The Marvel Cinematic Universe is the most powerful and profitable media franchise in all of modern history, comfortably encompassing most of the biggest films of all time. The sheer scale of the production makes every difficult moment or perceived failure a matter of discussion for the entire movie-going public.
She-Hulk: Attorney At Lawhas finally dropped its first trailer, and with it came a torrent of public interest in the first on-screen appearance of the MCU's take on the character. Jennifer Walters can finally be seen on the small screen, but the way Disney and Marvel have chosen to portray the character has divided the fanbase for a couple of reasons.
Like her cousin The Incredible Hulk, She-Hulk is being depicted as a fully CGI character. This will be the first fully CGI character in the MCU's multitude of Disney+ streaming series, but it's far from Marvel's first take on the technique. Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Thanos, Abomination, Ultron, Korg, the aforementioned Hulk, and many more fixtures of the MCU are entirely computer-generated. While many of these characters integrate seamlessly into the group shots and battle scenes, it's easy to tell what's CGI and what's practical. Look no further than the Guardians of the Galaxy: Rocket and Groot are fully animated, and Gamora and Drax are actors after around five hours of makeup and prosthetics. The choice to make She-Hulk a fully CGI character seems like an obvious one, especially since Hulk has been represented that way since before the MCU existed. Unfortunately, in the first trailer, many fans feel that the CGI used to create She-Hulk leaves a lot to be desired.
Two primary criticisms have circled She-Hulk since the trailer's recent premiere. The first is one of general quality. Much has been made of comparing the appearance of this CGI representation of a superhuman green character with the appearance of The Hulk in The Avengers a decade ago. Many argue that there are massive differences in budget. Even though the MCU has had a decade to continue accruing comical sums of money and success, The Avengers was a tent-pole blockbuster film designed to be a landmark in the title, while She-Hulk is the eighth season of Disney+ content. It's a much smaller-scale project, but that doesn't change the fact that CGI has had a decade to evolve and fans' expectations have only increased in that time. Marvel simply can't put out something seen as inferior to its previous landmarks without expecting a fair amount of backlash.
There are definitely some fair criticisms of the way She-Hulk looks in this initial trailer. Fans have an irritating way of collating the jobs of numerous people under the unhelpful and often reductive heading of "bad CGI", but there are aspects that do not look good in this trailer. She-Hulk looks distractingly dissimilar from her human form, as portrayed by Tatiana Maslany. Her facial features are smooth, alien, almost porcelain-doll-like. The character's facial expressions vary from unreadable to intensely unpleasant, making her appear strangely dead-eyed. Worst of all, Hulk is still right there, looking more or less as good as he always has. She-Hulk doesn't resemble her cousin; she's most comparable to the title character of 2019's Alita: Battle Angel. She-Hulk finds a comfortable place in the uncanny valley, but the subjective quality isn't the only issue on display in her design.
The harshest critics of She-Hulk's appearance have dared to raise the specter of the Sonic the Hedgehog movie's first trailer, which sent the movie back into production for four months. This comparison is both harsh and hopeful, in that it implies that there's a chance the CGI effects aren't done. She-Hulk could appear on Disney+ looking nothing like her first appearance, but the choices in art direction are still an issue for many fans. Many have plainly stated that this She-Hulk simply isn't buff enough. Female body types have been a topic of virulent debate for ages in genre fiction, and the idea of a hulking powerful woman is often taboo in media. The MCU's She-Hulk is noticeably skinnier and less shredded than some of her drawn counterparts. Her appearance varies from one issue to the next, but her body type comes into focus when compared to her cousin.
VFX artists work hard and deserve a great deal more recognition than they get. The problems that fans have with this character likely belong higher up the chain. Limiting funds to a female-led superhero project or weakening a TV entry in the MCU feel decisions made by the studio. She-Hulk's design falls short of the unique body type standard portrayed in many of the comics, which implies that Disney is still reticent to put a woman in the center if she doesn't fit the right measurements. While there are still changes that could be made, She-Hulk: Attorney At Law is in a strange place after its first trailer, mainly due to the lead character's appearance.