Original Sin: Hulk vs. Iron Man

Original Sin

by Mark Waid (Writer), Kieron Gillen, Mark Bagley (Illustrator)

Could Tony Stark be responsible for the accident that turned Bruce Banner into the Hulk? A new development threatens the love/hate relationship you've been following on screen and in comics.

Collecting: Original Sin 3.1-3.4: Hulk vs. Iron Man

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, Superheroes, Fiction, Science Fiction, Comic Book

104 pages, Paperback

First published November 4, 2014

About the author

Mark Waid (born March 21, 1962 in Hueytown, Alabama) is an American comic book writer. He is best known for his eight-year run as writer of the DC Comics' title The Flash, as well as his scripting of the limited series Kingdom Come and Superman: Birthright, and his work on Marvel Comics' Captain America.

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hulk smash puny recovering alcoholic!



Wow, I'm actually kinda shocked! I just checked out what my friends thought, and it seems that I'm all alone in enjoying this one.
Boo! Hiss!



Well, it isn't the 1st, and I somehow doubt it'll be the last time I'm stuck out on the Island of Shame all by myself...Pbbbt!
Whatever. Y'all know I'm right!



Anyway, after reading a bit of the Original Sin stuff, I poked my head into this tie-in on Marvel Unlimited. <--not buying these!
Basically, this is a (my opinion) kinda cool reimagining of the origin of the Hulk...with tons of gratuitous fight scenes!



Do we really need another Hulk origin?
No, probably not.
Especially not one that incorporates Tony Stark into it...



Then again, why the hell not?
I was entertained waaaaaaay more than I thought I would be! And that twist at the end?!
LOVED IT!!!
Yeah, I really didn't see that coming. At. All.



Then again, I'm not the sharpest tack in the box. Of...tacks. Because tacks come in a box.
Don't they?
My point is, maybe take my opinion with a grain of salt, & maybe check out some of the other reviews if you're going to have to spend money to read this. However, if you can read it for free, don't be afraid to check it out!

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

That dull thumping sound you heard, football fans, was wishy washy Marvel editors punting the metaphorical football away on the ending to this storyline.

This is an Original Sin tie in that basically went like this: During a critical moment in this jumble of a crossover event Marvel universe secrets were revealed. Iron Man and the Hulk were standing next to one another and got a dose of truth.



For Tony Stark, it was the realization that he (and a bottle of whiskey) could have been the cause of Bruce Banner’s transformation into the Hulk.



Jack Daniels says you’re toast, Tony. If I were you I’d start running, cuz if Hulk finds out, talking to a bottle of booze will be the least of your worries.



Too late!!

What follows is Stark’s pathetic attempts to stop a Smart-Hulk and about a dozen dangerously dull digressions into the past as Tony tries to do some detecting from the present.



The Hulk/Iron Man battle? After a beatdown, Hulk bends Iron Man into some sort of modern sculpture. And he does it real slow.



Bottom line: Waid splits the writing duties with Gillen, who got tagged with doing the cowardly resolution.



Well, it won’t be coming from me, big guy.

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

In Original Sin, Bald, Silent and Toga’d was murdered and his eyes were plucked out because they’re magic or something. A guy with a giant eye for a head imaginatively calling himself The Orb used one of the Watcher’s eyes to somehow unleash psychic energy upon Earth’s Mightiest. This energy burst revealed the heroes’ deepest, darkest “sins” to each other.

In this four-issue spin-off, Bruce Banner discovers that years ago Tony Stark tinkered with his original gamma bomb – the one that inadvertently turned him into the Hulk. Is Stark responsible for Banner’s tragic Jekyll/Hyde life?

I think we know the answer to that one – as if Marvel would allow a retcon that massive and make Tony that much more unlikeable! So if the premise is one big fuss over nothing, is it at least entertaining? Hmm… not really.

The story is divided between flashbacks from the past where the two science bros yell at each other over who’s the bigger brain, and the present where Iron Man and Hulk physically fight each other in Troy.

Troy? I didn’t know this either (but then I gave up on Kieron Gillen’s awful Iron Man series after Vol 3), but apparently Tony’s built an entire city as a futuristic prototype off the coast of China, naming the Iron Metropolitan: Troy.

The fighting is, well, Marvel superhero fighting - Iron Man shoots lasers, Hulk smashes, you know the drill. Nobody really wins, it’s just blah for the sake of blah. The flashbacks are equally dull and, though it’s back when Tony was still drinking, there’s no real change in his character – he’s still loose/wild.

