college friends. Rooney offers Bradley the opportunity to play a polar opposite of ‘Thrones’ Samwell Tarley, a cocky but still loveable sort who is one of the first start playing the mysterious game that will be a core element of the early chunk of the story.
Liam Cunningham, meanwhile, feels more like his ‘Games’ character of Davos Seaworth, sharing the cunning brain and salty tongue of the Westeros resident, but as Thomas Wade, a man with a definite mission to protect humanity (no matter the cost), he’s authoritative and darkly funny –– suffering zero fools.
‘Thrones’ High Sparrow, Jonathan Pryce, meanwhile, plays a character who… Well, that would be telling.
On Wade’s team is Benedict Wong’s Da Shi, and this is honestly the best role the actor has enjoyed for years. He knocks it out of the park as the world-weary but funny not-quite-cop who is investigating what is happening to scientists in the UK. While we’re big fans of Wong’s role as, well, Wong in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he has more to do in one scene here than most of the movies he’s shown up in.
The core of the characters is the scientist group who are friends with Rooney, who all feel like actual buddies instead of actors swapping dialogue. And they’re all very different personalities, brought to life by the likes of Eiza González, Alex Sharp, Jess Hong and Jovan Adepo.
‘3 Body Problem’ is a show blessed with a near note-perfect cast: everyone is worth watching here.
Our advice for this one is: if you’ve yet to read the books, stay away from them and avoid Wikipedia! It’s absolutely recommended to go into this one knowing as little as possible, so the surprises hit harder, and the characters feel fresh.
Book readers are likely to be happy with the adaptation, which certainly doesn’t embarrass itself when put up against the literary source. But having seen the whole series, we’re confident in saying that this is a superior, satisfying piece of science fiction TV we can easily see ending up on Best of 2024 TV lists.
‘3 Body Problem’s story begins in 1960s China when a young woman makes a fateful decision that reverberates across space and time into the present day. When the laws of nature inexplicably unravel, a tight-knit group of brilliant scientists must join forces with an unflinching detective to stop humanity’s greatest threat.
Who is in ‘3 Body Problem’?
The ‘3 Body Problem’ cast includes Jovan Adepo, John Bradley, Rosalind Chao, Liam Cunningham, Eiza González, Jess Hong, Marlo Kelly, Alex Sharp, Sea Shimooka, Zine Tseng, Saamer Usmani, Benedict Wong and Jonathan Pryce.
We’re finally in the home stretch, and things are about to get insane. Welcome to the season finale of ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ episode 9, ‘Whose show is this?’
But it’s all a dream, and Jen wakes up in custody, in Emil Blonsky’s (Tim Roth) old cell, with her friends visiting her. She asks if they got ahold of her cousin, but Bruce is not returning his calls.
Jen mentions targeting the people who went after her, but Mallory (Renee Elise Goldsberry) stop her and explains they need to discuss her case. They tell her that no charges will be filed, but she needs to wear an inhibitor and can no longer be She-Hulk. She takes the news well but isn’t happy about it.
Jen packs her stuff up at work, after being let go from the job, with Nikki (Ginger Gonzaga) and Pug (Josh Segarra) helping her walk out. At home, the news is all about her, including the reporters outside her home. Her parents offer for her to move back in, and she has no choice but to take it. The reporters chase her to her family’s home, where her father (Mark Linn-Baker) goes after them with a water hose.
Later that day, Nikki meets Jen to go over the Intellegencia website. Jen is planning to do this legally, but Nikki wants to do it by any means necessary, while Jen’s mother (Tess Malis Kincaid) embarrasses her with a video of her dancing as a teenager. We then see Dennis (Drew Matthews), Jen’s old coworker, on a talk show spreading lies about Jennifer and She-Hulk.
As she lays in bed, Jen asks the audience if we really wanted this sad story? The 1970’s ‘The Incredible Hulk’ narrator from earlier begins again, and she quickly asks him to stop. She tries to text Bruce but gets no reply. Same for Emil but decides to take up his earlier offer to stay at the retreat. “I’m not running from my problems, it’s a mental health break,” she says.
Back at the office, Nikki uploads Jen’s old dancing video to get the attention of HulkKing, which works. She gets a meeting with him, and ropes Pug into helping her. Jen arrives at Emil’s retreat, as we cut to the other two pulling up to the meeting.
Nikki sends Pug undercover into the meeting, and he walks up on a group of men talking about how She-Hulk and Lady Thor (Natalie Portman) don’t deserve their powers, and that they do instead because they are men. Classy!
