Summary
- The Hulk traps Banner in a nightmarish dimension, mirroring past torture by Banner on Hulk himself.
- Banner is now Hulk's prisoner in 'The Hulkscape', mirroring his traumatic previous experiences.
- Hulk's revenge plot reveals his depth beyond rage, showcasing his ability to manipulate Banner's reality.
Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Incredible Hulk #14! The Hulk is one of the most recognizable Marvel Comics characters in history, as his green, hulking appearance is utterly iconic. However, there are depths to the Hulk that many fans may not be aware of, especially if they’re more familiar with his role in the Avengers than with his solo lore. In fact, during his most recent storyline, it’s revealed that the Hulk has just become an entire dimension called “The Hulkscape”, which is the true, hellish form of the Green Goliath.
In The Incredible Hulk #14 by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Nic Klein, Bruce Banner is killed by a semi truck as he’s hitchhiking to Las Vegas. After his apparent death, Banner’s soul is transported to a hellish world, which is immediately obvious when he awakens inside a hanging cage attached to a monstrous, kaiju-sized version of Hulk, with a skeletal version of Rick Jones in a separate cage beside him.
Upon speaking with Jones, Banner learns that he isn’t in hell, and he’s seemingly not even really dead. Instead, his psyche has become trapped within a ‘pocket dimension’ within his and Hulk’s shared mind. This ‘dimension’ is called “The Hulkscape”, and as its name suggests, the Hulk is like an omnipotent god in this world, with Banner trapped there as his prisoner. As Banner traverses this strange and horrible reality, he encounters all manner of ghoulish demons created specifically by Hulk to torture him - including the horrific version of Rick Jones himself.
Hulk's Immortality Gets a Terrifying New Meaning as Bruce Banner Dies
Despite the fact that the Hulk is immortal, it seems that immortality doesn't necessarily extend to Bruce Banner, which is made clear after his death.
The Hulk Masterfully Turned the Tables on Bruce Banner with “The Hulkscape”
Hulk Vol. 5 by Donny Cates and Ryan Ottley
The Hulk has successfully trapped Bruce Banner’s psyche in a swirling hellscape of his own design, meant specifically to torture him. Interestingly enough, in the previous Hulk storyline, that’s exactly what Banner did to Hulk. In Hulk Vol. 5, Bruce hijacked the Hulk’s body and trapped his mind in a corner of their shared psyche, which was effectively a torture chamber meant to keep Hulk angry. That anger powered the Hulk’s body, which was controlled by Banner’s mind, allowing Bruce to transform Hulk into his very own ‘Starship Hulk’.
Banner tortured Hulk’s mind in order to control his body, and use the Hulk’s strength without having to surrender complete control to his other half. While ingenious, this was also incredibly cruel. No matter Banner’s intentions, the fact of the matter is, he was torturing Hulk by trapping him in a simulated hell within their shared mind. And now, the Hulk is doing the exact same thing to Bruce, but instead of hiding behind a sense of self-righteousness or dutiful purpose, Hulk is doing this for no other reason than revenge.
The Hulk Just Made Bruce Banner’s Most Traumatic Experience His Permanent Reality
The Immortal Hulk by Al Ewing and Joe Bennett
In this hellish pocket dimension within their mind, Hulk has become “The Hulkscape”, and Banner is his prisoner with seemingly no chance of escape. At this moment, Banner is permanently trapped in this hell, which is almost exactly where he found himself in The Immortal Hulk. During that storyline, Banner’s soul was stolen from his body and brought to the Below-Place, where his metaphysical body was twisted and stretched in a perpetually swirling flesh machine created by the One Below All. This was easily Bruce’s most traumatic experience, and in a way, Hulk is making it his new permanent reality.
While Bruce Banner’s situation is, indeed, abysmal, the biggest takeaway from this issue isn’t Banner’s standing, but the Hulk’s. Rather than simply being the giant, green rage-monster most fans see him as, the Hulk proves he’s so much more with the debut of his “Hulkscape” form - a form he’s using to torture Bruce Banner in the most terrifying ways imaginable.
The Incredible Hulk #14 by Marvel Comics is available now.
The Hulk, a Marvel Comics superhero created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, is physicist Bruce Banner transformed by gamma radiation. He morphs into a giant, green-skinned creature of immense strength and invulnerability when angered. Struggling with his transformations, Hulk allies with other heroes, battling villains while balancing his intellect with uncontrollable rage, making him a central figure in Marvel's universe.
