First off I should proabably disclose my position on the Ang Lee version. I thought it was horrible. The story was horrible, the cgi was horrible, the script was horrible. I thought the acting was good, within the constraints of the script, and I really liked the comic book style cuts and edits.

With that out of the way, I can say that the new movie is better in all ways than the Ang Lee movie, but it’s still not jaw dropping, or amazing. The thing is, this isn’t an issue with anything other than The Hulk himself. The classical Hulk is not a strong character. The set up is outstanding, but for him to be what he is, you can’t feel bad for Hulk when he screws up or makes mistakes, since there’s no decision going on there, it’s all instinct. You feel bad for Banner, sure, but he’s not the super hero, he’s a scientist, and depending on what era you’re talking about, he’s not entirely likeable himself. It’s obvious that there’s a certain level of understanding on the part of the filmmakers that there are issues with how very opposite the two sides of Bruce Banner are, and that steps have been taken to bring both sides back toward the center in subtle ways, allowing the audience to feel for these characters.

Overall the casting is excellent, and there are a lot of outstanding cameos to be on the lookout for. The script isn’t as touchy feely as the last one, and while the hulk is a bit more humanized, he’s still the “raging ball of emotions” that Stan Lee originally envisioned, if a bit less homo-erotic (don’t worry, he’s still plenty eroticized).

If you like comic book movies, The Hulk specifically, and/or want to keep abreast of the leadup to the Avengers movie, this one is not to be missed.

Mighty Avengers #9:  There were some really cool things about this book, and some really weird things that I wasn’t so into.  When I first opened it up, I was a bit confused by the painting of the initial pages, which inevitably made more sense as the transition to normal time took place and normal artwork.  I really enjoyed the way each different timeframe was presented, with the painted look for the medieval portion, the current artwork, and then the dot matrix printing for the golden age era.  I really thought that was a nice touch.  I will not be so happy if the next issue ends up taking place in strict dot matrix printing, but it was definitely a welcome surprise to me.  I also really enjoyed the enormous splash layouts in the middle of the book.  They can be rather pointless at times, but they can also be really stunning.  I think this was a little of both.  I particularly enjoyed how pissed Ares looked on the bottom left corner of the very center splash page.  I was pretty astounded at how stupid Tony Stark was made out to be.  This is Dr. Doom, you know the man has some hold on the black arts… why wouldn’t you expect this?!  Not to mention, your sudden surprise and fear when you’re transferred into the past.  Yeah, that sucks… deal with it.  Also, where did the Sentry go at the end of the issue?  The dude is the most powerful dude in the universe, and yet he can’t take down Dr. Doom?  I’m a bit confused by this.

Ultimate Human #2:  I was a bit confused by this one… ok, so the Hulk freaks out, and they try to pump him full of green stuff.  First, I would like to point out, I’ve never seen a bright green tranquilizer.  Actually, the only bright green liquid I’ve ever really come into contact with is engine coolant.  So, they’re pumping him full of coolant.  I don’t really know what good that is going to do.  Anyway, Stark has a few hissy fits because he can’t get his armor moving fast enough.  Which was really a waste of a page.  Also, what is this noise that the hulk is complaining about?  Is the coolant now radiating sonic waves?  Ok, so Stark gets his “shiny flying metal pajamas of death,” on and goes to fight someone he has never defeated in one on one combat.  Then he shoots boot flames into his face as he’s getting pummeled which somehow stops the unstoppable beast, then shoots a laser into his eyeball and its over?  Barring all of this nonsense, it was interesting to see the dialogue at the end of this when they’re both recovering talking about Banner’s intentions with the super soldier serum he was recreating.  Once again though, stark seems to come off a bit moronic.  For a billionaire recovering alcoholic genius, he doesn’t do so well this week.  I will say, I never get tired of Iron Man getting the crap kicked out of him though.  That does make me happy.  Tony Stark is such a dickbag.

Hulk #2:  You know,  I don’t get why Marvel likes to abbreviate certain phrases.  S.O.B. for instance.  Why don’t they just say, “son of a b@#$%.”  If they’re going to have somebody say “@#$%!” while panicking, they might as well just give us the full statement, no?  Anyway, I love watching the Hulk destroy crap, be him green, gray, or red.  Especially if it is Tony Stark, S.H.I.E.L.D. or any combination there of.  I loved the page where the hulk was smashing the plane into the helicarrier, things like that make me so happy.  I was bothered by Iron Man screaming “Oh the humanity.” as his ship was plummeting toward the earth however.  Since when can he scream something of that nature?  The guy is an asshole.  Worst splash page ever.  Although the detail on the helicarrier is pretty sweet.  Rick Jones is now a blue Abomination?  While interesting, I can’t say I’m pleased.  Where the hell do these other colored dudes keep coming from!?  Actually, it is an interesting plot twist, and I do want to keep reading, so it served its purpose, but never again should he be allowed to call himself A-bomb.

In conclusion, I was satisfied by this weeks reads, although not blown away.

I suppose its rather common nowadays, but I read mostly Marvel books. This week I’ve got:

Amazing Spiderman #551 : What can I say, I love the character. Although, I will admit, i am more than a little disappointed in Joe Quesada and the team that called the shots with one more day. However, amazing #550 was actually pretty good.

Hulk #2: Jeph Loeb. Is it necessary that I say more? Seriously. The plot is looking pretty wild so far. We’ll see what happens. Needless to say, I’m pumped.

Mighty Avengers #9: Secret Invasion. Get with it. Who are the Skrulls?! OMFGWYSIWYG! Seriously though, its gonna be awesome.

Terror, Inc. #5: Yeah, I read it. I have actually found it quite enjoyable. I’m glad it’s over though, as I’m having a pretty serious financial crunch. Whats not to love about a man plagued by the ghosts of hundreds of years past who steals limbs from people to use as his own? I’m into it.

Ultimate Human #2: WARREN ELLIS!!!! W00T! Bruce Banner doesn’t want his curse any more. Who do you turn to, but the richest recovering alcoholic in America?

Ultimates 3 #3: I only started reading this because I figured I could potentially make money on it. Then, it was kind of interesting. So I’ve kept reading. I still hope I may sell for some cash, but we’ll see what happens.

Robin #171: I love Gotham City and all of its heroes. What more can I say? Except that CHUCK DIXON IS WRITING AGAIN! YES!

And that should do it for me this week. Hopefully my lazy, now puppy owning, ass can find some more time to update after reading Wednesday.

Until then, SEEYA!
-brian