Hulk

This article is about the comic book character "The Incredible Hulk." For other uses see Hulk (disambiguation).

Hulk
File:Incredible-hulk-20060221015639117.jpg Variant cover art for The Incredible Hulk vol. 3 #92. Pencils by Bryan Hitch
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	The Incredible Hulk vol. 1, #1 (May 1962)
Created by	Stan Lee (writer) Jack Kirby (artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	Robert Bruce Banner
Team affiliations	Warbound, Rick Jones, Avengers, Defenders, Secret Defenders, Fantastic Four, Pantheon, Sentry, The Order
Notable aliases	Joe Fixit, The Green Scar, The Sakaar'son
Abilities	Superhuman strength, stamina, and durability - Regenerative healing factor - Ability to see and communicate with astral bodies - Gamma radiation absorption - Transformation - Strong resistance (but not immunity) to mind control - Genius level intellect in certain incarnations

The Hulk (Dr. Robert Bruce Banner), sometimes referred to as The Incredible Hulk, is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in the Marvel Comics Universe. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the Hulk first appeared in Incredible Hulk # 1 (May 1962). He has since become one of Marvel Comics' most recognized superhero characters.

After nuclear physicist Dr. Robert Bruce Banner is caught in the blast of a gamma bomb he created, he is transformed into the Hulk, a raging monstrosity. The character, both as Banner and the Hulk, is frequently pursued by the police or the armed forces, often as a result of the destruction he causes. While the coloration of the character's skin varies during the course of its publication history, the Hulk is most often depicted as green.

He is featured in a number of animated series, a feature film directed by Ang Lee, and a long-running television series and spin-off television movies starring Bill Bixby as Banner and Lou Ferrigno as the Hulk.

Publication history

In the Hulk's debut appearance in The Incredible Hulk #1, the character was gray rather than his longtime trademark green. That initial color choice was by writer and Marvel editor-in-chief Stan Lee, who wanted a color that did not suggest any particular ethnic group. Colorist Stan Goldberg, however, insisted to Lee that the coloring technology at the time could not present the color gray clearly or consistently, resulting in different shades of gray, and even green, in the issue. So in issue #2 and after, Goldberg colored the Hulk's skin green. Reprints and retellings of the Hulk's origin during the next two decades feature him with green skin from the beginning, but in 1986, issue #324 states that the Hulk had been gray at the time of his creation.

The Incredible Hulk #1 (May 1962). Cover art by Jack Kirby and inker Reinman

In early stories, Banner becomes the Hulk at sunset each day, but he later transforms whenever he becomes angry or panicked. Another method was shown in Fantastic Four #12 (Mar, 1963), featuring the Hulk's first battle with The Thing; Banner uses a gamma ray machine of his own design to intentionally transform into the Hulk. Many early Hulk stories involve General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross trying to capture or destroy the Hulk with his U.S. Army battalion, the Hulkbusters, at his side. Ross' daughter, Betty, loves Banner and criticizes her father for pursuing the Hulk. General Ross' right-hand man, Major Glenn Talbot, also loves Betty and is torn between pursuing the Hulk and trying to gain Betty's love in a more honorable way. Rick Jones serves as the Hulk's friend and sidekick for a time. Later, another teenager, Jim Wilson, also befriends the Hulk.

Marvel published only six issues of the original Hulk series before canceling it to free space on the publishing schedule in order to give the Nick Fury character his own series, Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos. Shortly after the official cancellation notice was issued, creator Jack Kirby received a letter from a college dormitory stating that the Hulk had been chosen as their official mascot. Kirby and Lee realized that their character had found an audience in college-age readers. They featured the Hulk in numerous guest appearances in other series and added him to the founding ranks of the Avengers. The Hulk was then given a regular backup feature in Marvel's ongoing series Tales to Astonish. After several years, the series was re-titled The Incredible Hulk due to the character's popularity (#102), and it ran until March 1999, when Marvel restarted the series with a new issue #1.

Peter David became the writer of the series in 1986, beginning a run that lasted nearly 12 years. David's run altered Banner's pre-Hulk characterization and the nature of Banner and the Hulk's relationship. Originally, Banner was written as a normal but shy man whose negative emotions (the normal, repressed anger that all humans have) found expression through the Hulk; David, however, turned Banner into a victim of multiple personalities who had serious mental problems long before he became the Hulk. David expanded on an earlier story that establishes that Banner had suffered child abuse, writing that it fostered a great deal of repressed anger within the character, which in turn triggered a latent case of multiple personality disorder. In issue #377, Doctor Leonard Samson engages the Ringmaster's services to hypnotize Bruce Banner and force him, the Savage Hulk (Green Hulk) and Mr. Fixit (Gray Hulk) to confront Banner's past abuse at the hands of his father, Brian Banner. Upon finally facing this abuse, a new, larger and smarter Hulk emerges and completely replaces the "human" Bruce Banner and Hulk personas. This Hulk is a culmination of the three aspects of Banner. He has the vast power of the savage, green Hulk, the cunning of the gray Hulk and the intelligence of Bruce Banner.

