Planet Hulk #5 - Marvel Comics

PLANET HULK No. 5, November 2015

As concluding instalments go, “The Chronicle” must surely have proved a bitter disappointment to the 39,277 collectors who bought the comic in September 2015. For whilst the “Marvel Worldwide” pre-publication advertising for Issue Five of “Planet Hulk” promised a cataclysmic conclusion where its heroes Steve Rogers and Devil Dinosaur are “branded by battle” and “absolved by blood”, Sam Humphries' dialogue-heavily narrative instead probably had the vast majority of its audience hoping that “the claws of death [would actually] reach your throat” and prevent them from having to finish a woefully disheartening read.

Admittedly the twenty-page periodical does contain a little action as Captain America declines an offer to “strike back against God Doom” and instead dispatches “the vicious Red King” by repeatedly bludgeoning Greenland’s leader with his famous star-spangled shield. But this confrontation between the “Secret Wars” tie-in’s two main antagonists is so shockingly short-lived, lasting just seven pitiful panels, that it is over and done with before the reader realises it has even started… So much for the heavily feared ruler of “one of the most dangerous of the Battleworld dominions, a forbidden zone full of rampaging Hulks.”

Lamentably the final showdown concerning Bucky Barnes’ “brother-in-arms” and Doc Green is equally as direly penned, with the Annapolis-born writer somehow managing to imbue the green-skinned behemoth with an even more thoroughly annoying holier-than-thou attitude than the guide had when he first appeared to chaperon Devil Dinosaur and his warbound to the patchwork planet's Mud Kingdom; "Captain, if Hulk is not within us, then we are as hollow as the void in the sky."

However, just why the ‘embracer of his inner Hulk” decides to goad a clearly distraught and emotional gladiator for the 'umpteenth' time is inexplicable, especially when the obnoxiously ambitious gamma-irradiated experiment has deliberately transformed himself back into an (all-too vulnerable) alternate version of Steve Rogers and admitted that he knew “the domain’s despot” had already murdered the man Captain America was desperately trying to rescue. Such utter insanity on behalf of the manipulative deceiver clearly borders on the suicidal and it therefore comes as no great surprise that Humphries’ story ends with Doc Green stone dead on the castle’s cobbled floor having almost been cleaved in two by an enormous double-headed axe.

Writer: Sam Humphries, Artist: Marc Laming, and Colors: Jordan Boyd

Planet Hulk #4 - Marvel Comics

PLANET HULK No. 4, October 2015

Despite some very dramatic action sequences, most notably that of Devil Dinosaur tearing through the ramshackle settlement of the Tribal Hulks and scattering its super-strong barbaric inhabitants in every conceivable direction, it is hard not to imagine that many of this comic’s 44,608 readers probably felt “The Kingdom” was something of a ‘filler’ issue. Admittedly Sam Humphries’ script does see the “gladiator Steve Rogers” finally penetrate the Mud Kingdom and come face-to-face with Greenland’s ruler, the Red King. But with six of this periodical’s twenty-pages essentially comprising of single-panel splashes and much of the magazine’s dialogue limited to “Puny Human” and simply “Smash”, it genuinely doesn’t appear that there was enough content to the Maryland-born writer’s storyline to quite go around for this publication.

Sadly such a disappointing situation also leads to the American author once again ‘padding out’ some of this mini-series’ scenes with more of his “we are all hulk, Captain. The Gamma scrubs the mirror clean of pretension” theological nonsense. Irritating as these “There is no grace here. No absolution” diatribes by Doc Green were in the previous edition, they are especially unwelcome in this particular instalment as they bizarrely occur mid-way through the green-skinned adventurer’s brutally bloody rescue of Captain America. A somewhat surprising interruption considering that the pair are being pursued by all manner of heavily-tattooed spear-waving Hulks; “Who are you? Get back in line” In the name of the Red King--!”

Fortunately towards the end of this comic Humphries’ penmanship does make something of a return to form, enabling Issue Four of “Planet Hulk” to conclude with a satisfying cliff-hanger as Jack Kirby's Tyrannosaurus Rex overcomes a formidable array of oafish-looking opponents and an exhausted Rogers, full of desperate bravado for his ‘brother’ Bucky’, comes face-to-face with the foe of “God Doom” in the despot’s Orthanc-like tower.

