Mentioned a couple of times by Rich Johnston over at Bleeding Cool today, the potential new Hulk status quo sounds like a tempest in an outrage teacup waiting to happen. Maybe possibly spoilers under the jump, so be warned.Okay, that the “It’s Either In You Or It’s Not” teasers are leading to a new Defenders title seems to be a given (Well spotted, commenters), and given the Hulk tease released on Friday, it’s a fair bet that the Incredible one is going to end up being a villain somewhere in the Marvel Universe following the end of Fear Itself, maybe even in a Jason Aaron/Marc Silvestri series. But… He isn’t really going to be called The Black Hulk, is he? Because… Am I the only person who foresees some upset at returning to the idea of calling an evil version of a character “The Black [Whatever]“? Of course, there’s every possibility that this is a new Hulk, and not Bruce Banner, and that this one will, in fact, be black… in which case, it’d be condemned for being a return to the days of “Black Goliath,” et al.
Of course, there’s every chance that no-one will care. After all, DC got away pretty clean with the Black Lanterns, didn’t they? Well, at least until they unveiled the White Lantern as the ideal of everything that was good and alive…
July 18th, 2011 at 1:14 pm
If the Hulk will have a new color, it will probably be blue, since there has been a Lil’ Blue Hulk in the Lil’ Hulk cartoons at the end of the Hulk books for the last couple of years.
July 18th, 2011 at 1:41 pm
It wouldn’t be the return to the days of Black Goliath because the Hulk, in his Hulk form, at least, isn’t African-American.
Also, while he might be called the Red Hulk or Rulk by fans, isn’t he just generally referred to in the Marvel U as the Hulk? That’s what his book is called, after all. So even if the new Hulk is black, I don’t see why we should expect him to be called the Black Hulk.
July 18th, 2011 at 4:10 pm
After 40 years of the Hulk destroying everything in his path, followed by World War Hulk, I don’t really know how much more of a bad guy the character could get. But if that’s the way they want to play it, it’d probably be more sensitive to go with Dark Hulk.
I’d really like to see someone try The Invisible Hulk.
July 18th, 2011 at 6:55 pm
You reminded me of Rulk. So this would be….Bulk?
July 18th, 2011 at 11:25 pm
Or Marvel could just reboot their whole line and start all books with a new #1. Would that be more acceptable to you?
July 20th, 2011 at 7:45 am
They’ve kind of already done that a few times…