The Immortal Hulk #26: Status Quo Ante

Al Ewing introduces the next chapter by placing Bruce in the driver’s seat for The Immortal Hulk #26. Bruce is declaring an end to the world as we know it, at least the human world. Well, people of Earth, this is a hard truth folks can’t seem to grasp. We can’t save the Earth. If you recall from the last two issues, it was revealed that the Hulk will survive until the end of the current universe with unimaginable power as the “Breaker of Worlds”. Now, keep that in mind as Bruce justifies the means. The Earth is going to die. Throughout this issue, Ewing does a great job reminding us, people of Earth, that focusing only on saving the planet is a short-term solution and it feeds the disaster capitalism. Again, Humans are what needs to be stopped or “changed”, not the destruction of our planet.

Bruce debates that humans are more fragile than the Earth. The planet will survive global warming, a nuclear holocaust, and even a huge asteroid strike, but we, humans, may not. Bruce’s rationalizations do make the reader think beyond Ewing’s writing. So, while zipping around in a hybrid car or using paper bags instead of plastic may be an earnest effort to forestall disaster, ultimately it’s nowhere near enough. Cutting emissions, recycling waste and commitment to solar and wind power makes terrific sense. But, cosmically speaking, these are just short term solutions. What we really need is to commit beaucoup bucks to our space programs. Because, no matter how much we conserve, no matter how nice we are to it, eventually the Earth will swallow us up. Honestly, think about it as we embark 2020, how often has “humans” explored outside of Earth’s atmosphere since 1969?

It took us less than a decade to put a human on the Moon. Now, five decades later, we have all but abandoned manned space exploration. You’ve heard the argument, “Why are we wasting money up there when we have so many needs here on Earth?” Ignoring the fact that an incredible list of modern advances came out of the space program and those solutions to environmental change and potential cosmic disasters will only be bound in a lab, there’s much simpler explanation for why we need to spend more on space science. Sooner or later, we have to move off this planet or face annihilation. Dinosaurs dominated the Earth for over 150 million years, but they’re gone and the Earth is still here. Save the Earth? Hell, save us! The reader may begin to understand Bruce Banner’s thought process, but there are concerns to how far he is willing to take us.

In The Immortal Hulk #26, Bruce is increasing the stakes of human evolution. Ewing does wonders in creating a horrific science fiction story with a dose of reality. It’s only a natural instinct for people of Earth to be on edge with the uncertainty of what he has in store for them. ROXXNEWS is on the job reporting, well if that is what you call it. We see a news anchor using various social platforms to give the news stories and updates to the public. However, the methods are highly questionable. The reader may relate this aspect to real-world journalism and how we decipher the today’s media. The “public” is guided with “news” coverage beginning with Bruce Banner declaring war on humans and to stay tuned “Tonight on ROXXLINE” for coverage of children who act out may have the “Hulk Syndrome”. Oh, wow…really? Then, we see the news anchor on the phone with a radio announcer on “SHOCK ROXX” with feeding the fuel of madness.

By the last page, we learn some factors that articulate the madness wrapped around Bruce Banner, the Hulk, and the news media. Who’s pulling the strings? Well, it may seem like Dario Aggar, CEO of Roxxon is the mastermind of this manipulation. Oh, this is going to be good! Ewing is pulling another great element of Marvel into his already spectacular storytelling. The twist, Mr. Dario Aggar is not hiding to blend in the human crowd any longer, because not only is he a business tycoon…

The artwork in this book is outstanding as it has been in the previous issues. Joe Bennett’s pencils perfectly capture the essences of moods of the characters as they take part in this story. The tone is set beautifully with the dark and light shadowing. Along with a power-house team of inks and colors by Ruy Jose and Paul Mounts, The Immortal Hulk has the best on the job!

The Immortal Hulk #26 is an awesome transition from focusing on Hulk himself into a story about the monster of Bruce Banner. The dialogue signifies an intense and serious story for the major characters as they decipher through the madness. The conversation between Amadeus Cho was important for Bruce to get a Hulk’s support, but it didn’t seem to go as well as planned. There’s not much action in this issue, but the tone and pacing of the storyline is near perfect. It is exciting to see where Ewing takes us next!