This grisly audience is admittedly somewhat ‘drawn out’ on account of the blond-haired battler’s rather pretentious repeated threats to kill his enthroned prey unless he is told where his “warbound” friend is being kept prisoner. But such poorly worded dialogue is soon forgotten when the one-eye heavily-muscled monarch reveals one of his trophies to be that of Barnes’ severed bionic arm…

The regular cover art of "PLANET HULK" No. 4 by Michael Del Mundo

Planet Hulk #3 - Marvel Comics

PLANET HULK No. 3, September 2015

“The Storm” arguably demonstrates both the strengths and weaknesses of writer Sam Humphries, with a narrative that is not only absolutely packed full of bone-jarringly good action sequences. But also an abundance of nonsensical dialogue as Doc Green populates numerous word balloons during a heavy multi-panel theological discussion concerning “the restrictions of morality and judgement found in Man [which] are absent in Hulk.”

Indeed having started the twenty-page periodical depicting Steve Rogers desperately struggling beneath the waters of Gamma Lake whilst “The Devil” bites chunks out of a formidable-looking, part-octopus, “touch of shark” Sea Hulk, the subsequent scene depicting the green-skinned scientist goading the “gladiator” because “Gamma burns away all that is false and impure, and reveals what is already within us” proves something of a dissatisfyingly surreal moment. Certainly it is evident as to why Captain America “can make no sense of Green’s rubbish” and describes his Greenland guide’s “prattle” as “maddening.”

Fortunately however, this absurdly lengthy one-way conversation is thankfully sandwiched, if not squashed, in between some incredibly tense and dynamically charged altercations, including a high octane flashback sequence showing “super-soldiers Rogers & Barnes” battling one of the four Horsemen of Apocalypse, Holocaust “before the fall. Death and destruction.” In fact Humphries’ narrative genuinely manages to manufacture an impressive, almost instant, recovery from its “Hulk is the reality we deny ourselves” gobbledygook courtesy of an ultra-suspenseful cliff-hanger depicting the Sentinel of Liberty getting trapped by a party of “Tribal Hulks” within a dark restrictive ravine and being viciously riddled with half a dozen throwing spears; “I am Captain America of the super-soldier program! Face me! In the name of--”

The high point to Issue three of “Planet Hulk” nonetheless must be Marc Laming’s impressive illustrations, most notably his savage portrayal of Devil Dinosaur as he claws, gouges and rips the barnacle-covered flesh of his sea-faring foe. The Hartfield-based artist has gone on record to describe how “much fun” he had playing “with some classic monster movie ideas” whilst creating the Sea Hulk… And such ‘boyish’ enthusiasm, coupled with “a large dose of Ray Harryhausen all thrown into the Hulked-out blender” and some genuinely delightful touches by “Star Wars: Legacy” colorist Jordan Boyd, really shows throughout the book.

The variant cover art of "PLANET HULK" No. 3 by Alex Maleev

Planet Hulk #2 - Marvel Comics

PLANET HULK No. 2, August 2015

Set within the Battleworld barony of Greenland, Sam Humphries’ script for Issue Two of “Planet Hulk” seems to be far more concerned with subjecting its 47,944 strong audience to overly long speeches about survival and friendship, than exploring the deadly flora and fauna of this patchwork kingdom, and as a result proves to be something of a dissatisfying experience. In fact, apart from a frivolous four-page long flashback depicting Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes’ already evidentl close relationship, nothing of much consequence occurs to the Sentinel of Liberty, Doc Green or Devil Dinosaur for two-thirds of the comic… Except perhaps it’s made clear that the axe-wielding warrior and his green-skinned guide “to the Mud kingdom” won’t be getting along with one another all that well; “Tell your beast to back off. Or you’ll be Hulk gruel before Sundown.”