In 1998, David followed editor Bobbie Chase's suggestion to kill Betty Ross. In an interview in Wizard magazine, David said that his wife had recently left him, providing inspiration for the storyline. Marvel executives used Ross' death as an opportunity to push the idea of bringing back the Savage Hulk. David disagreed, leading to his and Marvel parting ways.

When David left the Hulk, Marvel hired Joe Casey as a temporary writer. Casey brought the character in the direction that Marvel had requested earlier, making the Hulk mute, but his short run found little critical success, and he ended the series. Marvel then hired John Byrne for a second volume of the series, re-titled Hulk, with Ron Garney penciling. Byrne wrote of his plans for the first year, but creative differences led to his departure before the first year was over. Erik Larsen briefly filled scripting duties in his place, and the title of the book soon returned to The Incredible Hulk with the arrival of Paul Jenkins.

Jenkins wrote a story arc in which Banner and the three Hulks (Savage Hulk, Gray Hulk, and the Merged Hulk, now considered a separate personality and referred to as the Professor) are able to mentally interact with one another, each personality taking over their shared body. He also created John Ryker, a ruthless military general in charge of the original gamma bomb test responsible for the Hulk's creation and is planning to create similar creatures.

File:HulkGreenScar.png

The Hulk as a gladiator and conqueror in the 2006 "Planet Hulk" storyline

Bruce Jones followed as the series' writer, and his run features Banner using yoga to take control of the Hulk while pursued by a secret conspiracy and aided by the mysterious Mr. Blue. Jones focused on a horror theme with the Hulk as a fugitive, influenced by the classic TV series. He appended his 43-issue Incredible Hulk run with the Hulk/Thing: Hard Knocks limited series, which Marvel published after putting the ongoing series on hiatus.

Peter David, who had initially signed a contract for a six-issue Tempest Fugit limited series, returned as writer when it was decided to make the story part of the ongoing series instead. David contracted to complete a year on the title. Tempest Fugit reveals that Nightmare has manipulated the Hulk for years, tormenting him in various ways for "inconveniences" that the Hulk had caused him. After a four-part tie-in to the House of M crossover and a one-issue epilogue, David left the series once more, citing the need to do non-Hulk work for his career's sake.

In the 2006 storyline "Planet Hulk" by Greg Pak, after the Hulk destroys much of Las Vegas, a secret group of superheroes called the Illuminati traps the Hulk and rockets him into space to live a peaceful existence on a planet uninhabited by intelligent life. After a trajectory malfunction, the Hulk travels through a wormhole and crashes on the violent planet Sakaar. Weakened by his journey through the wormhole, the Hulk is sold as a slave. In a gladiatorial arena, he makes a deadly enemy when he scars the emperor's face. The Hulk overcomes great odds to become a gladiator, a rebel leader, and a conqueror. His personality has undergone changes and does not represent the four typical incarnations. He is more like a young version of the Maestro.

Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada announced in 2006 that beginning with May 2007 comics, the Hulk will be the focus of the Marvel crossover event World War Hulk.

Fictional character biography

Dr. Bruce Banner is a nuclear physicist working to develop a new type of weapon called a "gamma bomb", a nuclear weapon with a high gamma radiation output, for the U.S. Government. On the day that the bomb is tested, he notices a teenager, Rick Jones, on the test site. Banner saves the young man, but the countdown proceeds. Banner is caught in the blast and absorbs an enormous dose of gamma radiation. Rick takes Banner to a hospital; it's there that he first transforms into the Hulk as the sun sets.

Personality and behavior

File:Hulks.jpg

The four main Hulk incarnations. Clockwise from top left: Bruce Banner, the Savage Hulk, the Gray Hulk, and the Merged Hulk/The Professor

The Hulk is the alter ego of Dr. Robert Bruce Banner, a genius in nuclear physics. As a result of exposure to gamma radiation, Banner often becomes a large, superhumanly strong green creature. Although the Hulk is usually classified as a superhero, he and Banner share a Jekyll and Hyde-like relationship. In his most well-known incarnation, the Hulk has little intelligence nor self-control, and can cause great destruction. As a result, he has been hunted by the military and other superheroes, and as such, Banner considers the Hulk a curse.

In recent decades, comic book writers have portrayed the character as a symbol of inner rage and Freudian repression. The Hulk's existence has been retroactively explained as an after-effect of child abuse and latent multiple personality disorder.

The Hulk initially is characterized as a separate entity from Bruce Banner, a distillation of his anger that gradually develops its own personality and memories separate from Banner's.

Due to retroactive continuity established by writers Bill Mantlo and later Peter David in the 1980s, Banner is said to suffer from multiple personality disorder, which stems from the abuse he suffered as a child. The Hulk has many incarnations, each representing a different aspect of Banner's psyche.

Bruce Banner

The core personality, he is an emotionally-repressed genius whose mind is so brilliant that it cannot be measured on any known intelligence test. Banner can transform into the different versions of the Hulk, whereas his alter-egos seem to be able only to transform into Bruce Banner.

