Marvel’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is now streaming on Disney+, and it seems as though Bruce Banner’s cousin Jennifer Walters is the safer version of Deadpool. While the Merc With the Mouth played by Ryan Reynolds is the most popular Marvel character who’s self-aware and knows he’s in a fictional medium, She-Hulk broke the fourth wall years 2 years before Deadpool’s first appearance in the comics. Now, it looks as though Jen Walters is ready to be similarly self-aware on-screen as well.
Beginning with John Byrne’s Sensational She-Hulk comic series in 1989, Jen Walters started to interact with readers and editors alike, having a full awareness that she was in a comic book. Serving as a unique and often humorous story-telling convention in the comics, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 1 sees Jen interacting with the audience in a similar manner. Helping to narrate events, Jen talks to the camera as she shares her personal feelings and responses while training to be a Hulk with her cousin Bruce (who’s more than a little jealous by how quickly she picks things up).
Seeing as how the upcoming Deadpool 3 is expected to be integrated into the MCU now that Disney owns the X-Men franchise, Wade Wilson and Jen Walters are the only 2 meta heroes who can break the fourth wall and interact with viewers. However, She-Hulk is clearly the more filtered and safer of the two, with the Deadpool R-rated movie marking the latter as far raunchier. Without a doubt, She-Hulk is a more accessible superhero to a much wider audience range.
How She-Hulk Is Different From Deadpool
It should be noted that She-Hulk is different from Deadpool in the ways Wade and Jen break the fourth wall on-screen. When Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool has broken the fourth wall, it’s largely ignored and not responded to, even when he makes comments about studios or actors such as Patrick Stewart or James McAvoy (who both play versions of Charles Xavier). In comparison, Jen confides in the audience as if they were a friend, though what’s more surprising is that Bruce seemed to notice her looking off and talking to nothing (from his perspective). Seeing as how Jen has no alternate identity like Bruce Banner and the Hulk, it’s possible that the “person” Jen is talking to isn’t the audience at all, but rather her own secondary persona that’s manifested much differently than Bruce’s did.
All things considered, it has to be wondered if She-Hulk and Deadpool will ever meet in the future of the MCU. While Daredevil is already confirmed for a She-Hulk appearance, perhaps Deadpool will have a cameo as well to see who can break the fourth wall best. At any rate, She-Hulk seems to be the generally safer meta hero for those who can’t handle or are too young for Wade Wilson’s more adult antics in his own films.
