Hulk Annual #1 (2023) Review

Written by: David Prepose
Art by: Caio Majado
Colors by: Edgar Delgado
Letters by: VC’s Cory Petit
Cover art by: Gary Frank, Brad Anderson
Cover price: $4.99
Release date: May 17, 2023

Hulk Annual #1 (2023) takes a side trip to a side trip in New Mexico with a documentary film crew hoping to catch a glimpse of Marvel’s not-so-jolly green giant.

Is It Good?

Hulk Annual #1 (2023) is an interesting one-shot story from David Prepose starring a documentary film crew and real-life creator, Rylend Grant. Presented as a found-footage film, the story recounts (through unedited video footage) what happens when a documentary crew goes looking for the Hulk and finds much more for their efforts.

David Prepose’s script does an admirable job of capturing the found-footage subgenre vibe of horror films by giving readers snippets of life in progress without a scripted or overtly cinematic feel. The characters come off as grounded and natural, and the scenes are “interrupted” in just the right spots to tell a story while maintaining the disjointed mystery inherent in found-footage films.

The plot centers on a documentary crew heading to Viridian, New Mexico, where the Hulk was “born” to interview locals and investigate weird underground rumblings. Eventually, the crew stumbles into a battle in progress between the Mole Man and his army of monsters and the Hulk.

How’s the art? Caio Majado’s art style works well enough in this specific instance because the found-footage story allows for odd angles and a lack of clarity for the monsters hiding in the shadows. When the panels call for clear, crisp character work, Majado’s work is serviceable.

What’s not so great? For an annual comic about the Hulk, there’s very little Hulk in this issue. If you count up the number of panels where the Hulk appears, the total number barely comprises two pages. The story and found-footage concepts are interesting, but a Hulk annual with barely any Hulk seems like a miss.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

Follow @ComicalOpinions on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter

Bits and Pieces

Hulk Annual #1 (2023) delivers a Hulk horror story in found-footage style to give readers a fresh take on monster Marvel stories. The found-footage aspects are well done, and the art is decent enough, but for a Hulk annual, there’s precious little Hulk in the entire issue.