• Written by: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
• Art by: Nic Klein
• Colors by: Matthew Wilson
• Letters by: VC’s Cory Petit
• Cover art by: Nic Klein(cover A)
• Cover price: $4.99
• Release date: June 21, 2023

The Incredible Hulk #1 finds Bruce Banner wandering the lonely highways and bi-ways of Kentucky to keep away from humanity when an ancient evil emerges to hunt the Hulk for its own grand design.

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Is It Good?

The Incredible Hulk #1 picks up pieces of last year’s Hulk run from Donny Cates and Ryan Ottley, mixes in the metaphysical aspects of Al Ewing’s run before that, and begins a new chapter that leans squarely into the horror of what it means to be a monster. Phillip Kennedy Johnson is quickly developing a reputation for being a “Mr. Fix It” (no pun intended) by trying to take some of the lemons from past runs and turning them into lemonade. Does this particular brand of green lemonade wet your whistle? Mostly, yes, but the jury is still out.

When last we left the Hulk at the end of Cates and Ottley’s run, the weird mental contraption that kept Hulk a prisoner in Banner’s mind finally broke, leaving Banner and Hulk at odds for control once again. Now, Banner wanders the lonely roads while avoiding humanity, except when necessary, when ancient demons begin to hunt Banner to conscript Hulk’s body as the key to unleashing the Mother of Horrors.

What’s great about this issue? Johnson gets back to basics with Banner as a tortured soul desperate to keep the Hulk from committing reckless death and destruction. This Hulk isn’t the kinder, gentler Hulk we’re used to seeing in the Avengers. He’s a mean, green, destruction machine, so Johnson paints a tragic picture, ripe with drama and emotional pain. Plus, the introduction of a brood of ancient monsters opens the door for intriguing possibilities as the Eldest calls forth monsters from across the Marvel Universe, such as Man-Thing, Ghost Rider, and others.

What’s not so great about this issue? The Eldest speaks in metaphor and symbolism that is sometimes hard to follow. If you’re not familiar with the previous Hulk runs, you’re going to have a tough time making sense of the monsters, what they’re talking about (e.g. references to the Green Door), and what they intend for Hulk when they catch him. In other words, everything about Banner/Hulk works, but everything else is hard to follow which makes this issue a terrible jumping-on point.

How’s the art? Nic Klein leans hard into body horror with ugly, messy transformations, so for readers who like their monsters to be unsettling in a scary kind of way, this issue fits the bill. The dark setting adds to the fear factor, and a fully-transformed Hulk is a menacing, malignant force.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Bits and Pieces

The Incredible Hulk #1 builds on the previous couple of runs to establish Banner, once again, as a lonely traveler avoiding contact with humanity. This time, malignant monsters from ancient times want Hulk’s body for their own purpose, making for an intriguing new setup. Readers who want their monsters to be scary will have a lot to like in this issue, but the plot leans a little too heavily on the existential aspects of the previous runs, which sets a high barrier for new readers to get hooked.

7.5/10