World War Hulk by Greg Pak

World War Hulk Reviews

• 
  Sesana

  So this isn't exactly smart comics. It's really just Hulk smashing stuff up good, and also virtually every hero who was active at the time. Mostly kind of dumb, sure. But pretty fun all the same. Planet Hulk was a better story, to be sure, in that there was an actual story there. This is really just smashing. But I didn't expect anything else from a book called World War Hulk. Still, there's a moment near the end where Bruce gets to show what he's really made of, and it's a great moment. Just go in expecting lots of barely explained fights and you should be fine.
• 
  Anne

  I liked this one a lot more than the previous story,
  Hulk: Planet Hulk. This takes place on earth and involves a bunch of butt-kicking by Hulk and his friends. I know, whodathunkit?! Anyway, Hulk is after Tony Stark, Reed Richards, Black Bolt, and Dr. Strange. Since they were the ones responsible for shooting him into space in the first place, he assumes that the bomb that destroyed his adopted planet (including his wife and unborn child) was somehow rigged to blow by these guys. Um...it makes sense when you're reading it.
  Nice appearance by the Sentry, too.
  
• 
  Bookwraiths

  Three and a half stars. Love watching the Hulk wipe the floor with all the Marvel heavy weights.
• 
  Donovan

  A book-length fight scene where misplaced revenge for lost love and betrayal destroys all heroism for hypocrisy and monstrosity. Essentially, that superheroes are stock characters in an inconsequential play of hyperbolic in-fighting. “God help us all” indeed.
• 
  Gavin

  Ugh. Romita isn't my fave. Everyone looks the same.
  
  Also, the ego of having one of the Punch noises be "GRGGPAKKK"? Really? In a book written by Greg Pak? Wow. Deep.
  
  Also, what a fucking lazy ending...Sentry takes on Hulk, and ends up being so powerful, Hulk has to stop him from destroying the planet.
  
  Banner good, Hulk mad, the illuminati still assholes.
  
  Also, why don't we see Black Bolt get his ass kicked? He just appears dead looking after almost taking out Hulk earlier.
  
  Just no thoughts at all. The tie ins are mostly garbage, and avoided. I did like the Incredible Hulk with Amadeus Cho and the Champions, Ghost Rider, and the X-Men where Hulk decides the fate of Xavier. Also, Hulk and Wolverine.
  
  
  One question, when does Hulk go between mindless monosyllabic and able to think, reason, and speak fully? Never can tell...convenient no?
  
  Rick Jones, She Hulk, highly underused.
  
  This was a disappointment.
• 
  Terence

  The Hulk is coming home, but it's not an occasion to celebrate. Hulk had it all, but then it got wiped away in an explosion. Now he's coming for the four men who sent him into space and God help anyway who gets in his way.
  
  
  There isn't much to this one, the angrier Hulk gets the stronger he gets and he's never been angrier than he is in World War Hulk. If anyone ever wanted to see The Illuminati members and their teams beat up then this is series for them. It's everyone versus Hulk and his warbound.
  
  
• 
  Jesse A

  I enjoyed this one quite a bit more than Planet Hulk. Just alot of Hulk ass kicking.
• 
  Carlex

  Continuación de "Planeta Hulk", comentada aquí:
  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
  
  El Goliat Esmeralda y sus amigos gladiadores regresan del planeta Sakaar buscando venganza. Hulk culpa a los superhéroes más influyentes de la Tierra (esto es, Mr. Fantástico, Iron Man, Rayo Negro de los Inhumanos y el Doctor Extraño) de la muerte de su amada junto con un millón de habitantes del planeta al que fue exiliado.
  
  Y ya sabéis, cuando más se enfada Hulk más fuerte se convierte... En esta ocasión regresa increíblemente cabreado: los mamporros están servidos. Cada combate es un pequeño cataclismo, gracias a la pericia del John Romita Jr., quien aquí se muestra correcto en el dibujo de los personajes (lo aborrecí en el Spiderman de Straczynski).
  
