| "World War Hulk" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Cover ofWorld War Hulk 1 (August 2007), art byDavid Finch | |||
| Publisher | Marvel Comics | ||
| Publication date | May – November2007 | ||
| Genre | Superhero | ||
| |||
| Main character(s) | Hulk Illuminati Avengers Fantastic Four Warbound Sentry Thunderbolt Ross | ||
| Creative team | |||
| Writer | Greg Pak | ||
| Penciller | John Romita Jr. | ||
| Inker | Klaus Janson | ||
| Colorist | Christina Strain | ||
| World War Hulk | ISBN 978-0785125969 | ||
"World War Hulk" is a comic bookcrossover storyline that ran through a self-titledlimited series and various titles published byMarvel Comics in 2007, featuring theHulk.[1]
The series consists of five main issues titledWorld War Hulk, withGreg Pak as writer andJohn Romita Jr. aspenciller, and three otherlimited series:World War Hulk: Front Line,World War Hulk: Gamma Corps, andWorld War Hulk: X-Men. It also ran through several other Marvel comics series.
The plot is the culmination of a series of events that began with the Hulk being tricked into space by theIlluminati and aLife Model Decoy ofNick Fury.Planet Hulk shows the Hulk's subsequent exile and his imminent return to Earth to seek revenge on the Illuminati.
The story, a crossover throughout various series, began in theone-shotWorld War Hulk Prologue: World Breaker (May 2007), written byPeter David andpenciled bySean Phillips,Al Rio, andLee Weeks. Marvel followed this withIncredible Hulk vol. 2 #106–111 andWorld War Hulk: Frontline #1–6[2] as parallel stories following the impact of the Hulk's return on various characters. The crossover extended into regular issues ofAvengers: The Initiative,Ghost Rider,Heroes for Hire,Irredeemable Ant-Man,The Punisher War Journal, andIron Man, as well as a miniseries starring theHulk and theX-Men and a newly created group, theGamma Corps.[3] The stories ran from summer through fall, beginning in issues cover-dated July 2007.[4] Initially scheduled to end in October, Marvel announced through the October 10 Diamond Dateline retail newsletter that the final titles in the crossover would be delayed until mid to late November.[5]
After theIlluminati (Black Bolt,Tony Stark,Doctor Strange, andReed Richards)banished Hulk from Earth,[6] the spacecraft they used explodes, killing Hulk's pregnant wifeCaiera.[7] Blaming the Illuminati for her death, and more powerful than ever because of his time spent absorbing the radiation levels onSakaar, Hulk returns to Earth for revenge with his allies, theWarbound:Hiroim,Korg,Elloe Kaifi,Miek, No-Name of theBrood, Arch-E-5912, and Mung.
Stopping at the Moon, the Hulk defeatsInhuman kingBlack Bolt. The Hulk proceeds to Manhattan, New York where he demands the presence of The Illuminati.[8]
He travels to the home of theX-Men, whereProfessor X, absent from the decision to send the Hulk off-planet, admits that while he never would have agreed to permanent banishment, he would have agreed to temporary exile while they searched for a cure. The Hulk defeats several teams of X-Men[9] and battles theJuggernaut but leaves after learning of theM-Day incident, believing that Xavier has suffered enough.[10]
The Hulk returns to Manhattan and battles the superhuman-operative teamGamma Corps[11] andGhost Rider.[12] Hulk defeats Iron Man, destroyingStark Tower in the process.[8] Hulk and his Warbound next defeat theNew Avengers, theMighty Avengers,Doc Samson, and theFantastic Four (includingBlack Panther andStorm). The Hulk attaches "obedience disks" to the defeated, imprisoned superheroes, preventing them from using their powers.[13]
After a brief battle involvingHercules,Amadeus Cho,Namora, andAngel, the Hulk defeatsThunderbolt Ross and aU.S. Army force.[13] The Hulk then encountersDoctor Strange, who harnesses the power of his old enemyZom.[14] Hulk defeats the Zom-possessed Doctor Strange, causing him to flee.[15]
An imprisoned Tony Stark (Iron Man) communicates withS.H.I.E.L.D., revealing an emergency plan to engulf Manhattan in theNegative Zone, thereby annihilating the Hulk and all other positive matter on the island, should the heroes fail.[16]
The Hulk and the Warbound transformMadison Square Garden into a gladiatorial arena.[14] Meanwhile, he repels an assassination attempt fromScorpion,[17] and a confrontation with theInitiative.[18]
Following speeches from the Hulk's human supporters, the Hulk arranges for Doctor Strange, Iron Man, Black Bolt, and Mister Fantastic to fight a tentacled alien and later battle each other to the death, as a cheering audience watches.[19] The Hulk declares his intention was for "justice and not murder", and nobody had to or would die. He plans to destroy New York City and leave the Avengers to their shame.
