Hulk Appearances

Hulk Appearances and Defining Moments 1962-1986
The Incredible Hulk (1962-1963) Issues 1-6
Tales to Astonish (1964-1968) Issues 59-101
The Incredible Hulk (1968-1999) Issues 102-474

The Incredible Hulk burst onto the comic book scene in 1962, the second Super-hero collaboration between creators Stan Lee, and Jack Kirby. The pair had just seven months previously launched the Fantastic Four, and based upon that success, as well as DC's own hero line selling well, felt the time was right for a resurgence of the Super-hero genre at Marvel Comics.
The Incredible Hulk recounts the tale of Robert Bruce Banner, and his monstrous alter-ego The Hulk. The Hulk was born in the nuclear fires of a Gamma-bomb explosion, when Banner was exposed to the "mysterious rays" while rescuing the teen-aged Rick Jones. Ironically, it was Banner himself who created the G-bomb.
Although canceled after a mere six issues, rabid fans of the series bombarded editor Lee with mail, demanding Hulk's return. Lee was also a fan of his co-creation, and required little prompting to utilize the character.

What follows is a chronological recounting of Hulk appearances, as they are detailed in his many crossovers, cameos, and guest shots throughout the Marvel Universe. Included are brief plot synopses, as well as links to scans from comics, magazines, Hulk related merchandise, and original artwork in my personal collection. Additionally, there are several links to obscure non-comic Hulk appearances. But, enough of this commentary. Enjoy!

Fantastic Four #4 (2/62) Hulk first advertised along bottom margin of alternating pages throughout comic. (1^st Sub-Mariner in S.A.) (Jack Kirby art.)

Hulk #1 (3/62) Origin told. 1^st appearance of gray-skinned Hulk, aka Bruce Banner, Rick Jones, Betty Ross, and The Gargoyle. See FF #3 for 1^st appearance General Thaddeus (Thunderbolt) Ross. (Kirby art.) (12/61)

FF #5 (4/62) Johnny Storm is shown reading/igniting a copy of Hulk #1 in 4 panels. This is the first verifiable Hulk appearance outside his own comic. (1^st appearance Doctor Doom.) (Kirby art.)

Hulk #2 (5/62) First appearance of the green-skinned Hulk. First Toad Men. (Ditko inks Kirby on cover, and interior artwork.)

Tales of Suspense #33 (6/62) Panel 2 on page 7 of the story "I Was Trapped in the Chamber of Fear", has a picture hanging on a comic book editor's wall, which is proposed by Overstreet advisors to be the first (gray) Hulk x-over. FF #5 pre-dates this possible appearance by 2 months. Possible 2^nd Hulk x-over outside his title. (Kirby art.)

Hulk #3 (7/62) Hulk battles the Ringmaster and his Circus of Crime. Rick Jones/Hulk mind fusion begins this issue. (Kirby art.)

Hulk #4 (9/62) Hulk gains Banner's intellect, as the result of an over-exposure of Gamma rays. Controls the change for the first time, by the use of a "gamma-ray machine". (Kirby art.)

Fantastic Four #10 (10/62) One panel appearance. Jack Kirby and Stan Lee cameo appearance. (Kirby art.)

Hulk #5 (11/62) First appearance Tyrannus. (Kirby artwork.)

FF #12 (12/62) Second (verifiable) Hulk x-over. First meeting Hulk, and Fantastic Four. (Kirby art.)

Hulk #6 (1/63) Final issue of the original Hulk title. Sluggish sales, and with a limited number of slots allotted to publish their comics, Marvel publisher Martin Goodman canceled the series. First appearance Metal Master, and Teen Brigade. (Steve Ditko interior/cover art.)

Avengers #1 (7/63) Hulk, Thor, Iron-Man, Ant-Man & Wasp, combine forces to defeat the god of mischief, Loki. (Kirby cover/interior art.)

Fantastic Four Annual #1 (7/63) Full page Kirby pin-up of Hulk.

Avengers #2 (9/63) Hulk quits team. First appearance Space Phantom. (Kirby art.)

Tales of Suspense #49 (10/63) 2 panel appearance. (Hulk, and Banner) 1^st Avengers x-over, 1^st X-Men x-over, 1^st Watcher outside FF. (Kirby cover/Ditko interior art.)

