Sensational She-Hulk #52
Sensational She-Hulk #52
Title: “Visit L.A.--And Die! To Die and Live In L.A. Part 1 of 6”
Writer: Michael Eury
Penciller: Todd Britton
Inker: Mike DeCarlo
Colors: Glynis Oliver
Editor: Renee Witterstaetter
She-Hulk is enjoying a day off by going lingerie shopping at Libido's. Jen is
pleasantly surprised that they have outfits in her size, and asks the sales
clerk if they have any slippers in a size 14.
At Jen's apartment, Weezi answers a phone call from Reed Richards. He tells her
that it is urgent that he speak to She-Hulk as soon as possible, regarding the
results of his tests of the War Zone robot that attacked her a few days ago.
Reed asks where Jen is, so he can send the Thing to go get her. 
Weezi tells him Jen is at Libido's, and then Reed invites her to come over to
Four Freedoms Plaza, to provide emotional support for Jen. As soon as he hangs
up the phone, Reed tells Ben to go pick up She-Hulk at Libido's. Ben doesn't
want to go, since he is embarrassed to be seen in the store, but Reed tells him
that it is necessary, since She-Hulk could be in deadly danger. He also says to
make sure that She-Hulk doesn't use her super-strength. Ben rushes out, hoping
that no one sees him there.
Back at Libido's, Mary MacPherran, aka Titania, is applying for a job. However,
she is turned down, since the manager is worried that her background and temper
would scare away the customers. Titania snarls that she doesn't want to work
here in the first place, but her boyfriend, Absorbing Man, keeps pressuring her
to get a respectable job. She-Hulk is in the change room and recognizes
Titania's voice. "Well, well, well...fancy meeting you here, Titania. You've
always struck me as the beer-and-pretzels rather than bra-and-panties type!"
Titania is surprised but pleased to see her old foe here, since she is in the
mood for a good brawl! She comments that she can't seem to turn around these
days without running into She-Hulk! She-Hulk sends Titania sprawling with a
right cross,
commenting that she owes Titania some payback for that beating she gave her
while she was trapped in Weezi's body. Jen is surprised to find her hand hurts
after punching Titania, and she wonders if Titania has gotten tougher since
their last fight. She-Hulk lunges at Titania, but get hit with a kick to the
gut! Pressing her advantage, Titania begins to pound on She-Hulk!
Just then, the Thing walks in with his hands over his eyes, saying he is looking
for the She-Hulk! Moments later, he finds her the hard way… when She-Hulk
crashes into him after being tossed across the room! The two heroes crash into
one of the displays, and several different colored bras get tangled on the
Thing's rocky hide! Ben notices that She-Hulk is dressed only in the lingerie
she was trying on, and asks how women can fight with nothing on.
Before the heroes can get back to their feet, Titania picks
up She-Hulk and throws her through the window! She taunts Jen about needing that
"walkin' ton of bricks" to back her up.
Titania
laughs at how easily she is beating She-Hulk, and asks what happened to the
She-Hulk she's used to. As She-Hulk struggles to her feet, Titania comes out to
finish her off!
Inside, Ben gets the sales clerk to help get himself untangled from all the
bras, so he can go help Jen.
She-Hulk tries to lift the Fantasticar to use as a weapon against Titania, but
finds that it is too heavy for her! Titania then grabs it, and easily lifts it,
smashing it into She-Hulk and ramming her into a bus! The Thing then comes up
behind Titania, and taps her on the shoulder. She turns around and Ben clobbers
her, sending her flying into the air, and then crashing into the pavement
unconscious! Ben checks on Jen, and asks if she is okay. Jen tells him that she
thinks there is something wrong with her. Ben tells her that is why Reed sent
him to come get her. Jen gives Ben a kiss on the forehead, thanking him for his
help, and then pulls off a pink bra that got stuck on his head. "Oh, and by the
way, Thing… I don't think pink is your color!"
Soon, at FF HQ, Reed runs some tests on She-Hulk, and they confirm his findings
from his analysis of War Zone. Jen wants to know what the connection is between
War Zone, and her being so weak against Titania. Reed explains that the gas War
Zone sprayed her with introduced a toxin into her bloodstream that is
eradicating the gamma radiation in her blood. He tells her that the toxin is
accelerated every time she uses her gamma-based powers. He warns her that if
she doesn't undergo treatment within the next few days, she'll lose all of her
gamma radiation and revert back to being Jennifer Walters! Jen panics, grabbing
a hold of Reed and begging him to find a cure. Reed is sorry, but tells her
that medical and biochemical science are outside his realm of expertise. "Oh,
sure...you can build moon rockets in your backyard and shrink people to
sub-atomic size in your sleep, but you can't deal with a simple blood disorder?"
Weezi urges Jen to calm down, and Reed tells her that he has already contacted a
brilliant hematologist to help her, someone Jen already knows… Dr. Daniel Ridge!
Jen is delighted to be seeing her old friend Zapper again. She reminds Reed
that Zapper was her neighbor when she was growing up in L.A., and he was her
first boyfriend as the She-Hulk. Reed is slightly mortified at the idea of one
of the world's greatest medical geniuses being called "Zapper", but Jen points
out that Reed's nickname is "Stretch".
Reed comments that Zapper has learned a great deal from his father-in-law,
Hector DeVasquez, who is one of the country’s premiere gamma-radiation
specialists. Reed says that he has contacted Zapper, and he feels he should be
able to correct her condition and restore her powers if he can begin treating
her in the next few days.
