The Immortal Hulk series will change comic books forever

Immortal Hulk challenged the character

The madder the Hulk gets, the stronger he gets. That’s a statement that has remained true for decades. But that statement usually only means physically. The Hulk’s known to have a childlike mentality. That’s how he’s normally defeated.

For most of the series, however, Devil Hulk was unbeatable. That created challenges of its own. Having an invincible character can be an issue because coming up with a new and original way of defeating him couldn’t have been an easy task. It has to make sense otherwise it was all for nothing. Sometimes, this can lead writers into a corner they can’t get out of. That wasn’t the case in this series.

Throughout Immortal Hulk, Devil Hulk, Joe Fixit, and Bruce Banner had struggles. Somehow they came out on top and looked dominant. And when they were eventually defeated, readers were shocked.

This kept readers intrigued and excited for the next issue. Al Ewing built Hulk up to be like a god only to have him defeated in a way no one saw coming. It made his progression to victory in the end that much greater.

Even when the Hulk won easily, it was unlike anything we’re used to seeing. There were times Devil Hulk had to push Banner in certain directions to lead him on a certain path. Then there was his “loss” to the Avengers. It was all part of his plan to get close to the people coming after him. It was brilliantly done.