Red She-Hulk #58

Now this is an odd issue. I switched from trade to digital as the book refocused on Red She-Hulk. I like Betty Ross and Jeff Parker has been doing no wrong for me, so I figured I could switch pretty easily. I have to say, this isn’t quite as strong as I’d hoped.

The biggest problem is the lack of focus on Red She-Hulk. She’s in a lot of panels, but she’s basically a force of nature. I understand General Fortean, Captain America, and Machine Man a lot more than I do her. But it’s her name on the title and it is her we came to see, so using her as a confusing plot element doesn’t seem like the right fit. Listen, I love Cap and X-51, but I came here for the lead, you know? Not Fortean or his three new super-soldiers.

I’m also a tad disappointed in the first villain she faces. I get that Parker needed him to be bad enough to justify the extreme response, but I’d hoped to read this one with my daughter, and I’m not sure I’m up to explaining what this bad guy did. That’s probably on me, though. I mean, Red She-Hulk has always been violent, so I probably shouldn’t be sharing the book with an 8-year old.

Carlo Pagulayan turns in nice work, as always. I always appreciate his clean lines and his on-model characters. Red She-Hulk looks great, and I dig the look of the sci-fi weaponry employed by Fortean’s troops. I do hope we get a bit more spandex over the next few months. I want Red She-Hulk to face down some Marvel classics; I think Pagulayan would do a nice job with the U-Foes or someone like that.

There is definitely potential here, and I’ll be back next month. But I wonder if this would read better in trade.

Fair