Incredible Hulk #170. An island full of monsters

(Cover from December 1973.)

"Death From On High!"

Plotted by Steve Englehart.

Written by Chris Claremont.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Jack Abel.

Lettering by Artie Simek.

Colours by G Roussos.

The spectre of Naked Betty looms still over The Incredible Hulk, as it's come to my notice that the Grand Comics Database's version of its cover's been doctored by a naughty person to depict Betty in the the buff.

And very buff she is too.

Sadly for fans of such things, in the comic itself, while free-falling from a height of eight miles, Betty's somehow managed to find a sheet to wear as a dress. You can imagine how grabbing something to wear would be a young woman's Number One priority as she finds herself plummeting from the stratosphere. One must, after all, make sure to be the best-dressed splatter in town.

But clearly it's a shock-absorbing dress because she somehow manages to survive the fall, with barely a mark on her. Granted, at the moment of impact, the Hulk's holding her but would that really be enough to save her?

Still, the shock of landing's nothing compared to the shock that awaits her once they're down because she and the Hulk find themselves on an island inhabited by giant monsters.

How the monsters got there's never clear. We're told they're aliens but beyond that, nothing. What was their mission? Why are there so few left when it seems there'd once been a hundred of them? Why have forgotten who they are and just what do they want with Betty anyhow?

It's never said, and it gives us one of the strangest of Hulk tales, as the Hulk and Betty completely fail to understand each other's motives, and Betty manages to blunder into monster after monster before, thanks to the Hulk, the creatures all end up consumed by a volcano.

It's an eerie tale, dreamlike, especially in the free-floating symbols that represent the aliens' speech. You can almost hear the beat of strange and sultry drums in the background as the tale progresses with little rhyme or reason. It's a sense of atypicality heightened by the fact the tale's written by Chris Claremont and therefore has a volume and density of captions we're simply not used to in the strip.

Of course, this is all to the better. Strangeness is no bad thing in the Hulk - and nor is surprise. But ultimately it's a sad tale, with Betty and the Hulk completely failing to find any spiritual common ground, the Hulk wanting nothing but to look after what he desperately needs to see as a friend, and Betty wanting nothing but to get away from a creature she sees as a menace.

And so, when it's all stuck together, with both its literal and its spiritual theme of alienation, we get a tale that, although it's never quite clear what's going on - or why - lingers in the memory with a peculiar intangibility long after you've finished it.

Incredible Hulk #169. The Bi-Beast, Modok & the Harpy

(Cover from November 1973.)

"The Calamity In The Clouds!"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Jack Abel.

Lettering by John Costanza.

Colours by P Goldberg.

Some people dream of a cottage in the hills. Some, of a life on the ocean waves.

And some people dream of building castles in the air.

Maybe the last of those should think again as, caught up in a tornado, the Harpy and the Hulk find themselves in a floating city built by an extinct race of bird people.

But if its builders are extinct, its guardian certainly isn't. He's the Bi-Beast, a giant, two-headed android that holds within his split cranium the bird people's cultural and military knowledge. What he doesn't have is their scientific knowledge with which to repair their failing machinery.

Happily, Bruce Banner does have such knowledge.

Unhappily, he's not going to get the chance to use it, as Modok shows up and decides to claim the complex in the name of AIM. Cue the destruct button being pushed and the whole place falling apart - but not before Bruce Banner and the now cured Betty make their dash for it.

I've said before that I always feel The Incredible Hulk's at its best when it's at its oddest and it goes into odd overdrive here as the Bi-Beast constantly argues with itself, one moment reasonable, the next aggressive, the next reasonable again, as its twin personalities struggle between them to decide quite how to deal with any situation it encounters.

With its three (or is that four?) villains and a flying city, not to mention the forces of AIM showing up, Thunderbolt Ross putting in an appearance and a dogfight between the Harpy and a bunch of military jets, I think we can safely describe this story as having everything but the kitchen sink thrown in. Some might argue it uses up its ideas too greedily. Maybe, with so much to get through, it could have been stretched to a two-parter.

