Monday, January 17, 2011

The Incredible Hulks #620

It's a time-honored storytelling device, when working with a really powerful character (like, say, The Hulk), to hit him on a mental level (where presumably the playing field is more level).

That's the tactic used in this issue, and to good effect, as the Hulk Family must face opponents who are dead - including the monstrous version of Bruce Banner's father, who is powered by the Hulk's own childhood fears - and thus, more powerful than the Hulk.

Writer Greg Pak gives us some great character moments (and dialogue) between the living and the dead - especially the reaction of his dead mother to Bruce's wives.

The art by Paul Pelletier and Danny Miki is outstanding as always, with some amazing splash pages on display.

But I have to make special mention of the back-up feature, a thin story with the Hulk testing his rocky friend Korg - but it's notable for the artist, Simon Bisley, who seems to be having a lot of fun drawing loads of mayhem.

I'm still not crazy about the Chaos War tie-in (I still don't like the mix of magic and the Hulks), but there's no denying this is a powerful issue with some great moments.

Grade: A-

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