Customer Reviews

The Incredible Hulk Returns / The Trial of the Incredible Hulk

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

An incredibly affordable 2 disc set with great extras highlights two TV movie adventures of the Incredible Hulk.

Bill Bixby & Lou Ferrigno's hit TV series set a milestone for comic book characters. Before that, arguably the only superhero who had a hit was Batman & Superman in the movies. TV movies and TV shows of everyone from Spiderman to Captain America to Dr. Strange had all either failed outright or fizzled quickly. With Kenneth Johnson's drama of the Hulk, the creator turned Stan Lee's green pulp hero into something even grandmothers could love - and mine LOVED the Hulk TV series.

Purists might object to the way the two guest star superheroes are treated and portrayed here. I have no problems with either. Both Eric Kramer (Thor) and Rex Smith (Daredevil) manage their respective roles nicely and have pure fun all the while - especially Kramer who turned an almost stiff, stodgy comic book Thor into a CA beefcake surfer dude with a love of mead and bar brawls. Rex Smith turns in a three dimensional performance and honestly I like his portrayal of Daredevil much more than Ben Affleck's big screen turn. Bill Bixby realizes his tortured Jeckyl & Hyde David Banner character as poignantly as he did in the TV series and the production values for both flicks are top notch all around.

Comic fans must make concessions when their beloved heroes play up on the big or small screen. When film director Bryan Singer toned down the X-Men's costumes for the theatrical film, many a true believer cried. However when they saw the film, Singer was off the hook. These TV movies are NOT the comics we grew up on and so much the better because they've become unique interpretations of them for us to enjoy alongside the classic comics, cartoons or the video games which will be created for generations to come.

Anchor Bay has outdone themselves with excellent extras, packaging that evokes a comic book and even a booklet that at first glance makes you believe you're holding a collectible comic. Fantastic price & fantastic set - thanks Anchor Bay!

The Incredible Hulk Returns is a great TV movie! This Incredible Hulk TV movie was released in 1988. The TV movie aired on NBC back in the late 1980s. You still have the original cast from the TV series, Bill Bixby, Lou Ferrigno, and Jack Colvin. This particular movie David Banner had not transformed into the Hulk in two years and he meets up with an old friend Donald BLake, his character has spiritual connection with Thor. Hulk and Thor actually meet in ths TV movie which makes it worth waiting for! The other Incredible Hulk Movie is the Trial of the Incredible Hulk (1989)! This is second Incredible Hulk TV movie that aired on NBC in 1989. after David Banner meets Lawyer Matt Murdock played by Rex Smith. Matt Murdok is actually DareDevil, the blind Superhero from the Marvel comics universe. This is interpredation of DaveDevil pretty good. Rex Smith does a better job playing the Matt Murdock/DareDevil then Ben Affeck did in DareDevil 2003 movie!! Some how David Banner is accused of a crime he did not commit and DareDevil thinks the Wilson Fisk, aka KingsPin is responsible. Both Incredibl Hulk TV movies are great as well as the special features. There is an Interviews with Stan Lee and Lou Ferrigno. There also a slide show presentation from the TV movies courtsey of Lou Ferrigno! A+ 4 stars

'The Incredible Hulk TV series was dumped during the 5 season having only 7 episodes and leaving a big void for a finale of the show. These two TV movies are pretty fun and the effects seem to be a little bit better than the series.

The first film 'The Return Of The Incredible Hulk is the better of the two films and features another of Marvel Comic's biggest heroes The Mighty Thor. Although Thor is unfortunately even more loosely based than the Hulk, the Norse God of Thunder is a hoot in this fun if a little too long film.

The Mighty Thor is reduced to nothing more than a beer guzzling barbarian with a zest for battle and Tom Foolery. The Hulk looks pretty mean in this film and is an improvement over the series, but the film is nothing more than another installment in the quest for a cure for Dr Banner.

The second film is pretty tedious, but it does include another Marvel icon Daredevil! Even though Daredevil is a far cry from his comic counter part, the character is done better than the God of Thunder in the previous film.

Both films look pretty good, but there are no extras included on this one disc version. I would suggest you buy the 2 disc version for these films as it includes some very cool extras.

Hulk Smash!

'The Incredible Hulk TV series was dumped during the 5 season having only 7 episodes and leaving a big void for a finale of the show. These two TV movies are pretty fun and the effects seem to be a little bit better than the series.

