The Incredible Hulk debuted in his own comic book in 1962, telling the classic Jekyll and Hyde story about a scientist who turned into a rampaging monster. Because of this, Hulk faced the U.S. military and police departments almost more than he did supervillains. However, that does not mean Hulk doesn't have some notable villains in his rogues' gallery, and he faced a few big names early in his career.
While his biggest rival, General Ross, was the main nemesis early on, Hulk fought a series of unique villains including aliens, other monsters, and at least two godlike characters. He also ended up gaining his first archenemy, a villain who remains one of his most dangerous villains almost 60 years later.
The Gargoyle
The first issue was Hulk’s origin story, as Bruce Banner risked his life to save a teenager named Rick Jones, only to end up bombarded by Gamma Rays. A Soviet spy working alongside Banner sent out the word when Hulk arrived, and a monstrous being known as Gargoyle came after him, claiming his power matched that of Hulk.
This was a perfect fight for Hulk at the beginning of his career since Gargoyle was just like him, a man transformed into a monster who only wanted a cure. While some unpopular opinions argue Hulk is not a tragic hero, stories like this prove he is. This also allowed Bruce Banner to save the villain rather than have Hulk beat him up.
The Toad Men
Hulk #2 sent the big green goliath into a battle with monsters known as The Toad Men. They were actually aliens known as Tribbites, an imperialistic race that tried to invade Earth. Luckily, Hulk was there to stop them, in an easy battle for the big guy.
This ended up a recurring theme with Hulk, as he often fought villains considered monsters, showing how Hulk was not that different from his enemies. They reappeared 13 days later to fight Hulk and then again 14 years after that to battle She-Hulk, but they were never a genuine threat to either hero.
Circus Of Crime
In the third issue of Hulk, the book had three different stories, with General Thunderbolt Ross proving to be a great nemesis for the Green Goliath. However, Ross is not a villain and believed he was protecting the country and its people. However, the last story had villains who tormented countless heroes in the future.
This was the first appearance of The Ringmaster and his Circus of Crime. Ringmaster actually hypnotized Hulk in this issue, and it took Rick Jones to help save him. Hulk found himself manipulated like this many times in his life, making him look like a monster when he was only trying to stop them. The Circus of Crime became enemies of The Avengers, Spider-Man, Hawkeye, and more.
Tyrannus
Hulk #5 saw the hero battle an immortal. This was Tyrannus, the former Roman Empire emperor Romulus Augustulus. After his kingdom fell and he faced banishment, he became the servant of Pluto, the Greek god. In this issue, he tried to conquer the United States.
Hulk and Rick Jones battled him and easily stopped him from his evil ambitions. Tyrannus returned in Tales to Astonish #80 to battle Hulk again. Over the years, he became a minor enemy for the Green Goliath but never did enough to become a major name in Hulk's life.
Metal Master
The Metal Master attacked in Hulk #6, another alien that he battled early in his career as a superhero. Initially, from the planet Astra, Metal Master was yet another conqueror arriving on Earth and hoping to take it as his own. Hulk faced several aliens in his career, one of the only heroes on Earth strong enough to defeat those from other worlds.
Metal Master disappeared for almost 20 years after his debut, reappearing 19 years later in the pages of Rom before getting his best character arc in 2017’s Black Bolt series, where he set out to right all his wrongs.
Loki
The sixth issue of Hulk was his last, and he moved into other titles after this. He next appeared in the first issue of The Avengers, whose first villain was Loki. This was not only Hulk’s sixth supervillain he ever faced, but Loki used Hulk as his weapon, repeating a motif from his earlier villain, Ringmaster.
The Avengers formed for the first time to stop a rampaging Hulk, but this was all a trick by Loki to make Hulk look like the bad guy. This was also Hulk's first time to work in a team, and it would not last, but for a short time, this supervillain allowed him to find somewhere to fit in.
Doctor Doom
The next supervillain Hulk faced was in an untold story that Marvel released in 1999. This was The Avengers #1.5 and had the team fight Doctor Doom. While Doom was one of the Fantastic Four’s first villains, he went head-to-head with the Avengers in this lost story.
The interesting thing about this fight was that the Avengers might have only battled a Doombot, but Doctor Doom left it open that no one would ever know. Doom went back to the FF’s greatest enemy after this, and Hulk only fought him occasionally over the years.
The Chameleon
After Hulk quit the Avengers in the second issue of that book, he went on new adventures in Tales to Astonish, starting with #60. IHulk battled the master of disguise, The Chameleon. The supervillain was a spy, trying to steal government secrets, and only Bruce Banner knew.
This book differed from Hulk, as it had a long-running storyline that involved one of Hulk’s greatest enemies. However, Chameleon appeared first as a minor villain before paving way for his boss to appear down the line. Playing out over several issues, Hulk’s first multi-issue story arc.
Leader
The longest-running story arc for Hulk in Tales to Astonish saw him battle one of his main comic book villains, The Leader. He made his debut in Tales to Astonish #62 when he proved to be Chameleon's boss. trying to steal government secrets.
This storyline lasted until Tales to Astonish #74, making Leader Hulk’s first true archenemy, and one of the only people he couldn't easily defeat. The Leader is also a villain who is still a threat to this day, the master behind the Below Place, which is where Gamma mutates go when they die.
The Executioner
The Asgardian warrior, Skurge the Executioner, made his first appearance alongside Hela in Journey Into Mystery #103 as he battled Thor. He became an Avengers' villain after that, but he made a stop to battle Hulk in Tales to Astonish #76-77.
The Executioner would not become a major Hulk villain though, as this was a different version when Hulk ended up in a dystopian future with a futuristic Skurge. This also wasn’t the first godlike character Hulk fought, and there would be many more throughout the years, both heroes like Hercules and Thor and villains from both the Norse and Greek myths.