One of those writers was Peter David. Before becoming a writer for Marvel Comics, David had worked in their sales department in the mid-1980s. His first Marvel work was in The Spectacular Spider-Man #103 (June 1985). It would lead to him writing "The Death of Jean DeWolff" in that title, which allowed him to break into writing comics. He would be fired from the book by its editor Jim Owsley (Who may be better known as Christopher Priest) due to pressure from then editor-in-chief Jim Shooter. But another editor, Bob Harras, would come to the rescue. He offered David a book that nobody wanted to write, and was struggling as a result: The Incredible Hulk. David would write the Hulk for 12 years, and he made the book a must-read title.
This story is meant to be the first meeting between the Hulk and another Marvel character that had become quite popular at the time: Venom. Venom's general first appearance is Amazing Spider-Man #300 (May 1988)...at least the combination of the Venom symbiote and its most famous host: Eddie Brock, who himself first appeared in Web of Spider-Man #18 (September 1986). The character would become one of Spidey's most popular villains, appearing in various merchandise, other media, and even his own movie, which I looked at the trailer for here. Venom's alignment would change over time, becoming more of an anti-hero. He would also get numerous one-shots, mini-series, and ongoings over the years.
So, what happens when the Green Goliath collides with the Lethal Protector of San Francisco? Well, let's find out! Let's take a look at Incredible Hulk vs. Venom #1!
The cover is a Jim Craig piece. High above a city ablaze, the Hulk is trapped in the webs of none other than Venom himself. Underneath it, the city is on fire. Venom is a lousy Lethal Protector. I got no complaints about the cover. I think it's neat.
"Rockin' the Town!"
Writer: Peter David
Penciler: Jim Craig
Inkers: Bill Anderson, David Day, Dan Day
Colorist: Tom Smith
Letterer: Jim Novak
Editor: Glenn Herdling
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco
The story begins with a man putting a stamp on a postcard. His name is Barney, and he started a new job at KLX-TV in sunny San Francisco, California! He gets some mail from the mail clerk, and it makes the man sigh. You see, poor Barney tends to get...the wacky mail. The mail from the loonies, the conspiracy theorists, the paranoid rednecks, that kind of thing. However, one piece of mail catches his interest.
Meet Ariel O'Hare. News anchor, and yes, that is her name. Considering Peter David's thing for putting pop culture references in his comic work, I would not be surprised if he was paying homage to another famous reporter. She's grown bored of her regular noon reports and wants something juicy. Barney shows her his letter. It's from a wannabe-supervillain calling himself "Dr. Bad Vibes". He's claimed to have created an earthquake machine...and he's going to test it out at noon today, right here in San Fran.
O'Hare thinks it's one of the dumbest super-criminal names she has ever heard. Eh, I doubt the Central Organization of Police Specialists would agree with you there, ma'am. Barney thinks the name alone is newsworthy, and Ariel agrees with him on it. Also, keep this in mind. This is the Marvel Universe. It's perfectly plausible that some disgruntled nobody could have built such a machine in this world.
We switch to the front of a TV store. A man is standing in front of the window display and watching one of the TVs. Inside, a married couple named Jay and Beatrice are arguing. Evidently, Jay was tempted to do a little straying from his marriage. However, he ended not cheating, and as far as he's concerned, that should be the end of the matter. However, Beatrice believes he should never even have considered it if he was happy with her. Jay tells Beatrice she constantly makes him miserable, and she leaves the store with teary eyes.
The redheaded man watches this and leaves. He passes by an alley and sees a schoolgirl sneaks out of her school with the help of her boyfriend. The boy yells at the man to keep moving. The amused man agrees to do so, saying the kid looks too tough for him. The two teenagers drive off, looking for adventure...and maybe a good donut.
At the station, the hour has arrived. Ariel is giving her report, where she shows Bad Vibes's letter and mocks him. But then...the ground shakes. The ground quakes! We got a rumble coming to San Francisco! Sadly, this Rumble is not of the Royal kind.
