Avengers #3

Cover Date: January 1964

Plot Overview: The Avengers decide that the Hulk can't be left to roam freely. Iron Man unveils one of Tony Stark's inventions, an image projector. He uses the image projector to visit the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man and the X-Men. The FF and X-Men are too busy with their own affairs and Spider-Man was just Spider-Man about it. The Avengers remember Rick Jones and decide to contact him.  Jones sets out and finds the Hulk in New Mexico. He contacts the Avengers and they all head to New Mexico in their unique ways.

Iron Man is the first there and gets ambushed by the Hulk. The Hulk uses the needles of a cactus as deadly projectiles. Iron Man blocks the attack but the needles cause some problems for Giant-Man, ant sized at the moment, and the Wasp. They head to a nearby ant hill and use the ants to cause the ground to collapse to try and catch the Hulk. The Hulk avoids the trap and takes to the air as he continues to battle Iron Man. Iron Man uses his magnetic repulsers to spin the Hulk until Thor arrives.  The Hulk tries to flee and hitches a ride on a nearby train. He fends off the Avengers before using flour in the smoke stack of the train. He uses the resulting confusion to escape from the Avengers.

The Hulk hides in a truck load of gravel and then takes to the ocean after it gets dumped. He gets picked up by a ship and is pretty worn out. Meanwhile, Namor has been watching the Hulk the entire time. When the Hulk decides to leave the boat and head to a secluded island he is greeted by Namor. They have a short battle where Namor gets the upper hand in the water. Afterwards, they decide to team up to get their revenge upon humanity. They head off to begin their conquest while planning to destroy each other afterwards.

The Avengers are challenged to battle them at Gibralter. They arrive on the scene and Namor fires an old WWII cannon at them. Iron Man repels the shell and Namor uses a pellet with emery dust to disable Iron Man. Giant-Man and the Wasp find oxygen equipment and set about cleaning Iron Man up while Thor keeps Namor and the Hulk busy with his Hammer. Namor and the Hulk make a temporary retreat.

The battle continues on and just as things are starting to look good for Namor and the Hulk, the Hulk reverts back to Bruce Banner. Banner flees from the scene of the battle. The Avengers easily capture the abandoned Namor as he grows weaker without water. Namor manages to crack a wall and the water revives him. He makes his escape and  Thor says that he's earned his escape today. The issue ends promising us some big surprises for the next issue.

My Take: I wanted to start this issue off by saying the Avengers really came off like jerks in the first part of the story They were essentially telling the Hulk he was a menace to society that shouldn't be allowed to roam free and then getting mad that he didn't want to reason things out with them. Yes, because antagonizing someone is a great way to get them to see your point of view!

Iron Man also makes a mental note that no one knows that he's really Tony Stark about 3 times in this issue. It was overkill and I think I literally rolled my eyes the last time it randomly was mentioned in this issue. We get it, you're Tony Stark and no one knows! With all of that hand wringing on his part, he makes a slip of the tongue early on in the issue. He goes on at length about Tony Stark's image projector and then after using it he calls it HIS image projector. No one really reacted so I think that was more of a writing error than anything else.

These first 10 issues of Avengers are burned into my brain from being a teenager. I was lucky enough to get about 4 of the Marvel Masterworks when I was a teenager and this was one of them. I remember not liking this issue much from those days. As an adult, it wasn't so bad. There were a lot of interesting aspects to this issue. For starters, everyone in the Marvel Universe showed up in this issue. The Fantastic Four, Spider-Man and X-Men all made appearances here. They all blew Iron Man off, Reed picked an experiment over fighting the Hulk, and that was really interesting. You would expect for all the heroes to jump at the chance to fight a bad guy. But they all kind of shrugged it off as an Avengers issue and weren't terribly interested. It humanizes the Marvel characters in a very negative way. All of the characters have depth and it really shows that the Marvel heroes don't march to the same drum.

It's also really interesting to see how this book slides into continuity. I think a book like the Justice League of America ran away from trying to fit in with the heroes solo books but Stan Lee seems to really embrace it. The heroes costume changes appear in the Avengers even the same month that it happens. It mentions the upcoming Iron Man issue from the same month. And Stan Lee makes a point of reminding you when you last saw a character. The universe is really small right now but it's incredible to see the care that Stan is taking to fit it all together.

The art was really good in this issue. The Hulk looked great and there was some really good action going on in this issue. Most of the issue was just an all out brawl with the Avengers vs. the Hulk and the Avengers vs. Namor and the Hulk. Jack Kirby also did a good job of refining the look of the new Iron Man armor in this issue. It looked a little wonky and crappy in Tales of Suspense #48 but it looked better in this issue.

