Bruce Banner: The Hulk Appreciation 2018

[nnelg]

Good art like that would require them commissioning the work a year before the book is published like in the old days. Is Avengers good. Uncanny Avengers was but they turned it into this weekly nonsense so I don’t get any Avengers.

[Dr. Banner]

Would be cool if he starts doing covers for the next Incredible Hulk ongoing series. Then again, I'd love to see covers and/or interiors done by the likes of Sal Buscema, Dale Keown, Carlo Pagulayan, Gary Frank, Paul Pelletier and Olivier Coipel.

I wouldn't mind having all of them in Incredible Hulk!

[Digifiend]

Joe Bennett is the new Hulk artist:
https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/02...wont-say-hulk/

[Dr. Banner]

Joe Bennett is the new Hulk artist:
https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/02...wont-say-hulk/

Yeah. And, once more, it fits in what Al Ewing said about writing an ongoing about one of marvel's biggest characters and it being horror oriented (Bennett is known for working in horror comics).

[Cloudman]

Seems like they'll give Hulk a change of adjective for this relaunch, after the pretty disastrous sales of this latest iteration of 'Incredible Hulk'. Immortal certainly isn't a bad adjective to go with.

[Ptrvc]

'Won't say which one?'

There is only one Hulk, and he better be returning if you want the book to sell.

They tried Chulk. They tried (S)hulk. They tried whatever Preparation H.

I count three pretenders, three attempted replacements and Zero successes.

There is one Hulk.

[Dr. Banner]

'Won't say which one?'

There is only one Hulk, and he better be returning if you want the book to sell.

They tried Chulk. They tried (S)hulk. They tried whatever Preparation H.

I count three pretenders, three attempted replacements and Zero successes.

There is one Hulk.

Yeah. I do hope the new creative team is finally revealed this week.

[Comic Book Addict]

So I read Planet Hulk over the weekend and...damn. Bruce got screwed over big time, to say the least. What a betrayal by some of his closest friends. Planet Hulk is also a fun (and, ultimately, sad) story and I'm excited to read World War Hulk soon to see Hulk (try to) get some revenge.

[Dr. Banner]

And Ewing posting some ominous stuff in twitter, again with an horror tone:

[Ptrvc]

And Ewing posting some ominous stuff in twitter, again with an horror tone:

At this point I half expect them to make the Hulk a villain for no reason.

It's like half the writer's at Marvel at any given time don't understand that Hulkfans are fans of the Hulk!

I'm all for more horror based Hulk stories but not if they reduce the Hulk to a murderous monster. Hulk should be a master who fights other monsters.

I've just been so let down by the he last decade of Hulk stories that I see the worst in every announcement.

[Dr. Banner]

At this point I half expect them to make the Hulk a villain for no reason.

It's like half the writer's at Marvel at any given time don't understand that Hulkfans are fans of the Hulk!

I'm all for more horror based Hulk stories but not if they reduce the Hulk to a murderous monster. Hulk should be a master who fights other monsters.

I've just been so let down by the he last decade of Hulk stories that I see the worst in every announcement.

I understand your points, by i'm very excited. I don't believe at all they'll simply turn him into a murderous monster.

[Ptrvc]

I understand your points, by i'm very excited. I don't believe at all they'll simply turn him into a murderous monster.

I want to be excited. But until they resolve Hulk's return I can't help but feel apprehensive.

[Dr. Banner]

I want to be excited. But until they resolve Hulk's return I can't help but feel apprehensive.

I guess it's natural. We've, indeed, burnt too many times. I too feel (probably a bit less than you) apprehensive.

[Comic Book Addict]

Regardless of what happens, I just appreciate how ominous those quotes are .

[GreenScar1990]

Joe Bennett is the new Hulk artist:
https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/02...wont-say-hulk/

Hmm... I'll have to check out his art to see what I think of it. I was hoping for a big name artist to come onboard for the Hulk. Then again, it is still early. And we do not know if it is true if Al Ewing will be writing the new Incredible Hulk ongoing series. We hopefully will get these answers this week.

'Won't say which one?'

There is only one Hulk, and he better be returning if you want the book to sell.

They tried Chulk. They tried (S)hulk. They tried whatever Preparation H.

I count three pretenders, three attempted replacements and Zero successes.

There is one Hulk.

You can relax. There is only two Hulks: Bruce Banner & Jen Walters.

Hopefully this means that Amadeus Cho is out of the picture completely and reverted back to his former self, as he was far more better and unique as a super-genius than he ever was as a Hulk.

Yeah. I do hope the new creative team is finally revealed this week.