Having said that, it really doesn't suffer from being a one-shot and at least it means we quickly get the Harpy out of the way, which is clearly the real aim of the story. Already, by halfway through this issue, you get the feeling Steve Englehart's run out of things to do with her, as the character who dominated the first half of the story quickly becomes marginalised and virtually disappears from it, reappearing at its climax, just in time to revert to Betty.

He seemed so keen on her last issue too.

It seems giant androids aren't the only ones who can change their minds.

Incredible Hulk #168. Modok & the Harpy

(Cover from October 1973.)

"The Hate Of The Harpy!"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Jack Abel.

Lettering by Artie Simek.

Colours by S Goldberg.

Jim Wilson should be grateful. He only has to put up with his girlfriend not letting him him keep a monster in her dad's basement. The Hulk has to put up with his "ex" wanting to kill him with nuclear blasts.

That's right, it's the issue where women prove what a pain they can be as Betty Talbot becomes the Harpy and Jim's Talia becomes a would-be fiancee.

It's also the issue where Betty Talbot spends virtually the whole story naked. I can't say this excites me much but, from my roamings around the Internet, I've learned it seems to have made a lasting impression on surprisingly many people.

With the Hulk at last having left the hospital, Modok finally gets his hands on Betty Talbot and, by blasting her with large doses of Gamma radiation, turns her into the Harpy, half woman, half eagle, all green. Driven by a desire for revenge against the monster she blames for everything that's gone wrong in her life - which is plenty - she attacks the Hulk and, with the aid of a bit of trickery, knocks him out, ready for the kill.

It has to be said the Harpy's a somewhat unwieldy design with ludicrously big feet and a very odd thing happening with her chest feathers to preserve the modesty that's no doubt all important when you're a giant bird woman. She also doesn't live up to Modok's boast that she's stronger than the Hulk but at least she's got deviousness on her side and, from the reader's point of view, she's so over the top both visually and spiritually that all logical objections to her tend to be swept away by the sheer ridiculousness of it all.

This is probably a good thing. I suspect that, logically, Harpy Betty is as bad an idea as six-armed Spider-Man was. But there's something wrong with me. Despite all the criticism it got, I happened to like six-armed Spider-Man and, for the same reason, I don't have a problem with the Harpy. She's laughable and silly and no doubt a disastrous misstep by Steve Englehart but it's a comic book, and often ludicrousness is its own reward in such a medium. With her ranting and raving, she also makes the Enchantress' version of the Valkyrie look like easy-going, so how could you ever fail to warm to her?

But if I'm happy and the Harpy's happy, her father certainly isn't because Thunderbolt Ross has had command of the Hulkbusters taken off him and given to Colonel Armbruster.

You see? It turns out it's not only women you can't trust.

Incredible Hulk #167. Modok

(Cover from September 1973.)

"To Destroy The Monster!"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Jack Abel.

Lettering by John Costanza.

Colours by P Goldberg.

Different people take bad news in different ways. Some take it well. Some take it badly.

And then again, some take it like Betty Ross-Talbot.

Finally back in the country, Thunderbolt Ross tells Betty her husband's dead, and she responds with admirable dignity, by going completely and totally insane. It might be a bit irritating of her but you can't blame the poor girl. Let's face it she has been somewhat through the mill over the years. First her boyfriend turned into a big green monster, then she got turned into a glass statue, and now this.

Still, it's not all bad news for her. At least she has visitors. First the Hulk goes to see her before smashing his way out through the wall, and then Modok shows up, atop a fifty foot tall robot body.

Sadly, Modok's not there out of the goodness of his heart. He wants to turn her into a weapon to use against the Hulk. Unfortunately for the huge-headed heel, the Hulk chooses that moment to return, and the traditional carnage ensues. Having had his robot body trashed, Modok flees the scene.

But this isn't the end of his plans. Betty Talbot's still a madwoman, and a madwoman is just what he needs.

Main creative news of this issue is Jack Abel takes over the inking from Sal Trapani. I have to admit I much prefer Trapani or John Severin on the strip but my lack of love for Abel isn't enough to seriously mar my enjoyment.

Part of that enjoyment comes from Steve Englehart being in the mood to do what I don't think any writer had done before on the strip and that's to inject a little humour into the Hulk's character. Last issue, we had his complaint about being smart never having done him any good. This issue we have him, flowers in hand, kicking the heel of Modok's robo-body, demanding it tell him whether it's a good guy or bad guy so he can know whether to smash it or not.