Avengers #3 (11/63) Hulk first battles Namor; they then join forces in combat against his former teammates. Hulk's alter-ego is first mistakenly referred to as "Bob" Banner within this story. Explained as an error on the letter page(s) of FF #28 (4/64), but Banner's full name then modified to read Robert "Bruce" Banner thereafter. (Kirby art.) Page #17

Avengers # 4 (1/64) 2 panel appearance. Rick Jones abandons the Hulk, in favor of a partnership with Captain America. (1^st Captain America in S.A.) (Kirby art.)

FF #25 (1/64) Hulk's in Manhattan, pissed-off and feelin' betrayed 'cuz Rick has taken off with Cap. Enter the FF! 1^st Hulk/Thing battle. Hulk persona begins change to a more savage/rage driven character.

FF #26 (2/64) Hulk vs. Avengers, and the FF! He nearly kicks their collective asses, until Jones slips him a "gamma-pill", and Hulk, feeling the beginnings of the transformation, breaks free and leaps off. (Kirby artwork.)

Avengers #5 (3/64) Hulk persona continues to "devolve" Second "Molto" appearance, first full "Lava Men". First Molto appearance JIM # 97 (8/63) (Kirby art.)

Spider-Man #14 (4/64) First Hulk/Spidey meeting/clash. Hulk's intelligence level decreases noticeably. (1^st Green Goblin appearance.) (Ditko art.)

Marvel Tales Annual #1 (6/64) Reprints Chapter 1 from The Incredible Hulk #1. (5/62)

Tales to Astonish #59 (6/64) Hulk battles Giant-Man. (Kirby cover, Dick Ayers interior art.)

Spider-Man Annual #1 (6/64) Hulk appears in a Ditko splash page, as well as atop a Ditko caricature of Stan Lee's head . Was Steve expressing his unhappiness with Stan, by having Hulk pummel Lee's cartoon head?

TTA #60 (7/64) Hulk/Giant-Man begin sharing joint title. First example monosyllabic Hulk. (Kirby cover/Ditko interior art.)

Tales to Astonish # 62 (9/64) First appearance The Leader. Another Gamma-ray spawned mutant, and Hulk's greatest nemesis.

Journey into Mystery #112 (11/64) Follow-up tale of Hulk/Thor battle from Avengers #3. (Kirby art.) Here is page #11 of the original Jack Kirby artwork from that issue.

TTA #67 (2/65) Last Ditko art on the series. Features a classic Hulk image by Kirby on the cover. Page 6 of the original Ditko artwork from the issue.

Avengers #17 (4/65) The new team of Avengers search for the Hulk, so they can add his raw power to their ranks. (Kirby cover/Heck interior art.) Story runs parallel to events in TTA #69. (4/65)

TTA #70 (5/65) Giant-Man segment in TTA canceled. Hulk shares title with Sub-Mariner through issue 101. Hulk again gains Banner's intelligence, due to a bullet lodged in Banner/Hulk's brain. (Kirby layouts, Demo art.)

TTA #77 (12/65) Hulk's persona reverts to savage/confused state. Hulk/Banner's dual identity is revealed to Glen Talbot, and the Marvel Universe. (Kirby layouts, John Romita Sr. finished art.)

Amazing Spider-Man Annual #3 (8/66) Spidey attempts to subdue Hulk, as an initiation into the Avengers. (Romita cover/Heck interior art.)

TTA #87 (10/66) First Hulk to Banner transformation witnessed by Betty, T-Bolt, Talbot, etc. (Gil Kane cover, John Buscema interiors.)

Avengers King-Size Special #1 (7/67) Pin-up of the original Avengers. (Don Heck art.)

The Incredible Hulk #102 (1/68) First all Hulk title since 1963. Origin retold. (Marie Severin cover/interior art.)

Other Hulk Appearances of Note

X-Men #43 (2/68) One panel appearance in the X-Men short "Call him Cyclops". (Werner Roth interior artwork J. Buscema cover art.)

Silver Surfer #1 (5/68) 4 panel recap of Hulk/Surfer meeting in TTA #93. (4/67) (J. Buscema cover/interior art SS #1, Marie Severin cover/interior art TTA #93)

Avengers Annual #2 (7/68) Original team vs. then current roster of Avengers. (J. Buscema cover/Heck interior artwork.)

Hulk King-Size Special #1 (7/68) First Hulk Annual. Infamous for its Marie Severin "touch-up", of the original Steranko cover art. Editor Stan Lee felt Steranko's version of Hulks face was "out of character", and "too fierce".

Captain America #110 (11/68) Steranko interior and cover art. Very cool cover!

