Written by: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
Art by: Nic Klein
Colors by: Matthew Wilson, Nic Klein
Letters by: VC’s Cory Petit
Cover art by: Nic Klein (cover A)
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: September 18, 2024
The Incredible Hulk #17, by Marvel Comics on 9/18/24, finds the Hulk arriving in Las Vegas to confront the Eldest for a chance to restore Charlie to a human life. The deal he’s offered may be worse than the cure.
Is The Incredible Hulk #17 Good?
It’s about damn time. I’ve persistently criticized Phillip Kennedy Johnson for needlessly meandering and getting stuck on a hamster wheel in his bid to get Hulk to do something… anything… more meaningful than smashing a new monster every month. Now, we get down to brass tacks with a Faustian bargain that could spell trouble. This is the issue we’ve been waiting for, and the most unfortunate part is how much time and lost readers Johnson took to get here.
When last we left the Hulk in The Incredible Hulk #16, the Hulk was nowhere to be found. Instead, Phillip Kennedy Johnson provided the second of a two-part arc that revises the Gilgamesh legend by tying Enkidu into the Eldest and a retelling of the first attempt to release the Mother of Horrors that failed. Now, the Eldest has lured the Hulk to Las Vegas to try again.
In The Incredible Hulk #17, we begin with a pair of women standing on the roof’s edge of the Luxor casino (a black glass pyramid). They appear to be preparing to jump. Suddenly, they’re approached by a man who promises to fix their broken dreams of lost fame and accomplishment. When the man leads the women to a cave underneath the Las Vegas strip, their dreams of fame come to a bloody end.
Phillip Kennedy Johnson starts the issue with pain and tragedy. The girls in question appear to have been the victims of unscrupulous agents/producers/talent scouts, so their possible attempt at self-harm swings back to hope before they lose everything permanently.
One month later, Hulk strides into town without care or thought as to who knows it. He arrives at the front door of the same casino, and the doorman tells Hulk he’s expected. The doorman opens a portal that reveals stairs leading into the caverns beneath the city and straight to the Eldest. Meanwhile, the image of Betty urges Bruce Banner to give up on his mission to save Charlie because the Eldest orchestrated the entire scenario. Bruce resists, counting on Hulk’s strength to overcome.
All the pent-up patience and frustration waiting for something to happen bears fruit in the following scene as “Betty” represents an avatar of the Eldest appealing to Bruce’s consciousness. The scene works well to build tension and anxiety for what comes next.
Hulk attempts to smash Eldest, but it’s too strong. As a show of strength, Eldest reveals its true nature in the form of a cosmic elder god of kaiju-sized proportions. Even Hulk’s strength won’t be enough to defeat the Eldest. Instead, the Eldest offers a deal to Bruce – sign over Hulk’s body to the Eldest, and Charlie won’t be reborn in the form of a monstrous skinwalker.
The issue ends with Bruce Banner making the only deal he could.
Overall, The Incredible Hulk #17 is the issue long-patient fans have been waiting for. The Faustian bargain is the stuff of pure evil, and the ending truly is the metaphorical dark night of the soul.
How’s the Art? Nic Klein is back on the title, and the comic benefits from his artwork in spades. The monsters are terrifying, the smashing practically booms, the Eldest’s true form is overwhelming, and Bruce’s conflict is gut-wrenching. Welcome back, Nic Klein. You’ve been missed.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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Final Thoughts
The Incredible Hulk #17 finally gets Phillip Kennedy Johnson off his meandering butt to make progress on the Hulk’s conflict with the Eldest. Bruce is forced into a Faustian bargain that will tear your heart out, and Nic Klein returns to turn the screws with fantastic art.
8.5/10
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