  "World War Hulk" es un cómic muy entretenido, ideal para los fans entre los que me cuento, y junto con "Planeta Hulk" forma una etapa muy interesante del personaje.
• 
  Kemper

  This a pretty good Hulk story, but the ending is a mess. Plus, for a book called World War Hulk, all of the fighting is in New York
• 
  Baba

  A sense shattering explosive successor event to Civil War, in which we get to see a rampant, but intelligent Hulk invade Manhattan with his legions from Planet Hulk and personally whup all three Avengers teams, the Astonishing and New X-Men, Fantastic Four, X-Factor, Excalibur, She Hulk, Dr Strange, Black Bolt and lots more. A mega event that saw further repercussions of the New Avengers Illuminati's machinations. Love this era of Hulk! 7 out of 12
  
• 
  Dávid Novotný

  Not much story, just looooooooooooong ass kicking, without interesting twist or funny one liners, just lot of pathos. Ugly art by master of his filed John Romita Jr. doesn't help either. 2.5*
• 
  Elinor

  2,5
  
  Autant j'avais été très agréablement surprise par Planet Hulk, autant je suis déçue par World War Hulk. Déjà, le dessin... franchement ! bof bof bof. Quant à l'histoire, j'ai vu plus ouf.
• 
  Logan

  The Angriest Hulk as ever been! So although I read this series when it came out, I never wrote a review for it and I bought the trade recently so now is good of a time as any. The story is set after Planet Hulk where Hulk was sent away from Earth by the heroes and once he adopted a new homeworld and had a wife with child, she and the rest of his people were all killed in an explosion. Now Hulk is back on earth to get revenge on all the heroes!
  
  Right off the bat, this is pretty much an action book, as Hulk just moves from one hero to the next having these massive gods like battles. If you like Hulk punching things, then you will enjoy this book! I thought it was just as fun of a read all these years later. I also read through it pretty quickly, as the story is very much: just pick up and easily read which is exactly what I look for in comics. The story is minimal compared to Planet Hulk, but it's still a fun read. Another thing that has held up well is John Romita Jr's artwork, its definitely one of his best works with the quality of the drawings, some of which I think is actually better than some of his more recent stuff!
  
  The only real downside is that while Planet Hulk was a more personal Hulk story, this is more of an event, which is why I enjoy Planet Hulk more. However, as far as events go, this is definitely one of the good ones!
  
  Overall I really enjoyed revisiting this awesome story and I still hold up Planet Hulk and World War Hulk as my favourite Hulk stories!
• 
  Anna Kay

  Meh, I liked Planet Hulk about 20x more. Just felt anti-climactic at the end, and not what I expected from such an epic story.
• 
  clumsyplankton

  This was really good. I’ve not really read any hulk comics but this has made me want to read more.
• 
  Arun Divakar

  The Hulk hasn’t been my idea of a hero. The onscreen portrayals by Edward Norton and Mark Ruffalo of Bruce Banner have been very enjoyable in terms of the vulnerability that pushes them over to become the rampaging green monster. A slightly long look at the character makes him seem more of a fulfillment of a naive expectation of what a hero ought to be all about. This is a world where every problem is dealt a swift punch to the face until it’s teeth fall out. World War Hulk to me has been one of the weakest story arcs ever to come out of the Marvel stables. It is all posturing and very little stuff. A lot of smashing and bashing later, there isn’t anything even closely resembling a story to be pointed out.
  
  The timeline is post-Civil War and Captain America is still dead when this story begins. As a prelude, the Illuminati comprising of Dr.Strange, Mr.Fantastic, Black Bolt and Iron Man successfully rid Earth of the menace of the Hulk by blasting him off to space. What follows the galactic travel of the Hulk forms the Planet Hulk storyline and it is Hulk's bloody return that is featured here. Maddened by rage and grief, the Hulk arrives to beat the living daylights out of those who crossed him. Arriving in Manhattan he gives a deadline to all civilians to clear the city after which he plans to wipe the floor with the heroes. What ensues is an all-out battle and the aftermath.
  
