On ‘She-Hulk,’ ‘The Rings of Power’ and the Toxicity of Modern Fandom

 

“the MCU was already finished but now it's officially dead”

“seeing she-hulk twerk just might be the worst thing i have ever seen in a minute”

“with three episodes, I feel like it’s safe to say She-Hulk is BAD”

These are tweets from actual, human, and presumably adult people who are ABSOLUTELY LOSING THEIR MINDS over the recent episode of Marvel Studios’ She-Hulk on Disney+. In the B-story of the episode, attorney Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk (Tatiana Maslany) gets involved in a court case involving a former colleague and a Megan Thee Stallion “impersonator” (actually a New Asgardian light elf in disguise, but we don’t need to get into all that). The real Megan makes a cameo appearance, the episode ends in a brief scuffle with The Wrecking Crew, credits roll.

Then there’s a mid-credits scene. THE mid-credits scene. The light-hearted stinger that has passionate MCU “fans” frothing at the mouth in the worst ways possible.

In it, a hulked-up Jennifer signs Megan as a client and the two twerk to “Body.” Booties are popped, fun is had, and the MCU breathes its last breath … or that’s what some (and overwhelmingly male) YouTubers and bad-faith Tweeters would have you believe.

Now, I will go on record and state that I don’t necessarily love everything that Marvel Studios has done in terms of their Disney+ Originals, and I’m of the mind that I’d rather have fewer quality stories as opposed to the absolute glut of content we’ve been getting. But as a comic book reader, I also don’t care for every title that Marvel title that comes out. And I daresay there are few who do. But you pick and choose your favorites characters and stories, you drop titles that no longer interest you, and – pay attention to this important part – you IGNORE THE STUFF YOU DON’T LIKE.

But in a digital media economy fueled by impressions, views and subscribers, the irate contrarian is king. Why would anyone simply come to terms with the fact that She-Hulk isn’t for them when there is attention (and revenue) to be gained? Fury is a cottage industry, and these grifters are entrepreneurs.

And that anger is evidently contagious and passed down to the followers of these petulance peddlers. Twitter accounts with under 50 followers are among the fastest to label new shows as “awful,” with “bad writing,” yet they simply cannot stop talking about the things they can’t stand (perhaps in an effort to gain a furious following themselves). And the fact that most of these accounts – both big and small – seem to harp on issues of “wokeness” and “SJW propaganda” tells you all you need to know about what kinds of people they are.

Star Wars and Marvel have suffered the brunt of this toxic behavior for the past few years (DC has been a close third) but The Lord of The Rings is the latest target with the release of the Prime Video series The Rings of Power, which features people of color in Middle-Earth and – shocker of shockers – features Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) and other female characters in prominent roles. Tolkien “purists” are up in arms at what is an apparent affront to J.R.R. Tolkien’s writing and is something we should all be very, very angry about as well. As someone who has read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings multiple times throughout my lifetime dating back to elementary school, I didn’t realize that I wasn’t a “true fan,” because I’m actually enjoying the show.

In fact, I’ve been a massive fan of The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and Marvel for more than three decades, and I’m pretty happy with the fact that we’re getting new stories in these universes – even if some of them don’t necessarily land with me. Maybe I’m just a shill. Or maybe – and hear me out on this – it’s healthier to find enjoyment in these things than to look for reasons to fly off the handle online. If your chief concerns in life are that She-Hulk twerks, there are Black elves in Middle-Earth or that there are powerful women and LGBTQ+ people in a galaxy far, far, away, then it might be time to log off and get better acquainted with the world and the diverse, wonderful people who live in it. And maybe learn to twerk a bit yourself. It might make you feel better.