By Jeph Loeb (writer), Ian Churchill (pencils), Mark Farmer (inks) Peter Steigerwald and Aspen (colors)
The Story: Rulk and his team Code Red, which consists of Punisher, Deadpool, Tundra, Crimson Dynamo, and Electra, Face off against X-Force. Somehow, this battle leads to the creation and introduction of She-Rulk.
What’s Good: This series has greatly improved since Loeb started to do some actual character development with Rulk by putting his inner-monologue at the forefront. This issue continues that thrust and we get some emotional resonance with Rulk besides his giant ego and confident exuberance (all terrible by the way). Maybe there is some hope for Rulk after all. Maybe.
The basic premise here of X-Force vs. Code Red is pretty good, especially the realistic battle between Rulk and Wolverine. Granted, Wolverine is pretty one-dimensional but at the same time he is pretty entertaining. The rest of the battles are dealt with adequately and the Punisher vs. X -23 battle is interesting.
Also of note is Electra’s role in all of this. She is a very strong and interesting character here and Loeb does a good job of capturing the enigmatic and powerful aspects of her. You can tell that she is the difference maker in this arc.
Overall, Loeb has a certain child-like wonderment for characters that is enthralling when it works, though putrid when it doesn’t. Here it points more to the former rather than the later.
As far as the art, Ian Churchill shows a mix of McGuiness/Cooke style here. Overall, it is pretty successful, especially during the battle scenes.
What’s Not So Good: Um, I think Rulk is the Silver Surfer. Either that or Loeb completely flubs some text. I find it hard to believe that Marvel would give away its “big” “reveal” like this, so I’m sure the Rulk isn’t the Silver Surfer. Yet, Loeb clearly has Rulk say that, so I am lost to what is going on. Maybe Loeb is editing his own books and no one caught his mistake? Here is the line, you decide:
“The abuse of power is so seductive. I’ve even succumbed to it. Careening across the galaxy on a surfboard. Acting like a child.”
Uh, come again.
But here is the main complaint of this issue: She-Rulk has arrived on the scene. This is the worst character ever. Seriously, can it get more predictable and lame? I shutter when I think that this is a character that will most likely stay on the scene for years to come. Terrible. The worst part is that her existence probably precludes the existence of two other fun characters in the Marvel U. I’ll leave it at that.
Loeb should leave Deadpool alone. He’s just not funny in Loeb’s hands and a lot of real estate was lost listening to Deadpool and Warpath fall flat. Generally, all the dialogue here is forced and crude. No one says anything unexpected or interesting.
Lastly, Churchill’s depiction of Rulk’s face is really annoying and distracting. He looks like a fat, red Popeye with his bottom lip resting on the upper makes Rulk look stupid when Loeb is trying to write him as being intelligent. The whole presentation just sends mixed messages and detracts from taking this book seriously.
Conclusion: I think this series keeps getting better and better. That being said, we are still far from great here. But, I think Hulk is just a glorified Marvel Adventures and not to be taken seriously. This all well and good now, but once Marvel starts trying to make World War Hulks a major event, serious problems will arise.
Grade: C
-Rob G.
Filed under: Marvel Comics, Reviews | Tagged: aspen, Comic Book Reviews, comic books, Hulk, Hulk #15, Hulk #15 review, Ian Churchill, Jeph Loeb, Mark Farmer, Marvel Reviews, Peter Steigerwald, Rulk, weekly comic book reviews | 1 Comment »
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