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How The Review-Bombing of ‘She-Hulk’ Exposes Ongoing Issues With Female Representation

The first episodes of the MCU’s latest series, ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’ (2022), have just hit the small screen – but the reaction to this female superhero romp proves that many are still opposed to seeing women on-screen.

Credit: 'She-Hulk: Attorney at Law'/Marvel Studios

It’s no secret that ‘She-Hulk‘ has experienced a lot of backlash in the short time it’s been in the public domain. The series’ CGI was heavily criticized when the first trailer dropped. And many fans were disappointed by She-Hulk’s character design. FYI: She-Hulk is the cousin of Bruce Banner – aka the original Hulk. So, it was a surprise to many that She-Hulk was, simply put, so small. Worst of all, it seemed, She-Hulk was a female superhero. And that (apparently) shouldn’t be allowed.

To put it lightly, the release of ‘She-Hulk’ has opened the floodgates for a torrent of misogynistic backlash. The premiere of the series’ first episode saw many Marvel fans flocking to review-bomb the show. Leaving tons of negative reviews in the hopes of harming the series’ popularity and sales. And all because it features a female lead.

At the time of writing, over 36% of all user reviews on the ‘She-Hulk’ IMDB listing are one-star ratings. Making it the lowest-rated MCU show on IMDB. But, this isn’t really a surprise. ‘She-Hulk’ is quite unapologetically female. It concerns itself with gender differences. And shines a light on the struggles women constantly have to face. I mean, one scene even has She-Hulk (Tatiana Maslany) chanting “men” as she stomps on the ground. It’s pretty clear that some fans aren’t comfortable with a show all about women (and not men). So, cue: some misogynistic review-bombing.

Opposition to the Review-Bombing

It is telling that the response to this review-bombing has also been to raise the IMDB rating of ‘She-Hulk’ artificially. 10/10 ratings vie against the bad reviews – currently accounting for 21.8% of all user reviews. There’s an unspoken understanding that female-led superhero productions are already few and far between. And that, when they are made, they’re host to intense backlash and scrutiny. It’s clear that review-bombing poses a threat to female representation. And other fans wish to combat it.

Credit: ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law’/Marvel Studios

Take ‘Ms. Marvel (2022) as another example. The show was also review-bombed upon release. And even now, stands as the only other MCU series to earn more than 10% of one-star reviews on IMDB. (All the other MCU series tout single-digits). It’s not a coincidence that it’s also a female-led superhero show. Nor that it takes Pakistani-American Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) as its lead. Review-bombing is very much associated with undermining proper female representation.

Conclusions

In this regard, the significance of review-bombing shouldn’t be undermined. It is a direct manifestation of intense bigotry. And, in the case of ‘She-Hulk’ and other female superhero productions, some potent misogyny. For the MCU, it indicates the ongoing issues that need to be dealt with. The public’s response to ‘She-Hulk’ proves that there is still much to overcome to ensure women can have leading roles on-screen without being the subject of intense and damaging scrutiny.

Written By

I'm an English Lit student in my final year of study. I enjoy dissecting pop culture, as well as thinking way too much about film, books, and TV. You can likely find me talking about some new release or another - or gushing about 'Everything Everywhere All At Once'.

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