Jen is excited about a trip to California, and Weezi is
looking forward to an opportunity to see Jen's father again. Reed reminds them
that they still don't know who created War Zone and sent him after She-Hulk, so
until their secret enemy is revealed, Jen needs to watch her back!
When She-Hulk arrives at the L.A. Airport, she is mobbed by adoring fans, who
are snapping pictures, wanting autographs, and asking questions. Morris Walters
gives Weezi a hug, and teases that Jen has gotten too big to say hi to her
father. Jen is so happy to see her father that she grabs him and lifts him into
the air! Weezi reminds Jen that she isn't supposed to be using her strength.
Another voice from behind them agrees: "You'd better listen to your friend, Luv...the
more you use it, the faster you lose it!"
Jen turns to find Zapper and Christina there. She greets them both, and while
Zapper is very excited to see her, Christina seems somewhat reserved. Zapper is
pleased to see that She-Hulk's condition hasn't deteriorated as quickly as he
feared, but wants to start her treatment tomorrow. He asks if he can pick her
up around two. Jen likes that idea, since it'll give her some time to spend with
her dad first. Jen looks over at her father kissing Weezi, and makes a joke
wondering when he's going to come up for air.
The next morning, at the offices of CBC network, Greg Hallerhand is being chewed
out by his boss over the drop in ratings for the "Heartbreak Hospital" soap
opera. He is warned that if ratings don't improve soon he will be fired… or
worse! After his boss leaves, Hallerhand calls in Darren, the head writer of the
show, and gives him the same lecture. Darren comes up with the idea of airing
the show live as a special event to boost ratings. Hallerhand likes the idea,
but feels they need a big name guest star too. Darren shows him the newspaper,
with the cover story being She-Hulk's arrival in L.A.! Hallerhand excitedly
tells Darren to get him the She-Hulk!
At her father's house, Jen is disgusted that her arrival in L.A. is front page
news. She can't believe that there isn't anything more newsworthy than her
happening, and she really didn't want to publicize her arrival since she is here
for medical treatment.
Weezi points out that it is hard to keep a low profile when you're 6'7" and
green! Weezi also points out that she isn't the only story on the front page…
there is also a story about sightings of James David, an actor best known as
"The Rumbler", who supposedly died decades ago. Moe spits out his coffee in
shock! He grabs the paper and reads the article about dozens of witnesses
sighting the 1960's actor at the Burger Barn, which was his favorite haunt
before he died in 1963. Moe tosses the paper away in disgust, saying that Jen is
right, "There's got to be more news in this burg than some moron parading around
dressed as a dead creep!" Weezi comments at being surprised at how harshly Moe
is reacting to something so trivial. Jen says Weezi should have seen him when
they cancelled "Dragnet". Weezi reflects on how handsome James David was in his
old movies, but then quickly comments that he doesn't compare to Moe. Moe
smiles and says "good save". Jen comments on how David became an even bigger
star after his bizarre death, when he was swallowed in an earthquake. Jen
observes that there seems to be an odd fascination with celebrities who die
before their time, but Moe changes the subject, suggesting they get some lunch
before Zapper picks Jen up. Jen agrees and asks where he wants to go. Moe says
the Burger Barn!
Jen, Weezi and Moe arrive at the Burger Barn, and Jen says that it still looks
just like it did when she used to hang out there in high school. Jen goes to the
juke box, and puts on one of her favorite songs. Just then, James David
arrives! As he walks into the dinner, women begin to swoon over him. Moe snarls
that the kid wants to dress up as dead actors, he should pick someone that
wasn't such a punk! David looks to see who just called him a punk, and is
surprised to recognize Sheriff Walters! When David speaks, Moe is shocked to
realize that it really IS the Rumbler, and not some impersonator! Rumbler smirks
and says they should catch up on old times! He gestures at Moe and the others,
and generates an earthquake! He sends a barrage of rocks flying at them!
She-Hulk lifts the table to shield them. Moe tells her to back off, because she
is too weak, and this is his fight. Jen scoffs, "Oh yeah. Right. Like you
'fight' guys who cause earthquakes every day..." Moe tells her not to get smart
with him, and that he isn't afraid of this jerk. Rumbler comments that age
doesn't seem to have slowed down Moe's mouth, so he decides to see how it has
affected his reaction time. He fires another barrage of rock that catches Moe in
the face!
She-Hulk is now pissed off, and charges at Rumbler, shouting that no one hurts
her father! She knocks him right through the window and outside the diner. The
Rumbler gets a good look at She-Hulk and is shocked. "Whoa. Big Green
Chick...I've been away for a lo-o-ong time." Rumbler opens up the ground under
She-Hulk, and Jen falls into the pit. He makes a comment that if Sheriff
Walters is her father, then Millie the Martian must be her mother! He then
fills the pit on top of She-Hulk! Weezi screams that he has killed Jen and Moe,
but he tells her not to worry, since he makes a good looking corpse. Then he
drives off.
Under the ground, She-Hulk tries to dig her way back to the surface.
Unfortunately, she is too weak to claw free before she runs out of air. As she
passes out, she wishes for someone to come rescue her, even the Mole Man.
"...can't...be...happen...ing..."
Site for Sore Eyes rating: 7 out of 10
A good start to a new story arc! Nice to see some of Jen's old supporting cast being used in a significant way, as well as her good friends in the FF. It is always fun to have a She Hulk vs. Titania brawl, and Britton draws one of the best renditions of her I've seen, but it somewhat awkward to have her back out of prison and looking for a regular job after Jen just beat her 3 issues ago.
Review by Dermie
Picture by The Leader