Yeah, you can instantly tell this is from the 90s. Look at this jaw! Seriously! Is Venom overcompensating for something?! It's hilarious! And his tongue! It's dripping with Gene Simmons envy! Come on, Ed! Anyway, the two teenagers' car ended up being surrounded by fire. The girl (Tammy) is trapped inside. Her boyfriend Skip can't get her out. Venom uses his webs to pull the car out and rips off the door, which frees Tammy. Skip complains about the damage, and he calls Venom "Spider-Man". Uh, Skip? Venom looks like he swallowed a steroid factory. That's not Spidey. Naturally, Venom is offended, and drops the car. It crashes into the ground. Don't worry, he saved Tammy beforehand.
You're probably wondering what Venom is doing in San Francisco? Well, at this time, he was its Lethal Protector. After the events of Amazing Spider-Man #375 (March 1993), Venom moved to San Francisco and started work there as a hero after making a deal with Spider-Man: Spidey doesn't bother them, they won't bother him. Spidey reluctantly agreed.
Ariel O'Hare announced that the earthquake knocked out power throughout the city. Well, it's still daytime, so that should not be much of a problem. She then gets another note from Dr. Bad Vibes: pay him $20 million for he'll blow up Blitz, I mean, cause another earthquake.
Back at the TV store, Jay is confronting some looters of his shop. However, one of the looters notices something in the sky. Venom is trying to free a man trapped under rubble, but tragically, he is dead. The conjoined being laments this, but is perked up by the alert of a monster in town. And who is that monster?
Why, it's the Incredible Hulk! Like Venom, he's been recently trying to go down the straight and narrow. In Incredible Hulk #377 (January 1991), Bruce Banner and his two Hulk personas (The cunning Gray Hulk and savage Green Hulk), were able to come to terms with each other and create a "combined" form: the Professor Hulk.
Anyway, Venom believes that Doctor Bad Vibes was able to recruit Hulk to make earthquakes for him. The Lethal Protector tries to attack ol' Jade Jaws, but his webs do no good, and he eats a Mighty Uppercut from the Hulk.
I love this panel. Venom looks almost like a Looney Tunes character the way he takes that punch. I expect him to ramble coherently like the Tasmanian Devil after that. Venom shows his own toughness and uses his superior agility and speed to get on the Green Goliath's shoulders and web his face up.
Meanwhile, April O'Neil, I mean Ariel O'Hare is hosting a news forum with a Professor Hinkley and a psychic. He points out that "Dr. Bad Vibes" may be just some crank. Uh, Professor, this is the Marvel Universe. In this world, people can be born with superpowers. He could be legit. The psychic predicts more earthquakes will come, and soon. Professor Hinkley states that yes, that is possible, because they are in San Francisco, which is right near the San Andreas Fault. The psychic states that her visions have never shown anyone named Sam Andreas. The insanity makes Professor Hinkley facepalm hard. Real hard. Two hands hard.
Heh heh. This scene is funny, but the funniest part of this comic is coming up. Trust me. Back to the fight! Venom is webbing up Hulk's face, but the Green Goliath is able to send him packing with a Thunderclap. It's a technique where he claps his hands so hard, he creates a sonic boom. It's especially effective against Venom, as his symbiote can be harmed by very loud noise. Hulk is able to rip the webbing off his face, and gives Venom another Thunderclap, cracking a bad gonorrhea joke in the process.
Hulk then gives Venom a Banzai Drop. Somewhere, Yokozuna was smiling widely in pride, and he did not know why. Hulk and Venom argued over the fact that they both had seemingly reformed. So, each of them challenges the other to prove it.
Remember when I said the funniest part of the comic was coming? Here it comes! Prepare to laugh! Ariel O'Hare is making a news broadcast when Hulk and Venom burst into the studio. And the two decide to pay tribute to Hans and Franz. Ladies and gentlemen, I present the greatest moment in comic book history, the moment where the medium reached its peak.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA! I laughed so hard when I first read this part. It still makes me laugh thinking about it. I love it so much. It gets even better when Ariel asks them if they are insane. And Venom, with his ridiculously-muscled 90s body and oversized green-drooling giant jaw just says in response: "Do I look insane?" Well, the two's taunting works, as Dr. Bad Vibes calls in on line 2...and 3...and 4...okay, it did not work.
