Hulk (Vol. 3) #2 — Nick Peron

Mar 16

Mar 16 Hulk (Vol. 3) #2

Who Shot the Hulk #2

After the Bruce Banner was shot in the head and kidnapped for a secret experiment leaving him severely brain damaged, Maria Hill and Phil Coulson of SHIELD attempt to try and figure out who had done it. Going over the files on the Hulk's various foes, Hill can't know for sure if it was one of them or someone else entirely. She is at least thankful that Banner managed to escape as the Hulk and is now in a hospital in Kentucky, far away from his captors. However, she is certain that they will look for him again. Elsewhere, scientists are busy working with the brain matter that was extracted from Bruce Banner's brain. Exposed to gamma radiation, these masses grow to a size they can work with. This entire process is watched by one of the men who were responsible for Banner's capture. They then use the matter to recreate the Abomination so they can use him as a bloodhound to track down the Hulk. Back at SHIELD headquarters, Agent Coulson asks if he can see where Bruce Banner is now. However, Hill denies the request, saying it is too dangerous and it would accomplish nothing as Banner is mentally incapable of helping them.

Meanwhile, in Kentucky, the now simple-minded Bruce Banner has been placed in a small town. Under the name Bobby, Banner is greeted by two elderly SHIELD agents, Brassey's, he believes are his grandparents. They have come to bring him lunch after he has finished sweeping the church. Handing Banner a plastic container, the simple-minded man struggles to open it and loses his temper, but much to their relief, he doesn't turn into the Hulk. That's when the two agents get a call ordering them to bring Banner to a local feed store. The pair complies, but they are uneasy about what these orders could be about. Once they arrive in town, Bassey sends Hayes to get Bruce some ice cream. That's when is greeted by Buddy, the local real estate agent. He introduces Bassey to the newest homeowner in town, "Mary Huell", who is actually Maria Hill in disguise. As Buddy goes on about how the town seems to be booming, Bassey notices that some of the local youths are hassling Banner. Maria gets it under control by alerting the other SHIELD agents were planted in the town. When these undercover agents begin fending off the young men, Buddy demands to know what is going on.

While inside the feed store, a man claiming to be Agent Hayes tells Mrs. Bassey that they are people working inside SHIELD trying to eliminate Bruce Banner. He is about to tell her more when Maria Hill appears and doffs her disguise. She denies the rumors that she was the one responsible for shooting Banner. Just then, the proximity alarm begins to sound, warning them of something approaching. With no time to shoot it out of the sky, Hill tells him to sound the alarm. Rushing outside she orders everyone to take cover. With no time to lose, she tries to get Bruce angry enough to trigger a transformation into the Hulk. This fails until she knocks his toy airplane onto the ground, breaking it. Banner transforms into the Hulk just as the Abomination lands on top of him. As the two gamma-spawned monsters fight it out, Maria tries to get Buddy to cover. Buddy is upset and berates Hill for her and her people destroying the town he grew up in. When he asks who will hold SHIELD accountable, three masked soldiers phase through the wall, saying that they will. Once they have fully emerged, their captain orders his troops to open fire.