She-Hulk Episode 7 MCU Easter Eggs & References
This article contains spoilers for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 7.She-Hulk: Attorney at Law continues to expand the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with a surprising number of Easter eggs and key references. The first decade of the MCU treated superhumans as rare and unusual; with the notable exceptions of the Hulk and Spider-Man, it went to great lengths to present the origin stories of its various characters. She-Hulk: Attorney at Law started out with the same approach, with the first episode including an extended flashback to She-Hulk’s origin.
She-Hulk now works for a law firm called GLK&H, and she’s in charge of their superhuman law division. It’s striking that super-powered individuals are now so common a law firm believe it would be a good idea to have a specialist department working in these cases; they’re already being proven right, with notable cases involving the Abomination and Mr. Immortal. She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 7 continues this trend, introducing viewers to a range of new superhumans and showing little concern for characters’ origins and backstory. It’s clear that, as far as Marvel is concerned, superhumans are becoming an everyday part of the MCU.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 7 achieves this by returning to the story of Emil Blonsky (better known as the Abomination). He’s seeking to reinvent himself in this new world of gods and monsters, aliens and mutants, by providing a retreat where super-powered individuals can find peace and inner harmony. While it’s clearly a money-making scheme – Jennifer Walters can’t resist calling Abomination out on his platitudes – it’s hard to avoid the feeling there’s an even darker edge to it. Here are all the MCU and Marvel Easter eggs as She-Hulk visits Abomination’s retreat.
Previous episodes established that Bruce Banner learned to control his Hulk transformations using inhibitor technology. She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 7 confirmed these inhibitors have been improved by the U.S. government, with Abomination now wearing an inhibitor that’s as unobtrusive as the trackers police sometimes place around a person’s ankle. The Hulk’s inhibitor technology may seem as though it’s being put to good use, but the core concept has a troubling history in the comics. There, similar inhibitors have typically been associated with restricting the powers of mutants, and they were used by the government of the fictional country of Genosha to enslave vast numbers of mutants and force them to use their powers for the state. Although the Hulk’s inhibitors will clearly be focused on Gamma-powered individuals, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 1 suggested the ability to absorb Gamma radiation rather than be killed by it is a genetic mutation (shared by his cousin), raising the possibility Hulk and She-Hulk are actually mutants in the MCU. If that is the case, the inhibitor technology is only one small step away from restricting mutants.
The visit to Abomination’s retreat introduces viewers to Man-Bull, the result of a bizarre Marvel super-soldier experiment in the comics; he clearly shares a similar MCU origin, describing himself as a lab experiment gone wrong. The comic book iteration of Man-Bull’s mutation is unstable, meaning he transforms back into human form at any given moment. He’s typically a Daredevil villain, which explains why the MCU version is certainly no match for She-Hulk.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 7 features an unlikely new mutant, a character named El Águila (who seems to have been merged with a similar villain, the Matador, purely for the joke of having him in a codependent relationship with Man-Bull). El Águila is a mutant who possesses a bioelectric blasting power – likely the real reason Abomination’s inhibitor failed after sustaining an electric shock. Back in 2019, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige hinted the « non-marquee » mutants would appear before the X-Men, and Marvel is certainly fulfilling this; nobody would have ever expected El Águila to make his MCU debut ahead of Wolverine or Professor X.
Porcupine is a low-level Marvel Comics villain who created a porcupine-themed battlesuit for the U.S. government, and then stole it believing he wouldn’t be properly paid for doing so. It’s unclear whether the MCU’s villain has the same backstory, but he certainly feels uncomfortable taking the Porcupine outfit off. The character is a perfect fit for the more whimsical, humorous take on the MCU offered by She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
« Saracen » is an oddly common codename in Marvel Comics, and the character introduced in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 7 appears to blend some characteristics from all of them. The episode credits Bart Sears for this incarnation of Saracen, which means the primary inspiration is a villain introduced in 1999’s Blade: The Vampire Hunter #1. An important figure in Marvel’s vampire history, Saracen was presented as one of the oldest vampires. It’s quite possible the MCU’s version is a real vampire as well, simply enjoying relaxing at Abomination’s retreat. Werewolf By Night is expected to confirm various supernatural monsters – including vampires and werewolves – have been part of the MCU all along, with their numbers kept down because of hunters; perhaps Saracen has decided Abomination’s retreat makes a convenient hiding-place.
Abomination treats this as something of a joke, of course, claiming Saracen « thinks » he’s a vampire. That’s probably because Saracen clearly has no problems with sunlight; but it’s unknown whether the MCU’s vampires will share that traditional vampiric weakness. The matter is further complicated because there are separate subspecies of vampires in the comics, possessing different attributes, and the same may be true in the MCU as well. The trailer for Werewolf By Night features an ancient Atlantean vampire species called the « Nosferatu, » and there are likely other types of vampires out there. Perhaps Saracen is simply from one sub-species who can go out in the sunlight.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episode 7 ends with one final delightful Easter egg; the towing company that picks up Jennifer Walters’ damaged car is « Slott towing, » named after celebrated comic book writer Dan Slott – one of the best-known writers to pen She-Hulk’s adventures. Appropriately enough, the driver’s name badge proclaims that his name is indeed « Dan. »
New episodes of She-Hulk release on Thursdays on Disney+.
