Comic Info
Comic Name: Incredible Hulk (Volume 2)/Web of Spider-Man (Volume 1)/Fantastic Four (Volume 1)
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer: Peter David
Artist: Jeff Purves/Alex Saviuk/Keith Pollard
# of Issues: 8
Release Date: 2006
Incredible Hulk (2) #349
Reprints Incredible Hulk (2) #349-354, Web of Spider-Man (1) #44, and Fantastic Four (1) #320. Joe Fixit has taken over Las Vegas. There, he crosses path with Spider-Man to battle a strange group of weekend warriors intent on killing each other. He also joins Doctor Doom in an attempt to take down the Thing in a one-on-one battle royal. Joe’s perfect life may be endings as it is revealed how he has managed to keep Bruce Banner suppressed for months. Plus Joe Fixit’s obsessed fan Marlo makes her move.
Written by Peter David, Hulk Visionaries: Peter David—Volume 3 also includes crossover stories in Web of Spider-Man and Fantastic Four. The collection features art by Jeff Purves, Alex Saviuk, and Keith Pollard.
The third volume of Peter David’s run on Incredible Hulk has him deeply involved in the Joe Fixit storyline and has completely established him in Las Vegas. The collection is mixed with two crossover with the more popular Spider-Man and of course went classic with a Hulk-Thing showdown.
The series was really picking up steam at this point and feels like Peter David has crafted what was left to him when he took over Hulk into where he wants it. The character and his back-up cast really feel like they have a well-planned story arc. The lead-up to explaining how Hulk kept Banner suppressed was a bit confusing and I didn’t realize it was a flashback how it was told (though I always loved the original Jarella storyline).
Incredible Hulk (2) #353
The collection also suffers from all the crossovers. It is always good to see a Hulk-Thing fight and both the tables have been turned with Thing and Hulk both undergoing transformations which changes their style of fighting. The Spider-Man and Hulk thing was really generic and not very interesting. It also didn’t help that the great all annual encompassing Evolutionary War happened and fall between issues Incredible Hulk (2) #350 and Incredible Hulk (2) #351…just adding to the confusion of the flashback issues of #351 and #352.
Hulk Visionaries: Peter David—Volume 3 continues to represent one of the best runs of Hulk. While his run is great, there always seems to be bumps in the paths. Here the bumps are the crossovers, but don’t let it take away from the great characterization of the Hulk and his fun supporting cast. If you get a chance, try to collect all the volume in Peter Davis’ run for an interesting look at a character that has had ups and downs.
Related Links:
Hulk Visionaries: Peter David—Volume 1
Hulk Visionaries: Peter David—Volume 2
Hulk Visionaries: Peter David—Volume 4
Hulk Visionaries: Peter David—Volume 5
Hulk Visionaries: Peter David—Volume 6