There's a strange fatalism about Modok that's oddly endearing. While other criminal masterminds spend all their time boasting about how the Hulk has, "No chance against my robot/ gun/ tank/ army/ plane/ mutant/ turnip/ whatever," Modok's fully aware of the danger the Hulk poses to his robo-body, choosing to visit Betty's hospital only after he believes the Hulk's gone. I suppose, as Modok's instinct is to avoid confrontation, you have to wonder why he wanted a giant robot body in the first place. Stomping around being fifty foot tall's hardly the best way to keep a low profile, and you do wonder how come no one at the hospital seems to have noticed a fifty foot tall robot blundering around the grounds.

Incredible Hulk #166. Zzzax and Hawkeye

(Cover from August 1973.)

"The Destroyer From The Dynamo!"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Sal Trapani.

Lettering by C Jetter.

Colours by Dave Hunt.

Elvis Costello once sang, "New Amsterdam, it's become much too much," and you suspect the Hulk may agree as, finally back in the Big Apple, the radioactivest hobo finds himself up against the horror of Zzzax.

Made of living electricity, Zzzax is created when terrorists blow up the local nuclear power plant. If Aquon was half man, half fish, all hate, Zzzax is half electricity, the other half electricity, and all greedy, driven by a desire to devour the brains of everyone he encounters, to keep himself smart. "Being smart won't help you!" Declares the Hulk; "Hasn't helped Hulk!" Yes that's right it's not exactly Stephen Hawking v Einstein here.

But the Hulk's not the only one on the scene. Hawkeye's there too and he's out to prove he can cut it without the Avengers, by taking down Zzzax.

Sadly, his attempts aren't going too well - until he remembers the events of a certain James Bond movie.

Even more sadly, when he finally destroys Zzzax, the onlookers give the Hulk all the credit.

But, deep in the heart of Russia, thing's are happening as Colonel Armbruster leads a raid to rescue Thunderbolt Ross. It works - but at the cost of Glenn Talbot.

It's another of those Steve Englehart issues where the true focus of the tale's not on the Hulk but on others, first Hawkeye and his futile attempts to prove himself and then Glenn Talbot's sacrifice for his father-in-law. But, apart from the seriousness of its Russian climax, it's a good fun read. Zzzax is my kind of monster; big, stupid and a throwback to the creatures Marvel was churning out like sausages before it discovered super-heroes could make it more money. And if its cliff-hanger doesn't make you want to know what happens next, then shame on you. Did Glenn Talbot, like Magna Carta, (almost) die in vain?

Incredible Hulk #165. Aquon!

(Cover from July 1973.)

"The Green-Skinned God!"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Sal Trapani.

Lettering by John Costanza.

Colours by David Hunt.

They might claim that no one with any class batters his fish but the Hulk has other ideas. Rescued from the seabed, by Captain Omen's mutinous crew, our hero sets out to do just that as he finds himself up against Aquon; "Half-man half-fish and all hate!"

Inevitably our hero proves himself the more determined monster and, having had his metaphorical chips, Omen's forced to allow his crew to leave the submarine and live on the surface from now on.

This has to feature probably the most extraordinary climax of any story from the Herb Trimpe era as, having finally stepped onto dry land for the first time ever, Captain Omen's crew start to explode like tomatoes in a microwave. The silly sausages had forgotten they've adapted to live in the crushing depths of the oceans, not the gentler climes of the surface world.

It does raise the question of why Omen didn't warn them this was going to happen, as he clearly knew it would.

Then again, as we saw last issue, man-management doesn't seem to be his strong point.

Another person who's not good at winning friends and influencing people is Aquon. In his case, he has an excuse. He is, after all, "Half-man, half-fish and all hate!"

In fact, the, "all hate," seems somewhat inapt as it becomes clear he only fights when attacked, suggesting his hate levels are somewhat overstated. Did Aquon ever put in another appearance? I don't know. I certainly hope he did. The Hulk always benefited from the presence of a silly monster.