As do I. I want to know the artist & writer for the new Incredible/Immortal Hulk ongoing. I am a bit envious of the two artists that Venom & Avengers have gotten. Sadly, I'm not too thrilled with who is writing Avengers.

Especially considering he'll be handling She-Hulk/Jen Walters. We know how badly he's treated Banner/Hulk in his horrific, garbage run. And he's currently treating Thor Odinson and that characters mythos/lore/history badly, which is a shame considering how well the God Butcher Saga was.

And Ewing posting some ominous stuff in twitter, again with an horror tone:

Not getting my hopes up. It could still be something else. We shall see.

At this point I half expect them to make the Hulk a villain for no reason.

It's like half the writer's at Marvel at any given time don't understand that Hulkfans are fans of the Hulk!

I'm all for more horror based Hulk stories but not if they reduce the Hulk to a murderous monster. Hulk should be a master who fights other monsters.

I've just been so let down by the he last decade of Hulk stories that I see the worst in every announcement.

Yeah, I've been apprehensive for quite a while. I'm excited for the return of Bruce Banner/Hulk, yet I'm also a bit on edge. I mean, we cannot help to be so. After all, look at what we've endured for a little over 7 years.

I guess it's natural. We've, indeed, burnt too many times. I too feel (probably a bit less than you) apprehensive.

Yeah, that's an understatement. We've been dealt with a little over 7 year spell of Hulk stories that range from mediocre, underwhelming, disappointing, and just plain horrific in some cases. It has been like this ever since Greg Pak's initial departure from the Incredible Hulk following his Heart of the Monster finale.

Let's recap.

Jason Aaron's Incredible Hulk run = Solid first issue, but quickly went downhill and became nothing more than horrific garbage. It became one of, if not the, worst Hulk runs ever. The entire series should never have been printed. Horrible, wretched run. Plus, he was a major a-hole to Hulk fans in more than one instance, and it can even be seen in comics.

Mark Waid's Indestructible Hulk run = Great potential, but went absolutely nowhere and did nothing. Lots of false promises, lackluster villains, mediocre fights, and a forgettable supporting cast. Plus, he regressed Hulk and Banner's character. Not to mention he was a major a-hole to Hulk fans/readers in more than one instance. All in all, disappointing and fairly meh.

It's no secret how much I did not enjoy Waid's Indestructible Hulk tenure. The only thing that I really enjoyed of it was his arch/mini-series, Original Sin: Iron Man Vs. Hulk, and that was because I honestly believe that Kieron Gillen (who is an incredible writer, I might add, and someone whom I'd love to see write Hulk/Banner someday, as I feel he knows the character well) was pulling the majority of the weight/writing duties.

Gerry Duggan's Hulk run = Great story premise and potential, but it never succeeded to live up to its expectations nor did it impress. All it was done for was to eliminate the other Hulks, which I find extremely hypocritical considering we have Amadeus' Hulk and a Hulkverine and a new Red Hulk running around in the MU! The other Hulks, or at least Skaar, should have remained. And damn was that last issue of this arch a MASSIVE disappointment. The Maestro and Gammon angles went nowhere! The whole thing felt dragged out and stretched into 12 issues. And Doc Green? Disappointment. Besides the horrible name and the ridiculous mohawk, he had potential to be a very powerful and intelligent Hulk, but instead he was a pansy and a pushover. Not a true Hulk. Not at all. And the lame humor, poor characterization of the other Hulks, and underwhelming story made this run forgettable. So much potential wasted.

Then there is Greg Pak's mediocre and forgettable Totally Awesome Hulk. I only really enjoyed the two Banner issues and the Fallen one-shot. Those were packed with emotion and really superb writing. And while the current arch is decent, I must confess that it is a retread of a FAR better story. Not to mention the various plotholes, like how Sakaar came back after it was destroyed (among others), which Pak merely responded that Secret Wars left a lot of doors open, but personally it sounds like lazy writing to me.

Honestly, the whole Amadeus as a Hulk angle is, to a large degree, pandering to an Asian audience and trying to reel in new readers. Which was a failure, I might. Sad to say, I think that, just like Jason Aaron with Jane-Thor, Pak is more concerned with writing his pet creation... even if it means trying to force an agenda, try to shove the character in our faces, pander to a certain demographic, and ignore continuity consistency.

I miss how he used to write Amadeus Cho, back in his gloriously fun Incredible Hercules series. You could relate to, support, and cheer for the character. He didn't need to be a Hulk to be cool or interesting. In fact, he's far less engaging now than he ever was in Incredible Hercules. Unfortunate, but very true.

Need I say more?

So, cautious and apprehensive? Yes. I believe we all are.