The first film 'The Return Of The Incredible Hulk is the better of the two films and features another of Marvel Comic's biggest heroes The Mighty Thor. Although Thor is unfortunately even more loosely based than the Hulk, the Norse God of Thunder is a hoot in this fun if a little too long film.

The Mighty Thor is reduced to nothing more than a beer guzzling barbarian with a zest for battle and Tom Foolery. The Hulk looks pretty mean in this film and is an improvement over the series, but the film is nothing more than another installment in the quest for a cure for Dr Banner.

The second film is pretty tedious, but it does include another Marvel icon Daredevil! Even though Daredevil is a far cry from his comic counter part, the character is done better than the God of Thunder in the previous film.

If Hulk TV is your cup of tea, I would suggest you buy the 2 disc version for these films as it includes some very cool extras. The one disc version includes the films only and it cost about the same price as the two disc version......Hulk like extras!

Hulk Smash one disc version!

I haven't actually watched these movies since they were on t.v., but I remember enough to wonder two things.

1. Why didn't they bring out all three movies in one boxset? (There was 'Death of the Incredible Hulk' as well) and

2. Where's the original series?

I mean, I *love* the Incredible Hulk. Bill Bixby does a fabulous job as the tortured David Banner. Everytime I watch the scene where Elana caresses the Hulk's cheek and says, "My poor David. I have loved you for so very long..." it brings tears to my eyes. Lou Ferrigno is the exception to the rule that musclemen can't act.

I've only got the pilot on DVD and I want more. Bring back the series! Bring back the haunting title music that almost makes your cry in of itself, and the angst and drama and action.

Not to mention, I was a kid in the eighties and I have a fondness for those wonderful eighties t.v. shows. I own Dukes of Hazzard, Knight Rider, The A-Team and Magnum P.I. I would buy Incredible Hulk in a flash if they came out. Its one of the better shows to come out of the eighties.

Come on, release it on DVD!!

The whole Hulk, Thor, Daredevil thing is kind of crazy, but what was so good about The Incredible Hulk series, in my view, was that they took the incredible and made it somehow believable. Not saying that it wasn't unbelievable, but it seemed so down to earth that it had an air of believability about it. What it all boils down to is that it's a great show with great actors who did a splendid job.

During the 70s, the Incredible Hulk was my favorite non-space sci-fi series. Like Doctor Kimble of the 60s Fugitive series, Doctor David Banner was forced by circumstances beyond his control to wander like a fugitive from state to state and city to city, seeking low-profile work and a way to undo the serious condition that an extremely high dose of gamma radiation has left him with. While Kimble sought the one-armed man who killed his wife, Banner, on the other hand, must discover a way to reverse his condition. The condition is a physical transformation which he experiences whenever his anger turns into an uncontrollable rage; the huge green beast which Jack McGee, the reporter that hounds him, has labeled the Hulk.

Of the two movies included in this package, The Trial of the Incredible Hulk is the better one. The Incredible Hulk Returns was okay, but somehow, pairing him up with the Mighty Thor, another comic book hero, while obviously a bit of fun, didn't quite make the kind of impression that the original series did. It was interesting to revisit Banner's situation almost a decade later, after the series ended, but having Thor enter the scene at the lab and suddenly begin breaking things didn't go over so well. It was too much like, oh, here we go again, so close but yet so far, poor Banner gets set back again...

Apparently, Doctor Banner had worked for years with a very highly advanced scientific company experimenting with a new source of alternative energy, and suddenly, Blake appears with Thor and begins to smash it all to pieces. Hasn't Banner suffered enough already? This kind of treatment, while obviously part of the story-line, was simply very difficult to sit through. After that, it was just another overdone story about an insider in the company selling industrial trade secrets and getting in too deep over his head with the wrong kind of criminals. An attempt at theft at the company is thwarted by the Hulk, then his girlfriend is kidnapped, and Thor and the Hulk rescue her, etc...

But The Trial of the Incredible Hulk was much more than all that. In this movie, we see the Doctor Banner that we learned to sympathize for and love for his amazing ability to tolerate what so many of us know too well; the down-side of human society, where hard knocks and poverty combine to make a very cruel reality. Right from the start, Banner is seen working in an irrigation ditch, on a large farm, with a gang of roughians, in the cold of the late autumn or winter, and a bully pushes him into a small pool of cold water and laughs, then urges Banner to start a fight with him. Banner is tempted, but declines, and leaves, obviously sick of being bullied by the brute.

