There’s a new Hulk in town, as Bruce Banner is literally ripped out of the Jade Giant’s body and replaced by a new host. Since 1962, Bruce Banner has terrorized the Marvel Universe with impossible strength and unmatched rage – now, a true monster is taking his place.
The Infernal Hulk Is Born
The Eldest Just Replaced Bruce Banner as Hulk’s Other Half
In today’s Incredible Hulk #30, the Infernal Hulk is born. After baiting Hulk into a trap, the demon known as ‘Eldest’ possesses the body of his old nemesis Abomination. Using a mix of impossible strength and eldritch magic, Eldest rips Bruce Banner free from the Hulk’s body and transfers its own essence into the Hulk’s body. Bruce is left to die in a dimension outside of reality, and the Infernal Hulk is born.
The last thirty issues of Incredible Hulk have set up Eldest’s plan to steal Hulk’s strength and free the demonic Mother of Horrors from her prison outside reality. Now, her mission has come to fruition, but not in the way she expected. The issue comes from Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Nic Klein, Matthew Wilson and Cory Petit.
See the New Hulk’s Redesign
A Demonic New Age of Monsters Is Coming
While Incredible Hulk #30 doesn’t show the new Hulk’s full design, Marvel’s recent solicits for the follow-up series Infernal Hulk have given fans a good look at the new version of the Green Goliath. After having Bruce Banner torn out of his body, Hulk is now split in two, with a blue-grey Hulk body on the left, and the Eldest’s purple demonic form on the right. In the middle, a bubbling gamma scar marks the difference. See the new look in art from Nic Klein, Juan Ferreyra, Stephen Segovia and Dan Panosian.
In Incredible Hulk #30, the new Infernal Hulk attempts to wake the Mother of Horrors, but she’s comatose after eons trapped in her prison. In frustration, Eldest consumes its demonic mother, tapping into the power of the monster who first created gamma energy. The summary for Infernal Hulk #1 states that the new Hulk intends to use this energy to transform the entire world:
The evil known as Eldest has literally torn Bruce Banner and the Hulk apart and taken the Hulk’s body as their own. This new, unstoppable Infernal Hulk is ten times the monster that everyone always feared Hulk would be. Their diabolical plan is to plunge the world back into ancient horrors by transforming our heroes into nightmarish beasts! Meanwhile, the indomitable Bruce Banner, though powerless, will stop at nothing to thwart their evil schemes!
Our Take on the New Hulk
The Marvel Universe Is Finally Getting the Hulk It Deserves
From Hydra Cap to the Superior Spider-Man, every Marvel hero eventually undergoes an arc where they’re replaced by one of their villains, and Hulk’s looks to be truly epic in scope. Bruce Banner has always been seen as a monster by the Marvel Universe at large, despite his heroism. Now, the new Hulk will show the world what a true monster can do with Hulk’s power.
Marvel is signposting Infernal Hulk leading up to some kind of event where all Marvel’s heroes have monstrous new forms unlocked – an awesome finale for a saga that’s digging deep into Marvel’s eldritch lore, explaining how ‘monsters’ came to exist in the first place, and how they tie back to the gamma energy that defines Hulk’s strength.
While a villain takeover will always be controversial with some fans, it’s clear the creative team of Incredible/Infernal Hulk have a substantial story to tell, and it will be exciting to see the new dynamic of the Hulk as a true monster and Bruce Banner doing everything he can to stop his former ‘partner.’
The Incredible Hulk #30 is available now from Marvel Comics.
- First Appearance
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The Incredible Hulk (1962)
- Alias
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Robert Bruce Banner
- Alliance
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Avengers, Defenders, Horsemen of Apocalypse, Fantastic Four, Pantheon, Warbound, S.M.A.S.H., Secret Avengers
- Franchise
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Marvel