My Favourite Hulk Adaptation

Hulk's adaptations are not often the greatest. He is a character that often requires a lot of time and investment. You basically have to build up two characters, devote time to them as individuals, which is of course important, but also devote time to their relationship, which is equally as important, just as their personal relationships are. Enter Betty Ross and Rick Jones. Then you have to flesh out their antagonists, and the whole thing just requires a lot of dedication. So, I understand why so many Hulk adaptations just haven't been satisfactory. But out of the few that have been, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes has been my favorite so far. This series has its own baggage to carry, having to develop a bunch of different characters and their storylines, but its adaptation of Hulk gets down to brass tacks right away. From his very first appearance, we find a tired-looking, worn-out Bruce Banner who's been tracked by S.H.I.E.L.D. and Thunderbolt Ross, and Banner is just trying to get away from it all. He then encounters Creel, Absorbing Man, in a cafe, and Banner's first instinct is to try and sympathize with his enemy. He tries to find common ground. He tries to help him. When Absorbing Man attacks him, Banner transforms, and Hulk pulls Creel away from the cafe to a deserted area. Hulk is quickly characterized as someone who is, at the very least, noble in his intention not to hurt people or cause damage. And during the fight, we are greeted with an intelligent, articulate Hulk. He is then shown as heroic. He puts his body on the line to intercept a rocket that was going to hit Black Widow and Hawkeye, the two sent to capture him. And he even saves one of Hawkeye's teammates from dying. This Hulk persona is one of my favorites, because it takes elements from a few Hulks. The intelligence and arrogance of Joe Fixit, the childish defensiveness of Savage Hulk, and the nobility and inclination towards goodness of Green Scar. Creating a unique yet fitting persona. The first sequence involving the Jade Giant illustrates that we have a much tamer Hulk than we are used to. But the world still views him as a monster. And Ross has already used Banner's blood and his body to try and recreate the monster for the government. The [music] way this Banner looks, the bags under his eyes, the way he sounds so deflated and tired at times, really hammers home the idea that he has been a tool, a weapon for people. And by being a hero, he is trying to be better. And to jump off that point, in the episode where the Avengers first fight together, that's the conversation that Bruce has with Hulk. Banner convinces Hulk that by doing good, like he knows he wants to and knows he is capable of, he can change the perception of the Hulk. So even helping people like Thor, like Iron Man, saving people the way he saved Doc Samson, that can make a difference. The point is [music] that Hulk's instinct is towards goodness, which is probably a part of Banner that informs him. Just as Hulk informs Banner's defensiveness and his rage. Hulk has saved Doc Samson. He saved Hawkeye and Widow even when they were hunting him down. But still he is apprehensive, angry about the way they will view him. This perception that Hulk is this savage monster is not just detrimental to Hulk's psyche, but he begins to see himself as this unlovable monster. And that colors [music] his world. It's also accompanied with being shot at and hunted, which only exacerbates everything. While the series is more focused on Hulk than Banner, it's important to note Bruce's role here. Banner sacrifices so much so that Hulk can primarily be the host of their body. We learn that Bruce gets only one day a month when he gets to be Banner, and that was the cost to try to not only change the perception of the Gamma Guardian, but also to help people, to save people, to change the world. Bruce loses any of relationship he has, any personal desires, ambitions to help the Hulk in a quest to prove to the world that Hulk can be a force for good, that he's not a monster. He's sacrificing his bodily autonomy for all of that. And here we see their relationship is fascinating. Bruce understands Hulk's guarded nature and his defensiveness at being perceived as something that he is not and his constant anger towards that. But he also believes in Hulk's goodness. He was the first person to believe in it, to see Hulk as something other than that. A lot of stories do focus on the conflict between Banner and Hulk. And I too would point out that for me, that is the most interesting and the strongest part of Hulk's character. How he and Banner reckon with abuse and trauma and repression, the duality of it all. How his character grows into a resentful, guilty man and an angry monster. The way Banner treats Hulk, the way he hates him, and the way he learns to see Hulk as an actual person to me is fascinating. And in his greatest stories, Banner combats his own nature and trauma to move forward with his life and become a more