Fortunately however once the ‘travelling companions’ do begin their quest to assassinate the Red King and enter an “infernal jungle”, the Maryland-born writer finally starts to inject this decidedly lack-lustre narrative with some much needed action by having “Lord Rex” tangle with both the killer-plant “Doomicus Hulkicus Carnvoirae", and some gigantic Bull Hulks within short succession. Admittedly such absurdly named creatures do momentarily break any spell with which Humphries’ work held the reader. But their inclusion, and Captain America’s eventual ‘escape’ from the stampeding behemoths courtesy of a fast-flowing waterfall, genuinely brings this particular periodical to a pulse-pounding conclusion.

Sadly just as inconsistent as the plot to “The Path” is Marc Laming’s contribution to this publication. The “Kings Watch” artist’s pencilling is actually extremely engaging, with his interpretation of Devil Dinosaur looking every bit the lean mean killing machine many fans of Jack Kirby’s creation imagined the Tyrannosaurus Rex to be. Indeed the freelancer’s reimaging of the Incredible Hulk as the “soldier of fortune” Doc Green is also extremely well rendered, and there’s certainly plenty of dynamic energy packed into this comic’s proceedings once the fighting finally begins.

What this title does lack however is any proper pacing to the narrative. For whilst the British illustrator’s artwork is first-rate, a quarter of the book actually consists of little more than splash-pages. Something which arguably smacks of Laming dishearteningly mismanaging the flow of the story…

The variant cover art of "PLANET HULK" No. 2 by Yildiray Cinar

Planet Hulk #1 - Marvel Comics

PLANET HULK No. 1, July 2015

Despite Senior Editor Mark Paniccia’s back page assurances to the contrary, it is very easy to believe that many of this “Secret Wars” tie-in title’s 72,868 readers in May 2015 thought “Planet Hulk” was going to be little more than a dissatisfyingly goofy magazine whose only real selling points were “perhaps the greatest Marvel Team-Up yet” of Captain America and Devil Dinosaur, and the fact that the storyline was set upon a “Battleworld” island which was populated by numerous incarnations of Doctor Bruce Banner’s famous green-hued alter ego. For whilst Sam Humphries’ actual narrative concerns a rather serious assassination mission by Steve Rogers in order to save the life of his long-time friend Bucky Barnes, the tales’s cringingly-corny place names, such as Gamma Lake, She-Hulk Shore, Port Banner and Barrens of the Tribal Hulks are at best uninspiring.

Fortunately however, once the Minneapolis-born writer’s script moves beyond the shield-carrying Killiseum gladiator’s victory over “the Wolverine clan”, and the Captain’s subsequent attempt to feed Arcade to his prehistoric partner, matters become far less “crazy-cool” and actually settle down into a somewhat enthralling adventure involving “the themes of friendship… loyalty, idealism and nobility.”

Indeed the American author’s characterisation of an especially sinister Sheriff of Agamotto, who seems to revel in the pain and anguish of the chained former living legend during a tense scene set within “the heart of Doomstadt”, is particularly well-penned. Especially when events within the “Secret Wars” mini-series itself reveal that Stephen Strange knows very well who his captive formerly was before Earth-1610 and Earth-616 collided and yet still appears to smirk and evilly grin as the scarred ‘super-soldier’ is forced to bow before Doctor Doom in humble obedience; “The people love to see you fight. But they will love another. You breath now only by the grace of Doom. Since the day of your birth, you have owed your life to Doom.”

Marc Laming’s artwork is also rather pleasing to the eye, most notably his wonderful illustrations of Jack Kirby’s red reptile, even if some of the Englishman’s actual layouts, such as when Devil Dinosaur supposedly ‘gulps up’ Arcade and Captain America, don’t necessarily clearly convey what’s actually happening upon the first read.

The regular cover art of "PLANET HULK" No. 1 by Michael Del Mundo

Avengers: Operation Hydra #1 - Marvel Comics

AVENGERS: OPERATION HYDRA No. 1, June 2015

Firmly set within the “Marvel Cinematic Universe” as opposed to the New York-based publisher’s comic book shared cosmos, this one-shot could very easily be criticised as being little more than a ‘cash-in’ on the 2015 “Summer blockbuster film” “Avengers: Age Of Ultron”. Indeed not only was this “all-new adventure” by Will Corona Pilgrim blatantly advertised by “Marvel Worldwide” as being a forerunner to Joss Whedon’s ‘Earth’s Mightiest Heroes’ silver screen sequel. But, having firmly established the “terrorist-military organization bent on world domination” with the motion picture “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”, this magazine also supposedly explores what happens just before the Sentinel of Liberty and his truly formidable team-mates cinematically confront Baron Wolfgang von Strucker at his Sokovian-based Hydra outpost.

