PLANET SHE-HULK #6 – Mind Wiped Clean

Creative Team – Stephanie Phillips, Aaron Kuder, Emilio Laiso, Sonia Oback, and Joe Caramagna.

Catch up with Planet She-Hulk #5!

The Story

This is a joint review from Matt of Hops Geek News and Megan from the Vigilante Vibes Podcast!

Matt – This run has been a lot of fun for me personally, and I feel as though it really expanded on Jen’s character and who she is at her core. With the announcement that this would end after issue 6, I thought that Stephanie did a great job getting to end it on her terms and laying out what the future had in store for Jen as she returned to Earth and back to being a lawyer. It is no easy task to take something you had planned and find a way to end it while still making sense. Jen doesn’t remember her time on Sakaar and is filled in on everything that went down. Is it a perfect way to end, and does it do She-Hulk justice? Unfortunately, no, however, that is not on Stephanie or the team in any way, as they did this the best they could, and I thought this issue was still a lot of fun.

Megan – Jen Walters wakes up to her normal life, getting ready for her normal job, and living a day that’s like any other. This obviously is very different from the last issue, where she was on Planet Sakaar fighting for the peace of the planet and its people. However, it seems Jen remembers none of that. It’s not until a portal opens right in the middle of a courtroom that it’s very clear to Jen that something isn’t right. Juno appears out of the portal, demanding to see her, but Jen has no idea who she is. That’s when Juno goes into exactly what happened.

Planet She-Hulk has been thrilling right from the beginning, and now we’re sadly at the end of the miniseries. We’ve seen Jen accomplish so much on Sakaar after she promised her cousin, Bruce, to watch over the planet. Now, we see how it all ended, and it’s absolutely not what you’d expect. Understanding that this comic run was cut short, Stephanie Phillips, the writer of Planet She-Hulk, did what she could to bring this to a graceful ending. I’d say, given the circumstances, Phillips did a fantastic job at bringing the story to a close that left room to revisit She-Hulk in the future.

The Art

Matt – Hats off to the entire art team who played such a huge role in making this 6-issue story engaging and beautiful. I loved how they were able to go back and forth between the flashbacks showing a fierce She-Hulk in battle and then to Jen in her courtroom attire, who looks far less intimidating at times. There was even the inclusion of mini Jen and Juno, which I found to be adorable! This issue maintained the vibrancy and beauty we’ve become accustomed to getting and I would love to see them get to continue down the road.

Megan – Aaron Kuder, Emilio Laiso, Sonia Oback, and Joe Caramagna brought this run to a beautiful closing, making a huge shift from the setting being in Sakaar to Jen’s life in New York. Letting Jen’s facial expressions tell the story, you can see just how confused and worried she is, not knowing what happened on Sakaar. The use of flashbacks to Sakaar was done incredibly well, having the juxtaposing tone of the excitement in Sakaar versus the more normal tone of New York City. What really sells the flashbacks and the huge difference in them versus Jen’s current life is the coloring work by Sonia Oback. Oback makes the flashbacks seem more like a dream with her use of vibrancy that works perfectly with the artist’s drawings.

Final Thoughts

Matt -7.5/10. It isn’t easy ending a run, and truly Stephanie, Aaron, Emilio, Sonia, and Joe did the best they could and still managed to make the ending make sense and capture the heart of the previous issues. Marvel’s sudden decision to cut this short at 6 made it so the ending feels jarring, especially when the series had found its footing and set up something truly amazing on the horizon. I do think everyone should read this run because the team did an excellent job, and we could use more She-Hulk!

Megan – 7.5/10. This series was progressing beautifully, with each issue getting better and better until the run was cut short. Stephanie Phillips gave an ending that worked well with having an aggressive stop, but I would really have liked to see this series continue and see Jen’s time in Sakaar through to the end.

Overall Grade -7.5/10

Let us know in the comments what you thought of Planet She-Hulk #6!