Customer Reviews

Incredible Hulk Visionaries - Peter David, Vol. 1

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I gave my review of the Incredible Hulk: Ground Zero trade paperback the title of "The beginning of a legend." Little did I realize that Marvel was soon to release a collection of Hulk stories from an even earlier point in the tenure of fan-favorite scribe Peter David: the actual beginning.

Finally freed from the depths of Bruce Banner's soul, the crafty gray Hulk starts taking steps to eliminate his human alter-ego permanently; steps which include turning to one of his oldest enemies for help. Meanwhile, the covert organization SHIELD is seriously re-thinking their policy on the gray goliath, leading to an unexpected turn of events that will alter the lives of the Hulk and his supporting cast forever.

Peter David kicks off his twelve-year run with a bang, taking several long-underused concepts from the Stan Lee/Jack Kirby era to breathe new life into the character. Todd McFarlane, who became the book's regular artist an issue before David's arrival, gives the gray Hulk a truly frightening appearance unlike anything seen before. The child-like green Hulk might be referred to as a "savage", but his cunning counterpart shows he's more than capable of redefining the term.

Featuring the very first appearances of bizarre Hulk villains Half-Life and Mercy, a confrontation with the original X-Men (then under the title of "X-Factor"), an all-new intro by Peter David himself, and a special preview of Incredible Hulk #77 (David's return issue), Hulk Visionaries is an instant Marvel Masterpiece. Bring on the next volume!

This collection of Incredible Hulk comics is a chronological microcosm of the state and evolution of not just The Incredible Hulk and Marvel Comics, but the entire medium at the time. Collecting issues 331-339 originally published in 1987-1988, Marvel Visionaries Peter David Vol.1 chronicles the paradigm shift in the comic book industry that paved the way for modern comics.

I can tell you as a reader at this time, it was mind-blowing to witness month to month the transition from typical Saturday-morning-cartoon-type plots and situations to the Hulk getting drunk and beating a wife-beater.

Bruce Banner emerges as a deeply disturbed individual with, understandably, a whole host of very concerned parties in terms of national defense, research science and humanitarian causes trying desperately to contain if not help him.

Peter David was a catalyst and champion of the "comics- not just for kids" movement. As a reader he gave us a more realistic approach to dealing with the complexities and difficulties of the Hulk as a phenomenon both scientifically and psychologically. He significantly raised the bar for writing in comics.


Also, one can actually observe month to month the evolution of the now-famous cartoonist Todd McFarlane hone his signature style. Literally, it is within these pages that McFarlane develops from a run-of-the-mill industry comic book penciler to a highly stylized and recognizable graphic artist. Pretty amazing stuff, and a great snapshot of a perhaps overlooked critical transitional period in comic books, all nicely bound up in one volume.

I'll be the first to admit, I was NOT a fan of the gray Hulk when he first appeared. I grew up with a green Hulk who talked in broken third-person, not a gray, cunning brute. I was even more disappointed when they got rid of the Rick Jones Hulk, who had potential of his own, (Hey, it was the 80's, a long-haird Hulk? Cool...)
Yet the combination of Peter David and Todd McFarlane began to convince me otherwise.
It starts slowly because of the need to tie off old storylines by previous writers and it's also interesting to note McFarlane's evolution in his penciling style. By the end of the volume, you'll find that PAD has settled into his own niche and McFarlane is ready to burst in popularity.
If you've never had a chance to get a hold of these comics individually, and wanted to read the early Hulk stories by PAD, this volume is for you.

I wasn't as impressed with the material about Leader trying to get his gamma-head back as most. I found it rather standard fare, even as the grey hulk showed a cunning that the green hulk was never capable of. However, the storyline with the abused wife who shoots her husband in front of the Hulk made me take notice. The story focuses on her, rather than the Hulk (whose function is to emerge as the Hulk after getting thrown in jail as Banner) and when she shoots her husband (after "humiliating" him by saving his life during a beating by the Hulk), Hulk's reaction to her declaration that she didn't mean to kill him (a sarcastic "sure you didn't") made me take notice. This was not the Hulk that had been kicking around the Marvel universe since the 1960s. This was an actual new character.

Peter David eventually turned the Hulk green and then stupid but not before a good 3-4 years of excellent stories. This volume (and the next one) is well worth the money.

A lot of writers have offered their take on the Hulk throughout the years, from the early days of Stan Lee up until the most recent stories by Greg Pak. However, most fans consider Peter David's time on the title to be the best. It's interesting to note that in the foreward of this collection, David himself had no grand scheme for what he wanted to do with the character. He was simply given the title because no one else wanted it. He figured if he could get just six good issues, he would be o.k. Well, after a 12-year, 100+ issue run on the series, I would say he was successful. This first volume starts off with David tying up loose ends from previous writers before he goes into his own direction. He restores Samuel Sterns into a much more lethal version of the Leader, and takes the Hulk back to his origins by turning him gray. While not as strong as the green version, this Hulk is much more cunning, and quite frankly a total jerk. The Hulk goes on the run with Rick Jones and Clay Quartermain to locate and destroy a S.H.I.E.L.D stockpile of gamma bombs. Along the way, he encounters some new and bizarre villains. He also fights the original X Factor ( who were the original 5 X-Men). Also of note, most of the artwork in this volume was by a young up and comer named Todd McFarlane. You might have heard of him. If you're new to the Hulk, or have been a fan for a while, I would highly recommend all of the Peter David volumes. However, start here to see where it all began!

Whenever a comic fan thinks of the Hulk, they think of Peter David, and the same can be said the other way around. This TPB collects the first nine issues of David's unheralded run on the title, these issues find the green turned grey skinned and cunning goliath attempting to free itself from the mind and soul of Bruce Banner; no matter what. Featuring a run in with the original X-Men, the Hulk's greatest foe the Leader, and with S.H.I.E.L.D. waiting in the wings, this collection is a reminder of the kind of magic that Peter David worked on his 100 plus run on the title. Todd McFarlane gives the Hulk the most frightening and iconic look the character would have for years, but the best was yet to come from the duo on the title. All in all, it's about time that Marvel started re-printing David's classic run on the series, and hopefully more will be on the way.