I give this issue *** out of *****.

Notes: This issue features the first meeting of Hulk and Namor. Their relationship will be important in the 70s as they become two of the main members of the non-team the Defenders. Their relationship keeps a very similar dynamic to this issue throughout those issues.

Next Issue: Tales of Suspense #49

Avengers #2

Cover Date: November 1963

Plot Overview: Thor and Hulk argue until Giant-Man and the Wasp arrive to start their meeting. Meanwhile, the Space Phantom lands from outer space. He plans to defeat the Avengers so the other Space Phantoms can invade and take over the Earth. He's been observing the  Avengers for awhile and knows that they're meeting in Tony Stark's mansion.

The Phantom switches places with a guy on the street, casting him into limbo, and walks into the mansion. The Avengers are watching the intruder from a tv and the Hulk decides to go confront him. The Phantom switches places with the Hulk and then starts a fight with Iron Man. The Hulk is in a certain limbo while the Phantom has his form. The Phantom escapes the mansion and meets up with Rick Jones.

Rick Jones quickly figures out that this isn't the real Hulk and the Phantom decides to brag about his plans and reveals himself to Rick. The Hulk reappears but disappears again as the Phantom takes on his form again. The Phantom goes to a Stark plant and destroys a special missile project. This draws out Iron Man and the battle is on. Iron Man grabs the Phantom and gives him a little shock. The Phantom, lacking the pain tolerance of the actual Hulk, freaks out and takes off running.

The Phantom changes places with a wasp and the real Hulk returns. Iron Man continues his attack and fights with the real Hulk. Meanwhile, Rick Jones calls Giant-Man and the Wasp for help. They arrive on the scene quickly and breaks up the fight. The Wasp senses an evil presence and then is attacked by the Phantom, as a wasp. Giant-Man senses the Wasp is in danger and gets Hulk and Iron Man to follow him to Stark's plant.

Giant-Man makes the save but the Phantom trades places with him. The Phantom attacks the Hulk but quickly realizes that the Hulk is far stronger. The Phantom tries to crush the Hulk with an experimental tank but the Hulk kicks it away. The tank hurtles towards an unsuspecting Iron Man but he uses the suit to protect himself. The Phantom switches places with Iron Man.

The Wasp decides to get Thor and heads to the offices of Dr. Don Blake. Blake says that he'll summon Thor for her. Blake sends her out of the room and becomes Thor. Thor heads to the fight to find that the Phantom as Iron Man is getting the best of the Hulk and Giant-Man. The Phantom tries to switch places with Thor and instead is cast into limbo. Thor says that this happened because he is not a human, he is the god of thunder.

The conventional wisdom seems to be that the Space Phantom is trapped there forever because no one can take his place. The Hulk takes this moment to quit the Avengers. He says he never realized how much they all hated him and will do things along like he always does. The Avengers worry about how dangerous the Hulk will become as the issue comes to a close.

My Take: This issue has a deep and lasting impact on the Marvel Universe. Even as recently as the Avengers vs. X-Men crossover has this issue played it's part. Let that sink in a little bit for how important the Hulk quitting the Avengers was that it gets a little nod in a story 49 years later.

This was a pretty fun issue. The Space Phantom was a really fun villain for this issue and he was used well throughout the issue. I liked getting to see the various Avengers fight with each other throughout the issue. The Iron Man vs. Hulk match up was intriguing but hasn't gotten a lot of time in the first 2 issues.

The Hulk leaving in issue 2 was huge, HUGE! That event right there sets a tone that the Avengers keep throughout their entire history. This roster is about change and change happens a lot as the years progress. The roster is almost always in some state of flux and you can see that it started at the very beginning. I just have to write that again, we're at issue 2 and one of the founding members have quit the team already. That was just unheard of in this time period.

The art was really good in this issue. It was one of the stronger books that I've read art wise so far. Jack Kirby has really been doing some good issues recently. The Phantom Stranger was weird looking and fairly unique. I would also add memorable. The fight scenes also looked pretty good throughout.

I give this ***1/2 out of *****.

Notes: This is the first appearance of the Space Phantom. He is a C list villain that gets a lot of appearances through re-tellings of this particular story. I would say that he's probably one of the most memorable C list villains in the Marvel Universe because of how important and retold this story is. He makes some other appearances over the years but I don't think I've read any of those other ones.

The Hulk leaves the Avengers in this issue.

Next Issue: Tales of Suspense #47

Avengers #1

Cover Date: September 1963

Plot Overview: Loki is looking to cause some mischief to draw out Thor for another battle. He comes across the Hulk and tricks him with a mental projection of TNT on a train track. The Hulk smashes the tracks by mistake and has to quickly save an oncoming train. People mistake his actions and think the Hulk was in fact trying to destroy the train.

