The Incredible Hulk

This show was basically early 1960's Hulk comics animated the crudest possible way. Early issues of THE INCREDIBLE HULK, THE AVENGERS, and TALES TO ASTONISH were used. The original drawings by Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko were taken from the comic and moved around with minimal animation, accompanied by narration. I know it was the 60's, but they could have came up with real animation to add some fluidity to the characters, like some of the other cartoons at the time. Unless you're a huge Hulk fan, or you remember watching this as a kid in the late 60's, you'll be extremely bored by it. The only cool things from this show were the voices (which were brilliantly cast, although the HULK himself was probably the poorest of the bunch) an appearance by Iron Man, Thor and the rest of the Avengers in one episode, seeing the legendary Jack Kirby's art, seeing some old school villains like the Toad Men and the Metal Master, and of course one of the coolest opening theme songs of all time. "Wrecking the town with the power of a bull. Ain't no monster crowned who is as lovable" They don't write theme songs like that anymore.

Before the review, a brief plot summary: Dr. Bruce Banner, possibly America's most renowned scientist and leading expert on gamma rays, is about to test a bomb on a supposedly abandoned site when neglected teenager Rick Jones wanders out into it. Banner runs out to get Jones to safety, but his Russian assistant, Igor, sets it off anyway hoping to kill Banner and steal his formula for his superiors. Somehow, Banner survives, and Jones becomes his apprentice. He soon learns that at a certain point of day (and later when he gets angry) he will transform into a huge, brainless green giant who strikes fear into the heart's of the army. General Ross is desperate to destroy this incredible hulk, but his daughter Betty secretly knows he's really her lover, Bruce.

BAD, BAD, BAD. Unlike most Marvel cartoons at that period, it wasn't even in the "so-bad-it's-good" category. It's just boring. Let's start with the theme song. Most people know "Spider-Man"s theme, and it's wasn't a fraction as good. Anyone whose seen "Captain America" will also be accquainted with a cheezy but catchy little tune. The Hulk's theme was UNBELIEVABLY poor, and had this little squeak who sounded like Bat-Mite spouting inane lines like "so he ain't glamorous" in an attempt to make rhyme with "stricken by gamma rays". Usually the best animation on the show would be in the theme, but this is WORSE.

On to the stories. Before "Spider-Man", as most know, cartoons were mostly just comic-book cut-outs were mouths and sometimes a limb would move, sometimes not even that, the fastest animation (besides the theme) being in scenes were the hero would pull down a mask or something to that extent. Somehow, with the flow of the plots, you could still tell what's going on. Here, the poor drawings (they look like rough drafts with colour) pop up, showing scenes from all different, often irrelevent, angles that make it impossible to tell what's going on, and the narration is a drab equivalent of a Power Ranger overstating the obvious, only not nearly as addictively corny. The dialouge sounds like it was aimed at particularly dumb children, and the voices always sound SOOO bored, so unconvincing. Of what little you could make out of the plot, you could tell it stunk like Baldrick's family heirlooms. I simply never cared about Bruce Banner, he was so poorly characterised, and what characteriztion he got was cliched and sterotypical.

Stan Lee and everyone down at Marvel must cringe when they look back at this. Watch just about any other Marvel cartoon from the era, but pass this one over.

I've reviewed the stylistic elements of the Marvel Superheroes cartoons (which are all pretty interchangeable between the various series)under the blanket title and won't rehash those here. I will say that this show has some of the strangest theme songs you'll ever hear, very bright and sunny for a show about a rampaging monster. And while the Thing may be ever loving, that description doesn't quite fit the Hulk so well.

I remember watching the Incredible Hulk and the other Marvel Superheroes every day on tv after school when I was a little boy. I thought that it was pretty cool, watching my favorite comic book heroes on tv. Looking at them again brings back fond memories.

Watching these old cartoons, it is quite apparent that they wanted to get these shows out of the studio and on the air as quickly as possible!

In the Marvel Superheroes Series, although the color was vibrant, the animators simply used the drawings of Jack Kirby straight out of the comic book, and animated one or two parts of the character (or in some cases, simply moved a static picture of the character across the background to simulate walking), which I imagine saved a lot of time and money. This gave the cartoon a very stiff and cheap look compared to it's counterparts of the day.

Today, with the aid of computer technology, animation is much sharper and makes cartoons like the old Marvel Superheroes look very primitive in comparison.

One thing that is noteworthy is that the story lines in the Marvel Superhero cartoons (compared to story lines in today's cartoons) were always well written. Each story was faithfully recreated from the comic books on which they were based on. Todays cartoons have to rely on their sharp look to keep their viewers watching, with very little attention to the plot - that's why very few of them last more than a season.

The voice acting in this series is excellent! Whenever I think of The Hulk, I always hear the gravely voice of Max Ferguson from the cartoon series in my head..."NO ONE CAN STOP THE HUUUUUUULK"!

So, if you're looking for cutting edge animation, rent Titan A.E. or Princess Mononoke. But if you're looking for great story telling, good clean fun and action, as well as a unique way to enjoy some great comic book art work from a legend, I would definitely recommend The Incredible Hulk and the rest of the Marvel Superheroes Series!

The 1960's Incredible Hulk cartoon is in my opinion the best of its kind. It very cleverly recreates the mood and feel of Stan Lee/Jack Kirby's early and later Hulk stories from firstly The Incredible Hulk and later Tales to Astonish. For the first time also, the animation employed by the Grantray-Lawrence company suits the subject it is based on. This Hulk series, like the 1970'S/80'S Bill Bixby/Lou Ferrigno is supposed to be moody, paranoid, even creepy at times and the animation suits this allowing for action and adventure too. The only problem i have is with the Hulks voice, which doesn't have the rage or sadness that the character needs. He just sounds a little annoyed most of the time. However the series has enough delights and a cool and memorable theme song to boot, and is a classic of its kind.