Other highlights are the rebellious crew adopting the Hulk as their god and showing our no-nonsense protagonist the few mementoes of the surface world they've managed to acquire over the decades; a leaf, a bottle and a newspaper. Needless to say, the ever practical Hulk thinks keeping such things is stupid. Is this Steve Englehart using the Hulk as his mouthpiece to comment on the Christian Church and its attachment to relics?

But despite Aquon, the relics and the deification of our hero, the story's focus lands squarely on that ending. No, it doesn't make sense - given Omen's pre-knowledge of what must happen - and the sight of the Hulk playing philosopher in the final panel breaks though the fourth wall but who cares? In the end, who'll ever forget the sight of people exploding? Or of Captain Omen's son Filius abandoning his followers and desperately trying to get back into the ship as it submerges, only to die like the cohorts he'd run out on?

Incredible Hulk #164. Captain Omen

(Cover from June 1973.)

"Phantom From 5,000 Fathoms!"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Sal Trapani.

Lettering by John Costanza.

Colours by David Hunt.

The romance of the sea may be lost on the Hulk but it's not lost on Steve Englehart who kicks the tale off with a quick bout of John Masefield's Sea Fever. He's not the first writer to quote poetry in the strip and I do wonder if The Incredible Hulk has at this stage featured more poetry than any other super-hero comic.

Sadly such dreaminess can't last and, deciding the best way to get home from the frozen Arctic wasteland he's found himself in is to go for a swim, the Hulk promptly finds himself captured by the mysterious Captain Omen, master of a gigantic submarine that doubles up as a citadel. Not short of ambition, Omen wants to claim all the sea floor as his territory.

Quite what the Sub-Mariner and Attuma would make of that isn't touched on but we do know the Hulk's not impressed and goes into Hulk Smash Mode, only to find himself stood on the sea bed and having to obey Captain Omen's orders if he wants to keep the air supply that's the only thing keeping him alive.

It's nice to see comic books honouring their tradition of total originality as the Hulk comes up against an antagonist who in no way resembles Jules Verne's Captain Nemo and has a name that's in no way an anagram of it. But, despite his lack of originality, Omen's an intriguing character. It's hard to make out if he's a bad guy or just lacks man-management skills and, as with last issue, Trimpe seems to be enjoying himself, in his depiction of the huge sub, with its strange-looking crew, mechanical birds and and giant Toad Whales.

Again the main intrigue comes from the capture of Thunderbolt Ross, with a new character - Colonel John D Armbruster - introduced. Armbruster's been engaged by Washington to lead the mission to rescue Ross from the Russians and even though I don't like to make snap judgements about someone, with his background in Vietnam and overly-brisk manner, I can't help feeling he's going to turn out to be trouble.

Incredible Hulk #163. The Gremlin

(Cover from May 1973.)

"Trackdown"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Sal Trapani.

Lettered by John Costanza.

Colours by Andrea Hunt.

Christmas, it only comes once a year.

Unfortunately it's not in May, which means no one's in danger of buying the Hulk a compass as a present any time soon.

That's a bit of a shame because he's still blundering around lost in the frozen north, looking for Glenn and Betty Ross-Talbot.

Not for long he isn't because no sooner has Betty's father found him than our hero's captured by the Gremlin, Soviet agent and son of his first ever foe the Gargoyle.

Like father like son. Not only does the Gremlin look like the Gargoyle but he has his genius too.

What he doesn't share is his father's reservations about serving the Soviet State. By the end of the tale, the Hulk's escaped but not before the Gremlin's captured Thunderbolt Ross and locked him in one of his cells as a present for Mother Russia. With no means of escape, is this (iron) curtains for the old warhorse?

It's all good fun stuff - even if the Gremlin's blatantly just Steve Englehart's excuse to bring back the Gargoyle without the inconvenience of having to explain how he returned from the dead - and there is a certain neatness in a servant of the Kremlin being called the Gremlin. I suppose that means we're now due to be introduced to a servant of the White House who's called the...

...anyway.

Herb Trimpe seems to be enjoying himself. In fact I'd say it's the best job he's done on the strip in quite a few months. Clearly the chance to pack virtually every panel with technology got his creative juices flowing.

