This is my first editorial. Hope it’s solid. Thanks for the read.
Spoilers if you haven’t seen Avengers: Age of Ultron!! (You should’ve seen it by now)
"Where in this world am I not a threat?"
I’m a fan of the Incredible Hulk. He’s an intriguing and multi-faceted character. He’s gone from hero, to destructive force, to adversary in his long history. What interests me about the Hulk is exhausted struggle with power and destruction. He is a being of immense power and the lack of control over this power has led to many dilemmas. He’s no longer a hero but a primal monster of pure rage and devastation. In my opinion, that makes for a more interesting Hulk. When the Hulk embraces those brutal qualities, he’s an epic and engaging character.
The Hulk is a monstrous, powerful, imposing, and destructive being. It’s occasionally normal for a hero to possess such vicious talents. The Hulk, however, does and it is these abilities that make him just as much of a threat as he is a hero. In many facets of his history, the Hulk has been a hero. However, he has struggled to be accepted as such many times and has been known as a destructive force more so than a protector. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Hulk has become such a vital part. He went from being a hunted monster, to a smashing hero who helped save the world. His control of the monster seemed to be in check in Avengers. But, Avengers: Age of Ultron fractured that control and turned it on its head.
The quote presented at the top of the article, which was said by Bruce Banner in Avengers: Age of Ultron, is, in my opinion, the most important line of dialogue that represents the essence of the Hulk. His potential as being a danger to the world is much stronger than him being a hero. The MCU has played with both of these concepts but in, Age of Ultron, the danger aspect of him was delved into a bit more. The unwanted destruction he caused can be viewed as an eye opener to him being a liability. The decision made by the seemingly unintelligent Hulk at the end of the film shows that even the monster, and not just Banner, is becoming aware of the peril he causes
Planet Hulk and its follow on event, “World War Hulk,” were an event of great significance in the Marvel Comics. To briefly recap, Planet Hulk is about Hulk’s exile to an alien planet, after a faction of Earth’s intelligent and most tenured heroes decide that he’s too dangerous to remain on Earth. Hulk is shot off to a barren world where he can be alone and away from others. But an unexpected wormhole dumps him on a planet populated by an insectoid race of aliens that turns him into a warrior. He becomes that world’s savior and ruler.
With Captain America: Civil War coming next year, heroes in the MCU are facing mounting pressure for a lack of accountability. The world governments are coming for them. The Hulk is a prime target. With his whereabouts unknown and his lack of control over himself, the Hulk is facing a dangerous future. This opens doors. A Planet Hulk film is a plausible and beneficial path for the MCU. Here’s why:
The Hulk is first and foremost a destroyer. Whatever he does, he destroys, he smashes and obliterates. Even when he is being heroic, he’s a destructive liability. Some people may be under the impression that Banner has "control" of Hulk, and that Hulk is something other than a green monster. For some reason, they think Hulk is the one that changed in Avengers and not simply Banner's relationship with the Hulk. In AOU, he was always looked at as a last resort for battle. The team would call in him and he would do his thing. But they understood that his rage wasn’t in his control and required the touch of a woman (Black Widow) to calm him down. A very key indicator of who Hulk is found in his exchange with Cap in the first Avengers film. Cap simply says Hulk's name. Hulk turns, tense, looking angry. It’s as if he turned expecting a threat or attack. Cap tells Hulk do his favorite thing, which is to smash. Cap and Banner use Hulk as a weapon. The Hulk is a weapon more so than a hero. Banner realizes this and the team. Rage is what makes him appear, and when the rage is gone he disappears. It is his primary motivation. Some say Hulk doesn’t attack innocents but only those who threaten him. Law enforcement is a great example of people who are indeed innocent. They often incur Hulk’s anger.
Thor is not threat, Captain America is not a threat, but he reacted to them like threats. Hulk is a rage monster. He’s not analyzing threats like some tactician, he’s reacting in anger. That’s his first and primary reaction. With that as his mindset, it’s easy to see why certain individual would want him gone from this planet. Hulk on a haphazard rampage would not be surprising to the Avengers at all. An in each his rage has led to him hurting his teammates. His rage makes him a weapon that can’t always be controlled. Lullabies can’t last forever.