Savage Hulk

He possesses the mental capacity and temperament of a young child, and typically refers to himself in the third person. Savage Hulk often claims that he wants to be left alone, and is usually depicted as green-skinned and heavily-muscled with a loping, ape-like gait. This is the most powerful incarnation as it was able to go head-to-head with the psychic being Onslaught. To date, there is no known limit to the Savage Hulk's strength.

Gray Hulk/Joe Fixit

The Gray Hulk (though possibly not the original) worked for a time as a Las Vegas enforcer called Joe Fixit. He has average intelligence, although he occasionally displays knowledge and intellectual ability normally associated with Bruce Banner. He is hedonistic, cunning, arrogant, crafty, and distant with a hidden conscience. In most of his Las Vegas appearances, he appears only at night. According to the Leader in Incredible Hulk Vol. 1, #333, the Gray Hulk persona is strongest during the night of the new moon and weakest during the full moon; this aversion to sunlight and moonlight vanished when the Gray Hulk's night-induced transformation trigger is later removed. Although he is the smallest of the Hulks, the Gray Hulk towers over the average human. He prefers to dress in tailored suits. The Gray Hulk's base strength level is the lowest of all the "Hulk incarnations". However, this strength level can grow as he gets angry, but at a much slower pace than the other "Hulk incarnations." Despite his lower strength, Gray Hulk is able to use cunning and strategy in fights to gain the upper hand against foes expecting a savage/stupid Hulk.

Merged Hulk/The Professor

The merger of Bruce Banner and the Savage and Gray Hulks in Incredible Hulk #377 (written by Peter David). The Merged Hulk is later ret-conned into The Professor. The Professor, rather than being a merger of the three core personalities, was interpreted as a fourth, separate personality that represented Banner's ideal self. The primary difference between the two is that the Merged Hulk demonstrated aspects of the Banner, Grey Hulk, and Savage Hulk personalities (also possessing Banner's intelligence, Joe Fixit's cunning, and the Savage Hulk's size and strength), while the Professor did not. The Merged Hulk is even prone to uttering "Hulk smash!", which is the Savage Hulk's most common catchphrase. The Merged Hulk is an associate and leader of the team of superheroes called the Pantheon. Despite his exaggerated musculature, the Merged Hulk had a relatively normal-looking face, resembling that of Bruce Banner. The Professor personality is defined during Paul Jenkins' run as a "revelation" that the Merged Hulk is not actually a merger of the three personalities but rather a separate personality altogether. Unlike the Merged Hulk, the Professor is physically distinguished by having a pony tail, which the Merged Hulk did not. Jenkins justified this by ret-conning into the Hulk's continuity a new character named Angela Lipscomb (modeled after Jenkins' own girlfriend) who knew more about Bruce Banner than even Doc Samson. Lipscomb confronted Doc Samson with her observations of the Professor and Doc Samson validated them, despite events presented in previous issues to the contrary. However, his intelligence makes it impossible for him to reach the rage and power level of the Savage or Gray Hulk personas.

Powers and abilities

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The Hulk holding up a mountain, on the cover for Secret Wars #4, by Mike Zeck

The Hulk possesses immense levels of superhuman strength. The most well-known incarnation, the Savage Hulk, possesses the greatest potential for immeasurable superhuman strength, again depending on his emotional state, spawning the famous quote: "the madder Hulk gets, the stronger Hulk gets." The Hulk has been shown supporting a 150 billion ton mountain range, although at the time he was using leverage to help support it. During combat with the psionic entity known as Onslaught, Jean Grey psionically disables Bruce Banner's persona, bringing out the true Savage Hulk. After trading punches with the Hulk, Onslaught angers him to a point where he was able to break through Onslaught's armor. Another display of the Hulk's vast physical strength occurs when the Hulk shatters an asteroid twice the size of Earth with a single punch. The Hulk possesses highly developed leg muscles and is able to leap several miles at a time. Since the Hulk's strength increases with anger, he is able to leap distances much greater than he normally could while in a "calm" state. For example, he is shown covering a distance of 1,000 miles in a single leap and nearly leaping into low-Earth orbit. The Hulk is also capable of leaping into a low-Earth orbit. Both the Leader and Doc Samson have made attempts to discover the limits of the Hulk's strength using the advanced technology at their disposal, without success.

File:Hulk heal.jpg

The Hulk's healing factor

The Hulk is depicted with extremely high levels of superhuman durability, stamina, and resistance to physical injury. He is shown withstanding the impact of high-caliber artillery shells, falls from orbital heights, and powerful energy blasts without sustaining injury and resisting extreme temperatures, poisons, and diseases with no ill effect. The Hulk is also capable of withstanding a ground zero nuclear explosion. Despite his body's high resistance to injury, it is possible to injure the Hulk. However, the Hulk can regenerate damaged or destroyed tissue with far greater efficiency than an ordinary human. For example, During a battle with Vector, all of the Hulk's skin and most of his muscle tissue are flayed from his body. He fully regenerates the destroyed tissue within a few minutes.

The Hulk's durability, much like his accelerated healing powers and strength, increases in correspondence to rising levels of anger.

