Savage She-Hulk #12
Savage She-Hulk #12
Title: “Reason and Rage!"
Writer: David Anthony Kraft
Artists: Mike Vosburg & Frank Springer
Colors: Edward Hannigan
Editor: Jo Duffy
She-Hulk is still sitting in the same position on the floor dying from a rare
blood disease that only the great scientist Michael Morbius, also known as the
living vampire, can cure her of. The same cure can also stabilize Michael's
condition and rid him of the urge to drink another human being's blood. Because
of this, he was reluctant to give She-Hulk the serum at first but then relented.
But the serum apparently has had no effect. Morbius has finally figured out what
is wrong. His serum actually has worked in stabilizing She-Hulk's condition and
preventing it from getting worse. But the gamma radiation in her system is
keeping the serum from fully healing her. The only thing that can be done is for
She-Hulk to revert to her human identity, Jennifer Walters, but she is going to
have to make the change herself. But She-Hulk is so exhausted from her ordeal,
that she does not think she can do it. Attempting to force the transformation is
very painful, and in frustration the She-Hulk tears out a heavy piece of
machinery from the floor in frustration, crying "I can't change into Jen
Walters!"
Morbius
then says the one thing that stops her: "Then stay the She-Hulk forever!" Just
as Morbius has suffered from a struggle of dual identity and won, so can the
She-Hulk. He tells her to change… now! Giving orders to the She-Hulk is very
dangerous, as her friend and neighbor Danny "Zapper" Ridge points out, but this
is no time for sugarcoating the truth. She-Hulk agrees to try once more.
Once more, the She-Hulk attempts to change, little expecting any good to come
out of it. But this time, she realizes that she can change back to Jen Walters.
The transformation is extremely painful, but she is determined that this time
she will change and become Jen Walters once again. For several long minutes,
there is no apparent change that either Zapper or Dr. Morbius can see. Then the
She-Hulk's body suddenly begins to collapse, rapidly changing its physical
structure and skin color. Within moments, where once there was a raging She-Hulk
was now an exhausted Jen Walters in white tattered clothing. The first thing she
says is that she hopes that she never has to undergo that same type of effort
again. Morbius says that she will not have to… unless she wishes to become the
She-Hulk again. Not only has the serum cured her of the blood disease and saved
her life, it has also rid her of the nightmare of unexpected transformations.
She can still be the She-Hulk if she wishes, as long as she is concentrates and
is prepared to endure the pain. Jen asks Morbius how she could ever repay him,
and he says that the occasion may arise when she can return the favor.
The phone on the wall unexpectedly rings, and Morbius is surprised since it is
an unlisted number. He picks it up and says it is "Buck" Bukowski asking for
Jennifer. She wonders how he knew where to call since no one save Zapper was
supposed to know she was here. Jen asks Buck where he got the phone number, and
he tells her that she left her legal briefcase behind after she fled the
courtroom. Jennifer is angry that Buck would look through her papers, and he
tells her that her father is worried sick about her. She tells him to let the
sheriff know that she is alright and tells him to mind his own business next
time.
But Buck isn't the type of person to mind his own business, especially when his
curiosity is aroused. He traces the phone number and discovers that it comes
from the lab where Michael Morbius is being held prisoner. Buck can think of
only one reason why an ambitious lawyer like Jennifer would see a man about to
go on trial for capital murder charges, and he thinks this will ruin her career.
Since experience has shown that Jen does not want to listen to him, he decides
to leak this story to the press in hopes that she will come to her senses. The
next day, Zapper drops Jennifer off at her father's office. She is looking
forward to seeing him and telling him in person how much she missed and loves
him. But when she sees Sheriff Morris Walters, Jen finds that her father is
furious. "Thank the Lord your mother is not alive to see what you have done to
yourself!" "I thought I raised you to respect the law, not abuse it!" "What
hurts me most is that you didn't have the guts to tell me!" Jennifer thinks that
only one thing could possibly make her father this upset… he must have found out
that she is really the She-Hulk. She begins to confess, "Dad, please… you must
believe me...I just didn't know how to tell you I'm…" when her father waves a
newspaper in front of her face… "MORBIUS DEFENSE NAMED: Sheriff Walter's
Daughter Picked By Mass Murderer." Half-surprised, Jennifer finishes her
sentence, "defending a mass murderer?" She knows that the story is not true, but
she doesn't know how to explain the truth to her father after her "confession."
