Customer Reviews

Hulk: Planet Hulk

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Review by Brian Grindrod

Since Peter David's departure from the Hulk series, the character and the story arcs lacked a modicum of appeal. Subsequent writers were accentuated in trying to either deconstruct a decade's worth of brilliant storytelling or failed to build upon it. Greg Pak takes a route that only the likes of Steve Englehart and Frank Miller dared to tread with Batman as well as John Byrne on his Superman and Fantastic Four run alongside Grant Morrison's tenure on X-Men. Pak strips away the baggage that was suffocating the Hulk mythology and left only the core essence that Stan Lee & Jack Kirby created in order to make him accessible to new as well as long-time readers.

Pak does not reinvent the comic book wheel with this saga but he does succeed where Bruce Jones miserably botched the character. That is, he makes Hulk the central focus of the story in a script that heavily borrows from the great works of Alex Raymond's Flash Gordon and Edgar Rice Burrough's John Carter Of Mars. Hardcore fans of the Hulk will instantly recognize the influence of Steve Englehart (him again!), Roy Thomas and Len Wein's classic stories from the 1970s. A period in Hulk's history that is underappreciated yet filled with some of the greatest fantasy ever within the super-hero genre. Pak's interpretation of the character is faithful to the one that was presented in the first six issues of The Incredible Hulk back in 1962; a monstrous brute that is sceptical and ominous but not necessarily an irritated recluse.

While there is no questioning about the high octane action, there are flaws and weaknesses in the script. Most notable is that the plot is stretched way too thin for the number of chapters that Pak utilized to tell this saga. At times, there is a certain redundancy that arises between the interactions of the characters as well as being evident that there are way too many of them for the reader to give a damn about. Perhaps it is my recent read of the Annihilation hardcovers that is to be blamed but I have had enough of sentient insectoid beings. They do make for great enemies à la Starship Troopers but as a supporting cast, they are extremely boring. My educated guess as to the reason why Planet Hulk is needlessly lengthy (therefore dreary at times) is that the editor had to coincide the ending with the conclusion of Marvel Comics' Civil War. A mega crossover that would have been ordered prolonged due to its initial success. The proof of my theory is that the sequel to this story arc, World War Hulk, also happens to be the sequel to Civil War. Thus I am not ready to lay the entire blame on Greg Pak.

The majority of the artwork of this hardcover is pencilled by Carlo Pagulayan and Aaron Lopresti. Pagulayan's style is a hybrid of Brandon Peterson and Andy Kubert while Lopresti's reminds me of an amalgam between David Finch and Barry Windsor-Smith. While the setting is extraterrestrial, the realistic renderings by both artists make this alien world and its inhabitants believable. Their cinematic design truly convey the experience of a blockbuster film but it is the coloring team of Sotomayer, Martin & Kindzierski that imply how the planet Sakaar is hostile, barren as well as scorching. Veteran Hulk readers will also appreciate Gary Frank's artwork in this 11.2 x 7.5 inch dimension as well as the splendid covers by Jose Ladronn that made the original issues stand out on the shelves.

After years of being assigned second-rate talent on the series, this book is a welcome change of pace that brings back the 'incredible' in Hulk. Plenty of carnage and battle that is a homecoming for the comic book fan who wishes to reacquaint or experience for the first time Marvel's green goliath.

I must say that after seeing the movie Planet Hulk ssoo many times the the book far exceeded my expectations. Two thumbs up on the art & storey.

A very nice big thick book that's a rarity these days in comics: a stand-alone story where you don't need to read several other comics to understand and get the most out of it. It's about a famous Marvel character but it has little to do with the rest of the Marvel Universe (it does have a few links and one famous surprise guest star). It's the Hulk exiled to a savage alien planet where he tries to survive and gets involved in epic events despite himself. It's like a sci-fi Conan/John Carter of Mars inspired pulp adventure with lots of action. I found the world (never seen before) quite interesting in its alien creatures and different cultures but much less interesting in its actual landscapes.

The Hulk meets a bunch of aliens/monsters from most factions of society whom he will befriend and although they are not deeply characterized (with the exception of perhaps Miek), they make quite the cool interesting group. What's also very good suspense-wise is that since they're mostly new or obscure, you cannot really predict what will happen to them (or anyone else on the planet for that matter). I very much liked the character development of the Hulk from start to finish although it's pretty superficial at first. He has a strong character story arc despite his alter-ego Banner being quasi-absent. It has nowhere near the psychological depth of the Peter David or Paul Jenkins's issues though so read Planet Hulk more for the fun story and pulp action. It does have a few memorable dramatic moments and I think it would be enjoyable to read again from time to time. The art was good and consistent throughout. It's not necessary to understand the story but a nice bonus at the very end of the book was a 48 pages guidebook of the alien planet, its history, culture and inhabitants.

Rating: 3 1/2 stars