I liked little bits in the story like Tony’s car morphing Transformers-style into an armor, and that Banner used Extremis to make Hulk as smart as Tony. Their talk at the end was pretty decent too with some strong dialogue that showed their closeness despite often being at odds.

There’s not a whole lot though to recommend this one even if you like the characters. They bicker over a misunderstanding and it turns out pride was the cause – or “sin” - all along. Meh. This side book to the main event was pretty darn disposable, having no effect on the overall story or the characters. But then these lil event spin-offs are always crap aren’t they, churned out to squeeze the fanboys for a few extra bucks and little else? Once again the big green monster here isn’t Hulk, it’s the filthy lucre.

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good read!

Iron man may have been involved in the accident that turned Bruce into the Hulk and when the secrets after the watchers death are revealed, its a chase for Iron man as he is running and we get flashbacks as to what happened during the gamma bomb incident and how Tony may have been involved and when Bruce remembers it, its a fight between the two Avengers, who will win and who will lose? Its an okayish battle and like doesn't have that much action as it promises but I like the convo they have in the end and I kinda like the use of extremis and Arno here so that makes for a good read I guess. So try reading it for sure.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whilst the actual Sin of this book was revealed in interviews long before the book finally came out, there are still some twists and turns to be had with the story. It does once again like Volume 4 of Indestructible Hulk hinge on Tony Stark being an arrogant ass and Bruce Banner being intent on proving himself to drive the story, but the fight scenes are good fun, at least. For something that's meant to be an end-cap to both Waid's Hulk and Gillen's Iron Man however, it does feel a bit lacking in the story department.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. During Original Sin, the Orb let’s off a information bomb that wrecks havoc on everyone’s memory. Since they were next to each other, Banner and Stark’s memories gets mixed together. This let’s let’s Banner discover something horrible that Stark did. Now Hulk is hell bent on bringing it to Iron Man. But Tony has one more tid bit of info that will flip everything on its head. Pretty solid story.

[Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm currently sitting on the floor with a blanket over my head trying to shield myself from how depressed this comic made me, but to no avail.

I can't even form an opinion on whether the issues were well written, I am now a shell of my former self. I have no critiquing energy left.

Marvel should expect an emotional distress lawsuit from me in the coming months since this has effectively robbed me of my will to live.

[Mantis (¯ ³¯)♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,3/5 ⭐️

🇵🇱
PYCHA
Idealne określenie tej sytuacji, Tony i Bruce chcieli być najlepsi i skończyło się to jak skończyło..
Bardzo Przyjemny dodatek 😃

🇺🇸
PRIDE
Perfect description of this situation. Tony and Bruce wanted to be the best, and it ended the way it did…
A very enjoyable addition 😃

[Kit · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmm. Not sure what to say, to be honest.

Although I typically like stories that center around Banner and Stark's scientific backgrounds and competition, this one kind of left a bad taste in my mouth for many reasons I can't quite articulate. By all accounts, the plot should have kept me into it, but think all of the twists in the plot came off more flip-flopping than well-crafted. Similarly, the premise Tony Stark's staggering jealousy and weakness leading to the creation of the Hulk seemed like it was more interested in piling more pathos on Tony than it was bringing more depth and interpersonal intrigue between the characters of Banner and Stark.
I like that Tony was written as pretty aware of his own selfishness, jealously, and insecurity, but I am not sure I really find much of a point in this book for readers. It doesn't help that the art style comes off as remarkably plastic-looking, which doesn't do a lot to keep me wanting to be more involved in the story.

TL;DR, Tony is a jerk who doesn't want to be a jerk anymore but will do little to actually earn it, Banner is further made into a woobie while also being Justifiably Pissed All The Time.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

For an event tie in book I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this. Event tie in books can really vary in quality. For this one you don’t need to have read Original Sin (which I read years ago and need to do a reread for Goodreads) as the opening of the book gives enough information on the event, plus it takes place after it.

Having just finished the Superior Iron Man series which takes place after this, I thought I would try and fill in one of my Iron Man gaps.

This has a really focused story that pits Iron Man and the Hulk against each other, both physically and mentally. It also acts more of a continuation of Kieron Gillens run of Iron Man than the event tie in.

It has some great action sequences as you would hope from a vs title. Additionally it explores the origin of the Hulk and how Tony Stark played a role in his creation. I’d imagine some fans would be annoyed with this as it does retcon some of Hulks origin story, but that happens a lot in comics.

