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| Title: | Conspiracy Theory | | Credits: |   Jeph Loeb (writer), Ed McGuinness (penciler)
Dario Brizuela (inker), Dave Stewart (colorist), Ed McGuinness (cover penciler) | | Score: | ¶¶¶ (out of 5) | | Synopsis: | The new Frightful Four (Wizard, Klaw, Lyra, and Trapster), attack the Baxter Building and subdue Mr. Fantastic, while Invisible Woman, the Thing, and the Human Torch battle the villains with different kinds of success. In ...
Sign in to see the full synopsis | | Characters: | Fantastic Four, Red Hulk | | Enemies: | Frightful Four | | Synopsis Written By: | Julio Molina-Muscara |
| | | Story #2 | | Title: | Hulk Snow | | Credits: | Audrey Loeb (writer), Dario Brizuela (penciler)
Dario Brizuela (inker), Dario Brizuela (colorist) | | Score: | ¶¶¶ (out of 5) | | Synopsis: | Hulk, Red Hulk and Blue Hulk start a snow fight against Iron Man, Silver Surfer, and Thor who ...
Sign in to see the full synopsis | | Characters: | Blue Hulk, Hulk (Bruce Banner), Iron Man (Tony Stark), Red Hulk, Silver Surfer, Thor | | Synopsis Written By: | Julio Molina-Muscara |
| From the Publisher: | This is it! The Fall of The Hulks begins here. The opening round: THE RED HULK VS. THE THING with Reed Richards'' life at stake. When the Baxter Building is attacked by the all-new, all-deadly Frightful Four, who will save the Fantastic Four? How about THE RED HULK? Not a chance. The superstar team of JEPH LOEB and ED McGUINNESS shotgun this mindblowing chapter of the biggest Hulkventure of them all. Rated Thttp://marvel.com/catalog/?id=13787 |
| Pro Review: | By Charles Webb
Originally posted at comicsbulletin.com
No one's more surprised than I am at my genuine enjoyment of the latest issue of the Jeph Loeb-penned Hulk. When the series first launched in the aftermath of "World War Hulk" the book had its charms, with Loeb focusing on over-the-top action with the all-attitude, all-the-time Red Hulk at the forefront.
But as much fun as we all had seeing Uatu the Watcher getting belted in the grill, the pleasures of reading the series began to diminish as the mystery behind the Red Hulk and the shadowy forces aligned behind him gained little if any clarity. Events within the pages were less part of an overarching storyline and more – well, a series of events. Things happened. Hulk(s) smashed and there was much talk about how dangerous this new character is. Leonard Sampson suddenly got grim and dangerous, and She Hulk disappeared into a plot point about 15 issues ago.
Lacking any clear motivation or any real sense of purpose beyond being an antagonist to the Marvel U, Red Hulk increasingly took on the qualities of a Mary Sue – he was often smarter, stronger, and better than the other characters (heroic and villainous) that he encountered. But in nearly two years, Loeb has almost seemed to make a virtue of giving readers little if any insight into a character that appeared so frequently in the book.
So what changed with this issue? Well, nothing substantial, save that it was a well-executed installment with clear motivations by the antagonists at the end and an understandable conflict (with one caveat – more on that later). This issue sees members of the Frightful Four attacking the Baxter Building and taking down each member of the FF by means both clever and mundane. Contracted by the Intelligencia - the group behind the still undefined conspiracy – the Frightful Four have set out to neutralize Reed Richards and his team.
Red Hulk narrates from the sidelines (for the most part) and intervenes for reasons of his own. Taken on its own merits it's a well-done issue and makes me curious about the ongoing events in this storyline. But it's difficult to assess the book outside of those that have come before so I have my doubts that this will lead to anything as interesting as what's happening here.
Ed McGuinness's pencil work never fails to impress and he brings out superlative action scenes with very cool Four on Four action. Most impressive is the visual of Reed wrapped around the Baxter Building, stretched to his limit – McGuinness's work is worth the price of admission.
Final Word: While I'm still dubious about the ramp up to the "Fall of the Hulks" storyline, there's some cleverness on display in the moment that shouldn't be discounted by the reader.
Score: 3.5 (out of 5) |
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