Warning: The following contains spoilers for She-Hulk through Episode 4.She-Hulk is keeping up the grand Marvel comic book tradition of having surprising faces crop up each week as Jennifer Walters navigates her life as both a lawyer and a Hulk. The fourth episode of the Disney Plus series specifically takes on just how dangerous the multiverse is, but it does it from a courtroom as Wong seeks to press charges against a magician using the magic of a sling ring without proper authorization to open portals to new realms.
While the court case might have larger implications for the future of the MCU, the episode also introduced Patty Guggenheim as a new character, a woman named Madisynn (No, the Y is not where you think!) who gets caught up in the magical conflict. The character became a quick fan favorite on social media as she took her experience in stride, and with a drink in hand. Her story, however has been sparking some fan theories and comparisons to other comic book characters, specifically, a couple of Marvel villains.
Madisynn’s Story In She-Hulk
When Madisynn takes the witness stand in She-Hulk, it’s for a trial concerning the prohibition of magical usage by those outside of the mystic arts. She recounts a tale of being transported from Donny Blaze’s magic show to a whole new dimension.
New dimensions, new timelines, and new universes are nothing new for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but Madisynn’s story is unique. She meets a talking goat, meets a demon named Jake (who may or may not be the same entity as the talking goat based on how her story rambles), escapes a lava pit in a world filled with fire and demon thanks to a pact requiring six drops of blood, and ends up going through a portal right into the dwelling of Wong, her new friend who loves watching The Sopranos.
Madisynn’s tale is outlandish, but aspects of it might be familiar to fans of Marvel comics - or even just MCU fans who keep up with internet theories about character appearances.
Similarities To Madelyne Pryor
Some fans have noted that Madisynn has a few things in common with comic book character Madelyne Pryor.
Pryor, eventually known as the Goblin Queen, was created by Mister Sinister as a double for Jean Grey, made specifically to get Scott Summers to fall in love with her and act as a replacement for Jean. She, too, almost has a deal made with a demon and features a unique spelling of a classic name with a Y. Those things tend to stand out for comic book fans familiar with the X-Men characters.
Of course, all of those similarities are probably just coincidences - or perhaps a way to give a wink to fans still waiting for the X-Men and their related characters to emerge in the MCU. The similarities are a way to show fans that the writers are paying attention to just how much theorizing and jumping to conclusions long-time fans of Marvel properties can do. It’s a way to tell fans that they see them, and that there are plenty more Easter eggs to be found. After all, some fans did think that magician Donny Blaze was a tongue-in-cheek reference to Ghost Rider Johnny Blaze from the comics. There might be an even bigger tongue-in-cheek reference in She-Hulk’s fourth episode than Madisynn as a Madelyne Pryor stand-in though.
A Tongue-In-Cheek Nod To Mephisto
As Marvel fans eagerly devoured the episodes of WandaVision as they aired as the first new MCU property on Disney Plus, there were new theories every week about just what character would pop up next. One of the most popular concerned Mephisto, a demon in Marvel comics who proclaimed himself ruler of a dimension known as Hell.
Mephisto’s Hell includes fire, lava pits, demons, and a whole lot of deals with the devil. Mephisto thinks of himself as Marvel’s answer to the devil. He even makes deals for the souls of those who come to him for help and has contracts signed in blood. All of that sounds like it could have been straight out of Madisynn’s story.
More than that, Mephisto has also had goat-like features in some of his appearances with horns and cloven feet. He’s also gone by Jack as one of his aliases, which is easy enough to confuse for Jake.
None of that is to say that She-Hulk will actually mark the debut of Mephisto, but more that the She-Hulk writing team has made it good practice to make sure that plenty of the items included in the episodes can lead to legitimate Easter eggs (like the appearance of the Wrecking Crew), meta nods to the MCU (like the Hulk literally being a different person), and larger fan theories that allow the audience to engage with the show. The idea that Madisynn could have crossed paths with Mephisto is a fun theory, but it’s likely just a nod to the biggest WandaVision fan theory that didn’t pan out, a nod to the fans that the writers appreciate just how much fun the fans are having with the MCU.
One thing is for sure: Madisynn’s single appearance has already made her a fan favorite character, and fans are hoping she’ll get to cross paths with Ant-Man’s Luis and offer a full recap of the MCU one day.
She-Hulk is available to stream on Disney Plus. New episodes land Thursdays on the streaming platform.