In addition to his physical power and healing ability, the Hulk has the ability to "home in" on the desert base where he was empowered. He can also see and hear spectres, such as the astral form of Doctor Strange.

Related characters

Allies

See also: Category: Hulk supporting characters

• The Defenders- A loosely knit team of superheroes, who considered themselves a 'non-team', which comprised The Hulks longest lived team experience. (His other team experiences were being a member of the Avengers in his early days, and later leading the Pantheon for a time.) The Hulk was an integral part of 'The Defenders', along with Dr. Strange, The Sub-Mariner, The Silver Surfer,Who were later joined by Valkyrie, Nighthawk, Hellcat, Hellstrom and many others who rotated in and out of membership.
• She-Hulk – Also known as Jennifer Walters, she is Bruce Banner's cousin, whom he gives an emergency blood transfusion when she is critically wounded.
• Rick Jones – A teenager whom Banner saved, causing Banner to be caught in his life-changing explosion.
• Jim Wilson – A friend of Bruce Banner and sometime sidekick. He was the first character in mainstream comics to be HIV positive. Is deceased due to full-blown AIDS (Incredible Hulk #420).
• Doc Samson – The Hulk's occasional psychiatrist. Also happens to be a gamma-powered strong man with a working knowledge of nuclear biology.
• Tony Stark – He is in League with Doc Samson and aids him.
• Peter Parker – He appears in a Marvel Teamup issue and occasionally fights with the Hulk
• Betty Ross Banner – Bruce Banner's love interest, and later his wife. Deceased.
• Jarella – The Hulk's lover from another planet. Deceased.
• Warbound from Planet Hulk
  • Korg - A stone man who once fought Thor
  • Miek - A meek insectoid who becomes king of his freed people before transforming into a behemoth.
  • No-Name, the Broodspawn - Sole survivor of a pack of Brood warriors that landed on Planet Sakaar
  • Elloe - Daughter of a high ranking Sakaaran official whom the Red King tries for treason
  • Hiroim, the Shamed - a fallen "Shadow Priest", he was expelled from his order for the heresy of believing he could be the Sakaarson, the fabled savior of planet Sakaar
  • Caiera, the Oldstrong - former personal bodyguard to the Red King, betrayed due to the Red King's desire to destroy the Hulk
• Wolverine - He made his first appearance in the Hulk's comic book as an antagonist, before being cast as a recurring X-Men member.
• Sentry
• The Thing
• Marlo Chandler
• Sam Wilson – He has defended the Hulk on a few occasions due to the Hulk's comforting his nephew, Jim Wilson, during his last moments alive.

Enemies

See also: Category: Hulk villains

• The Abomination – The Hulk's primary physical rival, also gamma-spawned
• Absorbing Man - Thor villain, able to magically "absorb" the properties of things/people he touches
• Bi-Beast
• The Leader – Gamma-irradiated super-genius
• Tyrannus - Would-be world conqueror and long-time Hulk villain, once possessed the body of the Abomination
• The Red King – The emperor of the planet Sakaar.
• General John Ryker - A ruthless military leader, who is also hunting for the Hulk.
• General Thaddeus Ross – Betty Ross' father, a military leader often on the hunt for the Hulk.
• Major Glenn Talbot – Betty Ross' ex-husband, a military officer who tries to kill Bruce Banner and destroy the Hulk.
• Wendigo - A large savage cannibalistic monster.
• Zzzax – Electricity-based villain

Other versions of Hulk

Devil Hulk

File:Devil Hulk.JPG

The Devil Hulk

The Devil Hulk is the malevolent personality of Bruce Banner, personifying all of Banner's resentment at the way he is treated by the world. He is also one of the Hulk's enemies, constantly threatening to escape confinement in Banner's mind and destroy the world that has tormented and abused them, simultaneously leaving nothing intact that Banner holds dear. He first appeared when Banner was dying of Lou Gehrig's Disease, Banner using a machine to travel into his own mind and make a deal with the three dominant Hulks that they would gain control of his body once the disease became too much for him to bear. The Devil Hulk was revealed at this point, but he only escaped a short while afterwards, when the machinations of General Ryker shattered the barriers keeping the Devil Hulk imprisoned. Fortunately, he was contained long enough for a cure for Banner's condition to be found, before finally being contained in Banner's subconscious by Banner, the Savage Hulk and Joe Fixit, the Professor Hulk remaining out in the real world to help scientists such as Doctor Samson and Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four find a cure for the disease.

The Maestro

File:Hulk maestro.jpg

Hulk meets Maestro. Art by George Pérez.

The Maestro is a version of the Hulk from an alternate future timeline, approximately a hundred years into the future, combining Banner's intelligence with the Hulk's more malevolent aspects. After a nuclear war kills almost all of Earth's superhumans and brings the world to the brink of extinction, the Maestro seizes control.

