Indestructible Hulk by Mark Waid: The Complete Collection

Hulk by Mark Waid: The Complete Collection #1

by Mark Waid (Writer), Jeff Parker (Writer), Walter Simonson (Illustrator)

Hulk: The strongest there is. Banner: The smartest man alive. Combined, they are indestructible! Good thing they're on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s side! Now working for the peacekeeping force, Hulk must take down the new Quintronic Man and battle Attuma on the ocean floor to learn the secret of lost Lemuria! But not everything is as it seems - what is Banner's secret hold over S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Maria Hill? And for those of you who like smashing, the Hulk battles Iron Man, Frost Giants and...the timestream?! Plus: The secret friendship of Bruce Banner and Matt Murdock! The secret past of Bruce Banner and Tony Stark! Dinosaurs, cowboys and the knights of Camelot! And the Hulk fights for the fate of the world! Even when he's indestructible, he's still incredible! COLLECTING: INDESTRUCTIBLE HULK 1-20, ANNUAL 1

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

504 pages, Paperback

First published October 10, 2017

About the author

Mark Waid is an American comic book writer widely known for shaping modern superhero storytelling through influential runs on major characters at both DC Comics and Marvel Comics. Raised in Alabama, he developed an early fascination with comic books, particularly classic stories featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes, whose imaginative scope and sense of legacy would later inform his own writing. He first entered the comics industry during the mid 1980s as an editor and writer for the fan magazine Amazing Heroes, before publishing his first professional comic story in Action Comics. Soon afterward he joined DC Comics as an editor, contributing to numerous titles and helping shape projects across the company. After leaving editorial work to focus on writing, Waid gained widespread recognition with his long run on The Flash, where he expanded the mythology of the character and co-created the youthful speedster Impulse. His reputation grew further with the celebrated graphic novel Kingdom Come, created with artist Alex Ross, which imagined a future DC Universe shaped by generational conflict among superheroes. Over the years he has written many prominent series, including Captain America, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, and Superman: Birthright, bringing a balance of optimism, character depth, and respect for comic book history to each project. Waid has also collaborated with notable artists and writers on major ensemble titles such as Justice League and Avengers, while contributing ideas that helped clarify complex continuity within shared superhero universes. Beyond mainstream superhero work, he has supported creator owned projects and experimental publishing models, including the acclaimed series Irredeemable and Incorruptible, which explored moral ambiguity within the superhero genre. He later took on editorial leadership roles at Boom Studios, guiding creative direction while continuing to write extensively. In subsequent years he expanded his involvement in publishing and digital storytelling, helping launch online comics initiatives and advocating for new distribution methods for creators. His work has earned numerous industry awards, including Eisner and Harvey honors, reflecting both critical acclaim and enduring popularity among readers. Throughout his career Waid has remained a passionate student of comic book history, drawing on decades of storytelling tradition while continually encouraging innovation within the medium. His influence extends across generations of readers and creators, and his stories continue to shape the evolving language of superhero comics around the world today through enduring characters imaginative narratives and thoughtful reinventions of familiar myths within popular culture and modern graphic storytelling traditions.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bruce Banner gives up on trying to cure himself of the Hulk and instead devote his energies to inventing devices to help humanity. So he sets up a deal with SHIELD to supply him with a lab and they can drop the Hulk in like a WMD when they need him. As Bruce likes to say in the book, "Hulk destroys, Banner builds". It's a fantastic premise even if the wheels start to fall off towards the end when Waid starts to get away from the focus of the book.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is something about Mark Waid's take on the Hulk that I just find incredibly appealing. Part of it is the way that it shakes up the traditional "Banner vs. the Hulk" dynamic and has Banner working with his condition rather than trying to undo it. That's refreshing not just because so many of the possible iterations had already been done over the half-century since the Hulk was created, but because it's obvious that even when they write in a cure or a solution that it's never going to take. The Hulk is just too important to Marvel ever to be done with the character.

So instead Banner follows the age old advice of "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em." Rather than fighting the Hulk he works to manage the big jade giant. But he's also a guilt-ridden genius who wants to be remembered for being more than a big destructive dummy, so he makes a deal to work for S.H.I.E.L.D. as their "cannon" to be used in circumstances where stealth, precision, and collateral damage aren't considerations, in return for access to their resources for scientific research. Seeing the Hulk working alongside one of the organizations that once pursued him is also a fun change of pace, as not only does it eliminate the need to create the sometimes involved motivations for the battles Hulk finds himself in, it also introduces a fun dynamic of Banner matching wits with Maria Hill. This becomes the series's secret weapon, as the professional tension is tempered by a degree of respect and mutual need, as both sides quickly come to make the most of the deal.

The result is roughly a half-dozen storylines that are all highly entertaining. Easily my favorite is "Gods and Monster," in which a Banner-led expedition to Jotunheim leads to a battle with Frost Giants and an encounter with an unexpected character, but all of them are fun adventures mixing science with superheroism. The only problem is with the varying quality of the art, with not every contributor measuring up to the standards set by Leinil Francis Yu in the first issue. Yet the virtues of Waid's series more than offset its flaws, and the end of the series after just eighteen issues left me feeling as though there were still much that could have been done with his premise.

