Al Ewing, Joe Bennet, Ruy Jose and Paul Mounts go full-on body horror in a phantasmagoric THE IMMORTAL HULK #8.
Bruce Banner is dead. His corpse has been dissected, his organs cataloged, and his inner workings are being studied by the scientists of Shadow Base. Bruce Banner is no longer a threat. That just leaves the IMMORTAL HULK…
The Immortal Hulk #8
Written by: Al Ewing
Pencils by: Joe Bennett
Inks by: Ruy Jose
Colors by: Paul Mounts
Letters by: VC’s Cory Petit
Cover by: Alex Ross
This review contains spoilers
Writing
After last issue’s massive action-packed Avenger’s led beatdown, The Immortal Hulk #8 switches gears again and unabashedly oozes into straight up body horror. Ewing once again adds another layer to the Hulk, opening up his powers in even more horrific ways. The bulk of the story takes place within Shadow Base, as the villainous Dr. Clive pokes and prods at the leftover Hulk body parts. Clive, written like an old school mad scientist, rants and raves. But in true horror fashion, the scientist does not know what forces he his playing with and before he knows it...SPOLIERS…he finds out that the Hulk has been conscious this whole time he has been spread apart in parts. The body parts then begin to move and crawl on their own, attacking Clive and absorbing him like something out of John Carpenter’s The Thing or a David Cronenberg movie. This revelation completely changes the nature of the Hulk again and makes him even deadlier. Ewing is really having fun with this book, taking it in crazy directions every issue. He is creating one of the wildest conic book rides on stands and one of the best Hulk runs in years.
Art
A comic that strives for a horror vibe can get only get so far on the writing alone. The art, from the pencils to the letters, has to create and sell the mood and atmosphere. The art team of Bennett, Jose, Mounts and Petit completely deliver. Everything that comes out of their pens works seamlessly together to give the book a creepy, pulpish feel. The line work is thick and heavy, the inks full of weight and the colors are lurid. It’s a horror comic through and through. The lettering even echoes old school EC Comics font.
Conclusion
This is the best Hulk has been in years. Every month brings a new change, a new revelation and more, and more horror. So rise up and grab this book.
