She-Hulk vol3 #4 (2014)
by Charles Soule & Javier Pulido
cover by Kevin Wada
Concluding Kristoff’s attempt to get political asylum. Will he finally be written in-character?
Unsurprisingly, She-Hulk is unwilling to let the case go.
It is interesting to note that Kristoff is still using the last name Vernard, even though he’s been adopted by Doom for years at this point. Shouldn’t he be Kristoff Von Doom by now?
Despite having technically won the case, she hasn’t been able to actually get paid for it.
She decides to get a second opinion, and when you’re a superhero lawyer that means going to Daredevil.
Who is not only hanging out in San Francisco… again…
…but also had to reveal his secret identity to the world, which resulted in Matt Murdock being disbarred.
This will be undone after the new Secret Wars (I’m pretty sure by having Purple Man’s children erase the knowledge from everybody… unless I’m confusing this with a different retcon).
It was a controversial choice to be sure, but I really liked the book where that happened.
In fact it was the last Daredevil book I read regularly (I still check up on him from time to time).
While certainly you can’t KEEP him with a public identity… in fact he’s one of the very few superheroes who I argue should keep it a secret… but it does facilitate some interesting interactions.
His mention of having been to Latveria recently warrants a little tangent.
That’s a reference to Daredevil #14 from 2011. Which, despite the cover…
…doesn’t have Daredevil meet Doom, but one of his ministers instead.
That story is not in the retrospective since it doesn’t feature Doom, but it’s a good story.
The reason Daredevil is kidnapped by (basically) Doom’s accountant is that he disrupted Latveria’s money laundering operations.
If that sounds off-character for Doom, it’s heavily implied he didn’t consent to this.
There are only two somewhat notable things related to the retrospective in that book.
One is that it might be the ONLY story that actually gives us ANY information about how big Latveria is supposed to be…
…and the other is a neat little detail about Latveria’s border with Hungary.
(which at this point is THE real life country that has been named most often when it comes to Latverian borders)
Tangent over, let’s go back to She-Hulk.
Daredevil figured out that she wants to keep pursuing the case, and agrees to help her sneak in Latveria.
I’ve mentioned before that the Javier Pulido artwork is an acquired taste. I’m not a huge fan of his closeups, but when he has the chance to go all out he’s great.
For example, THIS is how he depicts She-Hulk and Daredevil hanging out after work!
The two lawyers bring up an incredible fact: despite being THE two lawyers of the Marvel Universe, they’ve never faced each other in court so far.
That’s crazy, isn’t it? The first time they actually do fight in court will be in THIS series!
Considering She-Hulk was created in 1979, the fact it took her 35 YEARS to be in the same courtroom of Matt Murdock is insane.
Also insane? In that issue she’s defending Captain America (who was old at the time, because comics).
Using the fake passport procured by Daredevil, She-Hulk then flies to Latveria.
In human form of course, but… does she REALLY think one of the most paranoid people on the planet wouldn’t know her real face? She WAS in the Fantastic Four!!!
And even if that wasn’t the case… SHE’S A HULK, not exactly known for stealth.
The comic was pretty good so far! And then it loses me with several dumb decisions: first by having She-Hulk get inside Castle Doom WAY too easily…
…and even using one of Doom’s weapons to take care of the defenses!
Then we are treated to the amazing Gigantic Doom. And yeah this is stupid, but… do you know HOW MANY TIMES Doctor Doom was depicted as a giant on the cover, without him being a giant in the comic? So it’s honestly satisfying to see that FOR ONCE he’s a giant!
In an issue where he’s not giant on the cover, sure, but come on. Baby steps.
She-Hulk’s reply when Giant Doom asks her if she loves Kristoff is great.
This is a surprisingly deep insight on Doom’s relationship with Kristoff: he’s simultaneously trying to make him the next Doom, but also making him completely subservient… and obviously the two things are mutually exclusive.
Kristoff basically confirms She-Hulk’s idea: he didn’t REALLY want to move to the United States, it was a plead for attention to his father.
Then Doom does the closest thing to admitting he’s wrong while technically not doing it.
This story will be completely ignored by future Kristoff appearances (which are quite few), but you might have seen this panel before.
And for good reason because “DO NOT WRECK THIS GIGANTIC DOOM” is hilarious!!!
And so we end with She-Hulk being escorted back to the US, without an assurance that she’ll get paid this time.
Why wouldn’t Kristoff be able to pay her in another currency?
Considering his attitude in the previous issue, probably to be a dick.
Doom significance: 0/10
Completely ignored.
Silver Age-ness: 6/10
On the Marvel scale, both She-Hulk being able to get into the country and the castle THAT easily.
Although considering both Doom and Kristoff are there waiting for her, I’m assuming they absolutely knew she was coming.
Does it stand the test of time? 7/10
Much better than last time, mostly because Kristoff is in barely half a page and his attitude towards Doom here DOES track with their history.
We also have less weird shenanigans, with the exception of Gigantic Doom which is so out of left field and so hilarious that I’m giving it a pass.
Not very representative of the series as a whole; I would still call it the weakest She-Hulk series so far, but if you enjoy superhero courtroom drama it’s worth checking out.
Issues 8 to 10, where She-Hulk and Daredevil do fight in court, is particularly recommended: for such a historic moment they really DID bring their best legal plots (at least according to a layman).
It was a Doombot all along
This is 100% a Doombot, sure, but I’m still convinced we’re also dealing with a Kristoff-bot.
Crazy tech
I’m not the only one desperately wishing to see Gigantic Doom more, right?