From there, he collects his last pay and heads for the nearest city. In the city, while Banner checks into a seedy, low-rent hotel and goes out to look for work, we're introduced to a blind lawyer, entering his office, who basks in the sunlight of the window while he updates the situation with his secretary and partner. From them, we learn about an extremely powerful crime-lord that has been corrupting the city-government, whom they are determined to take down. Later, we see the blind lawyer change into the Dare-Devil, a local super-hero, destined to meet the Hulk.

In the next scene, we see some of the crime-lord's team in action, as they rob a large cache of diamonds from a jewelry store in broad daylight. After the heist, 2 of the main thugs escape the scene on a subway and one begins to make a move on an innocent female passenger. Unfortunately, Banner is sitting quite close to the woman and she asks for his help. The thug is obviously a very egocentric fool that thinks he can take whatever he wants in the city, including any attractive female he sees on a subway. A few other passengers are scared away, but Banner caves in to the pleas of the woman and confronts the man. Seconds later, both of the men are on Banner and he gets tossed behind some seats. Enter the Incredible Hulk, and the story begins.

What happens is the incident results in the accidental death of an innocent bystander when one of the thugs tries to shoot him and when the cops enter the scene, the Hulk runs off into the dark subway tunnel and gets lost in some dark corner. When the cops find him, they arrest him for the killing of the innocent bystander, and the thugs get to the girl in the hospital and threaten her family, so that she is forced to place the blame on Banner. While Banner is being held, the blind lawyer talks to him and agrees to defend his case, because he knows that the crime-lord's thugs are the real problem and Banner has given them a lead on them.

Well, I'm not going to tell the whole story, but the point is, it is much more interesting than The Return and the plot isn't so thin. It has some fascinating characters and a much thicker plot with deeper implications. City government corruption makes for a very realistic theme and the Dare-Devil, as a super-hero, is much more believable than the mighty Thor.

This DVD special set has two movies that were aired well after the series ran out, which highlighted the power of this 'incredible' series. The fisrt movie, 'The INcredible Hulk Returns' is not very good as Banner/Hulk teams up with Thor and his earthly contact. The Thor ledgend is water-downed. This movie is probably one star, but the second movie, though with it took many liberties with the Dare Devil ledgend, is actually pretty good (except the flying crafts special effects at the end). Rex Smith is a pretty good Dare Devil. The plot, filming, and Hulk/Banner story intertwines nicely.

The added DVD features involving Stan Lee and Lou Ferrigno are great! It is what makes this DVD a great buy. One gets an inside scoop on the creation and development of the Hulk and Marvel comics. The special on Lou Ferrigno is outstanding. One gets to expierence is life via body building and his family and it has such a personal touch, it rivals 'Pumping Iron.'

For any comic book, Hulk, TV or body builder, this special set is a great pick. It should also be noted that the Incredible Hulk succeeded as a TV series and movie because of three things: Nice story telling, Bill Bixby, and Lou Ferrigno. They should be applauded for soing such a great job on a comc book turned TV sries, and in this set - TV movies.

With THE HULK about to hit theaters, it's time to milk the incredible green cash cow by finally releasing the series on DVD. However, since Universal still owns the rights to the original series, all Anchor Bay Entertainment can do is release the TV movies. Not the most flavorful of the Hulk installments, it is still a nice treat though to at last snag these on disc. ABE put together a nice package complete with both films, interviews with Ferrigno and Stan Lee, the complete Standing Tall body building documentary with Lou, but sadly no documentary on Bill Bixby. What an injustice!

Used partially (actually mainly) to foster potential Daredevil and Thor spinoffs, these productions shift early on in the stories from focusing on Banner to the new characters. Even though cheesy, they're still good fun. If you're a Hulk fan, needless to say, this is a must have!

If you have the original DVDs of The Incredible Hulk Returns and Trial of The Incredible Hulk, you should still consider buying this set. First, the picture and sound are much better. They are not outstanding, but substantially better than the...releases from a few years ago. This set is delightfully packaged with a retro-comic look throughout.

There's a great collection of extras on this set. The biggest one of all is STANDING TALL, which is a 1995 documentary about Lou Ferrigno's comeback in the Mr. Olympia Masters competition. This is the entire documentary ... It is a facinating look at bodybuilding. There's also an interview with Lou and another one with the always "on" Stan Lee. There's also a nice talent file and a great collection of stills from these movies and the TV series (the pictures came from Lou's private stash!).

I always enjoyed these movies, although they lacked some of the depth of the original series.