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SHE-HULK #5
"The Big Picture Part One: More Than A Handful"
Highly Recommended (9/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writer: Dan Slott
Pencils: Paul Pelletier
Inks: Tom Simmons & Don Hillsman
Colors: Avalon Studios
Letters: Dave Sharpe
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Price: $2.99 US/$4.25 CAN |
My first impression of She-Hulk was that Slott was another guy at Marvel whose love of superheroes was tempered by a need to make fun of them. However, as the series have gone on, I see that his sensibilities line up pretty closely to mine, which is that while he can see the inherent silliness of some of these characters, he can also enjoy them for what they are instead of trying to make them realistic, and his love of the lower tier characters has made me a big fan. This issue, the first of a two-part story arc, introduces probably the coolest idea for a supervillain prison I've ever seen, then creates probably the coolest version of a prison breakout I've ever seen, and on the way, continues to build up the subplot of She-Hulk's romances in the office and out. Gone from this arc are regular artists Juan Bobillo and Marcelo Sosa, which is a shame, but Pelletier, Simmons and Hillsman do some fantastic work as well, and I hardly missed the regular art team as a result.
Slott is using She-Hulk to present a slightly skewed vision of the Marvel Universe, one that is viewed through the eyes of the law. How does the law deal with secret identities? We saw that in the last issue. How does it deal with a huge number of dangerous supervillains and the matter of incarceration? Well, I don't want to give it away, but the technology and implementation of it that Slott comes up with in this issue is a clever use of pre-existing Marvel technology, an idea that seems smart, relatively realistic and a great vehicle for gags, all at the same time.
In addition to neat ideas and exploration of the Marvel Universe from a different angle, Slott has a touch of the old school approach that too few writers these days can manage. Based on She-Hulk, I'm starting to think that Dan Slott's name should rest alongside those of Kurt Busiek, Mark Waid and Geoff Johns as one of the guys who "gets" classic superhero style but who can bring a modern approach to it as well. This issue features a New Warriors action sequence that is dead on perfect for the team, a beautiful cameo for a team that I've always enjoyed, and several B- and C-grade villains used very effectively as well. It's all too easy to make fun of supervillains and their costumes and gimmicks, which seems to be de rigeur for Marvel these days, but making them seem dangerous despite their goofy costumes and gimmicks? Well, that's a rare talent, and Slott has it.
Mixing all of that, we've also got some very interesting characterization. I was worried that Slott's take on She-Hulk was going to be viewing her as big green party slut, but thankfully, he seems to have toned that down a touch. More importantly, the focus is still on Jen Walters, and the love triangle that Slott has created with Jen, John Jameson and Pug is terrific. I like Pug, he's the quintessential nice guy, but John Jameson is no slouch either, and the scene of heroism this issue where he proves you don't need superpowers to do something heroic was a really terrific moment. Throw in Holliway getting a little humanizing with the revelation of a relationship to Southpaw (a nifty supervillain name/gimmick created by Slott), and you've got a rich set of characters to go with a clever premise and solid execution of it.
While I give a lot of credit to the writing for making me love this book, I shouldn't ignore the art, which is just as good. Pelletier's work is more "superhero" than the work of Bobillo, and when I first read this issue, I thought I had picked up a New Warriors back issue by mistake. Half of the credit for the more obscure villain appearances belongs to Pelletier, who does perfect background scenes and throws in any number of goofy supervillains. However, while Pelletier excels at the action and other superhero standards, he's no slouch in the comedy department either, and his depiction of the different size-changes throughout the issue, especially the ones found on the final page, really bring the whole situation to life effectively.
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