Image via Disney
That escalated quickly.
For weeks, critics and fans gave the new She-Hulk: Attorney at Law series on Disney+ mixed reviews, at best. The jokes didn’t always land, and sometimes trivialized the characters. The CGI didn’t hold up; that’s what happens when visual effects artists are overworked and held to impossible deadlines. And the story felt disconnected—and not in a good way—from the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe. Between the wedding, the spiritual retreat, and the misadventures in online dating, we got some nice vignettes, but it was difficult to see the bigger picture.
But Episode 8, “Ribbit and Rip It,” was a massive turnaround. Finally, we have dramatic, narrative stakes. Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany) found the stress point where she nearly lost control of her Hulk side. And as her cousin, Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), said in the series pilot: “When people start seeing you as a monster, that never goes away.”
Episode 8 also introduced Matt Morgan, aka Daredevil, to the MCU. Finally, we had a foil for Jennifer—one that understood her dual life, could trade barbs with her, and came with genuine, romantic chemistry. Even if this becomes nothing more than a setup for the upcoming Daredevil: Born Again series, Matt uncovered facets of Jennifer that made her relatable and well-rounded. And ironically, this now feels more like “her show” than ever before.
Here are 55 She-Hulk Easter eggs and references you might have missed.
1. RBG Fan
If you look in the background of Jen’s office, you can see that she’s a graduate of UCLA, one of the most prestigious law schools in the country. She also has a bobblehead of the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a former Supreme Court justice and advocate for progressive principles.
2. Hulk Inhibitor
Bruce is wearing the same contraption on his arm that he was wearing in the end credits scene of Shang-Chi. We learn that this is an inhibitor, which allows him to suppress the Hulk entirely. Unfortunately, it also makes him vulnerable to things like car accidents, especially if he can’t deactivate it in time, and especially if his cousin skids off the road.
3. Blood Transfusion
In the show, Bruce accidentally bleeds on Jennifer after the car crash; the gamma blood gets into her body and transforms her into She-Hulk. In the comics, the origin is different; a mob boss tries to kill Jennifer, and Bruce Banner gives her a blood transfusion to save her life.
4. Metal Shirts
Tony Stark was a big heavy metal fan, and when Jennifer wakes up in Bruce’s gamma lab, he’s left her a Led Zeppelin shirt to change into. We can assume that this is one of Tony’s old shirts, since he built the gamma lab for Bruce and spent a lot of time there.
5. Gamma Lab
Bruce first mentions the gamma lab in Avengers: Endgame, when he explains to the Avengers how he merged his Hulk and human form into “Smart Hulk”: “Eighteen months in the gamma lab, I put the brains and the brawn together. And now look at me—best of both worlds.”
6. Sun's Getting Real Low
Bruce mentions how in the old days, Natasha would tell him a lullaby to make him turn from Hulk back into human. This is a callback to Avengers: Age of Ultron, back when Bruce had a romantic relationship with Natasha Romanoff a.k.a. Black Widow. She was the only one of the Avengers who could calm him down.
7. Inside Out
When Bruce explains how the Hulk comes out during times of extreme emotional stress, Jennifer mentions Bing Bong. This is a character in the Disney/Pixar film Inside Out, who sacrifices himself at the film’s climax to save the main character.
8. Spandex!
When Bruce discusses clothing choices with Jennifer, he mentions the importance of spandex. It's a humorous meta-reference to how much smaller Jennifer and Bruce are compared to their Hulk alter egos.
9. Carved Initials
We see that Bruce Banner (B.B.) and Tony Stark (T.S.) carved their initials into the bar that they built together.
10. Meet Titania
Titania is one of She-Hulk’s main foes in the comics, and she has super strength thanks to Doctor Doom’s biological experiments. In her MCU incarnation, Titania is a comic relief villain, and she has a career as a social media personality and influencer.
11. F-Word
When Jennifer finds out that Captain America lost his virginity during the USO tour, she begins to say the F-word, but the camera cuts off right before she can get it out. This is a callback joke to Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home, where the same thing happens.
12. Wolverine, Eternals, Shoe Deal
Whenever we see Jennifer looking at her phone, there’s always lots of Easter eggs. In this shot, we see that Iron Man has a shoe deal. We see a reference to Wolverine: “Man fights with metal claws in bar brawl.” And we also see a reference to the climax of Eternals: “Why there is a giant statue of a man sticking out of the ocean.”
There’s also a QR code in the headline. A lot of the Marvel episodes have them, and they lead to free comics to promote Marvel’s Unlimited subscription service.
13. Captain America Wallpaper
Jennifer’s phone background is a shot of Captain America’s well-defined gluteus maximus. America’s ass, indeed.
14. Emil Blonsky
Emil Blonsky a.k.a. Abomination debuted in the second MCU movie The Incredible Hulk, starring Ed Norton as Bruce Banner. Abomination was the product of mixing a variant of the Super Soldier serum with Bruce’s gamma blood. In She-Hulk, he appears fully reformed, and he successfully appeals for parole.
