- Written by: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
- Art by: Danny Earls
- Colors by: Matthew Wilson
- Letters by: VC’s Cory Petit
- Cover art by: Nic Klein
- Cover price: $3.99
- Release date: February 21, 2024
The Incredible Hulk #9 finds Banner and Charlie visiting the Big Easy when they cross paths with Betty Ross and a new monster with a habit of slicing and dicing bad people.
Is The Incredible Hulk #9 Good?
Here we go again. Phillip Kennedy Johnson’s monster-of-the-month model continues in The Incredible Hulk #9 when Banner and Charlie visit New Orleans and cross paths with a monstrous killer with a meticulous desire for body parts. If the plot sounds familiar, that’s because it is.
When last we left the Incredible Hulk, he briefly teamed up with a Spirit of Vengeance to take down a giant monster named War Devil. The fight ended with typical smashing and a warning that the Eldest would move to get to Hulk through Charlie.
Now, Banner and Charlie relocate from the American Southwest to New Orleans for no particular reason whatsoever. Banner feels the urge to Hulk out in the middle of a nightly visit to a museum. Fearing for Charlie’s safety, Banner begs her to meet him later at a hostel so he can deal with his Hulk-out alone. After Charlie leaves, Banner is approached by Betty to convince Banner to reconsider the Eldest’s offer to give over the Hulk persona.
Charlie makes her way through the streets of New Orleans. She bumps into a cop who appears to recognize her from Wanted notices. Charlie ducks into an antique shop managed by a kindly old woman who incidentally happens to be a monstrous killer.
Thus, the cycle begins again.
Do we know why Banner and Charlie came to New Orleans? No. No explanation is given other than the suggestion that Banner and Charlie need a change of scenery from the Southwest desert. It’s unclear why Banner would head to a major metropolitan city and tourist spot to avoid notice, but here we are.
How or why did the Eldest summon the old lady to go after Hulk? The Eldest didn’t summon the old lady. In fact, Charlie’s run-in seems to be completely coincidental. Therefore, this issue is slightly different from the monster-of-the-month model in that we don’t know if the old lady has anything to do with the Eldest’s quest to claim the Hulk.
What’s great about The Incredible Hulk #9? The change of scenery is nice. Banner’s transformation into the Hulk is entertainingly gruesome in a body horror sort of way, and the old lady’s killing methods are surprisingly gory.
What’s not so great about The Incredible Hulk #9? As noted above, the plot is spinning in an increasingly tiresome circle, the move to a major U.S. city to avoid detection makes no sense, and the series is directionless. At best, you could say Johnson’s creative contribution is dreaming of new kinds of monsters, and that’s all.
How’s the art? Danny Earls nails the grotesque, bone-crunching, skin-ripping transformation of the Hulk, and delivers dramatic panels with the use of silhouettes, but the pencil/ink details fall short with basic human figures in close-up and medium panels.
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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Bits and Pieces
The Incredible Hulk #9 feels like the start of a record stuck on repeat. Phillip Kennedy Johnson moves Banner and Charlie to New Orleans against any form of common sense, and the monster-of-the-month model gets even more confusing when the monster they encounter appears by coincidence. Either Johnson never had a story to tell, or he’s biding his time on the title until something better comes along.
Weird Science Marvel Comics 