  All very interesting except for a few bones of contention :
  
  •The story is called World War Hulk and yet all the action is in New York. Typical to a lot of comics, it is the Americans who save the world in the end. An apt title would have been Hulk Smash : The fall of New York.
  
  •The highlight of the overall story is a brutal showdown of Hulk against all the other heroes and yet most of the brawls are half baked. The much anticipated Iron Man V Hulk part is a damp one and how Hulk beats the Black Bolt is never explained.
  
  •Thor, the nearest contender who can hold his own against the Hulk does not appear even once in the tale.
  
  •Where the fish is Wolverine ?
  
  •Spider-Man is shown on a few panels but he disappears as fast as he is shown and I am not entirely sure if I dreamt him up here.
  
  •It all comes down finally to the Sentry whose reason for joining the fight is never fully explained and the grand finale makes you wonder what all the fuss was about.
  
  There isn’t much to write home about this volume. It is probably Marvel’s homage to WWE’s Royal Rumble !
  
• 
  Paul

  I was expecting something... better.
  I had recently read Planet Hulk and was looking forward to jumping into this sequel.
  
  What a let-down.
  
  Nowhere near as good as its predecessor, despite having the same writer.
  
  So Hulk has a spaceship that can travel back to Earth from Sakaar (where'd that come from anyways?). He leads an army to attack Earth... but wait, let's settle for New York's Central Park, making a pit stop on the Moon on the way to kick the bajoo-zass out of whats-his-name from the Inhumans (and where were the rest of the Inhumans whilst their fearless leader fights, one wonders?)... oh and we as the readers aren't even privy to the kick-assery as it happens off-panel apart from the pre-ambling.
  
  Then it's time to go down to Earth, where Iron Man wearing an armor over his armor (groan) proceeds to get into a mano-to-mano versus the Hulk... yeah, like that's gonna work.
  
  Then it's Reed Richards turn, with a little help from his friends, and although Richards does use a bit of science to face-off with the Hulk, it all ends in a classic mano-a-mano fight... as if he and his buds even stood a ghost of a chance.
  
  Then we have Doctor Strange... he starts with magic and seems to have the upper hand until Hulk grabs him and crushes his hands... and how does the good Doctor come back? that's right in a mano-a-mano demon-possessed self.
  
  Sheesh, don't these guys know you don't go toe-to-toe with the Hulk?
  Hey, Doc, ever hear of a "sleep" spell?
  One gets the impression that the Hulk is the one with all the brains in this book.
  
  Oh, I forgot, we do get a good fight of the Hulk VS Superman... oh wait, Sentry... but in the end, Banner takes him out with a nerd-punch!
  
  Anyway, I was pretty dissapointed after reading this and it's pretty much ended my budding love-affair with the Hulk (again).
• 
  Vojtěch

  Hulk tak nasranej, jak jsem ho ještě nepoznal. A i když je to pouhá jedna velká bitka, tak to byla sakra epická bitka. Fakt boží! :D
• 
  Mike

  A delightful follow-up to Planet Hulk. This one is a little more linear, and a lot more Hulk smash. I think a reader will appreciate this on an even deeper level if they read and enjoyed the Civil War arc. I found it enjoyable to see some of the more smug Marvel mainstays being obliterated by the Green Machine. This isn't the nuanced and heartfelt narrative of Planet Hulk. It's violence and over the top battle, but I think it plays a nice yin and yang with the previous story.
• 
  RG

  Surprisingly enjoyed this.
• 
  Jedhua

  Other Useful Reviews:
  Sam Quixote's review,
  Paul's review,
  Hrishi's review
  
  Book Info: This collection contains
  World War Hulk issues #1-5.
  
