Planet Hulk

Plot Summary and Credits

After one too many destructive rampages across the world, several of Earth’s heroes send the Hulk into space to a new planet where he can roam freely. On the way to his new planet, Hulk’s ship is pulled into a wormhole that takes him to the savage world of Sakaar, where he is captured and forced to fight as a gladiator for the Red King. With the help of a group of fellow captured gladiators and the Emperor’s bodyguard Caiera, Hulk breaks free and smashes anyone standing in his way, including his old friend the Silver Surfer, who was captured as well. After uniting the tribes of Sakaar and defeating the King, Hulk becomes ruler of the planet with Caiera as his queen. One day, the ship that carried the Hulk to Sakaar explodes, killing most of the inhabitants of the planet, including Caiera. Swearing revenge against the heroes who exiled him and killed his people, the Hulk gathers his remaining warriors and leaves for his home planet.

Greg Pak (writer), Carlo Pagulayan, Michael Avon Oeming, Alex Niño, Marshall Rogers, Aaron Lopresti, Gary Frank (pencillers), Jeffrey Huet, Mike Alfred, Tom Palmer, Danny Miki, Sandu Florea, John Sibal (inkers), Chris Sotomayor, Laura Martin, Lovern Kindzierski (colourists), Randy Gentile (letterer), Hulk created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

Collects Incredible Hulk #92-105, Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook and material from Amazing Fantasy #15 and Giant-Size Hulk #1

My Copy

I got this in my local comic shop. Sorry, no interesting story this week.

Before Reading

I hadn’t read a lot of Hulk comics before this, and was eager to explore one his his most iconic storylines. I’d only seen a hint of it before in Thor: Ragnarok, which I’d guessed had taken a level of creative license.

After Reading

Hulk’s tragic story has quickly become one of my favourites. Like I mentioned above, I hadn’t read much about him before, and had only really seen him as the raging beast that jumps in at the last minute to smash the bad guys, so it was great to see him fleshed out like this.

The Hulk has historically been defined by the Jekyll-and-Hyde relationship he has with Bruce Banner, existing as the darker counterpart to the scientist who tries to keep him suppressed. Here, Hulk is given full control, not just of his shared body but as the central character of an entire world, and is still reluctant to accept the role he’s been given. All he’s ever wanted is to be left alone, and every time he saves the world, that world goes right back to being scared of him. In a way, Sakaar almost forces him onto the hero’s path, with its people’s faith in him serving as a reminder to himself that he’s not just a monster, making it all the more tragic when the other half of their prophecy comes true and his arrival end in the planet’s destruction.

Hulk’s fellow warriors of the Warbound are a big part of his development in the storyline. To give a few examples, Meik is an exiled member of an oppressed species, Korg is a wise old warrior ashamed of his past actions, and Caiera is the former bodyguard of the King helping to overthrow her master. The Warbound are all seen as monsters to some degree, making them ideal allies for the Hulk, and their shared experiences give him something else to push him on. Their side stories are all well developed, making them more than just teammates to Hulk, with each one feeling like they could be the main character of a story like this. Korg is probably my favourite of the bunch, an old warrior who has learned from the recklessness of his youth and is always willing to talk before a fight despite his incredible strength, an archetype that I’ve always been fond of. Definitely my preferred version of the character.

Someone else I hadn’t seen much of in comics was the Silver Surfer. He isn’t there for long, but we get a good look at how he sees the universe and what he used to be, as well as his desire to go back to his former adventurous ways. Like the Hulk, he’s been shaped by the world he lives in, but in a different way that sets them apart while also giving them a common understanding.

This is probably one of the most tragic comics I’ve ever read. We see Hulk become the king of a world that accepts him, make close friends and find a wife who loves both halves of him, and he supposedly loses it all to the heroes who were trying to protect their own world by sending him away. By the end, he’s happier than ever, and it’s only when he loses everything that he returns to his old ways.

Closing Thoughts

Planet Hulk showed me a new side of the character reminded me of his tragic nature. Without a world that’s scared of him, he has the opportunity to become a true hero, and only goes back to his old ways when his new world is taken from him.

At the time of writing this review, I still haven’t read World War Hulk, so I’m looking forward to seeing this storyline brought to a close.

I’ll be heading back to DC next week for a look at the origin of its greatest hero.