The Incredible Hulk #5 Review

The secret behind Hulk’s split from Banner is revealed. SPOILERS AHEAD. Today I will be reviewing The Incredible Hulk #5. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think.

The Incredible Hulk #5

So let’s talk about the book. So it is revealed that Hulk went to many people to orchestrate the split from Banner but only one man was smart enough and fearless enough to accept. Dr. Doom is the man who did the operation in exchange for a payment that he will reveal next issue. Meanwhile, in the present, Hulk, Amanda Von Doom (no relation), and her army of hunters continue their battle against the Hulked out monsters created by Banner. As Hulk convinces the animals to let him destroy Banner and return them to their original form, Amanda and co teleport to Banner and try to take him out directly. Too bad Banner is way too smart for them and manages to turn their robot killer against Amanda while completely psyching out her right hand man Igor. He then leaves them to confront Hulk. Amanda manages to kill the robot and restore the confidence of her associate and the two of them head to Banner’s lab to activate the Gamma Bomb inside it and blow everything up. And that’s the book.

So let’s talk opinions. Finally, the moment we have been waiting for has arrived. The man behind the split. Dr. Doom. Possible the most dangerous character in the entire Marvel Universe right after Thanos. The one man you never want to get in bed with and Hulk goes to him. That was freaking awesome and completely unexpected. I always thought it would be the Leader or another of the Hulk’s regular supporting cast who did the splitting, but Doom was a huge and pleasant surprise. Also, since I have always been a huge Dr. Doom fan, letting him grace these pages was an added bonus. The writing in general this issue was a whole lot better than the last four issues. The supporting cast finally got some attention as well as some growth. What’s the point of introducing and naming new characters if you’re not going to develop them? I like Amanda Von Doom. (Trust me, there’s a relation. Especially now that Dr. Doom is in the mix) I like seeing her in action. Banner as a bad guy is really starting to look good. Especially when he stops preaching like a whining nutjob and starts talking and acting like a maniacal genius. He really is a dangerous man when you get down to it and can invent some really deadly stuff. It’s nice to see Aaron actually letting him do that. I also enjoyed the humor instilled in this issue. The monkey fight was freaking hilarious. If only the art this issue was on the same level as the story. Unfortunately, Portacio is a pale comparison to the mighty Silvestri. Silvestri’s Hulk was larger than life and dominated every page he was on with his presence. Portacio’s Hulk is just ugly and weird looking. Very apish and unintelligent. Especially when you see the Doom layouts with the Hulk after brain surgery. He face looks blank and Frankensteinish. Also, every other human seems to have suddenly developed elongated faces. Even Doom, whose mask is usually proportionately roundish, seemed to decide to stretch it out into an oval for this occasion. There are way too many lines everywhere and really no detail in anyone’s face. Banner doesn’t even look like Banner anymore. Where did his signature glasses go? He looks like a junkie high on drugs. A huge difference from the nervous and fidgety deranged look that Silvestri’s Banner seemed to wear. I’m incredibly disappointed by this art change. I remember having loved his work a long time ago. (If you like it, more power to you) The only saving grace for Portactio is that his Hulked out animals looked great. He seems to have no problem drawing them correctly. It’s people that seem to be his issue. In any case, forget the art. The writing is the key to this title and that has grown tremendously in the past few issues. Let’s hope next issue gives us some more nice reveals and some more great action. That’s my opinion folks. Take it or leave it.

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