Entries Tagged 'Marvel Comics' ↓

Over the years, the Hulk character has been pretty hit and miss for me. Sometimes he is written quite well, other times, not so much. There have been several versions of the Hulk over the years. All of which have been Bruce Banner…well, with the exception of that time Rick Jones became a version of the Hulk….

This new Hulk, is most definitely not Bruce Banner.

Judging by the evidence provided in the first four issues so far, it would appear that this new Hulk is actually Doc Samson!

That’s right, Bruce Banner’s green haired gamma powered psychiatrist. In the past, he has expressed a lot of guilt over the way he handled the Hulk, and because he was unable to cure Bruce, a lot of people got hurt. Gamma radiation seems to unleash the deeper psychological issues that a lot of these characters have, and that seems to lead to an alternate personality taking over, as well as a change in appearance.

This would explain why he seems to be targeting the Banner’s friends and enemies.

Let’s look at the facts:

1. Issue #1 starts off in Russia. The crime scene where Doc Samson is going over the scenario of what he thinks happened to Ironman She-Hulk, General Thunderbolt Ross, and Commander Hill. One thing is certain, someone killed the Abomination, and that someone was just as big, if not bigger, and left size 20 footprints behind. It wouldn’t be that odd if the Abomination was just beaten to death, but he wasn’t. He was then shot repeatedly with a gun big enough for the Hulk to hold, and was from the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier.
2. This new Hulk is incredibly smart, he knows his way around the Helicarrier, and is familiar with the people in Banner’s life. Who would be more familiar with the people in his life, than his former psychiatrist?
3. Doc Samson ditched the ponytail and finally got a shorter, modernized haircut, and ditched the old campy costume for a newer black and brown look. The exact same hair style is currently sported by this new Hulk, along with what looks like the tattered pants of his new superhero outfit.
4. The Red Hulk attacks She-Hulk on the Helicarrier. How does someone that big get aboard without anyone noticing….unless it’s someone who is supposed to be there….
5. After the Helicarrier crashes, it becomes apparent that there were no fatalities. However, there are three people missing. They become the top three suspects. Dr. Leonard Samson, Agent Clay Quartermain, and General Thaddeus Ross. Shortly before they went missing, Ironman located Ross and Quartermain. Apparently Samson throught he heard something while they were walking towards the Armory, and as soon as he disappeared, this new Hulk appeared and attacked.
6. Bruce Banner explains that this Red Hulk seems to get hotter the madder he gets. This causes the sand in the dirt below his feet to turn to glass. It also means that he must have previously been exposed to gamma radiation, and no doubt mutated somewhat. Then somehow got exposed again, causing the Red Hulk to emerge.
7. In issue #4, they found the coat of Doc Samson. It got shredded and saturated in gamma radiation as he grew, which leads the reader to believe that the new Hulk really is, Doc Samson.

They don’t explain how he became the Red Hulk yet, but it’s possibly connected to Rick Jones becoming the new Abomination(A-Bomb), which also needs to be explained.

Whether he really turns out to be Samson or someone else completely, all that is certain so far, is that this new Hulk is NOT Bruce Banner, as he repeatedly mentions. Also, this Hulk is bigger, stronger, meaner, smarter and more ruthless than past incarnations of the character. His intentions seem to be for the greater good, but I’ve got a feeling they’re setting him up to be the greatest Hulk antagonist of all time.