Gray haired and balding, the Maestro is clearly older than the Hulk - but is also significantly stronger, due to the radiation he has absorbed since the war. He rules the city of Dystopia, built to his own designs and protected by radiation shielding. Brutal soldiers with hi-tech equipment keep the "peace" and impose the Maestro's iron will. The Maestro himself dwells in a grand palace, where a Bacchanalian atmosphere reigns. Other gamma-irradiated beings, She-Hulk (now calling herself "Shulk") and the Abomination, survived the war and seem to have conquered other areas of the world.

Not long after the war, an elderly Rick Jones encounters the reality-hopping mutant Proteus, who is possessing the body of an alternate reality Hulk from the year 2099. Proteus intends to discard his current body and possess the Maestro. Jones, unaware of his plan, provides a weapon created by the X-Man Forge, which might be able to kill Maestro. However, the plan fails when Maestro is warned by the Exiles, who are pursuing Proteus. Proteus possesses a new host and flees to another world, breaking the Maestro's neck during his escape.

Years later, the Maestro, fully recovered from his injury, encounters a time-travelling Genis-Vell and Spider-Man 2099. Manipulated by the supervillain Thanatos, the three battle - but Captain Marvel and Spider-Man eventually return to their own time, with no consequence for Maestro.

Acquiring Doctor Doom's time machine, the rebels opposing Maestro (led by Rick Jones) eventually decide to bring the 'Professor' Hulk forward from the past, hoping that he can defeat Maestro. The Hulk agrees to help them and confronts the Maestro, but loses due to the Maestro's greater experience, as he is able to predict the Hulk's moves in combat (Although the Hulk does manage to deliver a few good punches). The Maestro breaks Hulk's neck to immobilize him, then tries to persuade the incapacitated Hulk that he should side with his future self, telling him that nothing will change when he returns home and he will still be persecuted.

After the Hulk's recovery, the two of them clash once more, but, despite the Hulk's best efforts, the Maestro is still far too powerful for him. At the last minute, the Maestro is defeated by using Doom's time machine, sending him back to the time and place that the Hulk was created - ground zero during the testing of the atomic Gamma Bomb, the only bomb that the Hulk knew the ground zero location of (It was speculated that the explosion of Gamma radiation was the only thing that could kill the Maestro). Appearing next to the bomb itself, Maestro is seemingly killed in the same moment that creates the Hulk, but some degree of his consciousness still remains, tied to the skeletal fragments at the Gamma Bomb site.

Eventually, the Hulk learns that the "homing sense" which has always allowed him to locate ground zero, his "birth" place, is actually finding the Maestro's spirit and remains. The Maestro has also been absorbing gamma radiation from the Hulk each time he returns to the site, gradually restoring himself. When the Hulk returns from the Heroes Reborn universe, radiating vast amounts of energy, Maestro finally absorbs enough radiation to restore himself to life, although in a weakened and emaciated form.

Shortly thereafter, Maestro is captured by Asgardian trolls, who place his soul into the Asgardian Destroyer. As the Destroyer, he battles the Hulk - but as the Hulk and Maestro share the same DNA, Hulk is able to enter the Destroyer and defeat the weakened Maestro, who is seemingly killed by an avalanche.

Creator Peter David has stated that the Maestro is intended to be an evil and insane alternate Hulk - not a separate personality within Bruce Banner.

The End

The Incredible Hulk: The End one-shot, set almost two hundred years into an alternative future, portrays Bruce Banner as the last human, the sole survivor of a nuclear war. In the aftermath of the war, Hulk retreats to a cave - emerging to find that the only other life left on earth is a swarm of mutated (and extremely dangerous) cockroaches. Banner, now extremely elderly, has gained a little of the Hulk's regenerative ability, but has lost his will to live. In the moments before heart failure Banner halucinates the sight of all his loved ones, the ones that Hulk has struggled constantly to be left alone by while defending. Banner wants to embrace final demise. Hulk, on the other hand, is still not ready to die, even transforming himself as Banner finally dies, leaving him sitting on a deserted mountain as he reflects on how, at last, he is alone.

Ultimate Hulk

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Promotional art for Ultimates #5. Pencils by Bryan Hitch.

A version of the Hulk appears in the Ultimate Marvel series, first in Ultimate Marvel Team-Up #2 (2001), written by Brian Michael Bendis and drawn by Phil Hester. "Ultimate Hulk" amplifies Banner's emotions, particularly wrath, seeking to destroy those who wrong Banner. He also exhibits extreme sloth, lust (Ultimate Wolverine Vs. Hulk #1), and gluttony; several stories mention his devouring people (Ultimate War #3).

In Ultimates, Banner works for S.H.I.E.L.D., attempting to re-create the super-soldier formula that created Captain America. When Captain America is recovered from a block of ice, Banner's funding seems likely to be cut. The team forms without Banner's input, but S.H.I.E.L.D. faces heavy criticism for its extensive budget and lack of purpose. Banner, ridiculed by members of the Ultimates and rejected and taunted by his ex-girlfriend Betty Ross, combines Captain America's blood with the Hulk formula, and injects it into himself (Ultimates #4). He then calls Betty to warn her, saying that his intention was to give the Ultimates a visible enemy, but then breaks down and admits that he "just missed being big". He becomes a grey-skinned Hulk that tracks down Betty Ross, destroying everything in his path and murdering hundreds of people. The Hulk overpowers the Ultimates until the Wasp fires her bio-electric sting directly into his brain, which changes the Hulk back into Banner, who is restrained and imprisoned in the S.H.I.E.L.D. base the Triskelion - in a cell Banner had designed. The general public views this as the Ultimates' first major victory, unaware that they were actually subduing one of their own gone rogue.