TheSentry arrives and attacks the Hulk. Sentry and the Hulk battle, leveling the city, until they revert into Robert Reynolds and Bruce Banner with Reynolds passing out. Angered that the Hulk disappeared, Warbound member Miek attacks Banner.Rick Jones pushes Banner aside and is injured, causing Banner to return to Hulk form. As the Hulk attacks the Warbound, Miek reveals the explosion that started this war was not caused by the Illuminati, but by Red King loyalists. Miek chose not to prevent it, hoping the incident would encourage the Hulk to keep destroying. Overwhelming rage causes the Hulk to unwillingly radiate energy that threatens Earth. Stark activates a series of weaponized satellites that open fire on the Hulk, leaving him unconscious in his Bruce Banner form.[20]
S.H.I.E.L.D. later imprisons Banner in a facility three miles underground, with the other Warbound members having been taken into U.S. military custody.[20]
Namor alone was spared from the Hulk's wrath, as Hulk discovered early on that Namor was the sole Illuminati member who voiced his opposition to banishing the Hulk from the outset and wisely predicted Hulk's eventual return and quest for vengeance.[6]
 | This sectionis missing information about the Aftersmash followup one-shot and following series. Please expand the section to include this information. Further details may exist on thetalk page.(July 2019) |
With the conclusion of the "World War Hulk" storyline, the seriesThe Incredible Hulk was replaced withThe Incredible Hercules, which officially replaced the title of the previous series with issue #113, even though the story arc started one issue earlier inThe Incredible Hulk #112. The series continued the story of Hercules and Amadeus Cho.
A continuation of both "Planet Hulk" and "World War Hulk" began in May 2009. A special stand-alone prologue andSkaar: Son of Hulk #11 saw the beginning of "Planet Skaar", an arc intended to bringSkaar directly into the middle of theMarvel Universe. Following the return of the Silver Savage (theSilver Surfer), events begin to spiral, forcing Skaar to not only abandon Sakaar but also head toward Earth. As was revealed by series writerGreg Pak,Mister Fantastic, Reed Richards, is not amused with the arrival of anotherHulk-like being, and the meeting between father and son will not be very pleasant for the Hulk.
In the 2010 "World War Hulks" storyline, it is revealed that the satellites used to revert Hulk to Banner at the end of "World War Hulk" siphoned off thegamma radiation from his body, to collect it for the cathexis ray later used to create theRed Hulk.[21]
A sequel arc titledWorld War Hulk II is shown in the issues ofThe Incredible Hulk. After returning from a restored Sakaar, Amadeus Cho's Hulk faces off against Phalkan. His Hulk form's persona changed to where it easily defeated Phalkan and used his "computer brain" to leave Phalkan with a broken arm, a broken foot, a punctured lung, and some broken ribs.[22]
For the 2009What If series, there was aWhat If? World War Hulk one-shot which examines two alternatives to the storyline:[23]
In the last issue, the Earth-Z version of Hulk became infected while on the moon, the rest of the Warbound being devoured by the zombie Inhumans (with the Hulk eatingElloe Kaifi when the infection takes control of him). Instead of seeking revenge on the Avengers and Earth, he returned to Earth to satisfy his hunger, and in turn, infects the version of the Sentry that was responsible for the outbreak in the first place. This Hulk goes on to joinSpider-Man's team of New Avengers when the Sentry turns against him.
InChris Giarrusso'sMini Marvels comics, a World War Hulk three-story series had been written.
Zen Studios developed a virtualpinball adaptation of the limited comic series, releasing it on the comic's fifth anniversary in 2012 as part of the fourAvengers Chronicles tables as downloadable content forMarvel Pinball,Zen Pinball 2,Pinball FX 2 andPinball FX 3.[24] This table is set in the ruins of New York City and featuresvoice acting and battles between the Hulk and the superheroes he sought to confront as revenge for his exile.
| Title | Material collected | Pages | Date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| World War Hulk | World War Hulk (2007) #1-5 | 224 | May 2008 | ISBN 978-1302920777 |
| World War Hulk: Front Line | World War Hulk Prologue: World Breaker,World War Hulk: Frontline #1-5 | 196 | June 2008 | ISBN 978-0785126669 |
| World War Hulk: Gamma Corps | World War Hulk: Gamma Corps #1-4 | 104 | May 2008 | ISBN 978-0785128045 |
| World War Hulk: X-Men | World War Hulk: X-Men #1-3,Avengers: Initiative #4-5,Irredeemable Ant-Man #10,Iron Man vol. 4 #19-20 andGhost Rider vol. 4 #12-13 | 240 | May 2008 | ISBN 978-0785128885 |
| World War Hulk: Incredible Hercules | Incredible Hulk vol. 2 #106-111 | 142 | June 2008 | ISBN 978-0785129912 |
| World War Hulk: Damage Control | World War Hulk: Aftersmash andWorld War Hulk: Aftersmash - Damage Control #1-3 | 112 | June 2008 | ISBN 978-0785123880 |
| World War Hulk: Warbound | World War Hulk: Aftersmash - Warbound #1-5 | 120 | July 2008 | ISBN 978-0785116882 |
| World War Hulk Omnibus | World War Hulk Prologue: World Breaker,World War Hulk #1-5,Incredible Hulk vol. 2 #106-111,Iron Man vol. 4 #19-20,Avengers: Initiative #4-5,Irredeemable Ant-Man #10,World War Hulk: X-Men #1-3,Ghost Rider vol. 4 #12-13,Heroes for Hire (2006) #11-15,Punisher War Journal vol. 2 #12,World War Hulk: Gamma Corps #1-4,World War Hulk: Frontline #1-5,World War Hulk: Aftersmash,World War Hulk: Aftersmash - Damage Control #1-3,World War Hulk: Aftersmash - Warbound #1-5 andPlanet Hulk Saga | 1304 | October 2017 | ISBN 978-1302908126 |
World War Hulk No. 1 was at the top of theDiamond Comic Distributors' sales chart for June 2007, selling an estimated 178,302 copies.[25] When the first issue sold out, Marvel announced a second printing would have a variant cover byJohn Romita Jr.[26]