[Kurt Lorenz · Rating 3 out of 5]

1-5, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., ☆☆☆☆
6-8, Gods and Monster, ☆☆☆
9-10, Blind Rage, ☆☆☆☆☆
11-15, Agent of T.I.M.E., ☆☆☆
Annual 1 ☆☆☆☆
16-20, The Humanity Bomb, ☆☆☆

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back when I was really into comics (about 7 years ago), I was a bit dismayed with what was happening to The Incredible Hulk. I had been collecting back issues like crazy and had really developed a fondness for the big green giant.

Bruce Jones' run on The Hulk is still among my favorites (though lots of people poop all over it), Planet Hulk & World War Hulk were both outstanding as well. Then came Red Hulk. This was a bummer.

To keep my brain busy, I crafted a roughly 100 issue Hulk run in my head. I asked myself what I would do if I were to write The Incredible Hulk, and I started putting things together six issues at a time.

It would start at a diner in the middle of nowhere. A Shield Agent bumps into Bruce Banner and makes him an offer. Come in. We will fully fund Banner's brain and allow him to do world changing science to benefit humanity, and in return when problems get too big to handle, they could bring in The Hulk.

So, Imagine my surprise many years later when I'm at the library with my kids. I've been out of the comic game for a bit (right around the time Avengers vs X-Men started) and saw this Hulk collection.

I am a HUGE Mark Waid fan. I am a HUGE Hulk fan.... it just made sense.

So... again, Imagine my surprise when the first issue starts at a diner in the middle of nowhere. Shield Agent Maria Hill bumps into Banner. He makes her an offer. He agrees to come in. If they agree to fully fund his world changing science to benefit humanity, and in return problems get too big to handle, they could bring in the Hulk!

Of course.. the stories in my head vary significantly from Waid's work. Every few issues tell interesting and exciting adventure stories featuring the Hulk and his Team Up Partner for the story (Thor, Daredevil, and Iron Man). Waid does a good job telling stories that work. They are fun, and aren't bogged down with 60 years of continuity. In many ways they are a call back to the way Hulk comics used to be.

Yet, I couldn't help but feel a bit bummed that Waid didn't do more. His work on The Flash is legendary. His retelling of Superman's origin in Birthright are the Man of Steel film we should have gotten. I cannot think of a single Waid run that isn't worth reading. Have you seen him on DAREDEVIL? Waid is excellent at what he does, but I get the feeling he was told to tell some smaller stories and not to make any big movies.

As a result, there are a lot of good, fun stories, but nothing especially memorable.

Even so, I still love Hulk & Mark Waid, and I still have those stories in my head

[Eligos Vespillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Returning Hulk to his roots in many ways, Waid still manages to construct a fresh frame for both sides of the Banner coin. Although the loss of Pak's wider Hulk family-building and the grief-stricken Green Skar Hulk does sting, it is nostalgic and refreshing to see ol' Savage Hulk back and with a new focus.

Along for the ride is a new team constructed of damaged scientists who smack of Peter David's Pantheon in the best ways, offering emotional catharsis and interesting dynamics between them and thier jolly green supervisor. The story arcs contribute to the nostalgia factor as well, but in a sliver-age-y vein as Hulk smashes his way through time and space - literally meeting face-to-face with a younger, brasher Thor!

Overall a departure from Pak's defining run, but in a good way.

[Nicolas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it started much stronger than it ended, but I liked this journey for Banner and the Hulk. It felt different, but still on brand. Weirdly, the time-travel arc was my least favorite section.

[J. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought the key premise of the series was solid, but then pretty much everything about the execution was lazy. If I didn't know, and you told me this book was from the '70s, I would probably believe it.

[THE DARK KNIGHT The DUDE · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay.

[Pturingan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun. Some of the stories might be forgettable eventually but I still found it enjoyable in the moment. Worth it if you find it on sale, which I did.

[Blake Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

😱

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great premise that meanders around and eventually doesn't really go anywhere.

Bruce Banner wants to stop running. He wants to be able to do science, to do more then just try and fail to find a Hulk cure. He wants to be Reed Richards and invent/create things to help people. To be remembered as something else then smashing.
So, he cuts a deal with SHIELD: they let him do science and he'll let them use the Hulk.

Sounds great, until it slides into drama, a meh supporting cast and just seems to get bored with itself and runs out of steam.

The first couple stories are fun and full of potential, but then there is this rush to get to the angsty stuff and everybody might be up to something and it just kind of meanders and gets relaunched as a new #1.

[Dony Grayman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Teniendo en cuenta lo abandonadísima que quedó la edición argentina (y lo proporcionalmente cara que siempre fue), la verdad que esta edición integral me vino como bomba a la gamma.