During a fight with an invading alien race called the Chitauri, Captain America orders that Banner be thrown from a helicopter high in the air, causing Banner's self-preservation instinct to overcome both physical and chemical restraints and force a transformation into the Hulk. Captain America uses Banner's jealousy to make him fight the Chitauri commander, Herr Kleiser, implying that Kleiser had been sexually involved with Betty during Banner's imprisonment; the Hulk pounds Kleiser to a pulp, tears the shape-shifter in half and then eats him. Captain America then tells the Hulk that the aliens had called him a "sissy-boy", and Hulk destroys an entire fleet of spaceships.

After top-secret information regarding the Hulk/Banner connection is leaked to the press, S.H.I.E.L.D., discredited by its role in keeping the information secret is forced to turn Banner over for criminal prosecution or face further disgrace to its whole organization and the Ultimates program in specific. Banner is convicted for the deaths of the more than 800 people who died in his New York City rampage and sentenced to death. After consuming a sedative of some description, designed by Hank Pym, his unconscious body is left on a ship in the ocean. Just before a nuclear weapon detonates, Banner wakes up and transforms into the Hulk. It is implied that Hank's sedative deliberately wore off too soon, and Bruce makes a secret phonecall to thank Hank Pym after the incident.

Ultimate Wolverine Vs. Hulk shows that after travelling through France, Ireland and India, seeking a means to control the Hulk within, Bruce Banner finally arrives in Tibet, seeking the Panchen Lama whom he hopes can reveal the true relationship behind Banner and the Hulk. In this series, he is shown ripping Wolverine's body in half. Whether or not the adamantium laced to Wolverine's spine was damaged is unclear at this time. However, there is an example of the Hulk breaking Ultimate Marvel Universe's version of adamantium. In Ultimates vol1. #5, the Hulk breaks a needle composed of adamantium that Captain America attempts to use against him.

In Ultimates 2 #11, Bruce Banner appears in Washington D.C. He mentions being "in touch with [his] inner sociopath" and allows a giant robot to step on him before transforming into the Hulk, apparently as a conscious act of will, and ripping the robot in two. He then continues to aid the Ultimates against the Liberators in issue #12, by dismembering and killing the Abomination and also saving Captain America from execution by the leader of the Liberators.

Marvel Zombies

The Marvel Zombies series, set in an alternate world, features the Hulk as one of its main characters. Like almost every other superbeing on the planet, the Hulk has been affected by the zombification virus - although he retains his strength and invulnerability, he no longer heals, does not feel pain and now craves human flesh.

Template:Spoiler The zombie Hulk's transformations are controlled purely by his appetite - after feeding, he transforms back into Banner (also a zombie) until the hunger returns. As Banner is much smaller than the Hulk, one such transformation also causes his stomach to burst.

Hulk later succeeds in killing the Silver Surfer and is one of the zombies who devours the Surfer's corpse, absorbing some of its cosmic powers by doing so. He is actually the first to consume the Silver Surfer by biting off his head. After they later kill and consume Galactus himself, enhancing their powers even further, Hulk and the other five remaining zombies are able to leave the Earth and seek food elsewhere. Ravaging and devouring entire planets, the six zombies eventually become the cosmic threat known as The Galactus. Template:Endspoiler

House of M

In the altered reality of the 2005 company wide crossover House of M, Bruce Banner disappears in Australia, where he befriends an Aborigine tribe, and attempts to control his dark side. When the mutant rulers of the Earth attack his tribe he retaliates, and eventually conquers Australia with the aid of Advanced Idea Mechanics, most notably his former college girlfriend Monica Rappaccini, her daughter Thanasee, Dr Isaac Aaronson, and his son Adam.

1602

In the Marvel 1602 setting David Banner is introduced as a courtier at the court of James VI of Scotland. When James becomes king of England, he sends Banner to the New World to kill Sir Nicholas Fury, who has betrayed the crown by saving the "witchbreed" (mutants). In the same way as Bruce Banner saved Rick Jones, David dives in front of Peter Parquagh when the Anomaly that has affected the universe explodes. The radiation of the Anomaly transforms him into the Hulk.

2099

In Marvel 2099, the Hulk is John Eisenhart, a selfish film producer in "LotusLand" (future Hollywood). He is inadvertently exposed to gamma radiation by the Knights of the Banner, who intend to create a Hulk of their own. As the Hulk, Eisenhart finds himself representing freedom to a closed-off society.

Earth X

In this reality, due to the continuing absorption of gamma radiation, the Hulk and Bruce Banner have finally achieved separation. However, they still rely on each other. Banner is now a child, and blind. He can only see through the Hulk's eyes. Banner also seems to have control over the Hulk's movements. The Hulk is more gorilla-like now, and he seems incapable of speech besides a growl. It is said of this Hulk that he is "always angry".