Where’d You Go Big Guy
At the end of Age of Ultron, the Hulk decides to leave his super-powered friends and his kickass spy love interest alone and disappear. The Hulk shoots himself off... somewhere on a Quinjet. Supposedly, the plan was initially that he's shot himself off the planet Earth to allow for PLANET HULK sometime down the line, but that plan changed. This lets us know that Planet Hulk has been considered. When Nick Fury and Black Widow discuss the disappearance of the Hulk, it’s casually accepted. It’s accepted that a man with a fractured lack of control of his giant raging green monster alter ego is out in the world unmonitored. This isn’t he Banner of the first Avengers film, where primarily at the beginning of the film; he had his rage in check. No, this Banner has been shaken by being manipulated by Scarlet Witch and having caused death and destruction in South Africa. Even when he thinks he has control, he doesn’t. This has to be taking a huge toll on Banner's psyche. Who knows what he may do? Bringing Civil War into this, the world governments may not be so happy that The Avengers aren’t concerned with one of their own, especially when he destroyed downtown Johannesburg. This may lead the world governments to taking matters into their own hands and sending our giant green friend off world. There’s a lack of concern over where the Hulk could be. This is a serious issue.
was the smash hit of the year when it debuted. It was a cosmic thrill ride that audiences fell in love with. Thor has also gone cosmic somewhat with
The Dark World. Marvel films have shown villains, terrorists and aliens attacking Earth and its cities enough to where it’s not unknown territory. Something new would be welcome. Marvel needs to keep pushing boundaries if the MCU is going to keep evolving and getting better. With the cosmic universe opening up, it’s time to start demolishing cities on entirely different worlds. The Hulk is already a beloved character. Guardians showed that audiences will embrace weird characters like a talking raccoon and tree. Planet Hulk is a film where the hero is green and the bad guys are bugs. It’s an entirely new playing field. Guardians was this cool space opera and Planet Hulk could be the same. The Hulk often works best in stories that are strange, and kind of ridiculous. A Hulk film should be as big and bold as he is and Planet Hulk is just that. I understand the right balance between Buffalo’s Banner and Hulk has to made. With Phase Four coming, Marvel should start embracing different characters and storylines. Seems like a great Phase 4, pallet cleansing film. Something fresh is needed.
Smart Hulk Needs to Arrive
The Hulk himself rarely speaks in the films, and yet what we want to see is Hulk, just as much as Banner battling inner demons. In the comics, he is much more verbal. Marvel Studios seems to want to go with a non-verbal Hulk, and yet he had the best line in The Avengers when he scoffed, "Stupid god." after slamming Loki. If they are to make a Hulk movie, then we need to see Hulk as an actual character with some kind of personal agency, not just as a rampaging rage-monster. If you’ve read the Plant Hulk and World War Hulk storyline, you know that a smart Hulk is an interesting Hulk. Ruffalo has been a revelation as Banner and he’s made the character a fan favorite. Bruce Banner would provide the pathos and the Hulk would provide the bulk of action sequences. Only when he turns back into Banner, do the actions of the Hulk get added back to the multidimensional temperament of the character. There’s a dilemma as to if you make the Hulk smart, do you need Banner? There has to be a balance as Banner is just as important. That’s probably the biggest dilemma but it’s worth solving to have a Planet Hulk film.
Marvel likes to play with genres.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a political thriller/conspiracy film.
Guardians of the Galaxy is a space opera.
Ant-Man has been said to be a heist film. A Planet Hulk film would lead into the World War Hulk storyline. This can become a huge focus for Phase For. World War Hulk is essentially a revenge story. Revenge films are some of the best. The storyline has so many revenge themes to explore: betrayal, whether the ends justify the means, and the cost of anger. Hulk has been betrayed by his supposed friends and this makes the story so much more personal. This is a man who has lost everything by being sent away. He has immense power and rage, yet he still holds back. He isn't twisted or diabolical. These are the makings of a great villain. World War Hulk storyline could not only paint the Hulk as the villain but every other hero as morals are explored. It’s about what Earth’s heroes do for the greater good, which in this case, meant betraying a friend. The revenge tropes allow the audience to root for the supposed bad guy of the film, because we'll be able to sympathize with his goals and motives.
Conclusion
I think that Marvel could take the opportunity to go in a vastly different direction for some surprisingly delightful results. Now, I’m not sure if I can see any of this really happening. Planet Hulk is an out there film but it’s just as significant of a Marvel event story as Civil War and that’s being loosely adapted. Planet Hulk/World War Hulk deserves major consideration. With Phase Four coming, Marvel needs to keep branching out and pushing for new and exciting ideas.
LET IT MARINATE!!!