Incredible Hulk in the 1980s
When the 1980s hit, Bill Mantlo no longer had to have is work on Incredible Hulk mirror the type of stories that appeared on the Incredible Hulk TV show and this really allowed him to tell some of the most iconic stories of his run. He brought back classic superheroes like 3-D Man (issue #251) and Jack Frost (issue #249), while also introducing and helping boost new international heroes for the upcoming Contest of Champions series such as Sabra (issue #256), Arabian Knight (issue #256), and the Soviet Super-Soldiers (issue #257-258). He also created the new super-villains called the U-Foes in Incredible Hulk #254.
Issue #260 is a milestone as it concluded a long building conflict between the Hulk and Glenn Talbot who had grown increasingly unhinged following his divorce with Betty Ross. This battle ultimately ends in the death Glenn Talbot and he is one of the few characters in the Marvel Universe has stayed dead (knock on wood). In issue #265, Bill borrowed a page from Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and introduced a new team of western heroes called the Rangers. One of Mantlo’s most lucrative creation (not that the poor guy sees much from it) was his creation of Rocket Raccoon in issue #271, this character would become one of the most popular characters in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies.
Mantlo also used later issues to flesh out the past of the Hulk and is supporting cast: in issue #268 we learn about Rick Jones’ life in the orphanage system while issue #291 delves into the past of General Ross, while issue #312 is the iconic tale that first delves into Bruce Banner’s abusive childhood and how it contributed to the creation of the Hulk.
From issue #277 onward, Bruce Banner gained the ability to retain his intellect while he was the Hulk. This allowed Mantlo to write a series of stories where the Hulk is hailed as a hero and vindicates himself for all his past destruction. Issues #278-279 is a particularly star-studded two-part story about the Hulk getting pardoned by the President of the United States and hailed by pretty much every hero in the Marvel Universe at the time. However, all good things come to an end as Mantlo intended for the Hulk to revert to his savage ways. Over the course of the next few years (and in the Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars limited series) the Hulk soon discovered that he was slowly losing his mind. By issue #296, thanks to the machinations of Nightmare, the Savage Hulk regains control and goes on a rampage across America bringing him to New York City by issue #300 where he battles the cities defenders. Horrified by what he had done, Bruce Banner commits “psychic suicide” leaving the Hulk nothing but a savage brute, forcing Doctor Strange to banish the Hulk to the Crossroads, a dimensional nexus where he hopes the Hulk will find a dimension where he can live at peace.
The remainder of Mantlo’s run issues #301-313 delved into the Hulk’s adventures in the Crossroads where the brute failed to find an appropriate home. This all ends when Alpha Flight accidentally pulls the Hulk back to Earth while searching for a new body for their teammate Walter Langkowski.
By this time, the creative teams switched, wit Mantlo going over to write Alpha Flight while John Byrne took on both writing and art duties for Incredible Hulk. Byrne did the book for a sort run, issues #314-319. It started with the Hulk and Banner being split into two different entities, Banner forming the Hulkbusters to stop the Hulk, and ending with Banner marrying long time love interest, Betty Ross.
Al Milgrom jumped onto the title as writer and artist after Byrne’s departure. He would work on the book from issue #320 to 330. This came at a time when Marvel was back-pedalling on all the changes they made in the first part of the decade (see Spider-Man’s black costume, John Byrne’s changes on Fantastic Four, and Walt Simon’s changes on Thor) Milgrom was the hatchet man for Hulk rolling back most of the changes that were made by Byrne. The Hulk and Banner were merged back together however, whenever Banner changed into the Hulk he turned grey like he did waaaaay back in Incredible Hulk #1. This was all a round-about way of making a coloring preference part of continuity because why the fuck not?
This highly gimmicky idea wasn’t given any real justice until Peter David started his legendary run on the book starting in issue #331. David remained as writer on the Incredible Hulk well into the late 90s and while most titles were fizzling and dying during the comic book implosion of that decade, David was still churning out gold. David’s run, however, didn’t really gain total traction until issue #340 which saw Todd MacFarlane come on as artist with an iconic brawl between the new Grey Hulk and Wolverine. This led up to a multi-issue arc where the Leader unleashed a gamma bomb on a small American town and the Hulk is seemingly destroyed in the process.
Instead, this was a prologue to one of the most ambitiously different Hulk runs ever written. From Incredible Hulk #347-364 charted the Hulk (now calling himself Joe Fixit) as he tries to make a living as a mob enforcer in Las Vegas and his eventual fall from grace. That was told in Hulk #355-359 where Satannish and Glorian try to test the Hulk like Job. While I find Peter David’s regular Biblical references a dull trope these days, back then — when he seldom employed it — it was an interesting take. Sadly, David is prone to repeating himself by doing biblically inspired stories (see his original run on Spider-Man 2099, and more recent run on Scarlet Spider for other examples of this tired trope) Still, Peter David was just getting started as readers would see in the following decade.