The best she can say is that "it's not what it seems" but he orders her out,
saying she's a "monster he doesn't recognize anymore." In the hallway, Buck
tells Jen that he let slip her "secret" hoping it would shock her to her senses,
and that one day she would thank him for his "help." Silently, Jennifer "thanks"
Buck for ruining her life. Just when she finally has won control over the
She-Hulk, she loses control over her own life. At home, she wishes that there
was somebody else she could confide in and share her burden. Zapper may know her
secret, but to Jennifer he is too young and immature to consider as a romantic
attachment. She falls asleep in her easy chair before she can brood anymore on
the subject.
Early the next morning around six o'clock, she is awakened by a phone call. It
is Morbius and he demands to meet her right away. When Jen asks what this is
about, he says that she should know. Jennifer thinks he is going to blackmail
her into defending him after all. Later at UCLA, she tells Morbius that she
won't do it, but it turns out that Morbius doesn't want her to "do it" either,
and that she will never be his attorney. He thinks she contacted the press
claiming to be his counsel as a way of bribing him to keep his silence. Jennifer
then explains what really happened and that they both were victims of a terrible
misunderstanding. Since Morbius was not trying to blackmail Jennifer after all,
defending him does not sound like a bad idea after all. Morbius agrees, and
accepts her as his counsel.
After several weeks of preparation, the trial begins. Buck
is the prosecutor, and in his opening arguments he details Morbus' crimes as a
vampire in excruciating detail, disgusting and horrifying the jurors. In her
opening arguments, Jennifer does not deny Morbius' guilt and says that her
client insists on pleading guilty. The only thing in dispute is that Jennifer
and Morbius maintain that his crimes were unpremeditated and that in each case,
there were extenuating circumstances involved. To demonstrate these cirumstances,
Jennifer introduces a veterinarian as an expert witness. He shows the jury a
cage with two docile rabbits, then carefully injects one with the same virus
that transformed Morbius into the Living Vampire. In moments, the rabbit is
filled with bloodlust and kills its companion, draining its lifeblood. The
experiment sways the jury, and they find him guilty of involuntary manslaughter
rather than first degree murder. Angela, a mother of one of Morbius' victims,
reacts violently and accuses Jennifer of tricking the jury. For her, only death
is a fitting punishment for Michael. Her husband Thomas restrains her and tells
her to leave, since there is clearly no room in a courthouse for honest people.
That does not upset Jennifer as much as the appearance of her father, who tells
her he wishes that she had never been born. They words hurt her worse than any
blow the She-Hulk ever had to endure from any super-villain. Jen's father has
disowned her, but she had to do what she felt was right, didn't she?
The next day, on the Sunset Strip, a strange gentleman is walking the streets
soaking in the eclectic atmosphere. For the first time since he has left New
Jersey, Gemini finally feels at home amongst the "West Coast weirdos." He is an
android created by Scorpio who believed that human nature was perverse, and thus
tried to take over the world to make it a better place. The Defenders battled
Scorpio, and in the course of this fight, Gemini switched allegiances and helped
them defeat his former master. Afterwards, SHIELD attempted to deactivate
Gemini, but failed. The Defenders vouched for Gemini, so SHIELD decided to let
him go. So now Gemini is exploring the world on his own, soaking up the emotions
around him and seeing everything around him with emphatic eyes. He also is
getting a thirst for some beer, but unfortunately Gemini does not have any
money. Fortunately for his taste buds, an opportunity presents itself when he
sees a mugger in the alley rob a man and a woman of their life savings. The
couple are Angela and Thomas who were protesting at the courthouse after the
verdict. The mugger tells them if they go to the cops, he'll tell them they were
trying to hire him as a hit man. As a consolation, he tells them to think that
they are helping him get through college… the school of hard knocks! At this
point, Gemini steps forward and suggests that he settle his disagreement with
the couple with arbitration. The mugger tells him to beat it since it's none of
his business. Gemini agrees that it is none of his business, but the mugger is
not returning any of the money, either. The punk think this is ridiculous and
warns, "I said scram, Sam!" Sam is not Gemini's name and he introduces himself.
