There is really only one thing to say about The Incredible Hulk #600 and that is somebody needs to sit Jeph Loeb down and tell him to stop writing comics without Tim Sale. Incredible Hulk 600 is such a total waste of time and money that I sat holding it shocked at how awful it was. First let’s get some spoilers out of the way and I tell you this in hopes that I can stop you from buying it.
You do not find out who the Red Hulk is.
Yep, the entire build up of how Hulk 600 will reveal the identity of the Red Hulk is a total lie. What you do get is a convoluted story by Loeb that introduces Magok into the picture, involves Spider-Man, She-Hulk, Ben Urich, and Red Hulk oh yeah and the kitchen sink. Yet with all of those things in the mix Loeb’s story is so badly thought out and written you find yourself re-reading it to see if you missed something that would allow it to make any sense.
Having spent the last 13 issues of Hulk screwing up the story and just throwing out plots that serve no purpose Loeb tries to tie all the loose ends together from World War Hulk through now by blaming everything on Magok and his new Gamma Powered Super Solider Program. As if that wasn’t bad enough it turns out the entire story is to prepare us for some “war” that’s coming that we won’t win. By the end of the story nothing is solved, nothing moves forward and everything is just a mess.
The rest of this “giant sized” issue is essentially one big advertising ploy by Marvel to shill new titles. Think of it as a smaller version of Marvel’s monthly Previews catalog. Following Loeb’s story is another Hulk story written by Stan Lee that serves no purpose other than maybe to get people to buy the issue with a Stan Lee story in it. Then we’re graced with a badly paced All New Savage She-Hulk story that is basically there to drum up interest in the new She-Hulk who is Banner’s genetically engineered daughter.
I will repeat that
The new She-Hulk is Banner’s genetically engineered daughter. The mind boggles.
Next there’s an excerpt from the Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale “Hulk: Grey” project from years ago. Oddly enough they put this in the issue where there is a big ad for the hardcover version of “Hulk: Grey”. Imagine that? What are the chances Marvel Comics would cram in something years old to sell a repackaged version of it? Not Marvel….not them…no way.
My personal favorite was the eight pages of ads for upcoming titles involving Hulk. No stories, no sneak previews just literally one-page ads. The best is that Incredible Hulk #601 is called “Banner And Son” and features a cover with Banner running backed up by Skaar. Just think with a son, a genetically engineered daughter, and a cousin could Hulk Christmas be far behind? We can only dream I suppose.
To wrap this toilet-paper-posing-as-comic-book issue up there’s a two page “gallery” of all the Hulk covers ever which are of course so small you can’t see them and then a kids cartoon featuring Red and Green Hulk. This issue is so horrible not even Ed McGuiness’s art can save it. The big plot twist at the end of Loeb’s initial story has basically gotten me to swear off of Hulk for the foreseeable future. This isn’t a comic book, this is a travesty made to look like a comic.
Hulk is now lamest one there is.
