Hulk Is The Strongest One in Any Universe
From a real hulk fan (Poetree)
http://www.comicboards.com/hulk/view.php?trd=070605085158
Okay, so, we Hulk fans are often accused on this board of being nonsensical, crazy, biased, fanatical and even delusional. We're said to have no objectivity, nor any sense of reality when it comes to the Hulk. It's insinuated, so to speak, that we're all wearing emerald-colored glasses. And so, I've decided to put together a little ditty that outlines just why we feel the way we do & perhaps to turn this tide of anti-Hulkfanaticism into mutual understanding.
My intention is to convey the true "Spirit" of the character -- as it is to those who've been around for the whole ride. And to do this, I've gone back to the very beginning; the prime and original vision for the character. Starting with Hulk #3 (which was the issue that had Hulk receiving his very first "power-up"😉, I am going to meander throughout his continuity and pluck poignant examples of portrayals, commentary & narration that dispute this concept of Hulkfan lunacy. Maybe we'll all be different people when I'm done.
And so, without further ado, let's peruse a few descriptive samplings from the Hulk's earliest hours:
(look at this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
cut....
http://www.comicboards.com/hulk/view.php?trd=070605085158
cut....
And, okay. I think that's a good place to start the wrap-up...
Why did I type all this out? Well, to show people who the Hulk really is, the Hulk I grew up with. We Hulk fans are often labeled many things on this board, mostly having to do with some form of mental deficiency. But the truth is, if ya take a look at it (his history, I mean), more often than not... we're right.
I mean, has the Hulk always shown up as his penultimate-self in every issue? No, of course not. But what character does? Even still, the fact remains that for the far greater bulk of the Hulk's appearances, he has been described and displayed as above. Over and over and over again. Throughout his entire continuity.
I mean, check the breadth of material I drew from here. This *is* his average! And that's not to say that the Hulk never lost or suffered various defeats. But honestly, that's part of the character. It wasn't odd, sometimes, depending on the power of his opponent, for the Hulk to be put down 1, 2, even 3 times in a single issue. But ya couldn't keep him down for more than a minute or so, and he'd always get up... comin' after ya... stronger than he was before--to the point where he'd either defeat his foe, or they'd flee for their life.
Actually, the depiction in that Annual of the Hulk stirring in only a few panels after being stunned-out by Thor's lightning bolt & instantly renewing the fight at the height of his strength, is highly consistent with all the material I just went through. There were many times the Hulk would be laid out by some powerful assault or subversive attack, and he'd literally be out-of-commission for only a panel or few, and then stir with a greater rage than when he was first put down.
And even at that it, particularly in his early years (he became much tougher to put down at all later on), it was almost always something non-physical that temporarily did the job; gas, gamma-rays or some alien power that froze his mind. It was exceedingly rare that the Hulk was ever put down by force alone. And even when he was, they usually gave him an "out".
For instance, when he first fought the original-powered Abomination (a fight he lost), he was mind-controlled by the Stranger. When he fought Sub-Mariner in the sea and was knocked unconscious by their collision, he was mind-controlled by the Puppet Master. And of course, as is the general rule in comics, when someone is mind-controlled they're not quite "themselves".
But see, that's also part of what I love about the character; his power is tied directly to his emotions & mind. He might be a raging beast in one moment, but then he's a confused kid in the next. A trend I noticed along his growth was that he was most often defeated by an attack when encountering it for the first time. Because he didn't have a "mind" to defeat it. But almost always, when facing the same attack or power a second time, the Hulk raged right through it. And that's just the way it's always been.
And speaking of the way it's always been, man, in his early days the Hulk was getting blasted with Gamma-Rays in, like, almost every other issue. He was zapped by them all the time! And as I went through this material I realized just how many "power-ups" the Hulk has actually received. And now, I have no problem with his more recent one, as I really understand that kind of thing has been an integral part of his history from the very, very beginning.
And so, what am I sayin'?
I'm sayin' Hulk is the strongest one there is. I'm saying, just as continuity has shown throughout the years, that he is a savage, unstoppable being who can only be temporarily delayed -- not defeated. And even if you manage to stymie him at one point, he'll be up & around, stronger than he was before, more immune to the attack that he was once vulnerable to only moments ago. And kickin' your ass! 'Cause that's the Hulk, as he's always been.
So, I don't think we Hulk fans are crazy. I don't think we're delusional or have lost our objectivity.
No, honestly, I believe "you" are simply... uninformed
Hopefully, I've helped to rectify that here....