• Written by: Rainbow Rowell
• Art by: Andrés Genolet
• Colors by: Dee Cunniffe
• Letters by: VC’s Joe Caramagna
• Cover art by: Jen Bartel (cover A)
• Cover price: $4.99
• Release date: October 18, 2023

The Sensational She-Hulk #1 picks up where the last canceled arc left off, with Jen and Jack trying to figure out their relationship.

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Is The Sensational She-Hulk #1 Good?

Well, here we are again. The Sensational She-Hulk #1 kicks off a new series that looks a whole heck of a lot like the old (canceled) series to regale readers with Jennifer Walters’s slice-of-life adventures. The entire creative team, right down to the cover artist, is the same, so does this first issue tell you anything is improved or different? No, not the least little bit.

When last we left She-Hulk, she called Jack of Hearts in to stop an alien bomb from blowing up New York on behalf of a villain you never saw or heard. Jack saved the day while Jen’s superstrong friends staved off alien soldiers. Oddly, Jen really didn’t do anything in the finale except call her boyfriend for help.

Now, Jack has figured out that he can make physical contact with Jen as long as his energy-absorbing powers are maxed out, so their love life is back on (almost). Meanwhile, Jen is figuring out what it means to be in a committed relationship, both for herself and the people she interacts with socially. That’s about it.

The challenge with this series is its perception. She-Hulk has always been a superhero, but a superhero engaged in humorous situations, sometimes 4th-wall-breaking situations, and that’s how most readers have known She-Hulk since her inception.

This She-Hulk is not that She-Hulk. This She-Hulk is a slice-of-life character wearing a She-Hulk costume who occasionally encounters superhero-adjacent situations. Even when the situation calls for her to use Hulk’s strength to save the day, Jen either sidesteps the problem or calls on her friends to do the superhero stuff.

If you can wrap your brain around the idea that this version of She-Hulk is almost a completely different character than any version prior, and you like directionless, slice-of-life comics, you’ll be fine. If you’re picking this issue up for She-Hulk’s adventures as a continuation of her peak (e.g. the Byrne era), forget it. This version is poorly constructed fanfic by comparison.

What’s great about The Sensational She-Hulk #1? The one thing this series gets right is the tender, authentic romance between Jen and Jack. It seems odd to make a superhero comic that’s really only a romance comic in disguise, but the romance is done right.

What’s not so great about The Sensational She-Hulk #1? There is no plot, there is no direction, the humor is embarrassingly bad, and this version of She-Hulk is practically an alien compared to every previous iteration. There’s no reason for this comic to exist.

How’s the art? It’s fine. There’s not much for Genolet to do except make people standing around and talking look interesting, but at least the visuals are inoffensive.

Backup Story

The backup story is written by Jessica Gao, the showrunner for the Disny+ She-Hulk series. The short is effectively an extended gag of mistaken identity. Gao’s story has no relevance to the main story, and it’s not funny, so if you’re wondering why the She-Hulk show turned out the way it did, now you know.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Bits and Pieces

The Sensational She-Hulk #1 continues the exact same story with the exact same creative team from the previously canceled run to deliver a directionless, unfunny, slice-of-life comic. If you liked the previous arc, this is more of the same. Points were deducted for Marvel’s shameless renumbering scheme.

4/10