At the outset of her new show, She-Hulk asks, “What is the responsibility of those with power?” We’re more concerned right now with who holds that power, but it’s true that it’s a crucial question and one that Marvel has toyed with since Uncle Ben first nagged Spidey with his “Great power…” statement.
The origin narrative of She-Hulk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is very faithful to the comics. Jennifer Walters turns into a joyful green version of herself after absorbing Bruce Banner’s blood in both stories. Again, on screen, She-Hulk has greater mastery over her hulking out than her relative ever has.
The character of Bruce, played by Mark Ruffalo, warns Jen that it may take her up to 15 years to master this, just like it took for him, but after some brief training, She-Hulk proves him incorrect by figuring things out relatively quickly. Rapider than Bruce ever could have imagined.
She-Hulk frequently outperformed him during their joint workouts, which included yoga, leaping skills, and even demonstrating their power by tossing rocks. It’s no surprise that this turns Hulk’s skin a sickly shade of green, and when it becomes clear that Jen isn’t the greenhorn Bruce was hoping for, he acknowledges his own jealously.
Jen’s attempt to return to the real world triggers Bruce’s repressed rage, and the two get into a physical altercation.
Hulk states, “For the record, I really didn’t want to do this,” before attempting an overly dramatic thunderclap. At first, Jen has trouble keeping up, but after a short while, she learns to do many thunderclaps simultaneously, much to her cousin’s distress.
There is ultimately no victor, so the two friends reconcile by mending their shattered bar and continuing their drinking. That’s only natural. But if they were to square off in a gamma-powered battle to the finish, He-Hulk or She-Hulk?
The She hulk we wanted vs what we got #SheHulk pic.twitter.com/ussIB2DyS2
— NovaLegacy (@NovaLegacyVA) September 5, 2022
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Hulk vs She-Hulk — Who Would Win in the Comics?
The answer, as is often the case in these fantastical comic book brawls, is contingent on the particular author at the helm at any given time. It’s difficult to give a definitive response based on the source material because powers are sometimes lowered to match the tale and heroes are often boosted.
Consider the She-Hulk as an illustration. At one point in the comics, she even managed to take down a carbon copy of Thanos that was just as powerful as the real one. And then there was the time she lost control of her emotions and murdered Vision.
The Celestials, the gigantic beings last seen in Eternals, recently bestowed upon the comic book She-Hulk a number of powerful upgrades. Jen is now stronger, and she can also release blasts of gamma radiation that might make her even more powerful than the Hulk.
On the other hand, Bruce Banner is no pushover. Many viewers may believe his Hulk to be the most powerful just because he is the first. Irrelevant of whether or not that’s accurate, there are numerous instances in the comics where he appears to be more powerful than Jen.
Hulk has, in the past, lifted entire planets on his back, torn reality apart with a thunderclap, and punched time itself, all things that we’d probably all like to do on a Monday morning.
To put it simply, the comic book Hulk’s might is matched only by the fury that drives it, which is why he is arguably more powerful overall. Cady once said, “The limit does not exist,” referring to theoretical bounds. In a full-on confrontation between the two cousins, She-capacity Hulk reining in her wrath could be a limiting factor.
However, this only holds true in their Hulk incarnations. If the two were to be de-Hulked, Jen, with her vast fighting training as an official member of the Avengers, would make short work of Bruce.
Hulk vs She-Hulk — Who would win in the MCU?
If the first episode of She-Hulk is any indication, Jennifer would also likely win a de-Hulked fight against her cousin in the MCU. The question is, what happens when they start feeling their green oats? Who would triumph in a rematch of the first episode’s fight, provided all parties were sufficiently enraged to resume it?
Over the course of the MCU’s history, He-Hulk has earned a reputation as one of the franchise’s most formidable characters. Do you remember when he punched one of those vile Chitauri monsters so hard that it fell to the ground?
Like in comic books, though, the writers of movies and TV shows have some leeway in deciding how much power their characters actually have. Although it’s unlikely that Hulk would ever lose a fight to Tony Stark’s Hulkbuster in the comics, the character has been soundly defeated by Thor and Thanos in subsequent films.
Because comic book Jen decimated a comic book Thanos, the fight is very intriguing. Still, despite those setbacks, the Hulk from the MCU is one of the most compelling characters in the film. After all, he did control all six Infinity Stones and only suffered an arm injury in the process.
With the advent of Smart Hulk, there has been a change, and Bruce is now in complete command of his green, vicious form. That opens up new possibilities for him to put his formidable brain to use in battle. Of course, Jen can do the same, though she lacks the necessary scientific background.
In some respects, though, She-Hulk has already proven herself to be more capable than Bruce. She has always been in complete command of her She-Hulk form, all the while keeping her own identity intact. And despite Bruce’s 15 years of experience advantage, Jen is already training at the same level as him.
In the very early going of their She-career, Hulk’s it would appear that Jen and Bruce are roughly on par with one another. But if her current rate of improvement is any indication, everyone’s favorite ‘Attorney At Law’ could easily defeat Hulk in the MCU with a little more practice.
However, She-Hulk might not receive as much experience due to the fact that she has elected to use the duty of her power in a totally different way, prioritizing judicial proceedings above the typical brawls amongst Marvel’s superheroes. Hulk may still have the upper hand, despite She-apparent Hulk’s superiority in strength.