The Immortal Hulk #48 - Marvel Comics

IMMORTAL HULK No. 48, September 2021

Besides making it abundantly clear that Joe Fixit’s green-skinned alter-ego and the Harpy have just shared a highly intimate, physical moment with one another, most Hulk-heads were probably scratching their heads as to what the purpose Al Ewing’s narrative for Issue Forty-Eight of “The Immortal Hulk” actually was. For whilst the British author’s sedentary storyline includes cameos by both the Avengers and the Fantastic Four, absolutely nothing happens within the twenty-page periodical whatsoever apart from Betty Banner eventually leaving her lover by literally flying out of their bedroom window.

Indeed, for those comic book collectors who struggle to finance the combined cost of their monthly Pull List, it could easily be argued that by simply depicting the two characters conversing for almost the entirety of this publication, the GLAAD Media Award-nominee has penned the perfect instalment to save money on by giving this title a miss, and still not losing any progress when it comes to the series’ ongoing narrative; “We all don’t know. All this time and we all don’t know a damn thing. But I wanna learn. I wanna be better. I want to be a better me.”

Of course, “Hiding Places” isn’t just about the titular character communicating with his fantastically-feathered other half, as the “Gamma Madmen” behind this comic do provide some additional spotlight upon both Jennifer Walters and long-suffering reporter Jacqueline McGee. However, even then all the reader is given is panel after pedestrian-paced panel of the two characters sat upon a sofa talking about whether they’re in control of their own destinies. Such doubts may well add some extra vulnerability or interest to the cast’s personalities, but such a seemingly endless carousel of speech bubbles and word balloons debatably makes for an entirely disinteresting discourse.

Perhaps equally as uninspired by this book’s lifeless script is illustrator Joe Bennett, who despite trying to inject some dynamism into its proceedings with the occasional angry-faced Harpy, still seemingly struggles to do anything except draw Fixit, Ross, She-Hulk and Jackie looking straight towards their audience. In fact, the Brazilian penciller actually appears to be conserving his strength when it comes to his sketches, by reusing either the odd identical or slightly re-touched panel of the Hulk and Betty whenever he presumably believes he can get away with it.

The regular cover art of "IMMORTAL HULK" #48 by Alex Ross