Issue(s): Marvel Team-Up #107
Cover Date: Jul 81
Title: "This rumor of revolution!"
Credits:
Tom DeFalco & Jim Shooter - Writer
Herb Trimpe - Penciler
Mike Esposito - Inker
Mark Gruenwald - Assistant Editor
Denny O'Neil - Editor

Review/plot:
The Man-Killer was an awful stereotype of a female liberationist, but using her as a villain for a Spider-Man/She-Hulk team-up had a lot of potential. The Man-Killer first appeared in a Spider-man team-up with the Cat, who was created as part of a wave of books with female leads, and who was explicitly designed as a pro-feminist character. She-Hulk, by contrast, was not part of any such larger effort. But despite the many (many!) flaws of her book, She-Hulk definitely (and literally!) is a strong female character. Very powerful, fiercely independent, and even as Jennifer Walters she's depicted as a competent professional lawyer. So in those respects she's a feminist character without having to be overtly feminist like the Cat or certainly Man-Killer were. And this issue could have been used to highlight that. But unfortunately, this is the extent of She-Hulk and Man-Killer's interaction in this issue.

The topic of feminism is relevant to the issue, too, or i wouldn't be going into this so deeply. A radical feminist, Hildy Dawes, who is likened to Abbie Hoffman, hires Jennifer Walters to help her surrender to the authorities after years of being a wanted fugitive. Man-Killer wanted to kidnap Dawes to use her as a propaganda piece in her own female revolution. But in the end Dawes electrocutes herself and Man-Killer, saying they are both anachronisms.

Putting all that together, there obviously is a statement here, but it's not really about She-Hulk.

More interesting is Spider-Man and She-Hulk's interactions. When Man-Killer first attacks, Jen sees that Spider-Man is fighting her, so she doesn't feel the need to transform. But she doesn't like that Spider-Man doesn't take things seriously.

And Spider-Man actually loses his fight to Man-Killer (in a sequence that is slightly confusing due to coloring issues), causing Jen to call Spider-Man a "jerk" and a "yo-yo".

Dawes is subsequently captured, and She-Hulk then takes matters into her own hands. Spider-Man's reaction to her play a reader reaction / point-of-view character role that has been less utilized for him now that he's already met and teamed-up with most of the Marvel universe.

After a misunderstanding fight, Spider-Man takes the unusual route of apologizing (albeit snarkily), and She-Hulk is moved by the treatment.

For a story calling feminists anachronisms, Spider-Man sure demonstrates some chauvinistic tendencies, first telling the Man-Killer that she needs to take a bath...

...and then calling the Man-Killer's followers "kung fu cuties".

The bath line, to be fair, isn't different than the sorts of things Spider-man says all the time to male foes, but it does take on a different meaning when talking to a 1970s era feminist.

What else? I apparently missed out on some cool Star Wars promotions:

And sometimes Peter Parker is to blame for his own financial troubles. Really? You ran out of film?

Quality Rating: C-

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: It's said during Amazing Spider-Man #218 that this issue occurs during a week that passes in that issue. The Marvel Index puts She-Hulk here between She-Hulk #18-19, but i'm breaking with that. In She-Hulk #17, Buck Bukowski learns that he was responsible for the death of Jennifer Walter's friend Jill. And from that point on in the series he is depressed and no longer quipping with Jen. In this issue he's his previous quippy self. You could argue that he's just keeping up appearances. But She-Hulk's appearance here is otherwise context free and i've decided to place this between She-Hulk #16-17. Daredevil's brief appearance references his upcoming fight with the Kingpin in Daredevil #172, so this should take place before that (the MCP actually has this story occurring during this issue, but i have Daredevil #168-182 in trade). Note that this issue takes place during Amazing Spider-Man #218 along with a number of other Spider-Man appearances, and then Amazing Spider-Man #219 references Daredevil #173. So a lot of Spider-Man and Daredevil stories are taking place concurrently.

References:

• Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson happen to be on the courtroom steps when Jennifer Walters arrives with Hildy Dawes. Matt is focused on taking a cab home so he can change into his costume and fight Daredevil, as will be shown in Daredevil #172.
  
• The letter Jen Walters received from Hildy Dawes, requesting her services, referenced Jen's defense of Morbius from She-Hulk #12.
  
• Spider-Man fought the Man-Killer previously in Marvel Team-Up #8.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

I think the anachronisms line was directed at 70s revolutionaries, not at feminists. People like Bill Ayers have been an embarrassment to liberals since around 1980- they don't have any real influence but they become a lightning rod when conservatives criticize liberals for not ostracizing them.

Shooter disposing of another disposable 1970s character?

Assume you mean Man-Killer, since Shulkie's book was still going at the time; not to mention she joined the Avengers not too long after it ended anyway. (luckily just before Stern's run; I sort of wonder if Shooter liked Shulkie or if she was thrown on the Avengers to be given a "short run and gone" scenario like what happened to Tigra...only for Stern to take it over and mold her further into something more memorable)

Stern has said in interviews that he was the one who suggested adding Jen to the Avengers.

The fact that Jennifer said that Spider-Man doesn't take things seriously(as well as being easily annoyed by his wisecracks) must mean that she's one of his biggest fans.

The idea of bystanders mistaking a supervillain attack for a "publicity stunt" or a shoot for next Lucas/Spielberg film seems to be really common trope in Marvel comics, especially in the 1980s. I guess the point is to emphasize how the Marvel Universe is just like ours; if we would see giant robots flying in the air, our first thought would probably be that it's a stunt or a movie shoot. But when you think about, it doesn't really make sense that Marvel Universe bystanders would think that way... They (especially the ones living in New York) must've witnessed or at least heard about so many fights between superheroes and supervillains that realistically their first thought upon seeing flying robots should be, "it's those costumed folks again!", after which they would hide as fast as they can.

I loved the way new Doctor Who series handled this situation: after London had been threatened by aliens on two consecutive Christmases (in two consecutive Christmas specials), the following year most Londoners were wise enough to get out of town by December 25th. I guess Marvel New Yorkers aren't quite as smart.

Never read this issue, but am I understanding the scans right that Spidey knocks himself out by falling through the roof of an old car? Not sure if there's some in-story explanation for this or if it's his worse showing since Aunt May knocked him out with a vase.

Yeah, he tries to bounce off the roof of a car, but the car turns out to be in crummy condition so he crashes through instead. I'm not sure if he's actually knocked out, but he's out of the action for about a page, during which time Mankiller gets away.

Wow, I thought those losses to Stilt-Man were some of the most embarrassing of his career, but if he can't even beat an old car roof then no wonder he can't beat the Mighty Stilts.

That's something out of Newspaper Spider-Man right there.