15. Completely Different Person
Mark Ruffalo took over the role of Bruce Banner from Ed Norton, starting with The Avengers. He makes a cheeky reference to this when he talks to Jennifer on the phone and says that it was years since he fought Abomination, and he's "a completely different person now, literally."
16. Massive Spaceship
We see Bruce launch into deep space on a Sakaarian ship. The fan speculation is that this will lead into an adaptation of the Planet Hulk comic storyline, in which Bruce was banished to the violent planet Sakaar and eventually became king.
17. ‘Silence of the Lambs’
There’s a direct allusion to the horror film The Silence of the Lambs when Jennifer is going to see Emil Blonsky in the deepest bowels of the prison, and the guard reviews the protocol for prisoner interaction. She starts paraphrasing Hannibal Lecter’s line about eating a man’s liver until the guard cuts her off.
18. Shang-Chi Brawl
We see in Shang-Chi that Wong has been sneaking Blonsky out of his cell during the night to set up prize fights at the Golden Daggers Club. This is later used against Blonsky during his parole hearing, and Wong must come to court to testify on Blonsky’s behalf.
19. Wong's LinkedIn
We see from Wong’s LinkedIn profile that prior to becoming a librarian at Kamar-Taj, he was a Target sales associate for nine years.
20. Asgardian Wisdom
The light elf Runa attempts to use Thor’s signature line in Thor: Ragnarok during her defense: “Asgard is not a place, it is a people.” The judge counters that Thor’s inspirational speeches are not admissible in court.
21. Wrecking Crew
Jennifer insults the Wrecking Crew by asking if they stole their gear from an Asgardian construction crew. In the comics, the Wrecking Crew does acquire their powers from Asgard, although it’s less clear if their MCU counterparts have the same origin.
22. Megan Thee Stallion
It’s official: Megan Thee Stallion exists in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Jennifer twerks with her to close out Episode 3.
23. Mystic Castle
The Mystic Castle where Donny Blaze performs is a reference to the real-life Magic Castle, a prestigious Los Angeles clubhouse for magicians and magic lovers.
24. Donny Blaze?
The magician’s stage name, Donny Blaze, is a homage to Marvel character Johnny Blaze, a.k.a. Ghost Rider.
25. Poor Adriana
The Sopranos episode that Wong is watching when Madisynn “drops in” is “Long Term Parking,” in which Silvio kills fan favorite Adriana.
26. QR Code
Here’s another one of the aforementioned QR codes: It’s on on the left of Jennifer’s new dating profile.
27. Wong's Business Card
Wong’s business card affirms that he goes by “Wong,” with no apparent first name. In her court documents, Jennifer refers to him as “Wong” in quotes, inferring that she remains skeptical that this is his real name, and not an alias.
28. Luke Jacobson
The fashion designer for superheroes has his roots in a little known comic series called Dakota North, from 1986. Writer Martha Thomases based the Jacobson character on fashion designer David Freelander, a personal friend who died of AIDS in 1987.
29. Leap-Frog Sighting?
When Jennifer walks into Jacobson’s studio, we see someone who looks suspiciously like Eugene Patilio a.k.a. Leap-Frog walking out. He becomes a key antagonist in Episode 8.
30. Daredevil Tease
We see a glimpse of Daredevil’s costume in Jacobson’s studio, before an assistant quickly covers it with a box lid. Clearly, this man keeps an exclusive clientele.
31. Mr. Immortal
In the comics, a cosmic entity known as Deathurge gives Mr. Immortal his invulnerability. In the MCU, Mr. Immortal largely plays for comic relief. He’s being sued by multiple ex-wives for faking his death and absconding.
32. Intelligencia
Intelligencia’s attacks on She-Hulk share a lot in common with real-life, decentralized media campaigns against public and private figures, which originated on websites like 4chan, Reddit, and the now-defunct KiwiFarms. In the comics, Intelligencia is a collective of supervillain geniuses; the MCU iteration seems a lot more homegrown and crowdsourced.
33. Miss Piggy Cameo
While waiting for Josh to text or call her, Jennifer watches The Great Muppet Caper on television. It’s the scene where Miss Piggy is in prison after being framed for robbery.
34. The Gang
The individuals in Emil Blonsky’s supervillain support group are all real Marvel comics characters, sourced from Marvel comics. We’ve already met Wrecker of the Wrecking Crew. Porcupine was a supervillain that originated in 1963; he was a weapons designer who wore a gas mask to protect himself from his own artillery. Man-Bull originated in 1971 as a Daredevil adversary. Saracen was a vampire character who debuted in 1999 as an enemy of Blade. And El Aguila was a master swordsman and antihero who debuted in 1979.
35. Abomaste
We can see “Abomaste” written on an inspirational poster behind Blonsky, a portmanteau of Blonsky’s alias Abomination and “Namaste,” a Hindu greeting that denotes respect.