But, whatever the Hulk's troubles, the focus is on Thunderbolt Ross and his kidnap. This seems to have been a policy of Steve Englehart since he took over the writing. While his stories don't appear to be as imaginative or odd as those of his immediate predecessors, he's clearly decided the dramatic focus should be on the supporting cast and not the Hulk, whether it be Glenn and Betty, the Beast and the Mimic, Paul Cartier or, in this issue, Thunderbolt Ross. It's a wise decision as it adds an extra dimension to what would, if only concentrating on the Hulk, be overly straightforward tales with few twists or turns.

However, you'd think someone would've told Betty her father's been kidnapped. She only finds out by reading about it in a newspaper, which means the entire world knew about it before she did. I know Glenn Talbot was trying to keep her away from all sources of information but you'd think that, under the circumstances, someone in the military would've made an effort to get in touch with them.

Incredible Hulk #162. The Wendigo

(Cover from April 1973.)

"Spawn Of The Flesh-Eater!"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Sal Trapani.

Lettering by Artie Simek.

Colours by David Hunt.

If a prophet's without honour in his own land, it seems the Hulk's without profile in any other. This issue we discover that a being who should be one of the most famous people in history can move around Canada without recognition. Not only that but he can suffer the indignity of being mistaken for another monster altogether.

Still looking for Glenn and Betty Talbot, the Hulk stumbles across a group of people who think he's the infamous wood-beast the Wendigo and that he's snatched their friend Paul Cartier. Wearing his helpful hat for once, the Hulk sets out to rescue Cartier but it turns out the man's eaten human flesh and hasn't been taken by the Wendigo but has instead become the Wendigo. Now the Hulk sets out to capture the creature, in the hope that Cartier can somehow be cured.

After a number of issues whose events left few ripples on the pond of history, we get one that ultimately has a major impact on the whole future of Marvel Comics, even if we have to wait another year or so to find out why. It has to be said that for such a classic monster the Wendigo actually looks pretty silly on its first appearance and I've never worked out just why it was decided it has to shout, "Wen-di-go!" at every opportunity. It's a bit like like Supergirl blundering around shouting, "Supergirl!" all the time. Admittedly, if I were Supergirl I'd probably run around shouting, "Supergirl!" all the time but that says more about me than it does about the dignity of such a tactic. Still, at least it's better than the lame dialogue the thing's lumbered with on the front cover. "This is MY territory, intruder! MINE!" Would it have been possible to make a worse stab at capturing the persona of the Wendigo than that?

Still, however the Wendigo looks and whatever it says, there's undeniably something appealing about the monster - presumably because of its roots in myth and its direct connection with cannibalism. Plus, it's that good old Hulk standby, two monsters hitting each other. And, while hardly haunting, the final sublimation of Paul Cartier into the Wendigo at the tale's death enables the tale to linger long in the memory.

Incredible Hulk #161. The Beast and the Mimic

(Cover from March 1973.)

"Beyond the Border Lurks Death!"

Written by Steve Englehart.
Drawn by Herb Trimpe.
Inked by Sal Tapani.
Lettering by Artie Simek.
Colours by G Roussos.

If life imitates art, it seems art can do a pretty nifty take-off of life as, according to this month’s credits, Happy Herb Trimpe got married while doing this issue. I think we can call that appropriate, seeing as, within it, Glenn Talbot and Betty Ross are on honeymoon in Canada.

Someone not on honeymoon is the incredible Hulk. Out to find the Talbot/Rosses, our hero merely finds himself growing weaker.

It turns out his strength’s being unknowingly drained by the Mimic - once of the X-Men comics - and if the Mimic’s power’s not checked, the Hulk won’t be the only one. Eventually the Mimic’s influence will expand until he drains the strength from every living creature on Earth, killing the lot of us!

Fortunately, the Beast and his friend Vera are out to cure the Mimic.

Unfortunately, they hadn’t counted on the intrusion of the Hulk, out to smash the source of his discomfiture.

It may say The Incredible Hulk on the cover but really, just as issue #150 was about Havok and Polaris, this one’s about the Beast. That’s no bad thing for some of us as I’ve always had a soft spot for the big blue fur ball, and there is something oddly appealing about the sight of him battling the Hulk - especially the Hulk’s belief that he’s up against some sort of monkey.

