Marvel Comics: Hulk was created to be the destroyer

Things in Marvel Comics have always been complex. It isn't just about heroes vs villains. There's usually meaning behind the fights. In the beginning, Captain America was taking on more than Hydra; he was defending the world against tyranny. The X-Men’s battles have always been against the world or mutants that make them look bad. Decades later, Marvel stories remain complex and the Hulk has become one of the more complex characters.

The novice comic book fan may think the Hulk is just a monster with unlimited rage and strength. The latter is true, but he’s more than that. Especially recently. The Hulk's popularity increased after his debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That meant writers and creators needed to make him even better in the comics. One of the best to do it was Al Ewing.

During his Immortal Hulk, readers learn more about Bruce Banner’s dissociative identity disorder. It didn’t start with the Gamma bomb; He’s had the child-like Hulk, Devil Hulk, and Joe Fixit personalities since he was a kid. They went by different names but surfaced when Bruce needed protection (usually from his father). Another thing readers learned in Immortal Hulk is that he was destined to be a force of destruction.

During the final issue of Immortal Hulk, the child-like Hulk and Joe Fixit Hulk were in Hell (known as the Below-Place for Gamma Mutates). While there, they asked the One Below All why they hurt, why the people they loved were hurt, and why they always destroyed everything they were around. When he didn’t like the answer, Joe asked to speak to someone else. The One Above All appears in the other's place and answers the question. Simply put, there’s a balance to everything and the One Below All is the One Above All's Hulk.

The One Above All says that it creates with one hand and destroys with the other. As it builds on Earth, something has to be the destroyer. The Hulk was created to be the destroyer. It’s why he always wrecks things and was given names like World Breaker. Joe still didn’t like the answer. He chalks it up to the One Above All messing with them.

For now, this is the only answer Marvel Comics fans have for the Hulk. Considering everything I’ve learned from Immortal Hulk’s Green Door and the Gamma Mutates’ trips to Hell, this explanation seems likely. However, that doesn’t mean The One Above All wasn’t talking in riddles or playing a game. Most cosmic beings are jerks and this is just another case of that. 

Do you think the Hulk helps balance the world? Is this explanation good enough for you?