premiere She-Hulk: Lawyer She-Hulk brings the old artistic concept back to the table: break fourth wall. This happened a few minutes after the start of the first episode. Actress Tatiana MaslanyWho’s playing Jennifer Walters, look at the camera and start talking to it. But he speaks not to the camera, but to the ideal viewer. The gesture allows you to establish a direct connection with the viewer, to involve him in the plot.
Long before this transgression, the concept of the fourth wall arose in the theater. Then it influenced other artistic disciplines until it reached the present, in which it is customary to break it. Each job does it differently. Sometimes explicitly, as in the case of She-Hulk: Lawyer She-Hulk (available on Disney+). Other times it happens in less obvious ways.
The possibilities are nearly limitless, both in terms of form and effect on those who see it. It should be remembered that the fourth wall is kept even in graphic and text stories. Hence, it is also possible to break it down in these narrative spaces. The history of this resource began many years ago.
She-Hulk: Hulk Lawyer is now available on Disney+
The fourth wall: origin (and destruction)
AT A Discourse on Dramatic Poetry (1758), philosopher Denis Diderot explained:
“Imagine a huge wall at the edge of the theater separating you from the stage: interpret it as if the curtain had not risen.”
Thus, he raised the barrier between the actors and the audience. One possible interpretation of this idea is to encourage the actors to ignore the existence of the audience in order to more naturally recreate the plot they want to present.
One hundred years later A Discourse on Dramatic Poetry, was born André Antoine, one of the most important theater directors in history, who later worked on the basis of a previous idea. In the text Theatricality in Contemporary French Theatre, Cécile Vilvandre de Sousa explained the following:
Antoine lays out the theory of the fourth wall, that is, the plane occupied by the curtain before the performance: when it opens, the curtain should reveal the scenery of the place and the actions of its inhabitants, as if they had just removed one of the walls of the room
Having established the concept of the fourth wall, breaking it, one can discover the relationship with the public. Even go a little further and make it a participant in the work. Thus, this work, limited by the space of the stage, “the walls of the room”, as De Souza explained, goes beyond the surface. In the case of television, films, comics and video games, something similar happens: the story transcends its own boundaries.
some background
a She-Hulk: Lawyer She-Hulk
There are thousands of them, and they elude translators. In the plastic arts, one of the constant references is Las Meninas from Diego Velazquez. Several characters look at the one who is looking at the picture. Train attack and robbery, made in 1903, is believed to be the first film to use this resource. Before screens, one of the pioneers was Oliver Hardywhich, together with Stan Laurelin the direction Fat and skinny.
They preferred situations where Hardy looked at the camera, making a reproachful gesture due to the behavior of his partner. A typical example of the 21st century is Malcolm. Frankie Muniz, the protagonist, confessed his thoughts and actions to the viewer before saying or doing them.
Kevin Spaceyplaying Francis Underwood in House of cards, the fourth wall breaking resource was introduced as a key attribute. Noted for the tension and political power of the series, Underwood offered a brutal, ironic and intimate take on the resource. In other productions, it is enough for the performer to make a gesture, move his hand or some other part of the body, while looking at the camera, in order to break the fourth wall.
In Marvel comics
dead Pool he wasn’t the first to break the fourth wall in Marvel comics. This character was preceded by, yes, She-Hulk, who debuted in Wild She-Hulk, published February 1980. Meanwhile, Deadpool did it in New mutants No. 98, February 1991. Both are in constant dialogue with the reader and even with the author of the comic. The action in this case is also associated with graphic transgression. Thus, the character goes beyond the comic book, approaching the edges of the page. There is an example of this in plastic art: escape from criticism. In the box Peter Borrell the child, as it were, falls out of the frame of the work.
Why is the fourth wall broken?
The destruction of the fourth wall in history is due to:
- Comedic purposes, such as through sarcastic comments. Comedy is the genre that this resource is mainly associated with. At the moment this is the most obvious function inside She-Hulk: Lawyer She-Hulk.
- Create an atmosphere of closeness or complicity between the story or work and the viewer. An example of this could be Ameliereleased in 2001, or High accuracypresented a year earlier.
- Explain difficult aspects or issues related to the plot. This happens in some Woody Allen films where the narrator is clearly speaking to the viewer.
- Intimidate or cause a feeling of fear. An anecdote is recalled on the Max Blaine channel, according to which a shot Train attack and robbery caused fear and indignation among the audience of the film.
- The fifth use, reserved for graphic novels (and even newspapers), is related to the commitment to graphic design. Based on the size of the sheet and the limited frame, this is omitted to give the piece dynamism and to establish other possible plays. which are part of the story.