Sadly, having established such a dubiously-motivated pedigree, the “Marvel Studios” Creative Research Manager’s narrative disappointingly lives up to its low expectations by delivering an extraordinarily simple tale of “a secret Hydra splinter cell”, led by the incredibly ‘over-the-top’ Doctor Jensen, being somewhat unceremoniously battered to pieces by the combined forces of the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye and Captain America. In fact, with the exception of a perturbing sub-plot which focuses upon Clint Barton’s insecurities over “someone else grabbing my seat on the Avengers” just because he doesn't have either Tony Stark's armour or Steve Rogers' "super serum-ness", this twenty-page periodical’s storyline arguably consists of very little else but heavily-armed Hydra operatives being severely trounced in a variety of ways by the handful of heroes; “Thank you for choosing air widow. We hope you’ve enjoyed your flight.”

Fortunately “Avengers: Operation Hydra” does have one saving grace, apart from being available sporting a Silver Age Jack Kirby “The Old Order Changeth!” variant cover and containing a reprint of Issue Sixteen of “The Avengers” from May 1965, in that it’s wonderfully drawn by former “The Thing” penciller , Andrea Di Vito. Admittedly the Italian comic book artist’s popular super-team don’t really resemble their celluloid counter-parts, with Doctor Bruce Banner and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s former archer agent proving particularly disappointing likenesses when compared to the actors who play them. But costume-wise the Rome-born illustrator is reasonably ‘spot-on’, even going so far as to having Natasha Romanova dressed in her “Tony Stark-designed high tech suit”.

The regular cover art of "AVENGERS:OPERATION HYDRA" No. 1 by Michael Ryan

Savage Hulk #4 - Marvel Comics

SAVAGE HULK No. 4, November 2014

The somewhat grotesque and distinctly disturbing cover illustration to this issue of “Savage Hulk” unfortunately seems to encapsulate all that is wrong with the conclusion of “The Man Within”; a four-issue story arc written and drawn by Alan Davis which once seemed full of promise in recapturing the late 1960’s exploits of Bruce Banner and the original X-Men.

The portrait of the Hulk is beautifully drawn by the British artist with some genuinely inspirational pencilling. However at the same time Davis’ illustration also plainly depicts an alarming perversion of the green giant’s physiology, with the Hulk suffering ‘brain bulges’ more closely associated with his arch-nemesis The Leader. The book’s interior is equally at odds with one another, as the comic’s pages are both well-drawn and the panels packed full of the ‘almost cartoony’ detail the 1989 Will Eisner Comic Industry award winner is well-known for.

But the storyline is completely unrecognisable as one belonging to the era of writer/editor Stan Lee and Archie Goodwin. Indeed, at one point The Leader, presumably as baffled by the turn of events as the reader, angrily turns upon a captive Charles Xavier and asks him what is going on. The Professor’s response is an unequivocal “I have no idea”; and he is not the only one.

Based upon the premise that Bruce Banner’s relentless suppression of his violent alter-ego has caused the mild-mannered scientist to vastly increase his mental capacity and develop telekinesis blasts equivalent in power to his formidable strength, the Hulk becomes a veritable machine of destruction, laying waste to an entire army of the Leader’s super-strong plastic humanoid henchmen. Luckily for all concerned this brief but cataclysmic rampage results in the Hulk ‘burning off’ the gamma power needed to maintain his telekinetic abilities; though not before the green-skinned behemoth has somehow destroyed his foe’s distant secret base with an earth-shattering psychokinetic charge.