Pug is then spotted by Todd (Jon Bass), who is happy to see him there, thinking he’s one of them. Todd explains that Jen didn’t earn her powers. He then reveals that he is actually HulkKing,
Todd calls everyone together and congratulates them on a job well done. We then cut to Jen with Wrecker (Nick Gomez), and she asks where Emil is. He mentions he’s at the lodge, and we move back to Todd introducing Emil to the group as their guest speaker. Pug looking absolutely confused.
It turns out Todd hired Emil to be the life coach of Intellegencia, with Blonsky not knowing the group’s true intentions. Jen opens the door, revealing the entire group including Todd watching Emil give his speech.
Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky / Abomination in Disney+’s ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.’
At the same time, Nikki breaks into the lodge while Pug reveals to Jen that Todd is HulkKing and that he stole her blood to make himself a Hulk. As Todd injects himself, Jen turns to the audience to ask, “This isn’t going to work, right? “As it indeed does starts to work. Jen then questions where this finale is going.
Then, Titania also comes in through a wall, with Smart Hulk dropping down from the ceiling a moment later as a Hulked-out Todd calls for the men to attack Jen. But all her cousin sees is the Abomination grabbing her, really to save her, but misunderstanding orders him to drop her. It’s very clear Emil doesn’t want to fight him.
Jen, off to the side, comments how none of these storylines make any sense. She looks to the camera, and asks us, “Is this working for you?” As the screen cuts to the Disney+ Marvel select screen, an absolutely insane fourth-wall break begins. Jen asks what we’re doing and breaks her inhibitor, then breaking into the menu.
As if this can’t get any crazier, she crashes into the “real world,” wandering the Disney lot in Burbank and breaking into the ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ production room. Meeting the writers, she questions them “what kind of stupid finale is this?” They defend that it’s a great twist.
Tatiana Maslany as Jennifer Walters / She-Hulk in Disney+’s ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.’
They say that it’s a thing in all superhero films and tell her she must talk to Kevin. She-Hulk asserts that she’s going to talk to him. Yes, that Kevin! (Which is an obvious reference to President of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige). The front desk man at Marvel Studios pulls the emergency button, after making her sign an NDA, and Jen takes out the guards trying to stop her.
She enters Kevin’s office and sees the entirety of her universe (all the past Marvel Studios productions) played out on a big screen. A robot descends from the ceiling wearing a baseball cap, calling itself K.E.V.I.N (Knowledge Enhanced Visual Interconnectivity Nexus), and asks if she was expecting a real man? He says that he will answer her questions, but only if she turns back to normal Jen off screen because they don’t have the budget to see her transform again.
K.E.V.I.N explains he makes near perfect products, but that the internet sometimes says otherwise. Jen asks why her show is the way it is and offers to give her closing arguments on why her final episode should be different. She goes into a huge speech about how all the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies and TV shows end the same.
She says the ending detracts from her story, and that her stakes are more important. The machine asks what ending she would want, and Jen offers that Todd doesn’t get her powers, because her blood isn’t the bad guy, he is! She also wants to remove Bruce from the finale, but K.E.V.I.N claims he was there to reveal what he was doing in space and introduce someone … but Jen says, “Save it for the movie.”
Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner / Smart Hulk in Disney+’s ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.’
Jen also wants Emil to be held accountable for his actions, the finale to be in daylight, and to see Daredevil (Charlie Cox) again, quipping; “A woman has needs.” She even questions the daddy issues in the MCU and asks where the X-Men are!
After K.E.V.I.N complains that she ruined the finale he designed, Jen mentions that she did what Hulks do, smash! “Bruce smashes buildings, and I smash forth-walls and bad endings, and sometimes Matt Murdock!”
Back at Emil’s retreat, She-Hulk angrily threatens Todd, but then surprisingly transforms back to normal telling him, “I’ll see you in court, babe”
Then, out of nowhere, Daredevil drops in, telling Jen he’s there to help. She explains how he missed everything, but that she’s happy to see him. Leaving him there, Jen walks over to explain to Emil that he’s going back to prison for violating parole, to which he agrees, and holds himself accountable.
We then cut to Jen and Matt Murdock with her family, having a fantastic time. Her parents are surprised to hear that even though he is a lawyer, he doesn’t make a lot of money working in Hell’s Kitchen, and then even bring up the idea of grandkids. Jen tries to save Matt from the conversation when Bruce suddenly shows up. He talks about being away on Sakaar, and then introduces his son, Skaar (Wil Deusner)!
In the final scene, it’s revealed Jen is cleared of her conviction, and she explains that if people come after her, she will go after them as a superhero and in court, ending the season. However, the end-credit scene reveals Wong (Benedict Wong) breaking Blonsky out of prison to go live in Kamar-Taj.
