She-Hulk: Attorney at Law doesn’t just smash bad guys and the fourth wall; the series also breaks Marvel Studio’s protocol. The show is irreverent, light, and funny. Not to say Marvel movies don’t have humor infused; every entry has its laughs, some more than others. Guardians of the Galaxy Volumes 1 and 2 have their own lifeblood trademark humor from writer/director James Gunn, while even the most serious of MCU fare still gives us a few chuckles (Captain America: The Winter Soldier).

More noticeable than the quips is She-Hulk’s deviation from the MCU formula. When we sit down for an MCU entry, we meet the flawed hero, the hero learns, and the hero saves the world. Roll credits and post-credits scenes. Sure, Jen Walters is a flawed character, and she grows along the way, but her story is mostly about herself and the small to large battles she fights every day as she tries to balance Hulk life with regular life. There’s no genocidal space tyrant or fascist takeover in sight, just She-Hulk and a few goofy enemies she throttles with the flick of her finger.

We love the MCU and everything it has built with its algorithm, but could the franchise take pointers from its latest series?

The MCU Shouldn’t Be So Repetitive

     Marvel Studios

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been an unstoppable force since 2008. It’s killed at the box office, received (mostly) critical praise, and shows no signs of slowing down with a massive slate of movies and series in the works. It’s even snagged a Best Picture Oscar nod. But could it use a change?

Don’t get us wrong, we’re not calling each movie a photocopy of original print Iron Man, but it wouldn’t be a bad thing for the franchise to start taking some risks. They have our attention (and a lot of our money), so why not use their miles-high platform to bring some new ambition to the tried and true? Among the closest they’ve come to breaking from the path is the ending of Avengers: Infinity War with its jaw-dropping kill tally. Infinity War’s billion-dollar-plus box office performance shows tweaks can be made while still garnering massive success.

She-Hulk proves this further by basically bulldozing its own trail to critical praise. It might have divided fans by isolating the ones who see wokeism in their breakfast cereal, but overall, the series succeeded. She-Hulk won out as an underdog; when it was announced, it was written off as slate filler to bide time before the real heroes came back. Star Tatiana Maslany, creator Jessica Gao and company made a very strong case for a second season and hopefully a spot on the Avengers for The Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars.

The MCU is too repetitive, but the movies are always such a great mix of writing, spectacle, and performances that it can be instantly forgiven. Predictable doesn’t mean bad; if it’s good, we’ll watch it. But the upcoming Phase 5 of the MCU feels like a full wiping of the slate. They’re basically starting over with mostly new characters, new directors, and an excellent opportunity to try something different.

Comedies Have a Place in the MCU

As we know, the MCU isn’t all straight-faced seriousness. We have the Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor: Ragnarok, and Thor: Love and Thunder as examples of Marvel experimenting with its formula to comedic ends. These outliers emphasize laughs as a close second to the action, but the bones are still MCU. They are ancestors of She-Hulk in many ways, with unexpected personality coming from our heroes. Jen Walters’ wry comments to the audience, though comic-based, are very much on par with a talking warrior raccoon and a god going from Shakespearean to dopey bro.

These elements can be seamlessly introduced to the more formulaic movies, as proven by Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, where the Guardians of the Galaxy played huge roles. She-Hulk isn’t the first, but it is the only MCU property to go all out with the comedy. And talk about breaking tradition; we have Deadpool 3 coming in late 2024.

Different Doesn’t Just Mean Funny

     Disney Platform Distribution

The change that She-Hulk represents doesn’t just mean humor but a change in general. Comedy doesn’t have a place in every movie. You can’t have our new Captain America turn to the camera and say, “Watch me whip this shield.” The Fantastic Four aren’t going to be an improv group. But give us some more unhappy endings, some more edge, more darkness, something risky. She-Hulk’s canary thrived in the coal mine, which can be built upon.

The franchise isn’t in a funk by any means, but it started as one of the most ambitious cinematic undertakings in history. They mapped out nearly dozens of solo movies culminating in multiple box office team-up juggernauts. The MCU was born out of boldness. They did it once, and they can easily do it again.