As one can imagine such a super-powered version of Bruce Banner’s ‘greener’ side is totally at variance with the character’s normal routine (of the time) of simply getting angry, pounding a few objects or people or both, and then leaping away to the next adventure. Alan Davis’ ludicrous incarnation is therefore disconcerting and badly jars with normal expectations. As a result it is with some relief that this book’s final panel depicts a ‘normal’ looking Hulk bounding away from the X-Men as it confirms that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s co-creation is once again safe from the hands of Davis; an artist who with this particular four-issue run has shown himself to be an infinitely better drawer than writer. Indeed the entire plot of “The Man Within” is best encapsulated by the words of the title’s main antagonist, the Leader… “I have indulged this farce long enough.”

The variant cover art of "SAVAGE HULK" No. 4 by Dale Keown

Savage Hulk #3 - Marvel Comics

SAVAGE HULK No. 3, October 2014

Presumably on paper the plot to Issue Three of “Savage Hulk” seemed like a reasonably good idea. Take one of the Marvel Universe’s most popular and powerful telekinetic super-heroines and imbue her with the near limitless strength of one of the comic book industry’s strongest anti-heroes. Certainly such a staggeringly formidable combination of super-powers within one individual provides writer and penciller Alan Davis with the opportunity to illustrate a ‘hulked up’ Marvel Girl towering over a defeated (original) X-Men for the edition’s front cover.

Unfortunately though, once the English author actually starts to explore the creation of such a “jade giantess” and begins to move his storyline forward things frankly start to get very silly and extremely confusing rather quickly. Indeed by the end of this comic book, having lost my way on several occasions with the numerous and seemingly random plot twists and turns, it came as a massive relief that the entire twenty pages are actually nothing more than ‘just a dream’. The entire concept being a simple ploy by The Leader to distract Professor Xavier whilst his robot army ambushes and defeats the X-Men.

In fact, if a regular reader of this title was on an especially tight financial budget, I strongly doubt their enjoyment of entire “The Man Within” story-arc would be in any way impinged if they gave this third and penultimate instalment a miss entirely.

Unfortunately Davis’ artwork for this edition is almost just as much of a mess as the plot, and seems almost rushed as his figures’ facial features appear slightly distorted from the norm. Now this could be due to the artist wanting to hint at the ‘dreamscape’ nature of the adventure, or emphasise the mutant super-heroes strange almost bestial aggressiveness towards their mentor when Jean Grey takes command of the team. But that seems doubtful.

"The ClanDestine" creator's design for the new-look Marvel Girl is also sadly disappointing though arguably fitting bearing in mind the story is attempting to emulate the sexist Late Sixties and Early Seventies. Relieving Lorna Dane of her headgear, as Polaris coos “My headdress looks so much better on you”, Marvel Girl transforms her costume into a bizarre bikini-like assemble with leggings. A move which clearly meets the approval of her eager male team-mates who whoop “Hhhot… with a capital sizzle!” and “I’ve always had a thing for tall women.”

The English artist does however still manage to impress with a series of panels towards the back of the book, which depicts a ‘Professor Hulk’ battling a horde of Marvel characters; both friend and foe. The Rhino, Sandman, Absorbing Man, Abomination, Sub-Mariner and even the Silver Surfer all make brief appearances as a result. But the ‘battle in Bruce Banner’s mind’ is a fleeting one and is quickly replaced by (even) more pages of “supercharged” and “wildly escalating…” explanatory dialogue.

Writer & Penciler: Alan Davis, Inker: Mark Farmer and Colorist: Matt Hollingsworth

Savage Hulk #2 - Marvel Comics

SAVAGE HULK No. 2, September 2014

One of my favourite super-villains, Stan Lee’s Abomination is one of the few characters I’ll actually purchase a comic book solely for; providing the artwork inside is reasonably competent anyway. However I’ve always felt Emil Blonsky’s alter ego has had something of a hard time establishing himself as an opponent worthy of rivalling the Hulk in strength and power. Fortunately Alan Davis’ superb cover to Issue Two of “Savage Hulk”, which depicts the large scaly humanoid seriously giving his arch-foe a good straight left to the chin, encapsulates all the raw aggression and sheer ferocity which once saw the human mutate attain the rank of 54th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time by Imagine Games Network.

