When I finish typing this I am going to ponder submitting it.
I was really going to let it go, even though I know that Carver is wrong on several levels. He has tried to make people see the Hulk as one dimensional as possible, so that he can continue doing what he does best. Misrepresent things, and if he is caught doing so, will play dumb. He did it recently with the latest Abomination vs The Hulk fight, which has me questioning it as a canon source, because of the creative team actually handling the story. My point? He decided to leave out the beginning of the fight. and only show people what he wanted to show them so that they would never question that the Hulk actually gains strength later on during the battle.
I'm not trying to offend the people chosen as judges here, but I wouldn't have chosen you guys to be honest... Nor was I ever given a choice of who would be the judges. Well Darksaint may have been one of the judges, but my choice would have been -Pr-, Bada, Digi, and or Darksaint. Riv did not give enough thought into his decision, and as far as I am concerned, the judgment rendered by either could have been rigged via PM. In other words the only person that seemed to be somewhat unbiased on his judgement was Darksaint. No offense Riv. I'm just being painfully blunt.
Look at what this means to agree with Carver just because he decided to cherry pick scans as his best argument. What you will have is a Hulk that begins off at the high extreme of the spectrum without understanding the full gravity of your decision. I want you to look at something concrete without relying on the pretty pictures that Carver would have you cater to.
The Hulk's Characteristics
Height: 5' 9 1/2" (Banner), 7'-8' (Savage Hulk), 6'6" (Gray Hulk/Joe Fixit), 7'6" (Merged Hulk), 8'8" (Green Scar).
Weight: 145 lbs (Banner), 1,040 lbs-1,400 lbs (Savage Hulk), 900 lbs (Joe Fixit), 1,150 lbs (Merged Hulk), 2,400 lbs (Green Scar)
Hair Color: Brown (Banner), Green (Green Hulk), Black (Joe Fixit/Gray Hulk)
Eyes Color: Brown (Banner), Black/Grey (Gray Hulk/Joe Fixit), Green (Green Hulk/Green Scar)
Let's come to a logical understanding here
Look at the weight variances for a moment. Look specifically at the Green Scars weight in comparison to the other Hulk's involved. This is something that Peter David began showing the reader, years ago about how much stronger the Savage Hulk was compared to his weaker incarnation the Grey Hulk. Now look back to the Green Scar using the same logic. What do you see?
Siding with Carver would mean that the Abomination's strength level was closer to the low Trans tier than the mid - high Herald tier in terms of strength. He would even try to twist things by throwing in that I am not accounting for durability. However I did state that all of the Hulk's stats increase as he ramps up. I give you facts, he gives you cheery picked scans, and if you knew nothing about the characters outside of what you read in their respect sections, it is easy to be fooled by this type of ploy. Carver has only shown the Hulk's best, but never once has he shown both sides of the spectrum.
Carver would have you pay attention to Thor, when we are debating how the Hulk's powers work. You can't compare Thor to the Hulk, because they don't fight the same way. Thor is a trained warrior, the Hulk is a super nerd that has had no prior combat training, and if he was limited to being as strong as Captain America, and they had the same agility, Captain America would wipe the floor with him. Are you starting to get the point?
Agreeing with Carver will come back to bite us all in the ass. Why? Because that would mean that if the Hulk truly began with high herald strength on average, guys with static High Herald strength would never be able to defeat him in a slug fest. YOU CAN NOT HAVE IT BOTH WAYS. Why? Look at this for a moment, and understand the full gravity of what Carver's view means when using the Hulk in a forum match.
Vast Superhuman Strength
Hulk is physically one of the strongest and most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe. His limitless strength usually depends on his emotions, especially his rage. Possessed with infinite gamma rays/energies from every dimension/universe in existence, the Hulk is in the Class 100 ton strength range, meaning that he can easily lift over the 100 ton limit. The Hulk has the potential to truly be "The strongest one there is".
However, this may vary depending on the incarnation/persona, and also how angry the Hulk is at a certain point. It is well known that the angrier the Hulk become, the stronger and powerful he becomes. It is a well known fact that Bruce Banner has always suppressed the Hulk and his power, if only out of fear of harming others... especially those that both Banner and Hulk hold dear. But there has been a few times that neither Banner or Hulk could control their fury, thus the results have been quite devastating to say the least.
Carver would have people believe that the Hulk is currently walking around at his WW Hulk levels, without the fuel to allow him to do so. What fuel am I talking about? His constant rage. Look again at the difference between the Green Scars weight is compared to the Savage Hulk's. What has the Hulk currently done, that he was unable to do as the Savage Hulk? Do I need scans to prove that the Hulk ramps up as he grows more excited? I am debating with logic, Carver brings in cherry picked scans, that often show half of the story, or the end of the story so that you aren't actually seeing the Hulk's gains. I am coming in at a broader angle. Again, I will ask you guys the same question. If the Hulk begins a battle with high Herald strength the moment that he changes from Banner to the Hulk, he would never lose a slug fest with a character that tops out at mid - high Herald strength for long. After all, he gains strength at astronomical levels. I ask you to consider the logic behind this, before considering the lack thereof.
I really didn't think that it would have taken anyone long to come around to this realization, or that I would have had to explain it to the point of having sore fingertips. Maybe I'm among the minority that actually sees this?
I am pondering submitting this.