Spoiler alert: This article has information about She-Hulk: Attorney at Law season finale, “Whose Show is This?” So read at your own risk.
The season finale of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law built on Episode 8's explosive ending but also turned the story on its head in a big way. Jennifer Walters’ self-awareness was amplified, as she called out the conventional endings of most MCU fare. This culminated in Jen going to Marvel Studios and meeting K.EV.I.N., a parody of the company's president and lead producer -- Kevin Feige. The two then proceeded to go back and forth about certain Marvel Cinematic Universe tropes. So, with all of this, how exactly did Feige himself feel about the narrative development?
Ultimately K.E.V.I.N. paid tribute to Kevin Feige and his knack for making long-term plans for the MCU while also poking a bit of fun at the producer. Deadline caught up with showrunner Jessica Gao following She-Hulk's’ bonkers ending, and she revealed a major surprise. It turns out the robotic being wasn't thought up by Gao or the writers’ room. The idea apparently came from Feige himself, who apparently to craft something that was different from what fans have seen in past productions. Gao spoke in depth about how things came together:
It was Kevin, human Kevin, who said: 'There’s no reason to do that. Why try to force this when it’s not what it’s supposed to be? This is not a Marvel movie, so why are you trying to make a Marvel movie ending when that’s not what it is? This show has been completely different from the beginning. This show was completely different than anything we’ve ever done.' It was so freeing to have him not only give me permission but to give me encouragement, to really push me to continue doing something different. That’s why it’s so great working with human Kevin, because he is open to things like that.
So, even the super producer was eager to break away from the typical MCU ending. While the final product is indeed very different from the norm, it fits the meta tone that was established within Jennifer Walters' solo TV series. And the creative team's willingness to swing for the fences definitely paid off. Jen taking K.E.V.I.N. to task for the tropes and unanswered questions is easily one of the season's best moments.
Although she eventually got the green light from Kevin Feige, Jessica Gao admitted that she initially found it difficult to crack the finale. As Gao explained, she and her team first tried to land on something that was more akin to what's expected from an MCU show finale. In her own words:
It wasn't always the original ending though: It was such a long journey to get to that point. I must have written like 20 versions of a finale, because when we got to the finale, I very mistakenly thought, 'I got to have my fun. We’ve got to do something different. I have to do the Marvel ending.' Marvel does things a certain way, you know, they follow certain beats, and this is the point where I have to start falling in line and doing that. Like, that’s really what I thought. Nobody was telling me this, this is just what I thought. So, I tried to live up to that and did so many different versions of what a typical Marvel ending would be, and none of it felt right.
Crafting a satisfying season finale can definitely be challenging, especially when you're writing for a show that's laid the groundwork for so many stories over the course of a season. But thankfully, Jessica Gao and co. landed on something that's got the Internet buzzing. Kudos to her and to Kevin Feige for having no problem being so self-deprecating.
If you want to relive every moment from She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, including Daredevil's thirst-inducing return, you can stream Season 1 using a Disney+ subscription. While you wait for news on a potential second season, read up on upcoming Marvel TV shows, including Daredevil: Born Again (which we know a bit about).