"I am yin and yang! I am both black and white, yes and no. In short, I am
Gemini." The mugger is getting tired of Gemini's interference, and tries to tear
off his metal "mask", unaware that Gemini is a robot and that is in fact his
face. This prompts Gemini to act… two selves emerge from the host body and
confront the mugger. The white Gemini is a being of pure reason and suggests
they be reasonable, especially since Gemini outnumbers him. The black Gemini is
a being of pure emotion. He's mad as hell and wants to pound the crook into a
pulp. The two beings help Gemini in times of crisis help him see things from two
different viewpoints. Totally freaked out, the mugger flees, leaving behind the
wallet. Now Gemini argues amongst himself over what to do with the money. Black
Gemini wants to keep the money for themselves and spend it on beer. White Gemini
wants to return it to Angela and Thomas. They tell him that the money was
intended to hire an avenger who would right a great wrong, and ask him if he
would kill Morbius for them. Gemini returns to his host body to make a decision.
Reunited, he says that he will provisionally accept their offer and keep half of
the funds as a fee. He does not promise that he will definitely kill Morbius,
only that he will see for himselves.
Back at UCLA, Jennifer helps a weak Dr. Morbius return to his lab. The cops are
still incredulous that he got off with a three to five year sentence for
multiple capital murder charges. Jennifer knows, but can say nothing, that
Morbius sacrificed the serum that would have cured him completely to save her
life. She tells the cops that the courts have suspended his sentence until he is
healthy enough to serve his sentence. The cops are do not believe her claims
that Morbius is very sick, and reserve their sympathies for his victims. Inside,
Morbius tells her that she did not have to defend him against the cops. Jen says
she could not stand by and say nothing, because she owes him her life. They are
interrupted by Gemini, who bursts through the doors. He says that he has come in
the name of Morbius' victims, and that he wants him dead or alive. Jennifer and
Morbius run in different directions, hoping that at least one of them can get
away and call the police. This strategy would work against almost every other
superhero except Gemini. Once again, he divides in two. Black Gemini runs after
Jen while White Gemini goes after Morbius. White easily captures the weak
doctor, and Black grabs Jen only seconds later. It used to be that the mere
stress of this situation would cause Jennifer to change into her heroic alter
ego whether she wanted or not. But now there is no time to make the
transformation, and soon Angela knocks her out with a chlorophorm-filled bag.
She holds Jennifer equally as guilty as Morbius since she was responsible for
him receiving his light sentence.
A few hours later, Jennifer and Morbius awaken on a deserted beach north of L.A.
They are amazed to see White and Black Gemini arguing amongst themselves. White
Gemini is unsure that they are doing the right thing and that it may be best to
free them. Black Gemini is furious and thinks they should be shot dead on the
spot. Angela agrees with Black Gemini. Jen says, "You act as if you're arguing
with yourself." And the Geminis explain that divided viewpoints was part of his
design and that they never agree on anything! Morbius is trying to think of some
plan to save Jennifer at the very least since he does not believe that she
deserves the fate they have reserved for him. Thomas brandishes his gun and
demands that they end this farce right now, but Gemini insists that he see for
himself before making his judgment. The emphatic sensors in his eyes are capable
of absorbing the memories directly from the brains that he scans. White Gemini's
eyes sense everything through the cold light of reason, while Black Gemini
senses everything through the red-hot light of emotion. After a few seconds, the
two beings reunite in their host body to make a decision. The outlook is not
good for Jen and Morbius… Gemini thinks that the court's decision was just, but
the LeClerk's rage is so intense that he feels that emotion has the edge and
that the two must die. Jennifer is in anguish because while she wants to become
the She-Hulk to save her life and Morbius, but she does not want to give up her
secret identity and there is no place for her to hide. Thomas aims his gun and
tells Jen and Morbius to say their prayers. At this point, Morbius plays his ace
card. In a desperate attempt to save Jennifer's life, Michael leaps off the
cliff into the sea, hoping that once he is dead the LeClerks will let Jennifer
go. Thomas and Angela order Gemini to save Morbius' life so that they can kill
him, and all three run down to the beach, finally leaving Jennifer alone. For
the first time since receiving Morbius' serum, Jennifer attempts to change into
the She-Hulk voluntarily. The change is very hard and painful. For several long
seconds, Jennifer fears that nothing is happening. As a greenish tint begins to
slowly appear in her skin, Jennifer cannot help but appreciate the irony, "The
She-Hulk always appeared so unbidden, before… always came out when I least
wanted her. But now, just when I need her the most… I'M HERE!!!" She has become
the She-Hulk once more and is now ready to kick some serious butt.