Rick Jones and the Teen Brigade try to contact the Fantastic Four for help but Loki intercepts their radio transmissions and sends them to a band that Thor listens to. Thor picks up the transmission as well as Ant-Man, the Wasp and Iron Man. They all head to the southwest independently. Meanwhile, the Teen Brigade finally contacts the FF and Reed says they're busy but that he thinks other people should be able to help them.

Just then, Thor, Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp all arrive on the scene. Rick Jones explains the situation to them and asks that they help the Hulk if he is indeed innocent. Loki is not amused by the appearance of other heroes and uses his mental powers to trick Thor into leaving the group with an image of the Hulk. Thor realizes it's just a mental projection and that Loki must be behind it.

Thor heads to Asgard as the scene changes to a circus. The Hulk is posing as a robotic act named Mechano. An ant on the scene relays the info to Ant-Man and the remaining heroes head off to face off with the Hulk.

The ants chew up the ground and the Hulk falls into a giant hole. Ant-Man tries to reason with the Hulk but the Hulk just wants to leave. The ants drop a giant steel drum onto the Hulk which enrages him. The Hulk escapes the drum as Ant-Man has the Wasp try to lure him under a net. The Hulk takes out the Wasp with a bellows and captures her. Iron Man arrives on the scene and the Hulk forgets about the Wasp. The Hulk breaks through the net that Ant-Man had used and Iron Man pursues. The Hulk manages to damage Iron Man's power source and he's forced to break off the chase.

Meanwhile on Asgard, Thor has received permission to travel to the Isle of Silence to confront Loki. Thor arrives at the Isle to be greeted by a volcanic eruption created by Loki. The volcano spews these bubbles that can drain a god of his powers so Thor swims for it. Loki greets Thor on land and tricks him into getting attacked by a troll. The troll tries to pull Thor under ground but he blinds it with lightning from his hammer. Loki makes multiple images of himself but Thor blows them away by swinging his hammer. Thor captures Loki and returns to Earth with him.

Back on Earth, Iron Man and the Hulk continue to battle one another. Thor arrives and explains that Loki framed the Hulk. Loki becomes radioactive suddenly and commands Hulk and Iron Man to leave so that he and Thor continue their battle. Just then, a group of ants release a trap door and Loki falls into a lead lined tank. Thor explains that Loki won't be radioactive for very long and then he can return him to Asgard for punishment.

Ant-Man and Wasp stop everyone from leaving. Ant-Man thinks they should continue teaming up due to how powerful they are together. Everyone agrees and the Wasp comes up with the name the Avengers on the spot. The issue ends with them proclaiming that no one will be able to stop the Avengers.

My Take: This book is historic for a lot of reasons. There have been some crossovers before this issue but pretty much the entire Marvel Universe appeared in this issue. Spider-Man was really the only hero that was absent during this book. It feels like the Marvel Universe has suddenly come together in a huge way for this book and it makes a good deal of sense.

The story is kind of a mixed bag here. A lot happens in the 22 pages of story and that's a good thing and a bad thing. I really like how they brought the team together in this issue. There's something very realistic about the Teen Brigade wanting the Fantastic Four and circumstances bringing them a different group of heroes. I also liked the battle between Iron Man and the Hulk in this issue. Loki also made sense as being the first antagonist for the Avengers to face. I don't think say, Namor would've worked as well in this issue. I also really like the team of the Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp. I think it's a good mix of personalities and powers and you want to check out the next issue to see how the Hulk is going to work within the confines of a team.

What I didn't like was the Asgard portion of the story. It felt needless and it really secluded Thor from the other heroes in this book. It was really good when they all stormed into the Teen Brigade HQ but the book splits them up almost immediately. I wanted to see them working together, not all wandering off and doing their own thing. It also made the story drag a bit at that point. It just felt like you were reading one book and kind of wandered into a different book.

The art was good in this issue. Everyone looked good. Iron Man wasn't doing any of his weird contortions in his gold armor. It's a Jack Kirby drawn book. So what can you really say bad about it?

This book had it's ups and downs but ultimately I enjoyed it. It was an easy read, I wasn't page counting like I do with some of the weaker books I've read for this. And that's always a sign that I'm into what I'm reading. It has a lot of historical value as well.

I'd give this *** out of *****

Notes: This is the first appearance of the Avengers as a team. The Avengers will be a consistent top team in the Marvel Universe from here on out. A huge number of Marvel super-heroes will have stints with the team over the years. Thor, Hulk, Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp all become the founding members of the Avengers in this issue.

