Attuma’s true plans are revealed and the Indestructible Hulk is the only one with enough power to stop him.
Indestructible Hulk #5
With the Hulk stranded in the bottom of a trench, Attuma and his Lemurians continue toward Atlantis. Attuma plans to use alchemy to bring not just Atlantis to their knees but also the surface world. After getting help from Atlanteans Mara and Canor, Bruce Banner is saved and discovers Attuma’s plan. They help him get to Lemuria where, as the Hulk, he attacks and defeats Attuma giving the city back to his new friends. Upon leaving, Bruce Banner gets to take something special back to the surface world with him.
What makes this Hulk series a little different than what we’ve seen before is not so much the fact that the Hulk is working with S.H.I.E.L.D. but it’s that he is more or less doing heroic things. We’ve all known that the Hulk has never intended to do bad things, he just wants to be left alone. Now, he’s not so bothered by the idea of doing things to stop bad guys or be a weapon pointed in a particular direction to deal with an issue. All that Hulk stuff is great for the action, but really it’s Bruce Banner’s role in this book that is really the driving force. He’s finally getting to be a part of the Marvel Universe in a way that doesn’t find other characters walking on thin ice.
How Mark Waid is handling the Bruce Banner/Hulk dynamic is brilliant. He’s done this with Daredevil in ways that seemed impossible. Where the Hulk was, when Waid took over, wasn’t so much of a tall order to bring back from some sort of perceived depth, but it’s hard to deny that lightning has struck twice. It’s not like there’s a major change in either Banner or the Hulk’s personalities, but it’s enough of a tweak that still manages to make sense and is interesting. More importantly, this has been a fun book to read. There’s been a balance in how much we see each character. Banner is figuring out the problems, and the Hulk is solving them with his own typical care and attention. The scales are not so far tipped to one side or the other making a book called “Indestructible Hulk” entirely about Banner or having so much Hulk that it’s hard to continue to find engaging stories to tell. It’s that balance that should keep this series afloat for however long Mr. Waid would like to write it.
Some nicely stylized art from Leinil Yu, coupled with two scenes involving the Hulk grabbing through a monster with supposedly indestructible skin to grab Attuma and Banner’s alter ego turning on Mara for some laughs and you have a fun read that fails to disappoint.
A COMIC BOOK BLOG RATING
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| The style of both Waid’s writing and Yu’s art makes for a well conceived and entertaining book. Throw in some chuckles here and there and this issue, like all the others so far, doesn’t fail to keep your attention. | Not much to say negative. Well put together book. |
| Rating |