This last episode absolutely solidified ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ as a must watch for me among the Disney+ Marvel library. It’s honestly been a long time since a season finale has really pulled the whole show together for me, and the team behind Jen’s story really killed it.
The humor was well placed, the silly references to other properties, and even K.E.V.I.N and the reveal of Bruce Banner’s son were great little winks to the community behind this giant universe. And let’s not forget how Charlie Cox’s Daredevil was utilized as not just a guest, but a fantastic side character to Jennifer.
Honestly, it’s going to be tough for Marvel to top what they did with ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,’ but I cannot wait to see what they do with ‘Secret Invasion,’ which will obviously be much different.
We begin by seeing a commercial from Titania (Jameela Jamil), who is using the name “She-Hulk” for her new makeup line, which claims to help bring out the “inner beauty” of people. It’s everywhere; a billboard, commercials, even a pop up. We cut to Jennifer’s (Tatiana Maslany) apartment where her cousin Ched (Nicholas Cirillo) breaks in and asks her to sign boxes of the makeup.
He mentions that not trademarking her name was dumb and explains to her how the law works. Jennifer yells into a pillow in anger. Jennifer and Nikki (Ginger Gonzaga) go to the pop-up, in hopes of confronting Titania. But she just makes fun of Jen, and the lawyers are unable to do anything there.
Back at the office, Jennifer says, “I’m still Jennifer Walters, She-Hulk is just something that happened to me,” and starts naming all the good aspects of being a Hulk. Nikki points out how she’s showing a bit of anger by crushing office equipment.
Nikki is approached by Pug (Josh Segarra) and asked to sit with him on a sneaker drop, for a pair called the “Iron Man 3’s.” She pokes fun at him for collecting shoes that he isn’t going to wear. He mentions a man named Alonzo who can get anything fashion wise, and Nikki asks if he could find clothes for a “superhuman sized person.”
Jennifer is watching Titania thank her fans. “I’m over it. I really am,” she tells the audience.
Nikki and Pug go to where Alonzo sends them, which is a Boba café, not a clothing store. The man who works there goes into the back and invites them in, but it’s really all bootleg Avengers merch. After demanding to see the real superhero designer, Luke Jacobson (Griffin Matthews), they are questioned, and they lie, saying that Titania sent them.
That doesn’t work, and they lie once again and say that the clothes are for an Avenger. Jacobson even calls them out via the camera at his office for being huge dorks and dancing after he agrees to the appointment.
Jennifer is sitting with her boss (Steve Coulter), who asks about the billboards around town with She-Hulk on them. He says that she is the face of their business, and this could destroy everything. He assigns her an attorney, Mallory Book (Renée Elise Goldsberry) and she isn’t exactly happy doing it.
She-Hulk mentions that no other superhero had to trademark their name. Mallory assigns Nikki to help change her look, saying that Jennifer’s current clothing make her look like a football player.
We cut to court, and Book works her butt off to put the judge on their side, providing a killer argument to why Titania messed up in trademarking the name. But Titania’s lawyer pulls out footage of Jennifer saying that she doesn’t like the name, yet Book comes back with more footage, going blow for blow.
The judge agrees to break for a few days, and Nikki takes Jennifer to meet with the clothing designer. She talks Jacobson into helping them, and he asks what superhero thing she does. He explains he makes combat suits, and she tells him that she’s just a lawyer.
Nikki says she needs the suit to fit both Jennifer’s She-Hulk body and her human body, and he agrees to make her something. They go back to the office, and she spots the guy she went on a date with in the last episode who had the “superhero fetish.”
He claims to be a client and asks to reconnect with her, Jennifer very much not wanting that. Jennifer and Nikki discuss the dates she had while being She-Hulk, and she realizes that using the men she went on a date with would help her in court.
Book comes to court with her dating profile, showing how she used She-Hulk to get herself a date. But her dates really help, explaining how she was She-Hulk to them, including Derek (David Otunga) who left her that morning, even admitting he would have never dated Jennifer to begin with.
The judge sides with Jennifer, basically halting Titania’s huge product line. As they walk out, Jennifer jokes that she needs to schedule therapy. But Book stops her, mentioning how Derek looked at her weird after he explained not liking her as a normal human. “You can do better,” Mallory tells her.
Jennifer invites her to drinks as a thank you, and Book jokes how she’s never seen a lawyer embarrass herself in court like that to win a case. Jen laughs about how their friends now and is baffled that she said it out loud. Mallory mentions her clothes before leaving.
She-Hulk goes to see her new suits, and Jacobson pulls out “something extra” for her. He goes to pick up an open box, yelling about client confidentiality. In it, is a gold Daredevil helmet. Episode ends.