Next Issue: Tales of Suspense #45

Incredible Hulk #6

Cover Date: March 1963

Plot Overview: The Hulk returns to his hideout and once again becomes Bruce Banner. Banner is getting weaker with each dose of gamma radiation. He sees on the view screen where a military test is interrupted by an alien calling himself the Metal Master. He can control metal with his mind and he's come to Earth to conquer it. Rick breaks away and comes to find Banner. Banner uses his gamma ray gun to become the Hulk but his face doesn't change for some reason. He puts on a Hulk mask and heads off to battle the Metal Master.

The Metal Master keeps the Hulk at bay with various attacks until he knocks the Hulk out with a giant piece of metal. The military captures the Hulk as a result and the Hulk blames Rick for betraying him. Rick leaves dejected and the Hulk starts pounding on the prison walls.

Rick meets up with his old friends and they show him their new ham radio. This gives Rick the idea to form the Teen Brigade. The teen Brigade will become a nation wide group of teenage ham radio operators that will help out the Marvel superheroes.

Meanwhile the Hulk breaks out of his prison and returns to his hideout. He once again becomes Bruce Banner but he's even weaker than before. Rick arrives and Banner calls out to him. Banner is grateful for Rick's help and Rick realizes that it was the Hulk talking. Banner has an idea and they enlist the help of the Teen Brigade. Teenagers all across the country send Rick and Banner transistors and other parts.

Banner becomes the Hulk again and the Teen Brigade gathers to see what Banner and Rick have come up with. The Hulk walks out with a giant gun and confronts the Metal Master. The Metal Master is stunned that he cannot alter the gun with his mind. As a desperation move he tosses a piece of metal at the Hulk but the Hulk quickly captures him. The Hulk threatens the Metal Master until he changes all of the damage he caused back. The Metal Master then departs as the Teen Brigade is thrilled to have helped defeat him. The Hulk and Rick depart as the military arrives on the scene. Banner tries to change back but this time he's still the Hulk. The Hulk goes into a rage but suddenly turns back into Banner. The gamma radiation is getting more unpredictable with each usage. Banner goes to see Betty Ross and the issue ends with him telling her that he can't reveal his secret because he cares about her too much.

My Take: This issue felt like they were finding a groove with the Hulk issues. Banner continues to struggle with the Hulk when in the Hulk form and now the gamma ray gun is causing some odd side effects in him. It's also becoming clear that the transformation is slowly killing him each time he does it. It was nice to have 3 issues of building in a direction instead of the first 3 issues where the direction of the book changed every issue.

The strength of this Hulk series, to me, was the strong cast around Bruce Banner and the Hulk. And the cast became even stronger with the addition of the Teen Brigade. Most of the other titles have a supporting character or two while the Hulk has about 4 or 5 right now. It helps to develop both characters and lay the groundwork of the dichotomy of the Banner/Hulk personalities. It's really a shame that the book is cancelled with this issue. It feels like they had just figured out how to make this comic work.

The art was pretty good in this issue. I always have a soft spot for Steve Ditko's work. It felt like the art wasn't rushed. The Hulk also looked better than he usually does. I like the Metal Master character design a lot. He's not out there or cool, I just enjoy his design. And the effects for his metal altering were pretty good in my opinion.

I'd give this issue *** for *****

Notes: This is the last issue of the Incredible Hulk series. From here he kind of becomes a villain and antagonist for various heroes. After awhile, he'll become a co-feature in Tales to Astonish. This is the first appearance of the Teen Brigade. They will be an important part of the Avengers forming later this year and will play a role in several comics throughout the 60s.

I wanted to take a moment and look at why the Incredible Hulk failed as a book. I think it has to do with the lack of direction to the first 3 issues. It felt like Stan Lee had a really good initial idea and then didn't know where to go with it from there. The book also struggled from an identity crisis. It didn't know if it wanted to be a sci-fi horror book or a superhero book. I also think this book was a few years ahead of it's time. The anti-hero concept maybe wasn't quite ready to take off with the readers. The 60s needed to take hold a little bit more before that kind of a concept would be more widely accepted. Just my two cents though.

Next Issue: Amazing Spider-Man #1

Fantastic Four #12

Cover Date: March 1963

Plot Overview: The U.S. military mistakes the Thing for the Hulk and tries to capture him. A higher up calls off the attack and apologizes to the Thing. The Thing returns to the Baxter Building just in time for Thunderbolt Ross to arrive. Ross wants the Fantastic Four to take care of the military's Hulk problem. This leads to Reed, Johnny and the Thing dreaming up scenarios where they capture the Hulk.