As much as I enjoyed this book, it’s probably not the best jumping on point for Iron Man or Hulk fans. To get the most out of it, personally you need to have read Kieron Gillens run of Iron Man and the Original Sin event for the extra back story.

This title for me is still worthy of 4 stars, it is better than the Superior storyline that I believe chronologically follows it.

[Martyna · Rating 2 out of 5]

średnie

[Just a Girl Fighting Censorship · Rating 1 out of 5]

It is difficult to put into words just how much I hated this, but I'll do my best. Everything about this was horrifically terrible. This four issue Iron Man/Hulk story is part of the Original Sin event which I have been enjoying. In the Original Sin story line, the Watcher's eye was set off by the Orb as some sort of truth bomb, throwing the secrets of the Marvel universe into the faces of our heroes. One secret that was revealed is that Iron Man is some how responsible for Banner becoming Hulk.



So right off the bat I'm not feeling it. I will pretty much always be against these type of revisionist history stories, where we go back and learn that everything that has been established is a lie. It is cheap and pretty much a slap in the face to loyal comic fans, in my opinion. It is especially heinous in this instance as Hulk's origin is pretty much a sacred staple of comic history. However, a terrible plot isn't the only drawback you have to look forward to if you decide to dive into this train wreck. The writing itself, most noticeably the dialogue, is painful. It is uncharacteristic, cheesy, forced, and awkward.



Both Stark and Banner become incredibly unlikable characters. The tone of this comic was melodramatic with plenty of tight facial expression shots where Tony is screaming and crying.



Then there's the ending...where you realize that you have just wasted the hour it took you to read this complete and utter crap.

Overall, this was abysmally terrible... I think I actually have to stop thinking about it because I'm about to Hulk out with bitter nerd anger...

[Anchorpete · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not really care for Original Sin. It did the usual job of moving the pieces around on the board (making Thor Unworthy of his hammer, getting rid of the Original Nick fury) but besides that I didn't really understand the point of the event.

Weren't the secrets of the Marvel Universe supposed to be exposed?

I guess it is my fault, I didn't take the time (or spend the cash) on any of the tie ins. Apparently, this is where the secrets were spilled.

I was really fortunate to find this trade in the library, because it explains the reason why the Hulk is the way he is in the current Avengers story arc (he has Bruce Banner's Intelligence now, for those wondering what I mean) and it takes Iron Man all the way up to the point where he becomes Superior Iron Man.

This book was a lot better than I thought it was going to be, and that is probably because I didn't know it was written by Mark Waid and Keiron Gillen, which is a major selling point for me, any day.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this tie-in to Original Sin. Not knowing a whole lot about either Iron Man or the Hulk, seeing this interplay between them based on something Tony Stark did to Bruce Banner years ago was quite interesting.

[Lionel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't much about the origin story of Hulk, but I can't remember Tony Stark in it. maybe a bit late to pug him there now.
Also, I think the story misplaced. OK, the Watcher's eye makes people remember a secret but still, not the point.

[Jordan Lahn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't really see the need to go back and reveal secrets about the origin of the Hulk...

[Krzysztof Grabowski · Rating 2 out of 5]

Czytając omawiany tytuł w głowie pojawiały mi się pewne kształty, mające obrazować jak odbieram całość. W moim zdaniu to taki pod sklepowy krzykacz, który jest głośny i zaczepny, ale jak co do czego dojdzie, to zamyka gębę i chowa się z podkulonym ogonem. Status quo się nie zmienia. Tak jest z Hulk vs. Iron Man.

Koncept jest prosty. W skutek wydarzeń z Grzechu Pierworodnego masa herosów poznała największe tajemnice jakie dotąd skrywał w sobie Watcher. Wszystkie grzeszki nagle jednak zostały odkryte. Banner dowiedział się zatem, iż sam Tony Stark maczał palce w powstaniu Hulka. Złość i zawiść biorą górę. Szykuje się staromodna zemsta, a geniusz w zbroi trzęsie kolanami, bo będzie musiał stawić czoła zielonemu potworowi praktycznie sam, jeżeli nie bierzemy pod uwagę Arno, jego niedawno odkrytego brata, ale ten spełnia tu marginalną rolę.

