Incredible Hulk #84

The INCREDIBLE Hulk #84

Date: September 2005
Title: Terra Incognita Part 2
Writer: Peter David
Penciler: Jorge Lucas
Inks: Jorge Lucas
Letters: Randy Gentile

Colorist: Javi Montes
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Cover Artist: Andy Brase

This issue of the Hulk is a House of M tie-in

Pryo and Vanisher are waiting outside Exodu's office as he has a conference call with Magneto. Exodus comes out and recaps how they went into the outback to chase the humans and managed to upset the Hulk who has apparently joined forces with AIM. He also mentions that Unus the untouchable is in the hospital and that their human army force is in disarray. Pyro asks if Exodus told Magneto of the situation and if he asked for help. Mangneto's reply was "I warned you to stay awar from the Aboriginies. Good luck." Exodus is not too worried because the skycams will show the Hulk coming far in advance. Vanisher asks about if the Hulk would come by water and one of hte soldiers informs Vanisher that they have a sonar out in the ocean. They thought they had spotted a large boat out there but it turned out to be a big blue whale. Exodus tells his soldiers to continue to monitor all systems as Bruce Banner is not exactly a moron.

Cut to a scene with the Hulk underwater on top of AIM submarine, holding a blue whale above them with a strap. Inside, Dr. Issacs and Dr. Rappaccini discuss how amazing it is that the Hulk is steering the blue whale and using it as cover. Dr. Issaces mentions how the mutant government has taken his son Adam. Dr. Rappaccini reminds the doctor that her daughter Scorpion risks her life every day in battle for human liberation and says that his son Adam is just "a glorified toaster oven" and then walks away, knowing she insulted him. (Adam is the House of M equivalent of Machine Man) Later, Dr. Monica Rappaccinni has dinner with Bruce and asks him what the tribal design painted on his chest and face means. Bruce tells her it represents learning, growth, and willingness to change. Monica mentions that his best known change is hardly a willing process and asks if he has come to a rapprochement with the Hulk. Bruce says that the Hulk is actually his suppressed rage and how can a person reach rapprochement with that? Monica doesn't believe that the Hulk is just rage and is far more than that and asks if he actually admires the Hulk on some level. Bruce replies he doesn't but it seems that she does. Monica says that she admires Bruce and accepts all sides of him. Bruce replies that she sounds like othe wise man of his tribe. Monica asks how he came to live with the tribe. Bruce just says that he came upon them and they welcomed him in, that is all. Monica thinks the whole thing is strange. Scorpion comes in and announces that they may have been pinged by sonar. Bruce mentions that he heard whale songs before so they should steer towards the whale pod and prepare to kill the engines. Scorpion starts to question when Bruce suddenly turns into the Hulk and tells her to just to it. Monica calls him Bruce and the Hulk reminds her that his name is Hulk and that he knows what she is up do. She asks what and he replies "something." He knows that she is screwing with Banner and he is okay with that but if she tries to screw with him, the sub is scrap. Monica says that she understands him better than she does Bruce.

Adam is on a table, dismantled by surrounding scientists as Exodus stands over him, telling him how he is the next step above modern machines and how the monster in the book Frankenstei felt kinship to the biblical Adam. Exodus asks how his father came to work with AIM. Adam explains how a mutant fring group blew up his father's research facility and AIM dug them out and saved them. Exodus says that he is unaware of any mutant fring group bombing research facilities and wonders if AIM was the one doing the bombing. Suddenly a proximity alarm goes off. Exodus reads the mind of one of his soldiers who tells him that the whale contact was a sub after all and it fired a missle towards the city. Exodus goes out on a balcony and sees the missle coming towards the city and blows it up in the air. Suddenly, hunders of pieces of paper come floating to the ground as Exodus realizes it was not an attack at all. He grabs one of the papers which reads "AIM and Bruce Banner request a summit to settle matters peacefully. We suggest you do not make us angry."

In the sub, they are discussing the fact that Exodus has agreed and that it is probably a trap. Scorpion thinks the Hulk should just go in and kick everyone's butt. Bruce explains to her that violence just begets more violence and that they already know the Hulk is the strongest one there is and that the Hulk lives to prove he's superior to him. Monica thinks that the Hulk is the part of Bruce that lives to prove how he is superior to everyone else and Bruce thanks her for sharing that. She then says that they will play it Bruce's way with Scorpion going as back-up along with Dr. Isaacs. She will stay behind in case it is a trap and if they don't return, she will blow the city up.

Exodus stands on a balcony high above in a building as Bruce, Scorpion and Dr. Isaacs walks down the street for the meeting. Pyro asks what the plan is and Exodus explains how he can kill a man or a hundred men. Bruce suddenly grabs his head, in intense pain. Pyro replies that this is not going to end well. Exodus explains how he is suppressing Bruce's change and he wants to show the humans in Australia their supposed liberators begging for mercy. He also starts to mentally hurt Scorpion and Dr. Isaac. Dr. Isaac painfully calls out to Adam that it is time. In the lab, Adam hears his father and his body reassembles itself. When the scientists tell him to get back on the table, his arms convert to weapons and he starts firing, blowing a hole in the side of the building. Exodus gets distracted and Pyro yells at him to focus. Too late. The Hulk jumps up to the balcony and Exodus uses a psionic blast to hurl him across to another building. The Hulk just gets up and jumps back across, to a very surprised Exodus while Pyro just reminds him he warned him. Down below on the street, Scorpion is fending off some soldiers when suddenly Exodus comes landing down from above. The Hulk yells from above if there is anyone else. The humans below start to cheer for the Hulk as their savior.

Return to Main Page