So.. new Hulk book arrive in mail today.
Lotsa anger surrounding the Hulk these days. I suppose it's because he's so far removed from what he'd become during World War Hulk. Hard to believe this is the same Hulk that came back from Sakkar when you see him getting his ass handed to him the way it was in issue #4. And all this business with Red Hulk: who is he and why the #&@* should I care? It all amounts to a lot of frustration on the reader's part.
Issue #5 of Hulk has carried on the pattern of the last few issues: Red Hulk beating someone up, sparse dialogue and too many splash pages. Not much to gain and most of what's offered, done so only to lead the reader astray. But is it all bad?
Jeph Loeb has provided us with a murder mystery to which nobody can confidently answer "whodunnit?" Just who is this Rulk? Doc Samson? General Ross? A deviation of Banner's psyche created from the laser blast that ended Hulk's tirade on NYC? A skrull perhaps? While the mystery may not exude the madness found in Final Crisis or RIP, it is, undoubtably , perplexing.
So what clues can be acquired from this issue?
We find out the audio from the taped conversation between Banner and Ross has been manipulated and a virus placed upon it. So the culprit is technically savvy.
and
Rulk claims to have actually studied Thor.
Yeah, I still have no idea who it is.
At first I was irritated with Rulk, but the more I'm forced to endure him, the more I grow to like him. Most people thought The Watcher cameo was unwarranted. If you did, you're taking this too seriously. The encounter provided an oppurtunity for Rulk to flex his character. His comments to the Watcher were really quite amusing. Most of what he said to Thor was just uncanny as well. Think about it, have you ever seen Thor so mistreated like this?
I realize it's not gonna be half as funny if I have to point out that it's supposed to be. There's just gonna have to be less expecting and more accepting when it comes to Loeb's run on this Hulk series.
The book ends interestingly enough, taking us into the final chapter of the current arc. Stark has decided to assist Hulk in his battle with Rulk and he's brought some friends. Strangely enough, Namor is among them. O where O, where O, does this fit into the timeline, dearest Marvel? I expect an interesting conclusion, my fingers crossed.
Story: 2 - Average
Art: 4 - Very Good
Outstanding review! Your analysis is very thoughtful, yet I don't see the need for the spoiler warning (Thor fight, I guess). I concluded that Rulk was Doc Samson from the very beginning, which is still possible because Samson had access to numerous areas of government and military technology for years. Your review has me wondering if my deduction is still accurate, but I guess we'll see.
What frustrates me the most is how the Rick Jones monster automatically talks like a four year-old because he's now been mutated. Banner is a MPD, which is why one of his personalities is childlike, so that doesn't mean that gamma mutation makes you stupid.
Question: Does Hulk still have homicidal thoughts toward Iron Man (and the Illuminati), or has all of that been conveniently disregarded? Time will tell, but I'm right there with you asking "Is this the same Hulk that came back from Sakaar?".
Posted by RipperSix on 08/08/08 at 08:40 AM