Bruce Banner’s cousin, Jennifer Walters, aka She-Hulk, has finally made her live-action debut in the Disney+ series, She-Hulk: Attorney At Law. As is the case in the comics, Jennifer is not only a superhero but also a lawyer specializing in cases involving super-humans.
In the series, Jennifer engages with other heroes such as Daredevil and Hulk. In the comics, she has done that a lot more times as a member of some super-groups. But which of these groups has had some of the fiercest and most influential characters?
Avengers
Jennifer first joins the Avengers when she is asked to do so by Janet Van Dyne in Avengers #221. She leaves and returns to the group o a couple of occasions. She also helps the group defeat the DC villain Krona, during the crossover issue Avengers/JLA #4.
Jennifer’s stints with the Avengers benefit her greatly since she gets to be depicted as an equal to Hulk rather than just a cousin-sidekick. Her time with the Avengers also helps her form bonds that are tight as the one with Bruce Banner. She becomes best friends with Janet and during the crossover, she becomes close to one of the best Justice League characters, Wonder Woman, with the two educating each other about their different worlds.
Fantastic Four
Jennifer is ushered into the group as a replacement for The Thing after the events of Battleworld in Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #12. She is also brought in as one of the stand-ins when the original group travels through space and time in Fantastic Four (Vol) 2 #1.
Mission-wise, Jennifer’s time as a Fantastic Four member is a relatively quiet one. However, her first stint with the group turns out to be very rewarding for her personal life since she gets to meet the love of her life, Wyatt Wingfoot, with the two becoming one of the fan-favorite Marvel comic couples. Wyatt helps her get through her most stressful moments, including when she gets harassed by corrupt S.H.I.E.LD. agents.
Lady Liberators
In Avengers #83, Jennifer forms the all-female group, the Lady Liberators to hunt down Red Hulk. The group, consisting of Scarlet Witch, Spider-Woman, Enchantress, and Black Widow, goes on to assist in various humanitarian efforts around the world.
Through the group, feminist themes get heavily highlighted, with the members even clashing with Clint Barton, who was against female empowerment in the ‘70s. Whenever they are not saving the world, the members also get to discuss divisive issues such as abortion and pay gaps. The group’s humanitarian efforts are unrivaled too. In one of their best acts of kindness, they help victims of an earthquake in Marinmer, who had been ignored because of the country’s ties to Russia and China.
Defenders
Jennifer joins the Defenders twice, first at Tony Stark’s request in The Last Defenders #1, and second at Hellcat’s request in The Order#3. Both times, the missions involve saving New York City.
New York has always been an important location in Marvel Comics and even with heroes such as Spider-Man, Luke Cage, and Doctor Strange residing there, there is always a need for reinforcements. As a member of the Defenders, Jennifer gets to discover many things about herself, including the fact that her true calling is the law. She then chooses to re-join the DA’s office.
A-Force
Jennifer forms another all-female team in A-Force #1, described as the protectors of the matriarchal Battleworld nation of Arcadia. The founding members consist of consists of Medusa, Dazzler, Nico Minoru, and Singularity, though other members join later on.
The A-Force group helps keeps Marvel multiverse arcs alive since it initially exists on other Earths except for the primary Earth-616. As a member of A-Force, Jennifer has many highs and lows. She leads the group in many successful missions but also suffers a near-death experience when she gets injured during the team’s efforts to stop Thanos’ at the Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S. Facility. Still, by defeating one of the best Marvel villains with ease, the A-Force presents an argument for it being a better group than the Avengers.
Hulkbusters
As part of the Superhero Registration Act, Jennifer gets forced to work with the Hulkbusters in She-Hulk (Vol 2) #17. The group is set up by S.H.I.E.L.D. to defeat Hulk’s enemies since he is missing at the time. Its members consist of Clay Quartermain, Agent Cheesecake, Agent Crimson, and Agent Beefcake
Though Jennifer isn’t too happy about being part of the group, it’s a necessary formation since the Hulk's rogues gallery is running wild, a consequence of him being exiled from Earth by the Illuminati. More impressive is the fact that the group has a no-kill rule like some of the best DC heroes, Superman and Batman. Instead of killing villains, members plant Nanotechnology devices in them. This helps nullify their powers.
Mighty Avengers
When the original Avengers leave Earth to fight an alien race in Mighty Avengers (Vol. 2) #1, Thanos takes advantage of the situation and invades. Luke Cage, Spider-Man, and Spectrum then join hands to stop him, referring to themselves as the Mighty Avengers. They also invite Jennifer.
Fans get to see more of what Jennifer is capable of when she becomes a member of the Mighty Avengers because gets to do more than just superhero work. As the group’s official lawyer, she helps them get off free during moments when they get sued for property damages.
Heroes For Hire
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Jennifer gets hired as the lawyer for Heroes For Hire in Heroes for Hire #8, occasionally doing fieldwork for them too. Other members include Deadpool, Power Man, Hercules, Luke Cage, and Ant-Man.
As a member of the Heroes For Hire, Jennifer gets to have more work-related and relationship-related arcs. To readers, this feels like a welcome break from the usual saving-the-world business. She is seen in court and law offices more. She also gets to date both Luke Cage and Power-Man, leading to a rather interesting love triangle that threatens to tear the group apart at some point. It's also during this time that she starts breaking the Fourth Wall, a trend that has been maintained ever since.
Future Foundation
Frustrated with the unacceptable manner in which scientists are running the world, Reed Richards leaves the Singularity Conference in Fantastic Four #579 and forms a team of free-thinking individuals. Members include Invisible Woman, Spider-Man, Thing, Doctor Doom, Human Torch, and Ant-Man. Jennifer joins later on.
As is the case with the Lady Liberators, the Future Foundation mostly focuses on philanthropy, a field which Jennifer is quite familiar with. Though she doesn’t get to be a star of the group, she provides her expertise whenever she can. Later on, she departs to re-join the Avengers.
Fearsome Four
In Fear Itself: Fearsome Four #1, She-Hulk teams up with the Frankenstein monster, Howard the Duck, and Nighthawk to stop Man-Thing. They then discover that Psycho-Man is the person controlling Man-Thing.
It’s yet another brilliant storyline that allows a crossover between Marvel and other franchises. It’s also the most short-lived group that Jennifer gets to be a part of since it never gets to tackle any other threat.