The Immortal She-Hulk #1 is a one-shot that takes us through the three deaths of Jennifer Walters and beyond. Here’s my review.
The Immortal She-Hulk #1: The Three Deaths of Jennifer Walters
Writer: Al Ewing
Artist: Jon Davis-Hunt
Color Artist: Marcio Menyz
Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit
Publisher: Marvel
Death in comics usually doesn’t stick. Characters often get taken off the board to make room for a new editorial direction or a publisher’s harebrained idea to make some easy money.
The Immortal She-Hulk is one of the rare times when death adds a whole new layer to a character that makes her story so far richer and her future much more compelling.
We go through all the three deaths of She-Hulk a.k.a. Jennifer Walters. From her origin story to Civil War II, and all the way to the recent Empyre event, she goes through the trauma of dying.
There’s more to her just biting it, though. Something sinister is happening that ties into the Immortal Hulk series. It’s an interesting wrinkle to being a Hulk — particularly a dead Hulk — and it’s great.
But while the whole Below-Place situation is fascinating, the real meat of The Immortal She-Hulk is Shulkie/Jen facing her immortality.
She is told that it’s nothing. Dying and coming back multiple times didn’t change her. She is told that her immortality doesn’t exist. She shouldn’t worry about it. She’s told to ignore her traumatic experience. Deny it. Forget it.
Nothing makes one feel so alone than being told that their struggle, their trauma, the thing that keeps them awake at night is something that can easily be dismissed.
Being alone is an integral part of being a Hulk and that is put on the spotlight in this thoughtful story about facing one’s immortality when one is a big green superhero.
I’m not familiar with Jon Davis-Hunt’s work but I could get used to looking at more of his art. His details make the few action sequences come alive while also adding weight, emotion, and an unsettling feeling of upcoming horror to the non-action parts, which make up most of this comic.
Who I’m familiar with though is Al Ewing and he does a fantastic job here in repackaging Jennifer Walters’ history to tie into her current status and have it all matter. He makes me want to catch up on his entire Immortal Hulk run.
IN CONCLUSION
I don’t usually enjoy Hulk stories that don’t have a lot of punching in them, but this is the exception. The Immortal She-Hulk #1 is an excellent introspective look into how Jennifer Walters deals with death and immortality as sinister forces creep in from down below.
This goes into The List as the new #6.
The Immortal She-Hulk #1 is available now wherever fine comic books are sold.