Now a lot of people who followed the Netflix ‘Daredevil’ series obviously know why seeing the iconic helmet is so important. It’s been a few years since the streaming service unveiled the beginning of its own Marvel Universe, introducing us to ‘Iron Fist,’ ‘Luke Cage,’ ‘Jessica Jones’ and ‘Daredevil.’
Charlie Cox solidified his role in the dark, gritty and violent series, and his seemingly never-ending fight with Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin became one of the most iconic hero versus villain stories that Marvel had put on screen to that point.
(L to R) Charlie Cox as Daredevil and Vincent D’Onofrio as Kingpin on Netflix/Marvel’s ‘Daredevil.’
When Disney took back the rights to the franchise and the show was removed from Netflix, fans were worried we’d never get to relive the stories told on the platform. But just this year, Disney+ raised the bar for streaming and released every Netflix MCU show in one day, showing fans they did indeed care for the darker, more grittier series.
With Cox returning to the Matt Murdock role he popularized on Netflix in “She-Hulk”, a new generation of fans who never witnessed the time Marvel paired up with Netflix can appreciate honestly what is one of the best casting decisions made in the universe so far. Plus, we’re getting Cox and D’Onofrio back in the recently announced ‘Daredevil: Born Again.’ Starting production next year.
With the fantastic reveal at the end of this episode, we can only imagine what’s coming next week. Hopefully I’ll see you all there!
While last week’s episode ended with some criminals in the night, this episode seems to be going more towards the mystical side. Welcome to episode 4 of ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,’ “Is This Not Real Magic?” Which features our best friend Wong (Benedict Wong)!
The episode opens with a mansion outside of town and a hack magician performing. The crowd looks bored, as he calls a volunteer up on stage. Still looking over the unenthused crowd, Donny Blaze (Rhys Coiro) pulls out a “sling ring” and makes a portal.
We cut to Nepal and Wong. The portal opens above him and the volunteer drops in. She tells Wong that the portal dropped her into a pit with a talking goat and then she ended up there. He offers to send her home but not before she unceremoniously spoils ‘The Sopranos’ episode he was watching.
Cut to Jennifer (Tatiana Maslany) breaking the fourth wall again, mentioning that we look happy because we saw Wong. “It’s like giving the show twitter armor for a week,” she says. Her dad (Mark Linn-Baker) comes in and offers to boost up her security after her attack.
She says she’s a Hulk and will be okay. We move to her office where Jennifer is setting up her new dating profile. Nikki (Ginger Gonzaga) comes in to show her another interview she did, and they are stopped by Wong. He explains his “issues” with the magician from earlier.
Wong explains that Blaze was kicked out of the Mystical arts school and now he is using his magic for dangerous purposes. Jennifer asks if Blaze signed a contract, and Wong explains that they never got it in writing.
She mentions doing things by the book, and Wong asks, “The book of Ashanti?” No, the book of American laws! He gives her his card and leaves. At the bar, Jennifer closes the laptop on the cease and desist, and has some last minute Blonsky (Tim Roth) paperwork to do.
A man approaches them, offering to buy her a drink. Jennifer mentions they are doing work and he walks away. She says that type of guy is the reason she doesn’t date. Nikki asks to see her profile, immediately calling her out for her choices, starting to swipe on her matches.
She brings up dating as She-Hulk. Jennifer says no, and that it’s possible for her to get dates as her normal self. We jump to She-Hulk and Wong handing the cease and desist over to Blaze and his manager, Willows (Leon Lamar). Blaze argues with the sorcerer supreme about who’s the better magician and she puts a stop to it, being very obviously grossed out by him and leaving the office.
Next, Jennifer is on a date! However, her date (Ryan Powers) is not exactly blowing her away. He mentions that he was an entrepreneur and not subtly looks at other women. He asks what Jennifer does and she mentions she’s a lawyer.
Well, he’s not paying attention, as he’s on his dating profile and matching with other women. She explains her superhuman power to him and still, he’s not paying attention. Something feels off to her and she thinks he’s going to attack her, but both end up reaching for their keys.
In the courtroom, we see the case between Wong and Blaze. The judge is dubious at best. Wong summons the woman from the magician’s show, Madisynn (Patty Guggenheim) and She-Hulk uses her as the best witness they have.
Well, it’s not working at all. She’s absolutely the worst witness of all time! Blaze’s lawyer asks for the charges to be dismissed, and She-Hulk points out that the mystic arts is real magic, unlike what he does. “Oh my god even the lawyer is a magician,” Jen says.