Po użyciu na Bannerze nowego szczepu Extremis Hulk staje się bardziej inteligentny i zaczyna się makabryczna zabawa w kotka i myszkę. Iron Man ucieka przed nim i zaczyna sentymentalną podróż z czasów współpracy z Bannerem przed wypadkiem, aby potwierdzić swoje najgorsze obawy. Jest odpowiedzialny. Tyle, że w przeszłości nie był takim harcerzykiem jak teraz, gdzie jako obrońca Ziemi ma bardzo wiele do stracenia.

W czasie gdy najlepszym przyjacielem była mu whiskey... Główna zadra dotyczy majstrowania przy bombie gamma, jaka spowodowała powstanie Hulka. Tyle, że całość... Nie ma wydźwięku. Nie ma konsekwencji. To było miejsce na coś wielkiego. Ani Waid, który napisał dwa pierwsze zeszyty, ani Gillen, który zajął się dwoma następnymi, nie zdecydowanie się na coś mocniejszego.

Cała historia, mimo że momentami widowiskowa, jest też do bólu zachowawcza i schematyczna. Finalny twist jest mdły i przekombinowany. Ten tom to takie guilty pleasure, gdzie występuje kilka walk, które dadzą czytelnikowi czystą frajdę, a jednocześnie masz tam gdzieś z głowy tą pewność, że pod względem fabularnym raczej całość ssie. To wydmuszka, piękna z zewnątrz. Pytanie: co z tego? Na plus powroty do przeszłości, dzięki czemu mamy porównanie jak zmieniły się postacie na przełomie kilkudziesięciu lat.

Rysunki są poprawne. Bagley i Ross mają kreskę, która pasuje do dynamicznych potyczek i nie sposób odmówić im dynamiki, drapieżności, choć miałem wrażenie braków przy ukazywaniu postaci, ale może to mój wymysł. Takie 2.5/5. Nadal robią na mnie wrażenie walki, ale samo to nie wystarczy by przykryć tego, że to zwykły, zbędny filler.

[matt murdock · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was just.. meh. at the beginning i was very confused, like i had to reread pages a few times to try to get a sense of what was happening (probably bc i have next to zero knowledge of comic tony or bruce, so all these details that were probably references to their backstories explained in their own solo runs went straight over my head) but towards the end of the second issue it started to make more sense to me.. the story just felt underdeveloped and underwritten, but i guess that’s what you get in a four issue side story. if this was fleshed out a little more i think this could have made for a more compelling story bc i think the idea of it is good, but it just fell short.

i didn’t like how they just kept throwing random memories/flashbacks in there. it was like “okay tony saw one of bruce’s memories and bruce saw one of tony’s” and then “oh wait but tony gets this other random forgotten memory of his back somehow” (still don’t get how that happened???) and then theres all these flashbacks and i couldnt really understand if they were part of the original memories they saw bc of the watcher’s eye thing in original sin #2, or whose memories they were or what it was just all very confusing. i always hate stories that lean too heavily on flashbacks, especially when they flip between the present and flashbacks a lot; it just becomes too much to keep up with eventually and that definitely happens here.

i did like the whole lesson abt pride at the end. also bruce saying he would be better off dead and tony going DONT SAY THAT SHIT hit me in the heart a little bit

i also have just never really been a fan of tony’s character in the comics and that definitely applies to this too. i’m always subconsciously comparing comic tony to MCU tony; and nothing will ever beat MCU tony for me, tony’s characterization is one of the few things i think the MCU nailed and comic tony just feels shallow compared to that.

[William Mallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part of the Original Sin storyline from Marvel, this trade paperback reprints the four-issue mini-series Hulk vs. Iron Man. The premise of Original Sin, a separate tale collected elsewhere, is that upon the death of the Watcher, a multitude of secrets only he knew stand revealed. One of those secrets is that while Bruce Banner was perfecting the gamma bomb that would later create the Hulk, Tony Stark was called in to consult and he made some adjustments. Did Tony Stark, in a fit of drunken professional jealousy, sabotage the bomb and create the Hulk, the monster that continues to plague the world?

I'm not going to spoil that revelation because interesting and shocking twists are the life blood of comics. But the idea here is an interesting one. You would expect that the super-intelligent people of the Marvel Universe would logically have at least knowledge of each other during their younger years and maybe, as in this case, have even worked together before. Mark Waid, a stellar writer, teams with artist Mark Bagley for issues 1 and 3 while Kieron Gillen and Luke Ross tackle issues 2 and 4. Good stuff, adding new depths to well-established characters.

