The Incredible Hulk #102-104

The Incredible Hulk #102-104

Originally released in 1968

Written by Gary Friedrich

Art by Marie Severin

The Hulk's early publication history seems like an unusual one.  His initial run lasted for a grand total of six issues before being cancelled.  He was popular enough (either with the audience or the creators) to become one of the founding members of the Avengers, only to leave the team at the end of the second issue.  After making cameos in other books, his stories made up half of the anthology series Tales To Astonish, sharing the title with Ant-Man and the Wasp at first starting in issue 59.  He later shared the book with Namor, before getting his own series back after Tales To Astonish #101. (as a side note, between the six issue of the original series and the forty-three issues of Tales To Astonish that the Hulk headlined, this really should be The Incredible Hulk #50, but maybe it's something to do with publishing where they had to make the numbering pick up from where Tales To Astonish left off)

I decided to jump into issue 102, figuring that it would work as a jumping-on point for the series.  Naturally, it starts with the Hulk plummeting off of a cliff on Asgard, the home of Thor.  There have been a few changes to the status quo since the earlier stories that I've read featuring the Hulk or Thor.  Rather than being madly in love with Thor, the Enchantress is in love with Hercules, and at some point, Bruce Banner revealed to the military that he is the Hulk.

Weirdly enough, Bruce Banner dismisses Hercules as someone from ancient mythology even though Hercules should be a well-established Avenger by this point.  Maybe Bruce just doesn't pay attention to the news.  The Hulk saves Asgard from a troll invasion, though the Hulk's attitude causes Odin to banish the Hulk to elsewhere in the cosmos.  There's also a recap of the Hulk's origin, as despite being Thor's friends, the Warriors Three have no idea who he is. (you think he would have came up during one of Thor's tales of his adventures on Asgard)

The Hulk is sent back to New York City, where he becomes the target of an alien parasite that seeks to drain his strength.  In the time since the early days of the Hulk, Rick Jones has turned against the green goliath, viewing him to be a threat to the world.

Bruce's identity being public knowledge does make for an interesting change compared to how many of Marvel's comics handled the dual identity concept in the 60s.  The Rhino is hired by the people who gave him his powers to kidnap Bruce Banner, as unlike others who tried to kidnap Bruce or restrain the Hulk in the early issues, they're fully aware that trying to capture Bruce could easily lead to a battle with the Hulk. It's touching to see that, despite everyone knowing the truth, Betty Ross still views Bruce as the only man she'll ever love.

Both the space parasite and the Rhino are determined to die warriors' deaths, with the Hulk only sparing them because he doesn't attack people who aren't a threat to him. Oddly enough, the Rhino is treated as though he does die - I'm not sure if people simply couldn't feel his heartbeat through the heavy costume.

Despite not knowing why, the Hulk feels concern for Betty Ross, with issue 104 ending with him kidnapping her to escape from the military. She knows that the Hulk wouldn't hurt her, and she knows that he's Bruce Banner, though he still leaves her feeling uneasy and disturbed, so that won't help their relationship in the long run.

I felt like the art was the highlight of these comics, showing a natural evolution from the style of the early 60s, though I like how the writing wasn't afraid to change up the status quo.  Rick turning against the Hulk is almost certainly a temporary development, but everyone knowing that Bruce and the Hulk are the same is a massive change to happen within the first six years of the character's lifespan, changing the tone of the character entirely as Bruce goes from a renowned scientist hiding a dark secret to a wanted fugitive within less than a decade real-time. It's taking a big swing and it really works for me, helping to set Hulk apart from Marvel's other superhero comics.