Wong stands and gives a speech on how Blaze could easily destroy all life as they know it, and the judge explains that it will take a few weeks for her decision and Blaze is still able to do magic in the meantime. Wong offers to throw him into the mirror dimension, but She-Hulk tells him not to.
Jennifer asks Nikki to look at the case for her, and she gets no new matches on her dating app. Finally, out of desperation, she makes an account for She-Hulk. “I’m not proud of this,” she tells the audience. And within seconds, she’s getting matches.
She goes on a date with a few matches, but even then, none of them are great. They still treat her weirdly both as a woman and as a superhero. She asks, “Is there anything worse then dating in your thirties?”
Finally, she meets a man that just seems perfect, Arthur (Michael Curiel), who asks more about her and wants to split some food to go.
Meanwhile, Blaze is back on stage and his volunteer isn’t exactly going along with his act. He summons a real bird that lays an egg, but it hatches a baby demon monster. Throwing it into a portal, he accidentally summons more of them. He then teleports into Wong’s house and asks for his help stopping the demons.
Back at her home, Jennifer is absolutely loving this guy. But before anything could happen, Wong interrupts, asking why she isn’t answering her phone. “Oh, I know why,” says Wong, as she tells Arthur she’ll be right back.
He tells her about Blaze’s portal and She asks Wong what she’s supposed to be doing there. “Be a Hulk,” he tells her and she helps him send the demons back. Mentioning how of course she finally found a hot guy who cares about her and now she’s fighting demons instead of being with him.
After sending them back, she forces Blaze to except the cease and desist order. He agrees and Wong sends Jen back to have a fantastic night. She wakes up the next morning to Nikki informing her that Titania (Jameel Jamil) is on the news again, as the villainess has now been cleared of all charges.
Arthur walks in and is surprised she’s Jennifer and not She-Hulk. He doesn’t look happy, and awkwardly leaves. Jen answers the door to a man serving her a cease and desist, claiming that the Titania trademarked the name “She-Hulk.” “What a bummer way to end the episode, hopefully there’s a fun tag,” Jen tells the audience as the episode ends.
While there was a tag, I think the fun thing to discuss is how ‘She-Hulk’ has been using its humor to poke fun at the MCU.
Very obviously, Donny Blaze is a play on Johnny Blaze, the character known as Ghost Rider. The actual She-Hulk comics themselves were filled with Marvel references and as we mentioned last week, the fourth wall breaks. Honestly, it’s like the show is highlighting the characters Marvel has recently had returned to them, from Wolverine to now Ghost Rider, and as we know from the trailer, eventually Daredevil.
But with that fun and action filled episode concluded, we’ll see you back next week in hopes the action and humor continues to impress!
Last week we had an escape, this week we get to chase the Abomination down. Welcome to episode 3 of ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,’ “The People vs. Emil Blonsky.”
We open the episode on Jennifer (Tatiana Maslany) going back to the prison to question Emil (Tim Roth), asking why he escaped his cell. He tells her he was forced to leave against his will, and when she asks him who forced him to leave, we quickly cut to Nikki (Ginger Gonzaga) discovering just who “Wong” (Benedict Wong) is with her internet detective skills.
Jennifer mentions that if what Emil said is true, then Wong could have destroyed her entire case. In a fantastic use of the fourth wall break, Jennifer informs us that this isn’t one of those cameos shows … except for Bruce (Mark Ruffalo), and Emil, and Wong. Reminding us that, hey, this is in fact her show!
We’re shown a bunch of incredibly misogynistic social media posts about Jen, as she tells Nikki that she doesn’t care what anyone thinks of her. Her friend brings up how everyone wants to know about her life, and Jennifer pushes that thought away.
The next day she enters Holliway’s (Steve Coulter) office, and runs into Dennis (Drew Matthews), her former colleague from the District Attorney’s office. He needs help from the superhuman law division because he was swindled by an Asgardian shapeshifter pretending to be Megan Thee Stallion. Just then, Wong magically appears.
Wong explains that Emil was a “worthy opponent” to help him train to be the Sorcerer Supreme. Jennifer says that he needs to testify to explain why he let her client out, and while he agrees, he also promises not to wipe everyone’s memory again, explaining it’s a messy process (in a ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ reference). She says, “No, thanks.”
We’re shown Dennis and Augustus Pugliese (Josh Segarra), his lawyer, explaining his case to a judge. The judge says he wants to send the case through, but then has a change of heart. It’s suddenly revealed that the man they thought was the Judge was actually Runa (Peg O’Keef), the Asgardian shapeshifter.
