Comics
Review: “She-Hulk” #1
Attorney Jennifer Walters, cousin of Dr. Bruce Banner and recipient of his powers via a blood transfusion years earlier, is ready to snap necks and cash some checks in this brand new “She-Hulk” series. Big life changes loom on the horizon for our lovely green gal and an old villainous foe stirs up trouble from the grave.
Drawing heavily upon the well-knowns of the Marvel Universe, “She-Hulk” #1 doesn’t pull any punches. Though legal jargon abounds, the action is sexy, vivacious, and all out balls-to-the-wall fun.
WRITTEN BY: Charles Soule
ART BY: Javier Pulido
PUBLISHER: Marvel
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASE: February 12, 2014
Full disclosure, you will dislike nearly every character, including She-Hulk herself, at some point in this issue. The good news? The important characters are redeemable. My take? By creating imperfect title characters, writer Charles Soule adds tremendous depth to the story. Occasionally calling our devotion to said characters into question, only makes us want more.
This is exactly what transpires in “She-Hulk” #1. Five pages in and I’m thinking, “Am I supposed to hate She-Hulk? Why would the writer make her such an incredibly stuck up shrew?” But Soule’s moves were either a lucky happenstance or incredibly calculated—because when oh-so-confident Jennifer is refused a bonus at her law firm and subsequently told she was only hired for her superhero connections, her obnoxiously self-assured veneer crumbles into the empowered, intelligent, take-control attitude I expect from She-Hulk.
But losing a job is no fun, regardless of how fiercely you exist the building. So while drowning her sorrows in the bottom of a whisky bottle, she’s approached by none other than Holly Harrow, widow of the long-deceased Jonas Harrow (killed by The Hood exactly 4 years ago in ‘New Avengers’ #60). Jonas, criminal scientist and all around sociopathic scumbag has left his wife and children in a grievous state—with one caveat: he has audio recordings that prove the Tony Stark (Iron Man) stole one of his inventions. This caveat could make the desperate Holly a very rich woman if the recently jobless Jennifer agrees to take on her case.
What follows is a lot of red tape (even She-Hulk can’t access Stark if she’s on a legal mission), a little bit of Stark annoyance (but we’ve all been there, right?), boatloads of sassy banter, and good old-fashioned hulking-out! Because Jennifer’s not ready to lose again and She-Hulk isn’t taking any of Stark’s blasé arrogance.
It’s a lot of fun to see the resurfacing of Jonas Harrow, even if only through his wife and legal matters. And it leaves you wondering whether or not this series will dust off some other old school villains. It’s an exciting prospect to have a strong, intelligent, part attorney/part green giant, female lead take on some of Marvel’s coolest baddies.
Pulido’s art folds seamlessly into Soule’s writing. It’s brash and charismatic, hyper-colored, with a sixties Mad Men vibe. Perfect for a rebooted She-Hulk who has the boldness of ten Rosie the Riveters. 2014 is She-Hulk’s year. It’s time for Jennifer Walters to set out on her own, build her own law practice, kick some villain ass, and rock that 21st Century Female “I can have it all” attitude.
4/5 Skulls
Reviewed by – Bree Ogden
Comics
‘You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive’ – IDW Dark’s Next Horror Comic Will Make You Question Reality
Five friends. Four houses. One perfect life. Bloody Disgusting is excited to exclusively announce You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive, a brand new horror comic from IDW Dark.
From Eisner-Nominated writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, and rising horror artist Heather Vaughan, You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is described as a “paranoia-laced, socially-conscious, horror mystery that will leave you questioning reality, and reveal that this crafted world is more of a nightmare than the idealistic dream they were expecting.”
Phoebe Joplin has never questioned the world her parents built: a secluded community where she and her friends were raised to be smarter, stronger, and better than anyone else. No distractions. No dangers. No secrets. Until the night of their graduation.
When one of them dies under impossible circumstances, Phee starts to pull at the edges of her perfect life—and what she finds is something far more terrifying than she ever imagined.
Because this place isn’t a sanctuary. It’s a cage. And no one who discovers the truth ever leaves it alive.
Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing (Batman – One Bad Day: Clayface, Star Trek: The Last Starship) co-write the upcoming IDW Dark horror comic, featuring art by Heather Vaughan.
Jackson Lanzing said in a statement to Bloody Disgusting, “You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is in many ways a spiritual successor to our last creator-owned horror, The Principles of Necromancy – a dive into the promise and consequence of playing god with the blood of innocents. But the Hivemind book this reminds me of most is Clayface: One Bad Day. This is a deeply human story with intensely raw emotions – five best friends and their five mysterious parents, tearing one another apart for the promise of some impossible glory that’s waiting just beyond their darkest actions. We’re thrilled to be bringing this story to life with our long-time partner in crime, editor Heather Antos, at IDW Dark – and we’re particularly excited to give our Clayface fans a new, brutal and emotional horror made just for them.”
Adds Collin Kelly, “We’re deconstructing a feeling that seems universal these days; our elders have a death grip on their power, without any intention of giving it up to the generations that come next. YNLTPA is about growing up with the limitless potential of the future… and realizing how much it’s a lie we’ve been fed to keep us under the yoke of the past. Bringing this brutal experience to life is our artist and co-creator, Heather Vaughan, who brings an incredible amount of humanity to our cast. But it’s in our youthful leads that Heather’s art really shines – you are going to fall in love with these young people, even as they go through the worst experience of their lives. What we’ve all crafted together is going to be tragic, painful, but above all else, sincere – with a future so uncertain, there’s only one thing we can trust: you’ll never leave this place alive.”
“Some horror stories are about monsters in the dark. YNLTPA is about realizing the monsters raised you,” previews Senior Group Editor Heather Antos. “Working with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly on this series has been a dream in the darkest possible way. They’ve built a story that’s layered, brutal, and deeply emotional, and every issue gives artist Heather Vaughan opportunities to push the art into places that feel both haunting and deeply personal. Some horror comics will keep you up at night…this is one that will stick with you for years to come.”
The first issue of You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive goes on sale October 14, 2026! Make sure to pre-order at your local comic shop by September to guarantee a copy.
Exclusively check out the various covers for Issue #1 down below.
IDW Publishing’s horror imprint IDW DARK features comics like A Quiet Place: Storm Warning, Smile: For the Camera, The Exorcism at 1600 Penn, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Twilight Zone, Event Horizon: Dark Descent & Event Horizon: Inferno, and more.
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