Parodies

The television show Saturday Night Live uses the Hulk character in several sketches. In the March 17, 1979 episode hosted by Margot Kidder, Lois Lane and Superman hold a dinner. One of the guests is the Incredible Hulk, played by John Belushi as a rude and offensive boor. In the November 21, 1992 episode hosted by Sinbad, Chris Farley plays the Incredible Hulk in a sketch about Superman's funeral. Farley's Hulk protests the suggestion of his giving a eulogy in broken English but then puts on a pair of glasses and delivers an erudite, impassioned farewell. In the December 17, 1994 hosted by George Foreman, Tim Meadows appears as Bruce Banner, who repeatedly has laboratory accidents and then changes into the Hulk, played by Foreman, who proceeds to further trash the laboratory before asking for the sketch to end because of its boring repetition.

In the sketch comedy TV show Robot Chicken The Hulk appears in a parody of The Real World, featuring other superheroes living together in an apartment in Metropolis.

The character Russell in the video game Bully has the most hulking figure of any character in the game, is the toughest character to take down during normal gameplay, has the mind of a small child, and even constantly refers to himself in the third person. Russell's catchphrase is "Russell smash!"

In other media

Television

The Hulk started out in television as part of the Marvel Super Heroes animated television series in 1966. The 39 (10-minute) episodes were shown along with those featuring Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, and the Sub-Mariner episodes based on early stories appearing in the Hulk and Tales to Astonish series.

The most famous TV adaptation is the live-action The Incredible Hulk TV series and its spin-off TV movies, starring Bill Bixby as David Banner and Lou Ferrigno as the Hulk. After the live-action show ended in 1982, the Hulk returned to cartoon format with 13 episodes of The Incredible Hulk, which aired in a combined hour with Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. The series featured more characters from the comics than the live-action series, including Rick Jones, Betty Ross, and General Ross.

Typical of many superhero cartoons of the era, the show used stock transformation scenes which include Bruce Banner transforming back with his clothing somehow restored intact. The She-Hulk and the Leader made an appearance in the show. This series featured Stan Lee as a narrator. Bruce Banner and the Hulk also appeared in the Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends episode, "Spidey Goes Hollywood."

File:Hulk Ep 16.jpg

Dark Hulk from The Incredible Hulk TV series.

In 1996, Marvel Studios and Saban Entertainment brought the Hulk back to animated form in the animated series The Incredible Hulk, with Lou Ferrigno providing the voice of the Hulk. The first season's stories are exceptionally dark, but in 1997, the show's name changed to The Incredible Hulk and She-Hulk, and featured She-Hulk in several episodes with the Gray Hulk. In the episode "Mind Over Anti-Matter", which was based on Incredible Hulk v1 #370-371, Banner turns into a monstrous Dark Hulk. The series became much lighter during this season and was cancelled quickly. The show aired briefly on ABC Family following the release of the live-action movie in 2003.

Movies

In 2003, Ang Lee directed a film based on the Hulk for Universal Pictures. Eric Bana played Bruce Banner, and the Hulk was created with special effects. Here, Banner's father, David Banner (played by Nick Nolte), is partly responsible for the Hulk's origin as before Banner was born, he experiments on himself and passes his mutated genes onto his son. When Banner grows up, believing his real parents died (this is only half-true, as only his mother dies and his father is incarcerated for thirty years), he saves a co-worker from being killed by gamma radiation and takes the impact of the rays instead, mysteriously surviving the onslaught.

The Hulk causes a lot of destruction, wounding Glenn Talbot, killing his father's mutated dogs in battle, makes a path of danger from the Desert Base to San Francisco, and finally in a final battle against his insane father who had morphed into an amorphous cloud of energy. General Ross decides to end the battle by having one of his soldiers drop a gamma bomb at the site of the battle, ending the confrontation. It kills and disintegrates David, with the Hulk/Banner presumed dead from the event, but it is revealed at the very end of the movie that he did survive and is living as a secret doctor in South America, protecting the innocent from any intruders.

In 2006, the Hulk appears in the animated movie Ultimate Avengers, which is based on the comic book The Ultimates. The second Ultimate Avengers movie was released on August 8, 2006.

A second Hulk movie is in pre-production and scheduled for release on June 27 2008. Titled The Incredible Hulk, it will be directed by Louis Leterrier. At the 2006 Comic-con Incredible Hulk panel, Letterier revealed that Abomination will be the villain.

Video games

File:MVSC2HULK.jpg

A Hulk image from Marvel vs. Capcom 2.

The Incredible Hulk appears in video games for many different systems, including the Sega Genesis, SNES, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, and personal computer. Most are based on the comics, although the more recent releases draw primarily from the 2003 movie.

Neal McDonough, who voiced the Hulk in the 1996 animated series, reprises the role in Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. In this game, the Hulk is so uncontrolled that he kills both the Desert Base soldiers and civilians in his path. Conversely, the Hulk also keeps the supervillain the Abomination from destroying a dam and the soldiers guarding it have safely evacuated.