We then cut to Jennifer going to Emil’s parole board hearing. As she walks by the press, they falsely mention that she was rejected by the Avengers. In front of the parole board, Jennifer discusses the prison escape and has Emil give his statement as they wait for Wong to arrive.
The board asks Emil if he’s rehabilitated, and he says that he feels great shame, and feels horrible about all of the people that he had hurt. Jennifer states that he’s not the same man he once was, and that he even has a home to live in when he’s free, with his seven wives!
Even though the board meeting is going well, Jennifer is still waiting for Wong to show up. They mention the escape again and Jen begins to stall for time. Eventually, Wong does appear just in time, but incredibly flustered.
We then cut to the trial of Runa, and the motion to dismiss is denied. We return to Jennifer and Wong, as the Sorcerer Supreme reveals that Emil was given an opportunity to live in Kamar-Taj, but turned down Wong’s offer and requested to return to prison, showing his resolve to finish his sentence.
The board mentions that Emil might have changed, but the Abomination hasn’t. So, Blonsky decides to transform in front of them to demonstrate that he can now control the monster. Jennifer demands he immediately change back, and makes her point that he’s now a changed man. The board agrees to consider the case. They thank Jennifer for her time and inform Wong that he broke the law. Wong very quickly leaves the prison.
Benedict Wong as Wong in ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.’ Photo courtesy of Marvel Entertainment.
Later, Jennifer tells Nikki how the protestors treated her entering and exiting the prison. Her friend explains that this could go away if she does an interview, but Jennifer resists. Pugliese pops in, and the fourth wall is broken again as Jennifer tells the audience that they are connecting the A and B storylines.
We then see Jennifer on the stand testifying for Dennis, which is hilarious seeing as she doesn’t really like him. She describes him as “self-absorbed, chauvinistic, and conceited,” proving that he could have been fooled into believing he was dating the real Megan Thee Stallion.
Runa is found guilty and we are given a fun cameo from Megan Thee Stallion herself, who shout’s “That’s right. There is only one Megan Thee Stallion!” Dennis questions if there is something that could stop Runa from using her powers, and Jennifer breaks the forth wall again to mention that he just gave her an idea.
Back at the prison, we find out Jennifer won the trial and Emil is given parole. But he must wear an inhibitor and cannot turn into the Abomination, ever again. We then see a news channel segment where She-Hulk is giving an interview that doesn’t go the way she intended.
Megan Thee Stallion arrives on the red carpet of the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022. Credit: Michael Baker / A.M.P.A.S.
The broadcast cuts to a commercial, and we see Jennifer returning to her apartment. In an alley she’s attacked by a group of men who claim that she “struts around and shows off her powers”. That’s denied by her, and she questions where they got their weapons from, an Asgardian construction worker?
The answer is, well, yes! They all attack her, which does absolutely nothing to her after she transforms into She-Hulk. The men retreat and agree it was a bad idea to attack her. It is then revealed that their main objective was to obtain a sample of her blood, which they were unable to do because the needle couldn’t pierce her skin once she Hulked-out. One of the men states that their “boss won’t be happy” about that.
The episode ends with Jennifer looking at her reflection in her car door after the fight. However, the end credit scene reveals that Jennifer has a new client, Megan Thee Stallion, and the two twerk together to celebrate.
While this episode did not give us much in regards to major reveals and references to past films, I’d love to talk about the use of the fourth wall breaks and how the show uses them to, personally, a fantastic degree.
The idea of a fourth wall break can either be incredibly funny and used smartly, or can take one out of the experience of whatever they are viewing. The way that ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ uses them, though, is a way to get us into Jennifer Walters’ story.
While yes, it is a reference to her popular comic book run of the late 80’s, where fourth wall breaks were plenty, they also help the audience get into her large shoes. From the first episode, we knew that we’d be seeing her story through Jennifer Walters’ own eyes. The fourth wall breaks help with that.
It makes the comedy seem more real and continues what ‘Ms. Marvel’ started, bringing a more comedic tone to the MCU.
But, with the reveal at the end that She-Hulk does indeed have enemies, I cannot wait to see where that takes us in the next few episodes.
After last week’s explosive (both figuratively and literally!) episode finale, it’s time to go back to court in ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law‘ Episode 2: “Superhuman Law!”
We open on multiple news stations discussing Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany) as she “Hulked Out” in court. Jen is outside of a bar with Nikki (Ginger Gonzaga) as they chant “She-Hulk” from inside. “That name better not stick,” Jen says and talks about how she doesn’t want to be a derivative of her cousin.
