Comics / Comic Reviews / Marvel Comics

Hulk #37

By Colin Andersen
July 21, 2011 - 14:41

              Man, oh man, I wish I could combine Hulk #37 with Avengers #14. Despite the mostly positive review I gave that issue, this month’s issue of Hulk covers the same ground only it does it even better. If the two could be merged together somehow, you might just get one the best Avengers and Hulk stories in a very long time.

              I have come to absolutely adore Jeff Parker as a writer through his work on both this series and Thunderbolts. He really understands how to write a story and characters and plant his ideas in the right places while making sure that the whole time, and this is important so pay attention, that the book stays fun. With Hulk #37, Parker also proves that he has mastered the rare ability to write a strong tie-in comic. Though this issue covers much of the same scenes as Avengers #14, it does through the eyes of the brand-new M.O.D.O.K. as he observes the battle and plots his next attack on the Red Hulk. The battle is also

being observed by Zero/One, a villain also out to destroy the Red Hulk. However, where Parker succeeds, is that he uses these two characters to allow the events of Fear Itself to actually affect his running story instead of just stopping his running plots to get the crossover out of the way. Each of these villains observe what is happening, realize how it affects their plans, and then adapt their plans to use the mayhem to their advantage, just a person might do in real life. It’s this level of commitment to both his own on-going story and also those of Fear Itself that allows Parker to succeed.

              Though the Red Hulk himself gets little to say in this issue, Parker still manages to successfully convey all of the various characters’ personalities, both hero and villain. The narration by M.O.D.O.K., while a little expository at times (though this somewhat fits this character), is always amusing and really shows the reader that this isn’t exactly the same M.O.D.O.K. that Marvel Universe is used to. Even some of the Avengers, specifically Hawkeye and Mockingbird get some screen time here and they are handled quite while; they really seem to realize that they are suddenly in a war that they never planned and talk like experienced heroes would in this situation without the out-of-place romantic subplots that Bendis sometimes throws into his stories. That being said, Hulk isn’t able to completely escape the confusion of Fear Itself as Hawkeye’s appearance here makes me question when his appearance in this week’s issue of Avengers takes place. This becoming sadly common among these tie-ins and the Thing seems to suffer from this problem more than anybody as he has appeared in at least 4 different comics in completely different places now, but that’s a relatively minor nitpick.

              However, the reason this issue really deserved to be merged with Avengers #14 is due to the art of Elena Casagrande. Honestly, I had never heard of her before this issue, but I now hope to see her more and more as her pencils here can be downright amazing. Admittedly, her work is strikingly similar to that of regular Hulk artist Gabriel Hardman, but that is hardly a bad thing. Her Hulk and Thing both look suitably huge and powerful, while her slender characters, such as Mockingbird, look appropriately agile. Most importantly, she does complete justice to the battle between Red Hulk and the Thing that John Romita Jr. so utterly failed to convey in Avengers. The punches are hard-hitting with some really powerful blows that made me want to flinch in pain, just as an epic fight like this should look. Normally, I would complain of two books showing the exact same battle like this, but I’m actually glad for it this time as it offered a second chance for this scene. She also manages some truly amazing composition, such as the very first panel of the Red Hulk/Thing battle. I hope to see Casagrande stick around for a while.

              Hulk is the big-book that could. I fully admit to all but hating this series when it first began a few years ago focusing on the extremely Mary Sue character of Red Hulk, but Jeff Parker (and a slew of talented artists) have completely changed my opinion and turned this into one of my must-read books whenever it comes out, even when in the midst of the murky waters of the event crossover. I urge everyone to check this series out right now.

Rating: 9.5 /10

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12