Turns out the two just got every attention-seeking nut in town calling in, much to O'Hare's frustration. Hulk points out one thing: If Bad Vibes really wanted to retaliate, he could have just started another earthquake. After all, he supposedly can do that, right? Well, he might be all talk. You see, the Hulk's instruments have determined that the earthquakes were completely natural. At the time, the Hulk was a member of a group known as the Pantheon, which allowed Hulk access to some advanced tech.
One of the callers turns out to be the real Bad Vibes, so Hulk traces it. They find his address. O'Hare wants to accompany Venom and Hulk there. Venom is willing, as he has a "soft spot" for reporters. This is a reference to Web of Spider-Man #18 (September 1986), which was Eddie Brock's first appearance...well, his hand, anyway. It also references Eddie Brock's former reporting career.
The three find their way to Bad Vibes's address. And unlike Empire City's, this one is a...little less impressive.
Yup. It's just a crazy dude with a cardboard box. At least this Bad Vibes has the sense to not put his brain in a glass case on his head. He warns the group not to take another step. Hulk does so. Bad Vibes presses a red spot on his box, clearly intended to be a button. Another earthquake hits, and the crazy man laughs. He rants and raves that he's triggered the Big One. Everybody's gonna die! Well, not really. It's all a coincidence. Remember, Hulk established earlier that his instruments determined that the earthquakes were not artificially triggered. Venom, Hulk, and O'Hare leave, the reporter disappointed in the story just being another wacky crank.
Venom admits he wished it was Dr. Bad Vibes behind the earthquakes. Hulk points out a bit of a truth: nobody wants to admit that sometimes, the world is unfair and chaotic. It's why people embrace insane conspiracy theories. It's comforting. Venom laments this, as life can be unfair is a sucky lesson to learn. The story ends with Jay and Beatrice meeting up. Teary-eyed, the two embrace, their brushes with death inspiring them to get back together and try to make things work. Venom witnesses this and supposits that maybe not everything is pointless.
I enjoyed this one-shot. There was some genuinely funny moments, and I thought the twist with Dr. Bad Vibes was clever. I did wish that his initial threat was taken more seriously. This is the Marvel Universe. He could have been easily a legit threat. I also wished we saw a bit more Teeth-Clenched Teamwork between Hulk and Venom. I also wished we saw a bit more of Jay and Beatrice. Would have given their reunion at the end matter a bit more, in my opinion. Also, I liked that the earthquakes were coincidental. It's a nice twist in a universe where it's possible for a person to gain the actual superpower to cause earthquakes.
Also, the art is a bit...90s for lack of a better term. Venom's jaw is insane. I'd get it if he did intentionally to freak out criminals, but it just looks crazy.
Interestingly enough, this comic was made to benefit the National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse. Marvel and the NCPCA had had a decade-long relationship at that time, and this comic was made to raise proceeds. So, you'd think that the story in the comic would be dealing with the issue of child abuse. This makes this comic a bit bizarre to me. When I first read this, I had no idea that it was basically made as a fundraiser. I get that they wanted to provide an entertaining story for the comic, and it is in my opinion, but it's so strange that they would not use the subject that the NCPCA was all about tackling. It's weird.
As for the art, well...it does have some of the 90s-ness to it, but it's not remotely as terrible as say, Rob Liefeld's work in X-Force. Yeesh.
If you want to read this story for yourself, I recommend tracking down the trade paperback The Incredible Hulk Epic Collection Vol. 21: Fall of the Pantheon. Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, spread it around! And if you want to give my blog some additional support, please drop a tip in my Digital Tip Jar! See you next time, where we return to a storyline that tackles Batman's early days...
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