rounded, more present person in his life and relationships. But I think as far as stories go that show Hulk and Banner finding mutual ground, being at [music] peace with each other, this is one of the strongest depictions. Because now this character can have different [music] challenges than just himself. Hulk's challenge, particularly in this first season, is figuring out what being a hero means, what being a friend means, and deciding if it's all worth it. Hulk and Banner are fighting against their own trauma constantly. When Hulk gets his mind taken over by the Enchantress, he quits because everybody is fearful of the damage that Hulk could do. They are afraid that Hulk has become what they've always believed he is. >> You all thought I was a savage monster. >> But Hawkeye is seeking him out, [music] seeking Banner out, shows Hulk that people want him around, that he has value, and that not everyone expects just mindless violence from him. In fact, the idea that Hawkeye expects more out of him >> [music] >> is exactly the kind of friendship that Hulk needs, given how his own defensiveness can cause inaction. Hulk and Hawkeye are an unlikely pairing, but the two get on quite well. And Hulk, who's never had any friends, learns how to be a friend. He finds a safe space in Barton and Wasp, who was the first person to actually be his friend. He opens up around those two, even sharing laughs and inside jokes with Clint later on. Captain America deems Hulk a hero and tells him that, which is enough for the Jade Giant to keep going on his path, even if there are bumps along the way. Being perceived as a hero by some of the greatest heroes that exist further affirms Hulk. He needs to hear that verbally. He needs to be reassured that he is seen just like the rest of them, like a person and not a monster. And Cap's affirming that Hulk has been on the right path was perfect. Hulk is so brave in the series, I find. He's willing to put his body on the line time and time again for people to call and to treat him like a monster, and yet he continues to do so. The Enchantress episode in the sequel were such great portrayals of Hulk learning these things. Because he's been alone for so long, he doesn't know how to interact with others yet. When Wasp, the first person to help him, makes it clear that she's on his side, he's surprised. As he was by Thor. Additionally, Hulk being manipulated by the Enchantress feels very authentic because his internal dialogue wouldn't be all that much different than what it is in the episode. He gets frustrated when the team is late. He gets angry at Pepper for trying to teach him how to use his key card. Hulk is constantly on edge because nobody has ever treated him with any respect or seen him as an actual person. Friends help each other because they want to, and Hulk can't fathom that just yet, which makes it all the more satisfying when he rejoins the team a few episodes later, only because of the friendship that led to by Hawkeye. In the second season, he's featured a lot less, but that growth is on display. The very reason he isn't seen all that [music] much is because of the trust he shows Cap when Steve asks Hulk to turn himself in, and Hulk complies. That's something that he wouldn't have done earlier on. Further, the famous lonely Hulk asks the Avengers for help at one point. >> Avengers, assemble. >> And in a season where no one could trust each other because of the Skrull invasion, Hulk still believed in his friends even after being burned once before. Hulk at the very end of the series, particularly in the episode where he fights Ross, who has become the Red Hulk, the Jade Giant had every reason to unleash his anger and maybe even [music] end Ross for good. Red Hulk tarnished his image. He attempted to steal his place on the team, and Thunderbolt Ross has never seen him as anything but a monster. He is the first one to see him as that. Ross has been the one spearheading all of these attempts to capture and even make more people like the Green Giant. And so, when given the chance, Hulk doesn't kill him. He instead lets him go. The right hand of [music] mercy. Hulk will not be Ross's monster, and he will not let Ross or Shield win. The Gamma Guardian has gained a lot more confidence in himself when comparing him from the beginning of the series to the end. Earth's Mightiest Heroes is an adaptation that, while subtle, showed what a reasonable understanding Incredible Hulk looks like, and what different challenges are possible for this character when Bruce and Hulk make amends, when they realize that they need and inform each other. It just creates new possibilities and stories for this character. Hulk doesn't always have to be this permanently angry, uncontrollable, >> [music] >> unreasonable character. And Bruce doesn't always have to despise and loathe the Hulk. They can work together and still have a very compelling story. It just demands great writers and great respect for the character. Ones that Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes always had.