This is all while she is still fighting against the idea of being a superhero. Saying that it’s only for narcissists and somehow, orphans! Jen is approached by the head of her law firm, and he explains that they didn’t win the last case due to her saving the jury (meanwhile she is drunk during this whole exchange). Jen doesn’t see that as a bad thing but then … she’s fired, with her boss claiming that she’s a liability. Cue the title screen!
The scene moves to her attempting to find a job, with the Hulk side of her destroying her ability to find employment. We see her looking at other incredibly random postings and being invited to a family dinner (with a wonderful phone wallpaper of Captain America’s behind).
She arrives home to her family, only to find out that they know that she got fired. turning an already awkward dinner more awkward. Her mother (Tess Malis Kincaid) is already trying to set her up, and her family fully believes she’s a superhero now.
Her dad (Mark Linn-Baker) pulls her aside and asks how she’s really doing. Jen explains that she’s “okay with not being okay” and how her Hulk got revealed to the whole world. Her dad brings up how she at least didn’t destroy a city like “someone else” in the family.
He tells her that she’s still standing, which is what’s most important. We see Jen at the bar, and she’s approached by the head of the opposing law firm in her case, named Holden Holliway (Steve Coulter). He offers her a job, citing her abilities to lead a new division. Jen accepts the offer but says she wants to hire her own paralegal.
The next day is her first day at her new job, and she finds out she is the head of the superhuman law division. But not her specifically, the She-Hulk, which she doesn’t take well at first. Holliway leads her through the office and explains they are the first law firm to handle superhuman law.
He asks her what she thinks about it, and Jen tells a fantastic lie. “I’ll spend the year worrying about what I just said,” she tells the audience. Nikki is there and points out the new office. Another member of the legal team, Augustus “Pug” Pugliese (Josh Segarra), pops in with a gift basket for the new employees.
Next, Jen is sitting with Holliway who explains her first case is with Abomination, one of her cousin’s biggest enemies. He explains if she doesn’t take it, then her new job is gone.
So, the case is forced upon her, and Jen goes to visit Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth) in prison. They explain the heavy rules, and she’s let in to meet the man who tried to kill Bruce. She stands in front of the Abomination and he explains that he’s a changed man … spiritually. He’s Emil, and that’s it. Choosing not to turn to his own hulking form.
He brings up Bruce and does confirm he tried to kill him. “It’s nothing personal.” Emil explains the government was the reason he attacked Bruce and all of Harlem. Claiming that nothing was his fault. Jen gives him advise, and she begins to question if she really wants to help him.
After thinking, Jen calls Bruce (Mark Ruffalo) and tells him that she is being forced to represent the Abomination. Once again, Jen dumps on her cousin and doesn’t even allow Bruce to talk. He admits that Blonsky sent him a nice letter and that he himself is a changed man, or rather, Hulk.
Bruce asks what the public named her, and he tells her that it’s an amazing choice. He also tells her to be careful and we see Bruce is literally on the Sakaarian ship from the first episode, cruising through space. Jen tells Holliway she’ll take the case, and he tells her to turn on the TV.
She does, and we see footage of the Abomination from ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings‘ in the ring fighting with Wong (Benedict Wong), clearly having escaped prison. “Oh, that sucks,” Jen says before the episode ends.
This new episode does way more to the Marvel Cinematic Universe then we can even think! A lot of it hidden in plain sight. First, the main one being bringing Abomination officially into the MCU. While he was revealed in ‘Shang-Chi,’ this is the first time that the MCU has made the events of ‘The Incredible Hulk’ verbally spoken about in detail.
While this can be confusing, as Mark Ruffalo did not play the Hulk in the 2008 film (that was Ed Norton!), but it just shows how much backstory that Marvel is reusing, in order to not have to waste time with more origin stories. Why waste a good story that was already written?
Another fun little Easter egg to come out of the episode was the website Jen was using to look up wacky jobs she could apply for. Hidden on the right of the website was a list of what seemed like clickbait articles.
One of these read “Man fights with metal claws in bar brawl.” Very obviously, the first thought related to that is Wolverine! Who else has metal claws and specifically would fight with them in a bar? This is one of the many recent references to the ‘X-Men’ in recent MCU properties.
While we’ve known for a while that Marvel Studios had reclaimed the film and TV rights to the ‘X-Men,’ these recent sightings in the MCU are really the first time we are seeing that come to fruition. So obviously we have to ask the fun question … who do you want to see playing this clawed bar fighter?
Episode 2 was filled with fun jokes and some interesting plot development for Jennifer Walters. Can’t wait to see you all next week and find out where episode 3 takes us!
The new nine-part MCU series ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,’ will premiere on Disney+ beginning August 18th. The series revolves around lawyer Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany), who also happens to be Bruce Banner’s (Mark Ruffalo) cousin, and the hero known as She-Hulk.