Silver Surfer #4 (11/68). One panel appearance. Loki cites Hulk as "The mightiest of all", in his quest for a powerful pawn against Thor. (Buscema brothers art.)

Captain Marvel #17 (7/69) Cameo appearance. (Gil Kane art)

X-Men #66 (1/70) Final issue of original title. (Sal Buscema art.)

FF #100 (4/70) The Mad Thinker/Puppet Master's android of Hulk attacks them, in a cruel reversal. (Kirby art.)

Captain Marvel #'s #20, 21 (4/70), (6/70) Multi panel appearance in CM #20. (Gil Kane art.)

Captain America #130 (7/70) Hulk cameo in 4 panels. (Marie Severin cover art/Gene Colan interiors.)

Sub-Mariner #'s 34, 35. (10/70), (11/70) Prototype of Defenders. (Hulk, Sub-Mariner, Silver Surfer) (S. Buscema covers/interiors.)

Avengers #88 (3/71) 2 part story, adapted from a Harlan Ellison script. Concludes in Incredible Hulk #140, which introduces Jarella, the emerald hued Queen of K'ai. (4/71) (S. Buscema interiors/cover art Avengers, Trimpe interiors/cover art Hulk)

Fantastic Four #111 (3/71) Banner travels to NYC to aid Mr. Fantastic in an attempt to control the rampaging Thing. Banner changes to Hulk. What was Reed thinking?!

Fantastic Four #112 (4/71) Hulk/Thing battle redux. (John Buscema interiors/cover art.)

Rolling Stone # 91 (9/16/71) Months before the classic Dr. Hook ballad, Hulk was featured on the cover of the Rolling Stone. Interesting interviews with Marvel personnel, as well as music icons of the day. (Herb Trimpe cover)

Marvel Feature #1 (9/71) First issue Defenders. (Neal Adams cover/Ross Andru, interior art.)

Marvel Feature #2 (12/71) Second Defenders appearance.

Marvel Premiere #1 (1/72) 4 panel recap of events in TTA 94-96. (5-7/67) 1^st Adam Warlock (Him) (First Him appearance Fantastic Four #67 (7/67). (Gil Kane cover/interior art Marvel Premiere, J. Kirby cover/interior art FF 67.)

Avengers #100 (3/72) All former Avengers guest star. (Barry Smith cover/interior art)

Marvel Feature #3 (3/72) 3^rd Defenders appearance. 3^rd appearance Xemnu the Titan. 1^st appearance Xemnu, JIM #62 (Kirby cover/interior art) (9/60). 2^nd app., JIM #66 (Kirby cover/interior art) (1/61) Of note because in the JIM issues, Xemnu is referred to as Hulk, and Living Hulk.

The Defenders #1 (5/72) Hulk, Sub-Mariner, Dr. Strange (Hulk appears in all but 17 issues through #125.) (9/83).

Captain Marvel #24 (10/72) Hulk cameo (Wayne Boring art)

Captain Marvel #25 (1/73) The Super-Skrull shifts/morphs himself into the likeness of Hulk to battle Mar-Vell. First Starlin artwork on title.

Amazing Spider-Man #119 (1/73) & #120 (2/73) (J. Romita Sr. cover art both issues. Romita interiors #119, Kane interiors #120.)

Foom #2 (6/73) All Hulk issue. (Steranko cover). The original Steranko Hulk art, upon which the Foom cover is based.

Marvel Feature #11 (7/73) Hulk/Thing battle. (J. Romita Sr. cover, J. Starlin interior art)

Avengers #118 (9/73) Conclusion of the Defenders/Avengers crossover/war.

Marvel Team-Up #18 (11/73) Hulk and Human Torch battle Blastaar.

Fantastic Four Giant-Size #1 (2/74) Hulk/Thing battle with a twist. They trade minds! Hey, I don't write 'em, I just catalog 'em!

Doctor Strange #2 (6/74) Frank Brunner cover and interior art.

Marvel Team-Up #27 (8/74) Hulk and Spider-Man tussle with The Chameleon. (Starlin cover art, Jim Mooney interior artwork.)

Strange Tales #178 (12/74) Three panel recap of events (death and resurrection of Warlock), as shown in Incredible Hulk #'s #177 (5/74), & #178 (6/74). (Starlin cover, and interior art.)

Ghost Rider #11 (2/75) Gil Kane cover.

Spidey Super Stories #9 (4/75) 6 page story entitled "Guess What's Coming to Dinner."

