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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Transitional Pre-"Batman" Comic Book Adaptation, May 10, 2002
I was 19 years old when this tv special first aired on NBC. It was just a few months before the Nicholson/Keaton "Batman" came out, so I think it provides a good look at the way comic-book characters have been adapted for movies & tv. It's a transitional piece.In the '70's (and the Incredible Hulk tv show was from that time), lots of liberties were taken with comic-book adaptations for television & movies. Colorful villains were always non-existent. The individual personality traits of the original comic-book characters were never explored. And worst of all, the costumes were usually cheap & innaccuarate. After 1989's "Batman", that all changed. Now film-makers & tv producers try to make their adaptations of comic-book heroes as faithful as possible to their original source. (That's why "Spider-Man" is such a hit. It's true to the comic-book!) Well, "The Trial of The Incredible Hulk" is kind of in-between those two periods...and it shows! This tv movie has singer Rex Smith doing a very good acting & fighting job as Daredevil, the blind lawyer & acrobatic superhero, making a sizeable guest appearance. John Rhys-Davies brings Wilson Fisk ("the Kingpin") to life as the villain. Daredevil's background, as portrayed in this show, is pretty faithfull to the comic-book original (though in this show, he has a Gordon/Batman relationship with a cop named "Tendelli", which is non-existent in the comic-book.) Even the character of "Turk" is portrayed in this show. (Too bad there's no Karen Page or Foggy Nelson.) It's obvious that the writers had been inspired by the Frank Miller Daredevils where the Hulk had made a guest appearance. So in that sense, this show is a glimpse of things to come. However, this show is also a glimpse of things that should have been left in the '70's, particularly the bad costuming! Daredevil's signature red-devil acrobat uniform with a cowled-mask complete with devil horns is missing in this show. Instead, what we have is Rex Smith dressed in a black cat-burgler's outfit! Oh well, the story & acting are good, Rex Smith handles the martial-arts fight scenes adequately, & as always, Bill Bixby captures the tortured persona of Dr. Banner to a "T." I recommend it, but in light of the new Spider-Man movie, as well as the anticipated movie releases of the Incredible Hulk & Daredevil next year, I also recommend that you don't expect too much from "The Trial of The incredible Hulk."
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