  
  ABSOLUTE RATING: {2.5/5 stars} (Rounded Down)
  
  STANDARDIZED RATING: <2/5 stars>
  
  This was perhaps worse than I remember it being the first time around. Believe me, I was tempted to give it 2.5 stars, just as I had done for
  Planet Hulk. But it's like this book didn't even try to be good, and I think Marvel knew it would be a success no matter what.
  
  First and foremost, Pak used some horrible pacing. Just awful. Relentless and predictable, it felt as if the book's target audience was ten year old boys who just wanted a comic book with the Hulk fighting all the superheroes on Earth. Also, as strong as Hulk became during his interplanetary holiday, I don't find it credible that he and his Warbound could render all of Earth's heroes completely defenseless; they've certainly faced bigger threats and overcame them many times throughout comic book history. But even if I'm wrong about that, who really wants to read a comic about Hulk beating up all of Marvel's heroes with little to no resistance?
  
  And I'd like to see somebody actually look at me and tell me with a straight face that they took Hulk's veneer of blind fury seriously enough that they actually feared for the safety of any of the four heroes he came to punish. After he beats up the first two, and you notice he hasn't tried to kill them, it becomes kind of hard to ignore the nagging voice in the back of your mind telling you this comic is actually kinda lame. I mean think about it: for all the decades and decades Hulk has existed as a Marvel character, it's always been clear that he's a hero. He's a giant green-skinned softie whose quite frankly too stupid and uninspired to plot against humanity. One of the few exceptions to this rule is the
  Ultimate Marvel version of the character (who also happens to be the best), and this event would have been a thousand times more badass if it was set there. So not only does this render Hulk's threatening exterior as transparent and laughable, but it also calls into question the judgement of the four individuals that sent him away in the first place. I think I heard somewhere that what really motivated Marvel to shoot Hulk into space in the first place was that they didn't want him on either side of the Civil War. That sounds a lot stronger and more interesting as a motive, and I would have liked to see that worked into the story instead.
  
  If all I had to say about the comic until now were negative things, it might seem as if I should have given the book one star rather than two. I think what's keeping me from doing that I can't help but acknowledge the ten year old comic book nerd inside myself, and he can't get over just how cool the premise was for this book. The really sad and depressing truth reflected by that statement is that so few of my dear Goodreads friends and "followees" were able to fight their own annoying, snot-nosed alter-ego, and fell victim to Marvel's shamelessly ponderous ploy. I am so FUCKING TIRED of shitty Hulk comic books! The only real thing this comic had going for it was the art.
• 
  Ryan Woods

  An excellent Hulk story which I wish was even longer. The collected edition I purchased did not feature any of the tie-in stories featuring Ghost Rider, Punisher, the X-Men, etc. Hopefully future editions include those as well. The story feels epic but I never felt it earned the "world war" aspect. The story was very confined to New York and I wish Hulk had done a bit more globe-trotting, perhaps collecting each member of the Illuminati from a different country. I also was not a fan of the whole Sentry arch. I found his character to be rather boring and far too similar to Superman. There were plenty of other Marvel heroes I felt could've been the one to pose the final challenge to Hulk, such as Black Panther, Thor, Silver Surfer and Wolverine. The Sentry felt forced and awkward. Hulk has plenty of great historical rivalries with other Marvel heroes and I think the writers missed a great opportunity to finish a good story with a fantastic climax.
• 
  Dustin

  This book really highlights why I wish they would have left the character on the alien planet of the previous year's storyline for another year or two.
  Short version: hulk was shot into space because Marvel didn't want to have to deal with him during the Civil War storyline. While on the alien planet Hulk has some really awesome Conan and Spartacus style adventures and ends up in charge of the place (I personally would have stretched the adventure part out for another year before he gained control, but I don't work at Marvel, so what do I know.) Some spoilery stuff happens, Hulk comes back to Earth, wrecks up New York while making some other heroes fight each other, then the book ends with the Hulk fighting the golden Deus ex Machina know as the sentry and giving up.
  I was incredibly disappointed that they took one of my favorite characters from a setting that was perfect for him and brought him back to a place where no change can last longer than the development time for the next movie.
• 
  Martin

