The Immortal Hulk #43 // Review
Ever wondered how Bruce Banner feeds himself and affords all of those terrible motel rooms while he’s on the run? If your answer was “yes,” then The Immortal Hulk #43, written by Al Ewing, with pencils by Joe Bennett, inks by Ruy Jose and Belardino Brabo, and colors by Paul Mounts, is the comic for you! Previously, Banner’s old nemesis, the Leader, reared his ugly head once more and brought holy hell to the insides of Bruce’s mind. He managed to kill the current dominant Hulk personality, Devil Hulk, and then somehow kidnapped Banner from his own brain. Now, Joe Fixit (aka the Gray Hulk) is in charge of Bruce’s vacant body, and “the big guy” (aka the Savage Hulk) is left in an emaciated, depowered state that makes him much less than “the strongest there is.” On top of all that, Henry Peter Gyrich has ousted the entire Gamma Flight team in charge of bringing Banner to justice and has replaced them with a much more dangerous class of Hulkbusters, aka the U-Foes. Is Devil Hulk really dead? Will Banner make it back to his body? Why does the government keep giving Henry Peter Gyrich work? None of these questions are answered in this issue, but it’s still a fun read!
First and foremost, the elephant in the room must be addressed when talking about this now-infamous issue of The Immortal Hulk. That elephant being that Joe Bennett included some astoundingly offensive anti-Semitic art in the background of a panel involving Joe Fixit trying to scam a jewelry store clerk out of money. Bennett says it was a mistake, mostly having to do with misspelling the word “jewelry” because he was writing/drawing the word backward. That seems to be backed up by the fact he also misspelled the word “Cronemberg” in the window, which was supposed to a shout-out to the horror director David Cronenberg. He did, however, also include a Star of David in the window, furthering the stereotypes of Jewish people in the diamond industry. He has addressed this, too, apologizing and claiming not to understand how offensive it would be at the time. Marvel has also apologized for not catching the “mistakes” in the editing process. Still, no word has been mentioned of any punishment for Bennett, other than that he and Marvel would be working together to correct the issue. Because of this situation, there will be none of the usual praising of Mr. Bennett’s pencils in this review, as it seems inappropriate at the moment. The rest of the art team, including Jose, Brabo, and Mounts, did their usual amazing job and deserve as much praise as could be given to any of the greats in comic book history.
Now, back to our regularly scheduled program. As mentioned above, the bulk of this issue is dedicated to Joe trying to provide for what’s left of Banner’s collective personalities by stealing and scamming. Ewing does a spectacular job of using this situation to show the former Gray Hulk’s growth as a character. Never has he had to spend so much time as weak as Banner, and that’s saying a lot, considering being the weakest of the Hulks was always a sore point for him. Joe’s also never been forced into being the provider for anyone but himself before. Both experiences have led to a Grinch-like growth of heart for Fixit. Ewing makes the most of his main character having multiple personalities and clearly strives to give each of those personalities their own arc.
Also included in this issue is the return of the U-Foes. They are an always-fun (and hilariously named) takeoff on the Fantastic Four gone wrong. Ewing, as usual, sees untapped potential in these characters, making them a bigger threat than ever, especially against the weakened Savage Hulk. It’s easy to believe they could end up killing old Jade Jaws this time around, and that’s enough to put the readers on the edge of their seats.
This may not be the most exciting issue, but it does leave you wanting more in the best of possible ways. If you’ve been a fan of this series, this chapter is yet another worthy addition to the overall epic Hulk story that Ewing is telling. If you’re not already a fan of this series, then you’ve clearly taken leave of your senses, and the world mourns the loss of your taste.