The Hulk is also in a cutscene in the Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects game for the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube. In addition to his own games, the Hulk appears in several fighting games by Capcom, starting with Marvel Super Heroes in 1995 and including the Marvel vs. Capcom series.

According to TK, the Hulk is one of the first revealed characters in Marvel Universe Online, a massively multiplayer online (MMO) game for PC and Xbox 360.

Hulk was set to play a role in Marvel Ultimate Alliance, but had to be left out as a playable character because of the character's licensing agreement with Sierra Entertainment. He makes an appearance as Bruce Banner, working on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s gamma bomb project. Muscular green arms and legs are seen (with the torso and head under rubble) during a cutscene detailing Dr. Doom's defeat of many of Earth's heroes, perhaps implying that the Hulk was one of the heroes who failed to stop Doom.

Themed products

Hulk-themed products include action figures, clothes, jewelry, video games, cards, pins, posters, cars, games, lunchboxes, toys, pinball machines, all types of collectibles and even the Incredible Hulk Coaster at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida.

Bibliography

• The Incredible Hulk #1–6 (Marvel Comics, May 1962–March 1963)
• Tales to Astonish #59–101 (Marvel Comics, September 1964–March 1968)
• The Incredible Hulk #102–474 (Marvel Comics, April 1968–March 1999)
• The Incredible Hulk Annual #1–20 (Marvel Comics, 1968–1994)
• The Incredible Hulk #-1 (Marvel Comics, July 1997, ISSN 0274-5275)
• Hulk #1–11 (Marvel Comics, April 1999–February 2000)
• The Incredible Hulk #12–76, #77–present (Marvel Comics, March 2000–September 2004, January 2005–present)
• Hulk Weekly #1–69, Marvel UK title published between 1979–1981. Features new material produced by the likes of Paul Neary and Steve Dillon.

Collections

• Hulk Visionaries: Peter David Vol. 1 Written by Peter David; Pencils & Cover by Todd McFarlane; collects Incredible Hulk #331-339 Vol. 1.
• Hulk Visionaries: Peter David Vol. 2 Written by Peter David; Penciled by Todd McFarlane, Erik Larsen & Jeff Purves; collects Incredible Hulk #340-348 Vol. 1.
• Hulk Visionaries: Peter David Vol. 3 Written by Peter David & Steve Englehart; Penciled by Jeff Purves, Alex Saviuk & Keith Pollard; Collects Incredible Hulk #349-354 Vol. 1, Web of Spider-Man #44 and Fantastic Four #320.
• Incredible Hulk: Dogs of War Written by Paul Jenkins; Penciled by Ron Garney and Mike McKone; collects Incredible Hulk #12-20 Vol. 2.
• Incredible Hulk Vol. 1: Return of the Monster Written by Bruce Jones; Penciled by John Romita, Jr.; collects Incredible Hulk #34-39 Vol. 2.
• Incredible Hulk Vol. 2: Boiling Point Written by Bruce Jones; Penciled by John Romita, Jr.; collects Incredible Hulk #40-43 Vol. 2.
• Incredible Hulk Vol. 3: Transfer Of Power Written by Bruce Jones; Penciled by Stuart Immonen; collects Incredible Hulk #44-49 Vol. 2.
• Incredible Hulk Vol. 4: Abominable Written by Bruce Jones; Penciled by Mike Deodato, Jr.; collects Incredible Hulk #50-54 Vol. 2.
• Incredible Hulk Vol. 5: Hide In Plain Sight Written by Bruce Jones; Penciled by Leandro Fernández; collects Incredible Hulk #55-59 Vol. 2.
• Incredible Hulk Vol. 6: Split Decisions Written by Bruce Jones; Penciled by Mike Deodato Jr.; collects Incredible Hulk #60-65 Vol. 2.
• Incredible Hulk Vol. 7: Dead Like Me Written Bruce Jones & Garth Ennis; Pencils by Doug Braithwaite & John McCrea; collects Incredible Hulk #65-69 Vol. 2, and Hulk Smash #1 and #2.
• Incredible Hulk Vol. 8: Big Things Written Bruce Jones; Pencils by Mike Deodato, Jr.; collects Incredible Hulk #70-76 Vol. 2.
• Hulk: Tempest Fugit Written by Peter David; Penciled by Lee Weeks & Jae Lee; collects Incredible Hulk #77-82 Vol. 2.
• House Of M: Hulk Written by Peter David; Penciled by Jorge Lucas & Adam Kubert; collects Incredible Hulk #83-87 Vol. 2.
• Hulk: Planet Hulk Prelude Written by Daniel Way; Penciled by Keu Cha & Juan Santacruz; collects Incredible Hulk #88-91 Vol. 2.

External links

• Hulk comics at marvel.com
• MDP: Hulk (Bruce Banner) - Marvel Database Project
• One of Stan Lee's Best Article on the Incredible Hulk's Popularity
• The 1982 Incredible Hulk Cartoon @ Toon Zone
• Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Awards