The FF show off their new FantastiCar before heading to the desert with General Ross. Reed Richards and Bruce Banner meet as there's a big meeting. Banner's assistant Karl Kort has a run in with The Torch and Thing and quickly exits the scene. Banner swears that the Hulk isn't responsible for the recent damage. He believes it's a saboteur that he's dubbed the Wrecker.

The Torch and Thing grow tired of waiting and barge in and cause havoc as the meeting comes to a close. The Torch hands Rick Jones the wallet of Karl Kort and asks if he'd return it. Rick goes to find Kort and realizes that Kort is literally a card carrying Communist.

Back at the base, the FF have fixed up an experimental rocket sled and have the Thing ride it. The Thing hits a sabotaged piece of track and crashes. Banner approaches to ask for their help because Rick has been captured by the Wrecker. Banner doesn't want to reveal he's the Hulk so they ultimately don't believe him. Banner heads to his secret cave and becomes the Hulk. The Hulk comes upon the Fantastic Four and takes out the Thing with one punch and uses dirt to put out the Torch's flames. The Hulk smashes his way to the surface where he escapes Reed. He uses his sonic boom clap to take out Reed, Johnny and Sue. The Thing attacks and they battle until a mysterious ray takes out the Hulk.

The Thing follows the ray and smashes a giant robot he finds. This leads the Thing to a chamber where Karl Kort is. Kort tries to use a ray gun on the Thing but Sue disarms him. The FF have cleared the name of the Hulk. The Hulk watches as the FF return home at the end of the issue.

My Take: This was a great issue. It really felt like it clicked. The characters were really distinct and came across well developed. The story wasn't goofy or too wacky. They had an idea of having the Hulk fight the Thing and they executed on that idea. No silly pseudo-science, no bait and switch or anything like that.

The art was really great in this issue. All of the characters looked really good and the action scenes were good. I also enjoyed that there was some action in this issue. Marvel has been really hit and miss with giving us actual fights in the comics. And I always enjoy when they go through with a battle.

Other than Amazing Fantasy #15 this was probably the best comic I've read since doing this. I would hold this issue up against anything that's come out today and I feel it could hold it's own. It's still a little rough around the edges but the quality of a good story is in there.

I'd give this issue ****1/2 out of *****

Notes: This issue is the first time that Marvel characters have truly crossed over in the Silver Age. To this point there had been little references to other comics like someone reading a Hulk comic. But nothing like this. It even went so far as to have supporting cast interact with the heroes. This is really important as one of the huge innovations that Marvel did was having a shared universe.

Don't get me wrong. DC characters crossed over before this of course but Marvel really made it feel like any of the characters could turn the corner and just run into another Marvel character. That's where their real innovation in the shared universe department came from.

Next Issue: Tales to Astonish #41

Incredible Hulk #5

Cover Date: January 1963

Plot Overview: The first story starts with Thunderbolt Ross showing footage of the Hulk to Bruce Banner and Rick Jones. It's up to Banner to rid the world of the Hulk menace. Betty secretly pines for Bruce after he leaves. The scene shifts to the underworld where Tryannus is plotting his revenge on the surface world. He was banished by Merlin but has stayed alive by using the Fountain of Youth that Ponce De Leon was searching for. He's also using the technology of an underground race of creatures that he's enslaved.

Bruce and Rick return to the Ross house to find that Betty is with Tyrannus. Tyrannus is claiming to be an archaeologist and has asked Betty to show him some nearby caves. Betty hopes this will make Bruce jealous. Tyrannus eventually takes Betty hostage and Bruce returns as the Hulk.

Tyrannus uses gas to capture the Hulk and Rick. Tyrannus then has the Hulk fight a giant robot in a gladiator style fight. Bruce loses control and goes on a rampage. He destroys the robot and goes after Tyrannus. Tyrannus uses Betty to delay the Hulk and then stuns him with a ray gun. Tyrannus makes the Hulk do many tasks in his service but grows bored with it. He decides to have the Hulk killed. Just then, Rick manages to rescue Betty and together they free the Hulk. The Hulk smashes the main pillars to Tyrannus's kingdom just like Sampson and Tyrannus is trapped in the underworld. The story ends with the Hulk thinking that humans should be scared of him.

The second story starts off with Thunderbolt Ross using a special missile to freeze the Hulk. The Hulk's body heat quickly melts the ice and he escapes. The Hulk becomes Banner again and he realizes that it's becoming harder to become Banner again. The scene shifts to Asia where General Fang is conquering many towns.

The news reaches Banner and Rick and Banner decides to intervene as the Hulk. They arrive after some issues on a plane and the Hulk disguises himself as the Abominable Snowman to scare the soldiers. He reeks havoc on the army of General Fang and news returns to Fang. He uses the 3D image of a dragon to lure Hulk into a cage. With the Hulk captured Fang decides to move on to the next town. Rick releases the Hulk from the prison and the Hulk makes short work of Fang's army. Fang tries to flee but the Hulk easily captures him. The Hulk drops Fang in enemy territory and then heads back to America. The Hulk mentions that he has no intention of going anywhere.

