She-Hulk: Attorney at Law head writer Jessica Gao dives into the show's sex-positive approach. While Marvel Studios is undoubtedly one of the most successful superhero franchises, it seems to lack more humanistic character traits such as sex. Gao assures us that she and the team have noticed this and took a more realistic approach when creating this show.
Not very long ago, before She-Hulk, Marvel Studios films were very male-centered and action-driven. Fans saw Robert Downey Jr. in the early days of Iron Man as a womanizing millionaire, Captain American, a representation of America and a built patriotic male, and Thor, an all-mighty God who is also surrounded by a sea of women. Yet, despite being surrounded by adoring women, they can't even seem to be bothered since, well, the world is in danger. However, She-Hulk head writer Gao wants to change that narrative; this isn't just all about the boys and their need to feel worthy. Now Jenifer Walters has arrived, and she wants nothing to do with saving the world. She's ready to be honest about life with her newfound powers, juggling her career and her dating life.
Gao wanted to push boundaries with this show, making it a safe, sex-positive space. She-Hulk lead star Tatiana Maslany is grateful to Gao, which she expressed during an interview with Entertainment Weekly. "Thank you for seeing us and for getting it," Maslany said "Jessica and I always talk about how the moments when Jen is horny for our favorite things. I also had a friend who said he'd never related to a superhero before he saw She-Hulk be horny for fries in the trailer, and I was like 'Yeah, same.'" Director Kat Corio also explains that this is fundamental to the show. "Because if you strip away all the superhero stuff, this is really the story of a woman in her thirties, navigating modern life and dating and social media and family and friends," She added. "That element of her life was crucial to the whole concept of the show."
Whether this paves the way for the rest of the Marvel Studios shows or not, Gao really wanted to make a good impression on those who are really just trying to navigate adulthood. "From the very beginning of the journey, they understood that she's a woman and she's living the life of a modern-day Los Angelino, so there was really never a question as to whether that would be a part of it or not," Gao said. "There were definitely conversations about how far we could push it and towards the end of the season, we pushed some boundaries that I'm pretty excited about."
While it is nice to finally see Marvel Studios making films and TV shows more female-centered such as Black Widow, Capitan Marvel, and WandaVision, fans can only see the same type of character traits so many times before it becomes overly repetitive. With She-Hulk added to the mix, hopefully this inspires many more Marvel Studios shows and films to open up and do the same. The audience has seen these classic superhero tropes, but it can be difficult to relate to the almighty Thor and the mega-rich Iron Man.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is now streaming on Disney Plus.
Source: Entertainment Weekly