Hulk Visionaries: Peter David Vol. 2

Collecting Incredible Hulk #340-348, written by Peter David.

Todd McFarlane is still the regular artist from Incredible Hulk #340. As the X-Men make their way to the events of Fall of the Mutants in Dallas, Wolverine separates from the team for a rematch with the Hulk.

Believe it or not, but this is only the Hulk and Wolverine's second ever fight since Wolverine first appeared way back in Incredible Hulk The Incredible Hulk #180. If you think back to my review of the first volume of Peter David's Hulk Visionaries, then you will remember that the Hulk found out that the US Government are stockpiling gamma bombs, so he hits the road with Rick Jones and rogue SHIELD Agent Clay Quartermain to track them down. That's how the Hulk came to be in Dallas just in time to bump into the X-Men. Wolverine has more important things to do and doesn't want to get into a fight. The Hulk is in a particularly bad mood though and just wants to smash something.

In Incredible Hulk #341, the Hulk meets somebody whose existence might be even more sorry than his, the savage Man-Bull!

The Hulk and friends arrive in Kansas to meet Clay Quartermain's brother Alan. There have been several cattle mutilations and the Hulk soon finds the culprit, loser Daredevil villain the Man-Bull. The Man-Bull is presented in more of a sympathetic light in a clear reflection of the Hulk. The Man-Bull is a mostly mindless creature who just wants to be left alone. Inevitably, the puny humans of the Marvel Universe just have to keep pushing and it's not long until the Man-Bull goes on a rampage.

in Incredible Hulk #342, as the Leader reveals his ultimate plans, the Hulk must face-off against Half-Life once more.

Banner and his friends aren't the only ones that are after the gamma bombs, the Leader is too. The Leader has taken control of former Hulkbusters Sanders and LaRoquette and forced them to tell him where the gamma bombs are being kept. He also sends Half-Life to distract the Hulk while he completes his big plan. The Hulk tore off Half-Life's arms the last time they met and now the Leader has given him an armoured suit. It doesn't help all that much and Half-Life gets smashed again.

In Incredible Hulk #343, the Hulk and friends finally track down Banner's estranged wife Betty. Unfortunately, she is being stalked by killer robots. Meanwhile, former Hulkbusters Saunders and LaRoquette undergo strange transformations.

In the previous issue, the Leader had already captured Betty Banner. Now he has released her to distract the Hulk in his search for the gamma bombs. Meanwhile, he changes Saunders and LaRoquette into super-powered henchmen the Redeemer and Rock. Redeemer is just a guy in a heavily-armed armoured suit while Rock is a great big rock thing. They're not exactly inspired villains. There are plenty of guys in powered armour in the Marvel Universe so one more won't make much of an impression.

In Incredible Hulk #344, Bruce and Betty take some time to reconcile as the Leader sends Redeemer and Rock to steal a gamma bomb.

Bruce and Betty get a chance to bond as Redeemer and Rock run amok at the military base. Bruce knows that Betty's sudden appearance is just a tactic to delay his investigation of the gamma bombs, but he doesn't care because he is finally reunited with his wife. Bruce clearly loves Betty, but he has trouble articulating his feelings. Bruce turns into the Hulk when night falls and has no interest in sticking around with Betty until she reveals that she is pregnant.

In Incredible Hulk #345, the Hulk has a showdown with the Leader and his super-powered henchmen with the people of Middletown caught in the middle.

The Leader finally reveals his big plan. He blocks all communication in Middletown and contacts Banner and company threatening to detonate the gamma bomb he had Redeemer and Rock steal. The heroes try to get the town's residents to evacuate but they are branded kooks. When night comes Banner changes into the Hulk and tries to track down the gamma bomb but gets attacked by Redeemer and Rock. Clay Quartermain decides that the situation is serious enough to call in help from SHIELd, but by the time Nick Fury arrives the Leader has erected a force field around the town. Then the gamma bomb is detonated with the Hulk and all the townspeople trapped inside.

Todd McFarlane is on layouts for Incredible Hulk #346, with finished art by Erik Larsen. The Hulk is dead and Middletown has been destroyed in a gamma bomb explosion. Nick Fury wants answers from Betty and the others.

Of course, the Hulk isn't really dead. We will find out what happened to him in the next issue. This issue is mostly about Banner's friends as they give their version of events, starting with the destruction of Gammabase in #337. We also find out that there are some people have survived the gamma bomb explosion and have been rounded up by the Leader. This issue is also McFarlane's last work on the Hulk as he will become the main artist on Amazing Spider-Man.

Jeff Purves becomes the regular arist starting from Incredible Hulk #347. Mickey Berengetti is a Las Vegas casino owner with an enforcer that looks rather familiar. Just who is Mr. Fixit?

Three months have passed since the last issue and the Hulk is revealed to be alive and working as a Las Vegas enforcer. We don't actually find out how the Hulk came to be in Las Vegas yet. We do find out that the Hulk has been free of Banner ever since the gamma bomb explosion though. That all changes with this issue as Banner begins to reassert himself and the Hulk has to actively work to keep Banner suppressed. The Mr. Fixit era was something that I was particularly interested in reading about when I first got these volumes so I am looking forward to reading more. This issue also introduces Marlo Chandler, who will go on to become a recurring character in this series.

In Incredible Hulk #348, Mickey Berengetti's competition hires their own super-powered muscle in the form of the Absorbing Man to settle an old score.

I always thought that the Absorbing Man was a cool villain, so I was happy to see him here. He is brought in to take care of Mr. Fixit, who neither Creel or his employer know is actually the Hulk. In the end, Creel makes the mistake of transforming into concrete and the Hulk smashes him into pieces. The Absorbing Man will be fine though because he will next be seen in an issue of Quasar during the Acts of Vengeance crossover.

This was another cool collection of Hulk stories. It was cool to see what the Leader's big plan was. I am interested to see what his plans are for the people that survived the gamma bomb explosion. Redeemer and Rock aren't particularly interesting, but at least we have a cool fight with the Absorbing Man at the end. I really am enjoying Peter David's Hulk. I know that Todd McFarlane's art isn't for everybody, but I thought it was fine here. His art hasn't quite descended into splash page upon splash page yet. I'm not quite sold on Jeff Purves just yet. His Hulk looks like a desiccated corpse. Let's wait and see if his art style grows on me.

My rating: 3.5 stars.

Next time: Suicide Squad Vol. 1- Trial by Fire