My Take: This is the first issue in awhile where they didn't try to shake things up and I think this issue was better for it. I like how Banner is slowly losing control of the Hulk in that form. It makes sense and you wonder every time he changes if this is the time where the Hulk takes over. The art has also gotten really good. The Hulk really stands out among the other characters for Marvel right now. Mostly because he's green but the art just feels different for this book.

I really liked the first story. It was a quick read and I thought Tyrannus was your typical Silver Age super villain. He had a fairly original history and he was a good foil for the Hulk. The second story I wasn't as fond of. They've gone the hero taking out a Communist army 3 or 4 times already and I get bored by it everytime. I would rather the hero struggle more like he did in the first story. I don't like the stories where they just roll over regular human beings as much.

As I mentioned earlier, the book seems to have a defined direction and it really helped the stories. It seemed like up until this point that I was getting a different direction every issue. It was really dragging down the quality of the stories.

I'm not a big Hulk fan. I've read some issues here and there but I've never really gone out of my way to read Hulk titles. With that said, the Hulk has the most well defined and developed cast of supporting characters and it's really made the book more enjoyable. He has a lot of regular people to play off of and I think that's really developed Bruce Banner as a character compared to Donald Blake or Henry Pym. I'll be kind of sad to see the book go after issue #6.

I'd give this **3/4 out of *****

Notes: This issue is the first appearance of Tryannus. He'll pop up here and there over the years to bother the Hulk or the Avengers. He never becomes a major villain or anything though. This is the second to last issue of the Hulk. The series is going to be cancelled with issue #6 in March.

Next Issue: Strange Tales #104

Incredible Hulk #4

Cover Date: November 1962

Plot Overview: Betty Ross details how she met Bruce Banner and how he was involved in the gamma bomb explosion. She recounts how the Hulk first showed up around then too. She realizes that there's a connection between Rick Jones and both Banner and the Hulk. She goes to her father and asks him to find Rick Jones.

Rick Jones sends the Hulk away before the military captures him. The Hulk wanders about until Rick Jones summons him back to rescue him from the military. Rick takes the Hulk to a secret lab where he uses a gamma ray device to turn the Hulk back into Bruce Banner. Banner has devised a way to turn himself into the Hulk and retain his mind.

Banner becomes the Hulk and saves a family in a burning cabin. He flees the scene when the sheriff opens fire on him. The new Hulk/Banner combo seems to be getting more wild and savage. The Hulk returns to the lab and turns himself back into Banner. Banner retires to bed worrying about if he can continue to control the Hulk.

In the second story an alien named Mongu arrives on Earth. He challenges the mightiest creature on Earth to face him in a battle. Banner changes into the Hulk and arrives to face Mongu. Mongu reveals himself to be a trap set by the Communists. They want to capture him so that their scientists can study him. Hulk defeats the Communists with relative ease. Meanwhile, the general public blames the Hulk for the Mongu hoax as the issue ends.

My Take: This book has really been in a tailspin the last 2 issues. Stan Lee seems to be in panic mode as he's now changed the direction of the book in a serious way yet again. He seems to be throwing everything at the wall and hoping something sticks to save the book. I know Marvel was really new at this point but they probably could've given the book a couple of years and give audiences a chance to attach to the book. Not everything can grab enough of an audience long enough to survive.

So with those frustrations aside let's get down to a review. The art was a little weaker than last issue. It seemed a little more rushed and they seemed a little lost as to where to take the Hulk in this issue. So they threw us a reboot and a second story where he fights some bad guys. I personally don't like this direction for the Hulk. I feel the combination of the two personalities runs counter to what Stan Lee was going for in the first place. Banner is still struggling with the monster within, just in a less direct way. I kind of liked the nocturnal Hulk.

The stories themselves were solid enough. It was nice to see the Hulk in action again this issue. The second story was mostly action and was enjoyable. Regular people are nice for really showing off how powerful the Hulk is supposed to be.

This book historically is in a lot of trouble at this point and gets cancelled with issue 6. The book really reeks of the desperation to keep it afloat right now and that's hurting the overall product.

I'd give this issue **1/4 out of *****

Notes: There was nothing of note in this issue.

Next Issue: Strange Tales #102

Incredible Hulk #3

Cover Date: September 1962

Plot Overview: The issue begins with Hulk locked in the secret cave room that they discovered previously. Rick heads off to get some sleep but gets picked up by the military. General Ross meets with Rick and tells him that they need the Hulk to test a rocket. Rick mulls it over and decides that it's his civic duty to help the United States.