36. Leap-Frog
In the comics, Leap-Frog is the alias for failed inventor Vincent Patilio, who tried (and failed) to become a master criminal. The MCU version of the character is the spoiled son of Vincent, named Eugene Patilio. Eugene is a minor character in the comics as well.
37. Matt Morgan
Matt Morgan a.k.a. Daredevil makes his long-awaited debut in the penultimate episode of She-Hulk Season 1. He successfully represents Lucas Jacobson when Eugene Patilio sues him for damages.
38. Classic Costume
We see a comics-inspired version of She-Hulk’s purple-and-white outfit during the Leap-Frog fight scenes. In the comics, the purple leotard dates back to the ‘80s, when She-Hulk was a member of the Avengers.
39. I'm Daredevil
When Matt formally introduces himself as Daredevil to Jennifer, the familiar strains of the Netflix show theme play in the background.
40. Hallway Fight
One cardinal rule in the Netflix Daredevil series: Never, ever confront this man in a hallway. We get another classic hallway fight with monochromatic lighting during the siege of Leap-Frog’s lair.
41. Frogger
You can see a classic Frogger arcade in Leap-Frog’s lair. Created in 1981, the game casts you in the role of a frog, who must cross a busy intersection and a dangerous swamp to make its way home.
42. Red Hulk
Jennifer jokingly references “Red Hulk” as a possible twist, but there actually is a Red Hulk in the comics. It’s the alias of General Thaddeus Ross, who Intelligencia transformed into a massive red monster, capable of generating heat from his skin. Ross is an established character in the MCU, debuting in The Incredible Hulk. His most recent appearance was in Black Widow, which kicked off Phase 4.
43. Wolverine's Claws
There’s another reference to Wolverine when Ginger jumps out from behind a wall to surprise Jennifer, holding makeup brushes between her fingers like adamantium claws. She even makes a version of the *SNIKT* sound from the comics whenever Wolverine takes out his claws. Marvel recently announced that Hugh Jackman would reprise his role as Wolverine in Deadpool 3, slated for release in September 2024.
After Jennifer Hulks up and loses control, the authorities imprison her in the same prison that held Emil Blonsky.
45. DODC Again
The Department of Damage Control, the government organization that surveys and cleans up after superhero activity, continues to pop up in the MCU. Most recently in Ms. Marvel, they reappropriated Stark’s E.D.I.T.H. drones to hunt down Kamala Khan. We expect to see them even more, as mutant storylines make their way to the forefront.
46. Erin Brockovich
Based on the posters on her wall, Jennifer Walters is a fan of the movie Erin Brockovich, starring Julia Roberts. Based on a true story, the movie is about an unemployed single mom-turned-activist, who successfully sues Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) for groundwater contamination. Roberts won an Oscar—the only one in her career—for her performance.
47. Todd Hulk
The scene where Todd transforms into Hulk is a commentary and frequent criticism about how all Marvel movies end the same way—with a big, dumb fight starring two or more CGI characters.
48. Menu Jump
It’s a bit much, but there’s comic book precedent for the scene where Jennifer confronts the real-life writers over her story direction. In the ‘90s, Marvel writer John Byrne had She-Hulk call him out by name from the comic book pages.
49. Disney Lot
She-Hulk walks through the Disney Studios in Burbank on the way to confronting the She-Hulk writers. You can see the Team Building in the background, which uses the seven dwarves as pillars.
50. Jessica Gao Cameo
In the She-Hulk writer’s room, you can see the real-life head writer and creator on the left-hand side of the group. Her name is Jessica Gao.
51. K.E.V.I.N
The K.E.V.I.N robot is a homage to the real-life Kevin Feige, who produces the MCU films and serves as the Marvel Studios president. It’s even wearing his signature baseball hat.
Feige is largely credited with how successful the MCU has been. A major part of his job is ensuring that all of these loose plot threads, across multiple movies, eventually tie together.
The confrontation between K.E.V.I.N. and Jennifer addresses several Internet rumors: will there be a Planet Hulk movie? When are the X-Men coming to the MCU? K.E.V.I.N., of course, sidesteps all of these questions, although these are major hints that they’re probably arriving soon.
53. Wakanda Forever
When K.E.V.I.N. explains the that the visual effects team is working on a different movie, we hear the theme for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in the background. That movie debuts in theaters on November 11, 2022.
54. Skaar
Bruce introduces his son Skaar to everyone else in the Banner family. In the comics, Skaar is conceived during the Planet Hulk storyline—again suggesting that this long-awaited movie might finally be in production.
55. Blonsky Breakout
After the credits, Wong breaks Blonsky out of prison again. The speculation is that Blonsky/Abomination will become a member of the antihero Thunderbolts team. A Thunderbolts movie is slated to close out Phase 5. The officially announced team members are Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, U.S. Agent, Ghost, Yelena Belova, Red Guardian, Taskmaster, and Bucky Barnes.