Down at the beach, Gemini is dragging Morbius up to the LeClerks, where Angela
wants to see his eyes when he dies. They almost don't notice the savage green
amazon in white tatters watching them furiously. She orders Gemini to release
Morbius, or face her wrath. Gemini divides again to attack She-Hulk. White
Gemini hopes that She-Hulk's anger will counter the rage of the bereaved
parents. Shulkie responds that if he wants equal time for rage, they came to the
right woman as she clobbers them with one blow. But the fight is far from over,
and Gemini demonstrates other unique talents. White Gemini grabs She-Hulk's leg
and absorbs her energy, sapping her strength away. She kicks him away, but Black
Gemini hits her with a power blast since he has the power to emit energy. She
knocks him away with a punch, only to face White Gemini again, who is back up
again. Soon he grabs her by the wrist and absorbs even more energy from her.
She-Hulk knocks him away just as Black Gemini zaps her again. Frustrated,
She-Hulk charges toward the two Geminis, intending to knock their heads
together, but when she grabs their two arms, she inadvertently completes an
electrical circuit, and thousands of volts pass through her body. She collapses
on the ground, and Gemini immediately assumes that she is dead. They do not see
her body change back to Jen Walters as a result of the shock. But She-Hulk's
efforts were not in vain. Her rage did indeed counter the emotion of the
parents, so when Gemini reunites, his emotional and rational sides have now
equalled. He will not interfere with the LeClerk's decision, but Gemini will
not act as their avenger. Thomas levels his gun at Michael Morbius who is now at
his mercy. He does not plead for his own life, but rather for Jennifer's. "She
never understood that she fought a losing battle from the start… that you had
long ago closed your minds to all reason!" But now that sufficient time has
passed, time which the She-Hulk has gained through her battle with Gemini,
Jennifer's arguments in court have finally begun to sink in. Tearfully, Thomas
says he now knows that what Jennifer said was right, and that they cannot become
as monstrous as Morbius in their desire for revenge. He throws his gun into the
sea and he takes his wife back up to the van. "We lived for our daughter. She's
dead. It is time we started living for ourselves again." Morbius asks Gemini to
take him back to his lab unless he wants to rescind his client's verdict, since
he is long overdue for the stabilization serum that prevents him from becoming
the Living Vampire. Gemini picks him up and says he will get there in double
time. The doctor asks if Morbius is alright, and she calls out that she is fine.
Nobody else has noticed she was there or the state of her clothing.
Many hours later, an exhausted Jennifer arrives at her house. She is surprised
to see that the light is on, and to her surprise Zapper is in the living room.
He sees her white tattered blouse and knows she has had some adventure as the
She-Hulk but decides not to press. Instead, he cracks a joke: "Say, that's some
outfit… the latest from Saks?" But Jennifer is not in the mood for jokes. She
says she is in no mood for his childish jokes, and that it is time for him to
leave. Zapper bursts into tears and says that he was trying to cheer her up
because she had a tough time lately. But even though he was the one who got her
the treatment that saved her life, she still treats him like a kid. Jennifer may
be the She-Hulk, but she's not the only one with problem… or feelings! He slams
the door behind him as he leaves. Jennifer tries to tell him she's sorry, but he
is already gone. As she sits down in her chair wearing her red bathrobe,
Jennifer congratulates herself on losing the last friend she had left. With the
type of problems she has now, not even a She-Hulk can hope to solve them.
Site for Sore Eyes rating: 10 out of 10
Writing 5 out of 5.
It is impossible to underestimate the importance of this
one issue. Although the She-Hulk did not talk quite the same way as her cousin
did, fans could make a very good case that she really was the Hulk wearing a
skirt. Giving Jennifer the ability to control her changes and decide whether or
not to become the She-Hulk was an important first step in differentiating
herself from the Hulk. Now as the series goes on, we will see Jennifer
increasingly drawn toward the She-Hulk side of her personality, and more
reluctant to become Jen Walters again and deal with Jen's problems. I've never
read the Defenders issues where Gemini appears, but he is a very interesting
opponent for She-Hulk. Gemini certainly is not lame, and it is too bad he has
apparently fallen into Marvel limbo. I also like the plotline centering on the
need for reasonable and just decisions as opposed to pure vengeance based on
rage. In comics as well as on TV, it almost seems as if every lawyer has to
defend an innocent client or they are unworthy of our sympathy. This issue shows
that is not the case at all, and I think DAK handled the grieving parents very
well. At times, they come close to becoming caricatures, but the final scene
where they let Morbius go was very touching. Finally, the last scene where
Zapper finally reveals his feelings for Jennifer perfectly lays the groundwork
for the storyline that will begin the next issue.
Art 5 out of 5
Review by Eddie Cunningham
Picture by The Leader