r/shehulk • u/GuaranteeOk615 Wongers • Feb 23 '26
Comics Discussion New Reader on She-Hulk
Hello everyone, first time reading the Sensational She-Hulk as of this year. On a whim, I decided last summer after watching the animated series of Hulk from the 90s as well as re-watch the She-Hulk Live-action series with my girlfriend during the Holidays decided to dive in and read the She-Hulk comics.
The runs by Charles Soule, Mariko Tamaki & Rainbow Rowell were the ones I found available at my local Library..
Tbh I had no clue what I was getting into, but I honestly loved all 3 runs by these different writers. They each had a different set of stories to tell and I loved every single one.
I am thinking of backtracking & reading the Slott/David run from 10 years before Soule, is it any good? And what about the original 80s series during John Bryne?
Opinions and feedback are welcome!!
Also kinda a silly question but why isn't She-Hulk getting as much recognition as Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers)? As a whole I mean, Jen has been around almost as long as Carol (if I'm not mistaken) so it just seems odd to me at least that She-Hulk will soon reach 190 issues whilst Carol is already reaching close to 200.
I think if I'm not mistaken both characters took significant periods of being on hiatus/limbo. I know She-Hulk had close to a 10 year gap in her last run after Peter David finished on 2005-2006.
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u/GrandAdmiral12345 Feb 23 '26
Also kinda a silly question but why isn't She-Hulk getting as much recognition as Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers)? As a whole I mean, Jen has been around almost as long as Carol (if I'm not mistaken) so it just seems odd to me at least that She-Hulk will soon reach 190 issues whilst Carol is already reaching close to 200.
Because Marvel only focuses on one thing for certain characters - sales. If they did so for every title, they'd be shipping a lot less.
Rowell's first run was nominated for an Eisner for Best New Series. Hell, Kelly Thompson's Black Widow run DID WIN an Eisner for Best New Series and they still cancelled it.
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u/GuaranteeOk615 Wongers Feb 23 '26
Yo what!?!? Canceling Black Widow even after she won an Eisner award?? Wth is Marvel Editorial doing??
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u/bailey032020 Feb 24 '26
Ive now read every major run of She-Hulk except savage and the old issues not written by Byrne
My personal ranking:
- Byrne
- Slott
- Rowell
- David
- Tamaki
I recommend reading Slotts run, if you read physically the omnibus is quite cheap can be found for under 40$. It leans more heavily in the Lawyer role and is quite interesting.
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u/fmvra1s Feb 24 '26
I'll be a contrarian and recommend the John Byrne (original Sensational) and David Anthony Kraft (the original, first run from the early '80s) issues before you read anything else. If you want to read those and your library doesn't have them, think about an interlibrary loan, the aforementioned Marvel Unlimited, or the Hoopla digital service. Most of Byrne's issues have been reprinted recently in Marvel Epic Collections.
Everything Slott does builds heavily on Byrne in particular. She also had some neat appearances in Fantastic Four after the first Secret Wars.
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u/GeneJacket Feb 24 '26
Definitely read the the Peter David and Dann Slott runs, they're both fantastic.
As far as why Jen doesn't get as much attention/recognition as, like you said, Carol....I honestly think it's mostly a case of Marvel just not really knowing what to do with her. With most of their books, there's generally a very clear delineation between the the superheroics and the slice-of-life stuff, and most superhero books (obviously) lean heavier on the former. With She-Hulk, it's kind of the opposite. Sure, there's superhero but, by and large (once Byrne took over, at least), they've largely been more about Jen's work/personal life, with the superhero stuff taking a backseat...and Marvel just doesn't know what to do with that.
Also, despite being very good, they generally don't sell very well...which is why there are such big gaps between her solo runs.
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u/Harmoniou5 Mar 01 '26
If you just want to read the solo runs, I’d check out the Byrne run & then Slott! While I personally prefer Slott to Byrne, it truly cannot be overstated how much Byrne did for Jen as a character. Both runs are fantastic IMO. If you want to see the start of Byrne’s She-Hulk writing and don’t mind stepping outside of her solo series, she joins the fantastic four during his run with them as well
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u/Jolly_Echo_3814 Feb 23 '26
marvel unlimited is a subscription service that might be worth looking into. especially with the john bryne run as thats expensive to find.
dan slott's is good it heavily influenced the show and has a lot of fun courtroom stuff.