Bruce Banner - The Hulk Appreciation 2021

[ChrisIII]

Has there been anything done with Ross since his return last year as Red Hulk? I know there's supposed to be an alternate Ross on the way.

Maybe with She-Hulk coming out and Hurt's Ross starring Marvel will do something. There's also rumors of Liv Tyler's Betty in there too.

[Vordan]

Has there been anything done with Ross since his return last year as Red Hulk? I know there's supposed to be an alternate Ross on the way.

Maybe with She-Hulk coming out and Hurt's Ross starring Marvel will do something. There's also rumors of Liv Tyler's Betty in there too.

Nope. Coates had dibs on him for Cap and preceded to waste him as he usually does with interesting concepts. I hope Betty does come back, it’s annoying that she was totally sidelined despite being Hulk’s iconic LI.

[Frontier]

Nope. Coates had dibs on him for Cap and preceded to waste him as he usually does with interesting concepts. I hope Betty does come back, it’s annoying that she was totally sidelined despite being Hulk’s iconic LI.

Yeah, it's weird how What If has played off Banner and Hulk stuff more than the MCU has post-Ruffalo.

[ChrisIII]

We have Natalie Portman coming back to Thor although she's probably going to have a lot more to do this time. So maybe they can find something for Liv.

Bruce of course briefly had Black Widow/Natasha as a love interest but that kind of ended fairly quickly. The trailers for Infinity War seemed to hint they'd have a scene together apart from the awkward reunion but that scene seems to have wound up on the cutting room floor (Seems it would've been Bruce working on the Hulkbuster armor before the battle), all we really get in Endgame was them being on friendly terms and Bruce being upset at her death.


All Betty got was Whedon's weird Archie joke in the next few films....

[Frontier]

We have Natalie Portman coming back to Thor although she's probably going to have a lot more to do this time. So maybe they can find something for Liv.

Bruce of course briefly had Black Widow/Natasha as a love interest but that kind of ended fairly quickly. The trailers for Infinity War seemed to hint they'd have a scene together apart from the awkward reunion but that scene seems to have wound up on the cutting room floor (Seems it would've been Bruce working on the Hulkbuster armor before the battle), all we really get in Endgame was them being on friendly terms and Bruce being upset at her death.


All Betty got was Whedon's weird Archie joke in the next few films....

For the record I don't really want to see Betty go Red She-Hulk because I feel like we shouldn't need to throw in every derivative of an established character to give a civilian love interest more to do, but Betty deserves better.

[Vordan]

For the record I don't really want to see Betty go Red She-Hulk because I feel like we shouldn't need to throw in every derivative of an established character to give a civilian love interest more to do, but Betty deserves better.

If gets them to use her then I wouldn’t mind but frankly I’d rather see a focus on her relationship with Bruce over making her a hero/villain

[Frontier]

If gets them to use her then I wouldn’t mind but frankly I’d rather see a focus on her relationship with Bruce over making her a hero/villain

I'm kind of over the whole "give them a costume/power and count that as character development" phase of Superhero fiction.

[Vordan]

I'm kind of over the whole "give them a costume/power and count that as character development" phase of Superhero fiction.

I miss more civilian LIs. All the Marvel heroes date other heroes these days, or that’s what it feels like

[Frontier]

I miss more civilian LIs. All the Marvel heroes date other heroes these days, or that’s what it feels like

Marvel Heroes barely interact with civilians in general at this point.

[ChrisIII]

If she did Red She Hulk wonder if they'd throw in an Arwen reference for fun (Betty did use a sword at some point in the 2011 DEFENDERS series, although from what I understand that series "never happened" due to some time travel shenanigans)

[the illustrious mr. kenway]

I prefer Betty to be Harpy than Red She-Hulk. It's a more distinct take.

I'm fine with Betty getting powers because I don't think a civilian love interest suits Bruce at all.

[ChrisIII]

Wonder if people will start calling this particular Hulk "Starship Hulk", although it's technically a Bruce-controlled Hulk, sometimes they get different names anyway (For instance Doc Green was basically just an enhanced Savage Hulk and not another incarnation, but still got that designation, some people call the "Grayvage" Hulk from post-Onslaught the War Hulk when he was temporarily working for Apocalypse and had the armor, and technically isn't Worldbreaker Hulk just Green Scar?).

[McFarlane's Green Hulk]

Wonder if people will start calling this particular Hulk "Starship Hulk", although it's technically a Bruce-controlled Hulk, sometimes they get different names anyway (For instance Doc Green was basically just an enhanced Savage Hulk and not another incarnation, but still got that designation, some people call the "Grayvage" Hulk from post-Onslaught the War Hulk when he was temporarily working for Apocalypse and had the armor, and technically isn't Worldbreaker Hulk just Green Scar?).

Sadly, yes. I see this happening.

[McFarlane's Green Hulk]

Incredible Hulk #364
“Countdown Abomination”

Cover Date: December 1989
Sale Date: October 17th, 1989
Writer: Peter David
Artist: Jeff Purves
Inker: Marie Severin
Letterer: Joe Rosen
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Editor: Bobbie Chase
Guest Stars/Supporting Cast: Phil Sterns, Madman
Villain: The Abomination
Synopsis: Open to the Hulk once again transforming back to Bruce Banner at sunrise. Banner then spends the next couple of hours rehashing past events and lamenting that he still cannot find any information on the whereabouts of Betty and Rick since Middletown. Cut to Phil Sterns, who is being coerced into poisoning Banner by a funny-dressed individual. Back at Banner’s apartment, we find the scientist suddenly waking up from his morning nap…only to discover it’s 12:30pm. He hurries to the lab, runs into Phil and the two make small talk. Banner notices some workers carefully handling some toxic waste in another room, and Phil offers an answer, one that could benefit Banner’s condition. He claps Bruce on the back and the two continue on. Outside, security guards are vainly trying to stop a mysterious object from crashing into the lab. Turns out that object is the Abomination. Not the one possessed by the personality of Tyrannus, nor the mindless one last seen fighting Spider-Man and the She-Hulk. It’s Emil Blonsky. And he recognizes Banner. He doesn’t get far, as a sudden chest pain overpowers him. Abomination believes he’s changing, but Banner believes it’s a heart attack, and this angers Blonsky. He tosses him into a gamma tester and activates it. The Hulk breaks free and a flabbergasted Abomination cannot believe his eyes. “THIS is the green-skinned goliath? And he’s talking too!” The two begin to fight and the battle carries on until the Hulk begins to succumb to the same pain that Banner did a few minutes earlier. Realizing he’s been poisoned, the Hulk tries to flee but the Abomination isn’t giving him the option. He then begins a nostalgic monologue about missing the green-skinned Hulk, but it’s cut short when the Hulk tosses him head-first into the toxic waste. The Abomination begins to dissolve and the Hulk then blacks out after another heart attack.
Commentary: So now we finally get the Abomination’s personality back and fighting the Gray Hulk, only to have him wish for the green one instead. Purves in his final stages of the series is putting on a very lackluster performance. Kenner Star Wars toys had better articulation than the Hulk and Abomination did in their fight. From page 18 to the end of the book, is just…meh. The return of the true Abomination against the Hulk should be a dynamic slugfest. This was beyond sub-par. And I hate to say it, but this was a sloppy cover by Walt Simonson too. Not a fan of his covers during this storyline. His stuff on the FF during this time was top-notch, this looked too rushed and incomplete.

[ChrisIII]

His more thug like attitude here kind of contrasts a bit with PAD's later characterization which had him be somewhat more philosophical/Phantom of the Opera/Vincent from Beauty and the Beast etc.