[Audre · Rating 3 out of 5]

The all "stark is the worst friend and created the hulk because ego" going on during the entire thing, to finish with a "oh no he actually was nice and it was all Bruce fault because ego" was unnecessary.

Plus at the end Tony still doesn't tell Bruce about the mail because it would "kill him". Come on! It would make him moppy for a week yes, but then may be he would achieve... I don't know, character growth?? I swear the entire marvel multiverse main problem is too actually communicate on shit.

Plus like... "oh no Tony couldn't resist shaking my bomb" like... Mate... Its a bomb. And a super bomb at that... You need someone to check it that not you. Someone need to proofread the destructive mess so we don't all go kaboom. What did they teach you at uni?

Anyway. It was still nice to see Bruce and Tony interact. But damn.... Are we sure they are the most clever people around there? Because if so, their universe is fucked.

[Logan Harrington · Rating 3 out of 5]

5/10:
I’m reading through what have been deemed the “essential” issues of the Original Sin event AND in the order recommended via Marvel Unlimited, so this is the first title I’ve finished.

It’s certainly a choice to have so many truths come to light from Uatu’s eye and immediately be acted upon as if the Watcher’s murder can deal with time and focus being taken away from it. But that’s exactly what happens and these revelations scare the life out of Tony Stark while they anger Bruce Banner like never before.

Watching these two grapple with the reality of the Gamma Bomb test that turned Banner into the Hulk really did open our eyes to a greater truth behind it all (and ultimately how Banner could have prevented the accident), but again, it’s STILL hidden after these issues are finished. So why spend all this time rehashing the events to only tell a partial truth?

[Yvonne Alf · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not read the Original Sin mainstory or any of the other tie-ins, so for me this was just a very interesting 'what if' situation. I really enjoyed reading this story, especially the 'friendship' between Tony and Bruce now and in the past. There was plenty of action in the story, but the main focus was on the characters and in my opinion Mark Waid had a really nice hand with interpreting the characters. He definitely found the right balance for Tony between pompous ass and actually having a heart.

[boofykins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually read this in the Original Sin Companion, which I'm reading concurrently with the main Original Sin Oversized Hardcover. I wouldn't normally count a trade read as part of a larger collected volume, but I'm making an exception this time because I thoroughly enjoyed this read. Unsurprisingly well written by Mark Waid, I felt engaged and interested through the whole mini-series and I felt that it made sense within the overarching Original Sin event and wrapped up in a pretty nice and tidy way.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was fine but I couldn't help but ask myself, why? Why is this story being told. Nothing actually happens. Both characters are left the same afterwards. Original Sin tie-ins have been hit or miss and this is somewhere in-between. The book does have some fantastic art by Mark Bagley and Luke Ross. What it doesn't have is a reason to exist. Overall, a fine story with no point.

[Dippit! with E.S.Jennette · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is about how Bruce Banner acts first and thinks later, turning into the Hulk and dealing with things right away.

The Hulk is trying to stop a bomb threat from going off, and Iron Man has to come in and help him calm the Hulk down.

After the Hulk calms down, Tony and Bruce talk, and this whole misunderstanding could have been resolved by Bruce reading an email.

[Ray Keane · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10
I found this run to be quite enjoyable. I like the unique art style, especially Iron Man’s suit. I find the story to be intriguing especially with the flips from flashbacks to present. 2 classic avengers characters battling out their past after the death of the Watcher reveals secrets that change the course of their history.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did Stark have something to do with the accident that created Hulk? Stark cannot remember and investigates. The Hulk is looking for Stark. This is a fun and clever short story that looks at the person Stark used to be before he reformed. A good read.

[Villain E · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good. Bruce Banner designed a bomb. Tony Stark designed weapons. Of course their paths crossed before they were superheroes. Waid and Gillen both have a good sense of who these characters were at the dawn of the Marvel Age and who they are now. And the artwork is really good.

[Jota Houses · Rating 3 out of 5]

La muerte del Vigilante ha provocado que una cascada de secretos salgan a la luz.¿Qué tuvo que ver Tony Stark en el accidente que dio origen a Hulk? Entretenido aunque el dibujo resulta particularmente pobre.

[Matt Sautman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much like the mainline Original Sin, the concept of Hulk versus Iron Man is fascinating but the delivery fails to live up to potential. The decision to tie Tony Stark to Bruce Banner’s transformation into Bruce Banner is interesting but a good premise alone does not make for a rich story.