FF #s #166, and #167 (10/75&11/75) Hulk/Thing battle, then join forces against FF! (George Perez interiors both issues. Rich Buckler cover #166, Kirby cover #167.)

Omega the Unknown #2 (3/76) Rich Buckler cover.

Marvel Team-Up #53 (10/76) Hulk, Spider-Man, and Woodgod(remember him?)team-up. Features 1^st Bryne artwork on the title, and his 1^st X-Men artwork.(5 pages) Story concludes in MTU #54 (12/76)

The Inhumans #12 (6/77) Hulk vs. Black Bolt, and the Inhumans. Final ish in series.

The Champions #16 (9/77) Hulk and many heroes enslaved by Doctor Doom!

The Rampaging Hulk B&W magazine #'s 1-9 (8/77-4/78) Title change to Hulk #'s 10-23 Color magazine (6/78-9/80) #23 contains controversial attempted rape of Banner. Reverts to B&W mag #'s 24-27 (11/80-5/81) Original Ron Wilson art from issue #10.

Spidey Super Stories #33 (1/78)

Marvel Two-in-One #46 (10/78) Hulk/Thing battle. How come these fights always end in a draw?

Captain America #230 (12/78) Hulk battles Cap and Falcon. Concludes in Hulk # 232. (12/78) (S. Buscema art in both.)

Marvel Team-Up Annual #2 (7/79) Hulk/Spider-Man team-up.

Spider-Man Vs. Hulk (8/79) Special supplement to the Sunday edition of the Columbus Dispatch.

The Savage She-Hulk #1 (12/79) Hulk's origin retold. First appearance She-Hulk (Jennifer Walters), revealed to be Bruce Banner's heretofore unknown cousin. Banner gives his gravely wounded cousin a transfusion of his irradiated blood, which triggers her metamorphosis. (John Buscema art.)

Iron Man #s 131, 132 & 133 (12/79-2/80) Bob Layton covers and interior art.

Daredevil #163 (1/80) Daredevil attempts to halt a rampaging Hulk. Ol' Greenie just about kills DD. (Frank Miller art.)

Marvel Two-In-One Annual #5 (6/80) Hulk, Thing, and the Stranger join forces to battle Pluto. Pretty Cool!

Marvel Team-Up Annual #3 (7/80) Hulk/Spidey/Luke Cage/Machine Man/Iron Fist star. (Frank Miller cover.)

Spider-Man and The Hulk (8/80) Special supplement to the Sunday edition of the Chicago Tribune. (Romita Sr. cover art.)

X-Men #139 (9/80) Wolverine recounts his first mission as Weapon X. (Byrne art.) Events originally portrayed in Incredible Hulk # 180 (7/74), and # 181 (8/74) First and second appearance of Wolverine. (Trimpe artwork.)

Dazzler #6 (6/81) & #7 (7/81) Dazzler vs. Hulk? Right.... Frank Springer cover and interior art.

The Incredible Hulk 272 (3/82) Banner's mind gains dominance, due to massive infusions of Gamma-rays. Triggers the transformation at will. (Al Milgrom cover art.)

The Death of Captain Marvel (5/82) Hulk appears in flashback, as well as at Mar-Vell's deathbed. (Starlin artwork.)

The Incredible Hulk 278 (9/82) Hulk is granted a full presidential pardon, for his previous mind-less rampages. (Sal Buscema cover and interior art.)

Marvel Team-Up #97 (7/80), #104 (2/81), #105 (3/81), & #126 (12/82)

Marvel Fanfare #7 (1/83), #17 (9/84), #20 (3/85), #21 (5/85), & #29 (9/86)

Secret Wars 1-12 (3/84-2/85) Hulk appears throughout the series. (Mike Zeck artwork.)

Web of Spider-Man #7 (8/85) (Ron Wilson cover art.)

Alpha Flight #28 (9/85) Hulk appears in the final 3 panels, as well as in a self-indulgent half-page advertisement touting Byrne's impending artistic take-over of the Hulk title. (John Byrne art.)

Alpha Flight #29 (10/85) (Mike Mignola art.)

The Incredible Hulk #315 (11/85) Banner is physically separated from Hulk, leaving Hulk a mindless tabula rasa bent upon destruction. (John Byrne story/art.)

The Incredible Hulk #324 (8/86) First re-appearance of the gray-skinned Hulk since Hulk #1. (Milgrom art.)