Rick releases the Hulk and leads him into the cockpit of the rocket. The rocket blasts off and General Ross reveals that the rocket is to make sure the Hulk never returns to Earth. Rick overhears this conversation and looks for ways to get Banner back to Earth.

Meanwhile in space the Hulk reverts to Bruce Banner and the ship heads into a radiation field. Banner is once again bathed in radiation. At the same time Rick hits the button to make the rocket return to Earth. Rick gets a shot of the radiation and it creates a link between him and the Hulk.

The rocket crashes back to Earth and the Hulk emerges and chases Rick. Rick begs him to stop and the Hulk does. Rick realizes that the Hulk has to follow his mental commands now. Rick and the Hulk head to Banner's cottage and Rick decides to sleep. When he wakes up he realizes the Hulk is gone. The Hulk has begun rampaging in a local town and the local state troopers can't stop him. Rick arrives on the scene and gets the Hulk back under control.

Rick takes the Hulk back to the cave so he can get some sleep. While the Hulk is locked up Rick goes over the origin of the Hulk in his head.

The scene shifts as two FBI agents arrive at a small town. All of the inhabitants are frozen like statues and the agents comment that several towns have suffered similar fates. One agent finds a poster for the circus. The scene changes to the circus as the Ringmaster hypnotizes the crowd and has his minions loot the entire town.

Rick wakes up and takes the Hulk to the town where his Aunt Polly is. Rick stops in to wash up and get some food before hitting the town. Rick sees the circus and decides to attend. The Ringmaster begins to hypnotize the crowd but Rick manages to call for the Hulk. The Hulk arrives and knocks the Human Cannonball out of the tent. He approaches the Ringmaster but several minions use a fire hose to stun the Hulk. They lock the Hulk up and since Rick is hypnotized the Hulk can do nothing. The Ringmaster muses to himself about turning the Hulk into a special attraction when Rick and the FBI agents arrive. The Hulk springs to life and captures the Ringmaster. The military arrives and Rick has the Hulk grab him and make his escape. Thunderbolt Ross vows to capture the Hulk as the issue comes to an end.

My Take: Finally, some action in the Hulk. I had been waiting for two issues to see the Hulk battle some bad guys. The battles were pretty short in this book but at least I got to see the Hulk in action. The art was really good in this issue. The best art for the series so far. The story felt more like two stories tied together but I liked both stories for the most part. I've always had a soft spot for the Circus of Crime. They are lame as villains but I find them to be fun.

I'm not sure about how I feel towards the end development that Rick can mentally control the Hulk. I don't like it because it defeats the purpose of the Hulk but at the same time it's interesting. One thing that is starting to bother me is the constant retelling of origins. I know why they're doing it but it just gets old. I understand that they had a lot of new people checking out the books so they needed to do this. I hope that they slow down on that as 1963 hits and the books start taking off more.

I'd give this issue *** out of *****

Notes: This is the first appearance of the Silver Age Ringmaster and the Circus of Crime. A Ringmaster appeared in Captain America #5 as a Nazi agent and this Ringmaster is supposed to be his son. The extra dose of radiation has made it so that the Hulk is always the Hulk. Rick Jones also has mental control over the Hulk. Betty Ross was absent from this issue. There really wasn't a place to fit her in.

Next Issue: Fantastic Four #7

Incredible Hulk #2

Cover Date: July 1962

Plot Overview: The Hulk happens upon a random town but Rick manages to divert his attention at the last moment. The origin of the Hulk is recapped.

Strange aliens have arrived at earth. They are the Toad Men and they want to capture the smartest man on Earth to determine how advanced mankind is. Meanwhile Banner and Rick head to a cave in the desert. He's come up with a door system that should hold the Hulk in the cave at night with the help of Rick.

Just then the Toad Men strike and capture them. They eject Rick and then move to the darkside of the Earth. Banner changes into the Hulk and he makes short work of the Toad Men. The Hulk is impressed with the ship and thinks that he'll use it to destroy the human race. Back on Earth, the U.S. military spots the ship and shoots it down. They find the wreckage and Banner emerges. General Ross has him arrested for attacking Earth.

The Toad Men avoid detection and signal the fleet to attack. The Toad Men leader reveals himself to the human race. He announces that they've used their amazing magnetic powers to pull the moon towards Earth. The moon will slowly destroy the world as it gets closer. Meanwhile night falls and Banner becomes the Hulk.