My knowledge of the Mimic’s far more limited and comes entirely from this comic. I suppose the fact he only made a couple of appearances in the X-Men before being brought back here purely to die suggests he wasn’t one of the most popular characters of all time and, from what we see here, he doesn't seem an overly interesting individual.

There is one thing that baffles me though. If the Mimic kills himself by draining the Hulk’s Gamma radiation into himself, shouldn’t that have turned the Hulk back into Bruce Banner and cured him?

Incredible Hulk #160. Tiger Shark

(Cover from February 1973.)

"Nightmare In Niagara Falls!"

Written by Steve Englehart.
Drawn by Herb Trimpe.
Inked by Sal Trapani.
Lettering by John Costanza.
Colours by Clara Bear.

If Niagara Falls are a magnet for lovers, they seem pretty attractive to haters as well. Having found out about Betty Ross’s wedding to Glenn Talbot, our hero’s determined to reach their Niagara honeymoon and do the, “Hulk smash!” thing.

Sadly for such plans, finny felon Tiger Shark’s hiding in the falls, thinks the Hulk’s been sent to get him by the Sub-Mariner and attacks him. Determined that Betty doesn’t learn the Hulk’s still around, Talbot hurriedly rushes her away, and over the border into Canada, delaying the inevitable for just that bit longer.

It’s a startlingly straightforward tale. The Hulk goes to Niagara Falls and has a fight with Tiger Shark. There’s no twists, no turns. The tussle with Tiger Shark’s entertaining but the very definition of vanilla. The Hulk and his foe hit each other for a few pages and then the Hulk wins by doing exactly the same thing he did to beat the Rhino only two issues earlier.

That’s not to say it’s a bad tale. It's not. It’s perfectly enjoyable, and Glenn Talbot trying to get Betty away from the scene without her knowing the Hulk’s mere yards away adds a human drama to the outing but the fact the tale’s highlight is Bruce Banner’s flight to Niagara in a hired plane probably says it all about the workmanlike nature of the tale. If it was the first issue of The Incredible Hulk you’d ever picked up it wouldn’t put you off the strip, but nor would it turn you into a true-believer.

Incredible Hulk #159. The Abomination's back

(Cover from January 1973.)

"Two Years Before The Abomination!"

Written by Steve Englehart.

Drawn by Herb Trimpe.

Inked by Sal Trapani.

Lettering by John Costanza.

Colours by George Roussos.

Following his fall from Space in The Incredible Hulk #137, the Abomination's been in a coma for two years. But, upon reviving, he's immediately captured by Thunderbolt Ross who tells him that if he captures the Hulk he'll cure the villain and release him.

It seems odd that Ross takes it for granted the Abomination'll want "curing". He's never shown any displeasure at being the Abomination before, and how does Ross even know he can "cure" him, bearing in mind the repeated failures to cure Bruce Banner?

Regardless, the Abomination's never going to turn down the chance to duke it out with the Hulk and sets off into the desert to do just that but, there, both're in for a shock as the Abomination tells the Hulk that Betty Ross has married Glenn Talbot, and the Hulk tells Abbie he's been out of commission for two years. This discovery so destabilises the Abomination he can't even be bothered to defend himself against the Hulk - and we all know what the only possible outcome of a decision like that's going to be.

And so, the Abomination out of the way, it's off to the Niagara Falls for the Hulk, and a confrontation with destiny.

I love the Abomination. He just looks so good - in a bad sort of way - and the fact he can go toe-to-toe with the Hulk while having the intelligence to fling insults his way's all the better. In truth the strip hasn't always served him well. For a start, when he first came on the scene he was stronger than the Hulk, possessed a malevolent ambition and posed a genuine threat to our hero but by the time of this tale his physical advantage is gone to the degree that he poses no real threat to the Hulk at all. On top of that he seems to have no ambition left but to fight our hero. No desire to get rich. No desire to rule the world. No nothing.

But even when those things have been taken away from him, he's still the Abomination. He still has scales. He still has big ears. He still looks cool. And therefore there'll always be a kick from seeing him, even if it'll take a more ambitious story than this to fully utilise him.