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scans_dailyPreviously in Planet Hulk
I have read almost every single issue of The Incredible Hulk, and my absolute favorite is The Incredible Hulk #103. This story effectively caps off the happy part of Planet Hulk, and had the series ended there I would have considered it to be a wonderful ending for the character.
(7 pages from The Incredible Hulk #103)
With the Red King dead and the Hulk in control of Sakaar, we get to see an unusual situation where the Hulk is the one with all the political might.
It’s worth noting that this is not the first time the Hulk has ruled a planet. When he went to the microscopic world of K’ai he ruled alongside Jarella. He also took the lead in setting up a new regime (that ended terribly) in an annual written by Bill Mantlo which was most likely Pak’s inspiration for Planet Hulk. (Pak is a self-admitted Mantlo fanboy, and a lot of his storylines repeated themes that Mantlo had previously explored.)
However, those times were when the Hulk had Bruce Banner’s brain. This time, he’s very much the Hulk.
(Okay, he also ruled K’ai as the gray Hulk at one point, but at that point he was really just a puppet ruler being used by the sorcerers who exiled him immediately after he served his purpose.)
Anyway, although Banner’s not in control anymore, he’s not entirely gone. This issue contains two of Bruce’s three appearances in this entire saga:
The first challenge that the Green King faces as the new ruler is one that comes from within his own ranks. Miek and Elloe are keen on killing the Red King loyalists up until Elloe finds out that her mother is among them. Then Miek’s bugs and the pink-skinned Sakaarians threaten to end the peace before it truly begins.
The Hulk brings all parties to the Great Arena. The Shadow Elders arrive just in time to witness the start of the fight, leading them to believe that the Hulk’s rule is going to be more of the same that they saw from the Red King. The Hulk, however, has a slightly different solution to ending conflicts:
Hey, the Hulk has a lot of experience in seeing enemies put aside their differences in order to fight him off. Heck, back on Earth he even prevented World War III at one point by convincing the world powers that he was the guy behind a bunch of global terrorist attacks so they’d nuke him instead of each other. Really, he’s got a martyr complex, except he’s too big and strong to actually become a martyr.
Once that matter is settled, the Shadow Elders offer their allegiance to the Hulk and suggest that he take Caiera as a bodyguard. But the Hulk doesn’t want a bodyguard…he wants a bride.
And that leads us to my favorite part of the entire Planet Hulk story…THE WEDDING OF THE INCREDIBLE HULK!
While Bruce Banner has actually been quite a player in his long history, he’s generally been portrayed as having only a few real loves. The first of those was Betty, who was basically his Lois Lane, except that she was even more useless in the Silver Age. The second was Jarella, the green-skinned empress of K’ai. Jarella is notable for being a person who loved both Bruce Banner and the Hulk, while Betty didn’t really accept the Hulk until the late 1980s. Unfortunately, Jarella was only mortal and wound up dying in some collateral damage of a villain attacking the Hulk.
Caiera is notable as a love for the Hulk because, unlike Betty and Jarella, she got to know the Hulk first and Banner second. Like Jarella, she came to accept both personalities. Unlike Jarella, she is nigh-invulnerable and capable of surviving the type of situations the Hulk finds himself in. In many ways, she’s the perfect mate for Bruce and the Hulk. Sadly, that’s probably the reason she has to die.
But I’m not going to get into that tragic ending just yet. For right now I’m going to look at that last scan and smile and just remember this fleeting moment of happiness in the Hulk’s life before it all comes tumbling down.
I have read almost every single issue of The Incredible Hulk, and my absolute favorite is The Incredible Hulk #103. This story effectively caps off the happy part of Planet Hulk, and had the series ended there I would have considered it to be a wonderful ending for the character.
(7 pages from The Incredible Hulk #103)
With the Red King dead and the Hulk in control of Sakaar, we get to see an unusual situation where the Hulk is the one with all the political might.
It’s worth noting that this is not the first time the Hulk has ruled a planet. When he went to the microscopic world of K’ai he ruled alongside Jarella. He also took the lead in setting up a new regime (that ended terribly) in an annual written by Bill Mantlo which was most likely Pak’s inspiration for Planet Hulk. (Pak is a self-admitted Mantlo fanboy, and a lot of his storylines repeated themes that Mantlo had previously explored.)
However, those times were when the Hulk had Bruce Banner’s brain. This time, he’s very much the Hulk.
(Okay, he also ruled K’ai as the gray Hulk at one point, but at that point he was really just a puppet ruler being used by the sorcerers who exiled him immediately after he served his purpose.)
Anyway, although Banner’s not in control anymore, he’s not entirely gone. This issue contains two of Bruce’s three appearances in this entire saga:
The first challenge that the Green King faces as the new ruler is one that comes from within his own ranks. Miek and Elloe are keen on killing the Red King loyalists up until Elloe finds out that her mother is among them. Then Miek’s bugs and the pink-skinned Sakaarians threaten to end the peace before it truly begins.
The Hulk brings all parties to the Great Arena. The Shadow Elders arrive just in time to witness the start of the fight, leading them to believe that the Hulk’s rule is going to be more of the same that they saw from the Red King. The Hulk, however, has a slightly different solution to ending conflicts:
Hey, the Hulk has a lot of experience in seeing enemies put aside their differences in order to fight him off. Heck, back on Earth he even prevented World War III at one point by convincing the world powers that he was the guy behind a bunch of global terrorist attacks so they’d nuke him instead of each other. Really, he’s got a martyr complex, except he’s too big and strong to actually become a martyr.
Once that matter is settled, the Shadow Elders offer their allegiance to the Hulk and suggest that he take Caiera as a bodyguard. But the Hulk doesn’t want a bodyguard…he wants a bride.
And that leads us to my favorite part of the entire Planet Hulk story…THE WEDDING OF THE INCREDIBLE HULK!
While Bruce Banner has actually been quite a player in his long history, he’s generally been portrayed as having only a few real loves. The first of those was Betty, who was basically his Lois Lane, except that she was even more useless in the Silver Age. The second was Jarella, the green-skinned empress of K’ai. Jarella is notable for being a person who loved both Bruce Banner and the Hulk, while Betty didn’t really accept the Hulk until the late 1980s. Unfortunately, Jarella was only mortal and wound up dying in some collateral damage of a villain attacking the Hulk.
Caiera is notable as a love for the Hulk because, unlike Betty and Jarella, she got to know the Hulk first and Banner second. Like Jarella, she came to accept both personalities. Unlike Jarella, she is nigh-invulnerable and capable of surviving the type of situations the Hulk finds himself in. In many ways, she’s the perfect mate for Bruce and the Hulk. Sadly, that’s probably the reason she has to die.
But I’m not going to get into that tragic ending just yet. For right now I’m going to look at that last scan and smile and just remember this fleeting moment of happiness in the Hulk’s life before it all comes tumbling down.
no subject
Date: 2013-04-04 09:21 pm (UTC)I dont see any trace left in the current comics.
no subject
Date: 2013-04-04 10:13 pm (UTC)'tis true. She fit him too well. And a happy lead is not an interesting lead, most of the time.
That said, I love that the movie version of Planet Hulk ends with the wedding alone.
Once Planet Hulk is over, you going to go through the cleanup work Pak did for Hulk in the wake of Rulk?
That final big hug he gave his sun towards the end of the run is one of my all time favorite moments.
no subject
Date: 2013-04-05 12:46 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-04-05 01:38 am (UTC)...I'm sorry. *Hangs head*