Indeed under the pen and pencil of the English writer/artist I have not see a more powerful interpretation of the former KGB agent as he additionally battles the original X-Men and swiftly brings both Marvel Girl and the Angel to their knees. As Blonsky states himself this is “no dumb brute” the Hulk faces, but a behemoth who is not only bigger and stronger than Bruce Banner’s gamma-bomb induced form but one which is more intelligent too. As a result Davis gets to draw some simply superb slug-fest moments as the Abomination clearly tries to finish what he starts on the comic book’s front cover. Readers will rarely have seen the Hulk take such an almighty beating as the Russian smashes boulder after boulder into him; all accompanied by the obligatory “Fram” and Throom” sound effects.

In many ways this is real old school Marvel storytelling stuff, back to the heyday of Stan “The Man” and “King” Kirby, as the green giants go toe-to-toe, panel after panel, punch after punch, page after page. However such is the detail and impact of Alan Davis’ masterful artwork, gorgeously green thanks to the wonderful labours of colorist Matt Hollingsworth, that the relentless action doesn’t get monotonous for a moment.

There’s also some nice touches going on in the background, with the likes of Cyclops and Iceman realising they’ve been reduced to second-stringers by the two powerhouses before them, and simply concerning themselves with their own preservation.

The cowardly Major Talbot also ‘enjoys’ a supporting cast guest appearance as he begrudgingly orders his infantry and tanks forward to face the duelling combatants. Fortunately the soldier is saved by being able to arrest an unconscious Abomination, who, having inevitably goaded the Hulk once too often, finds himself soundly defeated.

Writer & Penciler: Alan Davis, Inker: Mark Farmer and Colorist: Matt Hollingsworth

Savage Hulk #1 - Marvel Comics

SAVAGE HULK No. 1, August 2014

There aren’t many combined writer/artists whose work will immediately entice me to blindly purchase a comic book. As my collection of “Kamandi” attests, Jack “King” Kirby is one, and “Alpha Flight” creator John Byrne is another. Alan Davis is actually a third, which caused me to snatch up this particular (first) issue of “Savage Hulk” without a moment’s pause. And why not when the Englishman has drawn a cracking cover depicting a rampaging Hulk scattering various members of the original “X-Men”. Indeed Davis’ illustration really captures that classic late Sixties “Marvel Comics Group” era depicting the green-skinned alter ego of Bruce Banner in his infamous torn purple trousers.

This is no surprise however as the writer has taken the somewhat unusual step of this making this edition a direct follow-on to the March 1970 “X-Men” story “The Mutants and the Monster”. As a result, the storyline to “The Man Within” takes up where the last issue of “X-Men” finished before the mutant super-hero group’s comic book became just a reprint title. On the face of it this probably seemed a good decision, hopefully tapping into a generation of readers who long to hark back to the simpler days of when Stan Lee was the publishing company's Editor-in-Chief. However the exploits of Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Iceman and the other X-Men were clearly cancelled at this point in their adventures for a reason and Davis’ attempt to continue their 'journey' struggles as a result.

In fact little of actual interest takes place within this comic, besides the Hulk destroying a missile launcher with a large boulder, until the issue’s very last page when the Abomination literally leaps into the proceedings. Up until this point however, all that happens is Professor Xavier provides the reader with some amazingly convoluted scientific explanations as to how he’ll be able to cure Doctor Banner of his gamma curse using a mental exhaustion device.

What this comic book does provide however is some superb drawings of the incredible Hulk by Alan Davis, as the monster battles a swarm of dual thrust supersonic rockets. The artist captures all the action in a series of panels which are superbly inked by Mark Farmer and coloured by Matt Hollingsworth. There’s also some of the best sketches of the Hulk coming to rest and returning to his human form that I have ever seen. The peaceful, almost childlike expression on the monster’s face as he stares at a breath-taking ‘photorealistic’ rendering of the night sky is simply stunning. It is therefore a pity that later, when Davis pencils the start of the reverse transformation process, that his drawing of Doctor Banner physically becoming the Hulk is disappointingly poor and greatly at odds with the quality of his work throughout the rest of the book.

The variant cover art of "SAVAGE HULK" No. 1 by Alex Ross