The show was created by writer Jessica Gao, and executive produced by director Kat Coiro (‘Marry Me’), and in addition to Maslany and Ruffalo, also features Ginger Gonzaga, Jameela Jamil, and Renee Elise Goldsberry. Reprising their characters in the series from other Marvel projects are Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky/Abomination, Benedict Wong as Wong, and Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock/Daredevil.
The result is a fun and hilarious new series that perfectly adapts the original source material from the comics with fourth wall breaking comedic moments like ‘Deadpool,’ a commanding performance from Tatiana Maslany, and enough MCU cameos to make every Marvel fan happy!
The series begins by introducing us to Jennifer Walters (Maslany), a talented young lawyer about to argue a big case. However, she then turns directly to the camera and explains how she became She-Hulk.
The show then flashes back to months earlier when Jennifer is visiting with her cousin, Bruce Banner (Ruffalo) after the events of ‘Avengers: Endgame’ and the ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ end credit scene. When a car accident mixes Bruce’s blood with Jennifer’s, she becomes a Hulk-like creature just like her cousin.
Bruce then takes her to a remote island laboratory created by Tony Stark between ‘Infinity War’ and ‘Endgame,’ which Bruce used to become Smart Hulk. On the island, Bruce teaches Jennifer to use her new powers, and discovers that she is stronger and can control her powers better than Bruce ever could.
We then flash-forward to the opening moments of the series and watch Jennifer as she is about to argue her case, when the supervillain Titania (Jamil) attacks the courtroom. Jennifer then announces to the world she is She-Hulk by transforming in the courtroom and stopping Titania.
However, she is soon fired from her firm only to be hired by a competing law firm to head up their superhuman defense department. The catch is that they want her to be She-Hulk full-time, forcing Jennifer to come to terms with her new superhero persona.
When I heard Marvel was planning a Disney+ series based on She-Hulk, I was concerned about what type of show it would be. If you are familiar with comic book legend John Byrne’s run on “The Sensational She-Hulk” in the late 80s, you know that the comic was very funny, and featured the lead character being aware that she is in a comic book, similar to other Marvel characters like Howard the Duck or Deadpool.
Since the ‘Deadpool’ movies introduced the character as being able to “break the fourth wall,” I was worried that ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ might decide not to include this aspect of the character, but I’m very happy to announce that instead they truly embraced it.
Most episodes of the series run about 30 minutes, and is very much a workplace comedy, not unlike ‘The Office’ or even legal comedies like ‘Ally McBeal.’ This fits perfectly with the source material and is a fantastic way of adapting the character to screen.
The comedic tone of the series allows us to see some favorite MCU character in a new light, like Bruce Banner, Emil Blonsky and Wong. The series is even able to poke fun at itself and the overall MCU, with running commentary from Walters like teasing the audience for loving Wong.
And for Hulk fans that had a lot of questions about Banner, Blonsky and Wong’s involvement in last year’s ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,’ rest assured that the series will finally answer them.
But the series not only welcomes back some fan-favorite characters, but creates some great new ones including Patty Guggenheim as Madisynn, a party girl that hilariously befriends Wong. Ginger Gonzaga is also a great addition to the MCU as Nikki, Jennifer’s confidant and best friend. And while she does not appear much in the first few episodes, Jameela Jamil definitely lights up the screen as Titania, and I’m looking forward to when the character inevitably battles She-Hulk.
But the highlight of the series is Tatiana Maslany’s complex performance as both Jennifer Walters and She-Hulk. The series wisely establishes Jennifer as her own character in the opening moments of the series, so the audience is able to fully go with her on her journey. Because of the tone of the series, Maslany is allowed a fresh take on being a superhero and the challenges of juggling a career and personal life with her responsibilities as a hero.
If I had one criticism, it would be that the visual effects that transform Maslany into She-Hulk could have used a bit of more work. In the movies, Hulk is used sparingly (with the exception of ‘Endgame’), which allows more time to focus on the effects. Not to mention that the VFX budget on a film is much greater than what they have to work with on television. The fact that the character is She-Hulk in most of her scenes, may have also added to the rough spots in some parts.
But ultimately, ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ is a fresh take on the character, the genre and the MCU in general. With terrific dialogue from writer Jessica Gao, and great visuals and tone from director and executive producer Kat Coiro, the series is a home run for Marvel and sitcom fans alike.
‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ receives 4.5 out of 5 stars.
You can also click on the video player below to watch our interviews with Tatiana Maslany, Ginger Gonzaga, Tim Roth, writer Jessica Gao, and director and executive producer Kat Coiro about their work on ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.’
