Why is Hulk back to being an idiot?

**DATNIGG** · 12-19-2012, 10:27 AM

I mean it wasn't too long ago that he was leading teams & making full sentences & talking to people...

why is he back to being a big smash puppet all of a sudden?

**Lady_Alternate** · 12-19-2012, 10:29 AM

In which book?

Either way, I think the likely answer is "he's more popular this way".

**1derer** · 12-19-2012, 10:30 AM

Originally Posted by lady_alternate

in which book?

Either way, i think the likely answer is "he's more popular this way".

Yup. Giving the audience what they want.

Hulk smash!!!

Pretty much.

**ViewtifulJC** · 12-19-2012, 10:35 AM

Did you see that Avengers movie?

**AntiPatriot** · 12-19-2012, 10:38 AM

I hate it too.
Green Scar was the absolute best Hulk of all times.

As for the reasons: The movie.
Simple as that.

**Whim** · 12-19-2012, 10:45 AM

the movies ruin everything.

they get the idea movies bring in new readers and if it isn't like the movies people won't stay. it's a stupid idea.

**AnonymousMC** · 12-19-2012, 10:50 AM

Originally Posted by AntiPatriot

I hate it too.
Green Scar was the absolute best Hulk of all times.

As for the reasons: The movie.
Simple as that.

I agree! This is so annoying as far as the growth of the character is concerned. His voice was a very important component of Pak run. To devolve his character, is to ruin the progress made. I also enjoyed that he was able to directly come into conflict/agreement with Banner on a level playing field, not just Banner arguing with a an angry 10 year old.

**AntiPatriot** · 12-19-2012, 10:55 AM

Allthough I have a little hope that Avengers 2 might include a smart Hulk.
I mean, Avengers EMH had id too, and it was a very popular show.

**Saku** · 12-19-2012, 11:00 AM

If you are talking about Avengers Assemble, I find it best to pretend that horrible series doesn't exist.

**The_Livewire** · 12-19-2012, 12:10 PM

Well since the motion capture was better in Avengers 2 for making the actor into the Hulk, maybe that means it's good enough to capture motions for speech, so we can have a talking hulk and get back to our talking hulk.

That and I miss Joe Fixit. :-)

**StoneGold** · 12-19-2012, 01:00 PM

Same reason why he got smart with no explanation. He's an ever-shifting multiple personality disorder, and his intelligence and personality shifts depending on how he's doing.

Or, whim of the writer/editor/whatever.

**bobbyraw** · 12-19-2012, 02:19 PM

Because movie.

**DV1Band** · 12-19-2012, 02:34 PM

Originally Posted by 1derer

Yup. Giving the audience what they want.

Hulk smash!!!

Pretty much.

Not gonna lie, I kinda burst out into laughing when I read this. :)

**ResIpsaLoquitur** · 12-19-2012, 05:44 PM

Nobody can settle on the Hulk's personality or intelligence level. Not even Stan Lee could settle on it.

For the original six issues of Incredible Hulk, his personality varied a lot. He ranged from "grumpy brute of few words" to "moderately intelligent but nasty and reckless." "Hulk smash" hadn't appeared yet.

Throughout much of the sixties, from his cameo appearances in Avengers, FF, and other books, to his regular appearance in Tales to Astonish, he was pretty much a "grumpy brute." He definitely had a mean streak, but didn't have sub-par intelligence either.

Eventually, "Tales to Astonish" changed into "Incredible Hulk," and the Hulk gradually settled on "pretty stupid" and "easily angered." There was usually a streak of "Hulk hate everybody" in there, though he would occasionally get friendly with the occasional small child or homeless person.

This lasted until the mid-270s, when Banner fully took over and "Hulk smash" kind of faded out. You really had Banner in the Hulk's body, with maybe a tinge of anger every so often. Mostly, it was just a bulky Banner.

By #296, "Hulk smash" returned, and he was really, really, really mean (thanks to Nightmare, who was trying to get revenge on Dr. Strange). In #299, Banner sacrificed his intelligence, and we were left with a no-brained, really pissed off Hulk. This lasted through, oh, maybe #308, when the Hulk's intelligence started to come back, and he had that "happy but dumb" personality again.

John Byrne got the Hulk in #314 and made him, well, pretty evil (he punches a deer for no reason). This only lasted until #315, when Banner and the Hulk were separated, and the Hulk was AGAIN a mindless, really mad monster. THIS change lasted until #323 (Al Milgrom took over writing and drawing by this point), and the Hulk was back to his earliest personality: moderately intelligent and slightly evil. He became grey in #324, but still kept this smart-but-wicked personality.

Peter David kept this nasty Hulk when he took over in #331 and kept that personality streak going for awhile, arguably. Although Hulk was mean and kinda-smart, and Banner was intelligent and nerdy, their personalities *slowly* started moving towards each other during this time. (Read PAD's Hulk from #331-377 straight and you'll see what I mean.) The Hulk gradually became softer and more humane, while Banner occasionally had a bout of anger. Oh, and the green "Hulk smash" personality returned in #372.

All three personalities merged into what's now called "Professor Hulk," which lasted roughly from #377 to #446. The Hulk had the green body, Banner's intelligence, and a bit of the grey's attitude. He didn't often show a lot of anger or evil, but there were moments where Hulk would do something nasty (like smashing a car when he was pissed at Betty) or show some nasty anger (he yelled at Rick a few times) that made you wonder how stable he was.

In #425, the Banner-Hulk dynamic switched: if Hulk got too angry, he'd turn back into a savage Banner as a "safety." Hulk was still the "Professor," it's just that excess anger would give him the personality of the "savage" Hulk. Not much happened with this. In the late #430s, the Banner body took some shrapnel to the brain, and "Professor" Hulk started to take on a much nastier, short-spoken personality.

By #447, Banner and the Hulk were separated AGAIN, and Hulk took on the "gravage" personality we know (and not terribly different from Stan Lee's original version). This was basically the same Hulk personality that Pak and Aaron used in their runs: moderately intelligent, grumpy, but the potential to be a little soft. This lasted, oh gee, through the end of PAD's run in #467, although Joe Casey used it on-and-off in his run from #468 to #474.

It's all kind of messy from there. John Byrne and Ron Garney used a mix of Hulk in the new volume, issues #1-11, but mostly the savage version. Paul Jenkins did #12 to #32 and used multiple personalities: savage, grey, and Professor. After a Christopher Priest interlude with the savage version in #33, the now-apocryphal Bruce Jones run had a "silent but savage" personality mixed with a "Banner's in control but still kind of grumpy" version. PAD came back in the late 70s and used the "gravage" version through his "Tempest Fugit" and "House of M" stories. Daniel Way used both the Bruce Jones "silent but savage" and the "gravage" personalities in the Planet Hulk prelude.

Greg Pak mostly used the "gravage" personality, although he introduced the "Worldbreaker" personality (which really isn't anything more than the "gravage" guy who's really, really pissed). He and Jeph Loeb both played with the classic "Savage" version in "Skaar, Son of Hulk" and Loeb's "Hulk" #1-12, plus #600. The classic "Savage" personality was repressed again in #600, and when Pak brought the Hulk back in #611, it was the gravage/worldbreaker personalities. "Gravage" stuck through the rest of Pak's run (#612-635), which continued through "Fear Itself" and into Aaron's latest series in issues #1-15.

Mark Waid now seems to be using the "silent but savage" personality, although I can't really tell after one issue (I haven't gotten #2 yet). So, all I can say is that in 50 years of Hulk history, he's shifted around a LOT. Give him time, and he'll move into some other personality you like.