  As far as "Events" go, this is bottom-drawer stuff. I apologise to all you die-hard Hulk fans out there, but this story is inferior to
  The Incredible Hulk: Planet Hulk in absolutely every respect, from story to art. First of all, Hulk is wrong when he believes some Earth-based heroes (Iron Man, Mr. Fantastic, Dr. Strange, and Black Bolt) are responsible for the spaceship explosion at the end of the "Planet Hulk" storyline. But of course he doesn't know that and so goes on a rampage and takes them down each in turn. He even goes up against the Sentry, one of my all-time least favourite characters. As you guessed, at the eleventh hour a way is found to subdue the Hulk, and Marvel can move on to the next Event.
  
  As for the art, and as much as John Romita Jr is an comics industry legend, it doesn't compare with Carlo Pagulayan's excellent work on "Planet Hulk".
  
• 
  Stephen

  God, but this story was dull.
  
  Having made his way back to Earth, Hulk enacts his revenge upon the ones who sent him away in the first place - Black Bolt, Mr Fantastic, Doctor Strange and Iron Man.
  
  This story was just... predictable. Dull. I forced myself to read the entire thing, and wasn't remotely surprised or enthralled by any of it. To be honest, I probably could have guessed how it would end based on hearing the premise.
  
  So: Hulk attacks New York, lots of fighting happens, he briefly defeats everyone, they end up beating him, they subdue and capture him, he gets taken away by SHIELD. Aaaaaaaaand we're back to square one. Basically back to before Planet Hulk ever happened.
  
  Fucking status quo, man. Fucking status quo.
  
  So, yeah. Not my favourite. But then I've never really liked the Hulk anyway. So I probably wasn't this arc's target audience.
• 
  Praxedes

  A disappointing follow-up to Planet Hulk. I kept an open mind throughout, but the book ended as most Hulk stories do (won't go into specifics to avoid spoiling the ending). It was cool to see some older heroes such as the Sentinel come out of retirement, but the story was too flat, too predictable. The artwork, however, was top rate. Only read this if you are a Hulkphile!
• 
  Scott

  Meh
  
  The Hulk is back on earth and looking for revenge against Black Bolt, Reed Richards, Stephen Strange and Tony Stark for kicking him off the planet in the first place and supposedly killing his wife, kid and friends.
  
  300 pages (of very good art btw) of Hulk kicking the crap out of people and being a huge badass.
  
  Not much story - too much action.
• 
  Cem Binboğa

  Hulk artık daha öfkeli ve tek istediği şey intikam.
• 
  Kevin

  This 11-year-old collection roughly follows some of what we saw in Thor: Ragnarok with Hulk on the planet Sakaar where he starts as a reject and then a slave and then a gladiator and then a champion.
  
  What I didn’t know and that was twisted around for the Marvel Cinematic Universe interpretation of events is that Hulk was deemed to be a danger to Earth so Mr. Fantastic, Iron Man, Black Bolt, and Doctor Strange blasted him to Sakaar.
  
  To add insult to injury, after Hulk became a champion and a leader of the people, he got married and had a kid only to have them, and many other Sakaarians, killed, presumably by those same four Earth heroes.
  
  So, um, yeah, Hulk is pissed and he’s coming back to Earth for a reckoning.
  
  And that’s where this book starts (I’ll need to look up the prior story). What happens next is just glorious Hulk going SMASH on the Avengers and the Fantastic Four.
  
  Slightly confusing ending but a great story.
• 
  Juho Pohjalainen

  To be honest, being someone that doesn't read a whole lot of superhero comics (usually just the big important bits), this one, and the previous, pretty well describe the fundamental problem with the stories. Nothing ever changes, no one is ever happy, the world is forever fucked.
  
  Hulk would have deserved it, but no.