Incredible Hulks #623
Planet Savage (Chapter One)
Following his battle with Zeus, the Hulk is rushed by his family to Gammaworld where Kate Waynesboro begins emergency surgery. With his enhanced healing abilities at their lowest ebb, Kate is forced to give him a jolt straight into his heart. To get the energy needed to affect the Hulk, Kate channels the power of the gamma irradiated dome over Gammaworld to do so. It works, but causes the Hulk so much pain he reaches out and grabs her arm. The She-Hulks, A-Bomb, Korg, Skaar and the Warbound calm him down. Kate manages to break free and is chastised by the Red She-Hulk for pulling such a stunt. However, Waynesboro easily heals the damage done to her arm using the Old Power. She tells them how she once betrayed the Hulk to SHIELD but he was too powerful to stop, but this time, he had his family here to assist him, saying that as long as they are there to watch over him, the true hero will come through.
That evening while everyone else is asleep, the Hulk rises from his bed and prepares to leave the Gammaworld compound. He is followed by Skaar who insists on coming along because he has also read the message the Hulk received. Suddenly the others are awoken by the sound of a jet starting up and rush outside. There they see the Hulk, Skaar, and the Warbound boarding the ship. The Hulk tells Kate to look after Rick, and for She-Hulk to return to New York and watch after Lyra, saying the mission he is about to embark on is too dangerous for them, he even leaves the Red She-Hulk behind. Along the way, the Warbound insist that the Hulk must get some rest. However, the Hulk tells them that if he does sleep he will die. He tells them to play the message back as he needs to remain angry in order to continue his healing process. They play it back again, it is a video recorded by Ka-Zar, lord of the Savage Land. He reports to the Hulk that something has slaughtered forty-three Sakaaran refugees that made their home there. He petitions the Hulk to come to the Savage Land to lend his assistance.
As they cross over into the prehistoric domain, the rest of the Warbound and Skaar find themselves at home in the Savage Land. No Name of Brood picks up a familiar scent and tells them that they are going the wrong way. However, Elloe Kaifi has spotted Ka-Zar and Zabu battling a massive dinosaur along with some Sakaaran warriors. Without a second thought, the Hulk and his Warbound leap down to battle the creature. The Sakaarans praise the return of their leader, which distracts the Hulk long enough for the dinosaur to get him in its maw. With the Hulk too weak to fight back, Ka-Zar manages to stop the giant lizard from causing more harm by stabbing it through the eye, piercing its brain, killing the prehistoric beast instantly. Skaar is unimpressed with the scene, blaming the Sakaaran's leader, the Red Priest, is responsible for this carnage pointing out that some of their warriors had killed its children. When the Red Priest sees this he demands to know who was responsible, telling the Sakaarans that Ka-Zar already told them that the teeth marks of those creatures do not match whatever slaughtered their people. He blames their lust for vengeance on their rage and is not surprised that they are so welcoming of their former king. The Hulk, however, insists that he has changed. Skaar doesn't think he has, however.
Whatever the case, the Hulk and his Warbound are invited to New Imperia, the refuge of the last remaining Sakaaran's on Earth. There they receive much praise for their enduring celebrity status from back when they battled in the arenas of Sakaar. While eating a meal, the Hulk insists on Ka-Zar that they begin hunting for whatever killed his people immediately, but Ka-Zar insists that they need rest and they should go in the morning. Sure enough, the Hulk appears to follow through on this. However, as everyone is asleep the Red Priest comes out with some Sakaaran Imperials who are loyal to him. He has knocked the Hulk and his allies out using a potent nerve toxin derived from insects to knock them out. Checking to make sure the Hulk is incapacitated, the Red Priest signals a horde of massive insects carries to carry him off. The Red Priest and his people follow the massive insects to a nearby temple. There they meet with Miek, who tells them that he has changed his ways and that since his species are on the brink of extinction, he seeks to create something worth fighting for again. Miek then picks up the Hulk and carries him past a number of Sakaaran Imperials who are shackled to the massive tables, their bodies bulging with the eggs of massive insects that have been implanted beneath their flesh.
Recurring Characters
Hulk, She-Hulk, Red She-Hulk, A-Bomb, Warbound (Skaar, Korg, Kate Waynesboro, No-Name of Brood, Elloe Kaifi), Ka-Zar, Miek, Red Priest, Zabu
Continuity Notes
Kate Waynesboro speaks of the time she betrayed the Hulk to SHIELD. She was assigned to study him undercover during a period in which Banner's mind had the control of the Hulk's body from Incredible Hulk #287-296. Ultimately the savage Hulk returned and Kate joined SHIELD in hunting him down until Incredible Hulk #300 when the Hulk was banished to the Crossroads Dimension by Doctor Strange.
Numerous mentions are made of the Hulk's time on Sakaar and his war on New York City. These events happened in Incredible Hulk Vol 2 #92-106 and World War Hulk #1-5.