The Incredible Hulk #325 (9/86) First appearance Rick Jones "Hulk". Caused due to Rick's submersion in a "bio bath" in previous issue. Jones loses his "Hulk-like" abilities in issue #332 (4/87)A new more mutated Leader (Samuel Sterns) is also introduced in this issue. (Milgrom cover #325, Geiger cover #332.)

The Incredible Hulk #328 (12/86) First Peter David scripted issue.(A fill-in.) David became the full-time writer with ish #331 (3/87)

Of Lesser Note

Iron Man #9 (11/68) (robot)

Hulk Tales in Alternate Realities

What If..? #2 (2/77), #3 (4/77), #12 (12/78), #29 (8/81), #31 (12/81), & #45 (4/84)
Hulk Appearances in Hardcover/Other Formats
The Incredible Hulk (1966) Yep, it's a paperback, but it's noteworthy as the first compilation of Hulk tales released in the Marvel Age. Reprints Hulk #3, and several of the early TTA issues.
The Incredible Hulk Mini Book (1966) Listed in Overstreet as the smallest comics ever produced. Actual size 5/8" x 7/8". Sold in gumball machines, and came in 6 colors. (Red, green, yellow, orange, blue, and pink.)
Esquire September 1966. The "Magazine for Men" published an article which described the impact Marvel Comics had on college students, and professors throughout the nation. Included with the article was a full page signed Jack Kirby rendition of the bulk of Marvel's pantheon of heroes, including Hulk.
Eye February 1969. Another main stream article regarding Marvel Comics impact on the growing pop/counter culture movement in the USA. A montage of Marvel heroes is included with a large text piece. Many thanks to Tony Thomas for the scans of these images!

Origins of Marvel Comics (1974) Author/Co-creator of the Marvel Universe Stan Lee, pens his memories regarding the creation of several Marvel heroes, including Hulk. Reprints covers and interior stories of Hulk #1, and #118.(6/69) Hulk is recolored green in the reprint of Hulk #1.
The Incredible Hulk (1978) Reprints Incredible Hulk #'s 2 & 3, Fantastic Four #12, Tales to Astonish #'s 60-74, and #88.
Hulk Parodies
Showcase #63 (8/66) First appearance "Man Mountain"
Brave and the Bold #68 (11/66) First (last) appearance "Bat-Hulk"
Marvel Comics produced the self-parody comic Not Brand Echh in 1967. Hulk was satirized as "The Inedible Bulk", and appeared prominently in three issues. #3 (7/67) "The Origin of the Bulk", #5 (9/67) "Bulk VS Thung", and issue #9 (5/68) "Bulk VS Sunk-Mariner". Marie Severin provided the art for all three stories.
Hulk Merchandise 1965-1975
Marvel Comics produced several in-house items bearing Hulk's image during 1965. Among them the Incredible Hulk T-Shirt,and the Incredible Hulk Sweat Shirt. Hulk's image also adorned many of the MMMS (Merry Marvel Marching Society) items.
1966 saw Marvel license the images of many of their characters, including Hulk. Some of the resulting collectibles included: The Incredible Hulk Aurora Model Kit,The Incredible Hulk Felt Pennant, The Hulk Ring, and The Incredible Hulk Flyer. Kenner also released a series of "Sparkle Paint" sets, which included Hulk as well as other Marvel heroes. I remember having it as a kid, but it's been lost to time.
Personality Posters also released a collection of posters entitled The Marvel Super-Heroes in 1966. Hulk was featured, as well as Thor, Iron Man, Sub Mariner, Spider-Man, Human Torch, Captain America, and Dr. Strange.
In 1967 Marx Toys released a collection of six Marvel super-heroes, comprised of Dare-Devil, Thor, Iron-Man, Captain America, Spider-Man, and Hulk. The original castings were silver-grey, but when they were re-released in 1972, the figures came in four colors, blue, green, red, and orange. I believe the 1967 versions are the first examples of Marvel "action-figures" ever licensed and released. orange Hulk

In 1968 The Traits released Nobody Loves The Hulk.

1969 saw the rise of Marvelmania International, which replaced the MMMS, and produced such items as: The Incredible Hulk Pinback,The Incredible Hulk and Hulk decals.
In 1974 Power Records released The Incredible Hulk At Bay, a much shortened retelling of The Incredible Hulk #171 (10/73)
Mego released the "Official World's Greatest Superheroes", which featured Hulk, among others in 1975. This example is the more rare "scowling-face" Hulk.
Links Worth a View
Comic Book Grading Defined.
The Grand Comics Database Project.