The Hulk breaks out of his cell and fights his way through the military. He comes across General Ross' home and abducts Betty. The military tries to stop him but ultimately fail. The Hulk takes Betty to Banner's lab. Rick arrives shortly afterwards and tries to convince the Hulk to fight the Toad Men. The Hulk attacks Rick but the sun rising saves Rick. Banner is updated on the situation and uses the Gamma Ray Gun and it reacts to the magnetic power of the Toad Men and tosses them far from Earth. The moon also resumes it's orbit.

The issue ends with General Ross expressing the belief that Banner and the Hulk are connected. The last panel of the issue has Rick locking the Hulk in the cave for the night.

My Take: I didn't really care for this issue that much. I don't like the early format of Banner ultimately solving the conflict in the book while the Hulk doesn't really fight a villain. I also didn't really care for the Gamma Ray Gun suddenly just existing and being the solution to the Toad Men threat. I also didn't care for the Toad Men as villains. They were just lame and bad foils for the Hulk.

There were some positives to this issue. I think the green Hulk works much better than the gray Hulk with how limited the colors were at the time. He was at least consistent this time. The characters continue to interact well with each other. I think the characters have developed more in 2 issues than the Fantastic Four have in 5 issues.

I'd give this issue *3/4 out of *****

Notes: The Hulk becomes green in this issue. That's really it. The Toad Men are pretty obscure as far as the Marvel Universe goes. I'm not sure if they actually appear in another issue of any comic. If they do, it's cameo appearances here and there. They're still sticking to the Hulk appearing at nightfall.

Next Issue: Journey Into Mystery #83

Incredible Hulk #1

Cover Date: May 1962

Plot Overview: Dr. Bruce Banner and the U.S. military are preparing to test his creation the gamma bomb. General Ross and his daughter Betty stop by and Ross makes his disdain for Banner known. Right before the bomb is about to go off, a teenager appears in the testing area. Banner rushes out and grabs the teenager. He tosses him into a trench but is caught by the explosion and takes a full blast of gamma radiation.

Banner comes to at the base and the teenager introduces himself as Rick Jones. The military decides to detain them for awhile. Nightfall comes and Banner turns into a monster. The monster breaks through the wall and heads off into the desert. One of the military men call him the Hulk during the search and he has been named. The Hulk makes his way to Banner's house and finds a spy named Igor searching for Banner's gamma radiation notes. The Hulk dispatches the spy and then becomes Banner as the sun rises.

The military arrive and arrest the spy. Betty Ross stops in and offers to help and comfort Banner. Banner sends her off and tells Rick that he's going to turn into the monster again when night returns.

We switch scenes to Igor as he sends a secret message to Russia. The message eventually reaches the Gargoyle, who heads for America. The Gargoyle begins his search for the Hulk. At the same time Banner and Rick are heading out into the desert when Banner again becomes the Hulk.

The Hulk stumbles upon the home of General Ross and his daughter Betty. Betty passes out when she sees the Hulk. The Gargoyle then arrives and shots the Hulk and Rick with a mind control weapon. He returns to Russia with them and is surprised to see that the Hulk has become Bruce Banner. He figures out the secret and approaches them later in their jail cell. Banner figures out that he can cure the Gargoyle's deformity with radiation. The procedure is a success and the Gargoyle helps them escape. The Gargoyle destroys the base he's on as Banner and Rick escape in a rocket.

My Take: I was really enjoying this issue until the last few pages. I would've enjoyed the Hulk fighting the Gargoyle more than the whole capture and take to Russia thing. Banner curing the Gargoyle was a nice little twist in there.

The first 18 pages of this book were really good though. The horror aspect of the Hulk in this issue was great. He's not a raging "Hulk Smash" guy. He's more of an arrogant and vain creature that hates weakness. He's not really actively trying to hurt people. He just considers them to be ants and treats them accordingly.

The character development in this book was really good. The Fantastic Four just started getting the character relationships down after 4 issues and this book came out of the gate with it. Banner, Jones, Betty and General Ross all have decently developed personalities and they all have unique relationships with Banner. On top of that, the Hulk has a really strong supporting cast right out of the gate.

The negatives to this issue are that whoever was responsible for the coloring couldn't figure out the gray Hulk. His shape was constantly changing and he was even green at one point. It was so bad that they decided to make the Hulk green in issue two.

I'd give this ***1/2 out of *****

Notes: This is the first appearance of the Hulk, Rick Jones, Betty Ross, Thunderbolt Ross and the first Gargoyle. As you noticed from the plot recap, the Hulk's transformation isn't triggered by emotion. It's triggered by the night. The Hulk is also fairly intelligent in this appearance. The Hulk was of course gray in this issue but is quickly changed to green due to issues they were having with the coloring.

Next Issue: Fantastic Four #5