El hombre increíble

I did a review for the original pilot episode of this drama and I put down my thoughts about the Hulk and Banner as characters and how the themes in the original movie gave us things to think about. The series was the same.

The Hulk was a good family show. The late Bill Bixby did a wonderful job as Dr. Banner. Throughout the entire series I felt myself feeling really sorry for Banner like he was a close friend. Banner was a character who the audience could empathize with. He was a good man who travelled across the United States trying to avoid conflict for he knew that when he became the Hulk he was uncontrollable. He was pursued by ambitious reporter Jack McGee who wanted to capture the Hulk in order to become a star reporter.

Throughout the series Banner would encounter various characters who were having trouble in their lives. He would do his best to help but it would always fall to the Hulk to save the day. In a way I think this series was telling us that reason and diplomacy will only take us so far and that in the end it's down to strength to save the day.

Lou Ferrigno did a good job as the Hulk. There was an important lesson in this series;never judge anyone by what they look like. The Hulk was a good guy who always saved the day but as far as the likes of McGee were concerned the Hulk was a bad guy. In fact, McGee believed that the Hulk had killed Elaina Marks and David Banner in the original movie. So Banner did his best to avoid McGee for confrontation with him would reveal his secret.

The Hulk was in fact a good role model. He had the strength to do real damage to anyone or anything but he never killed throughout the series. On occasion he even saved the lives of bad guys who were trying to kill him. But still he was judged as a monster to be destroyed.

Philosophical thinking aside, the Hulk was a great action show. The Hulk did some amazing things throughout such as surviving a fall from a plane or tangling with a huge grizzly bear. He could not be hurt apart from the odd bullet he took.

The entire series was great. My personal favourite episodes were "The Hulk Breaks Las Vegas", "The Beast Within", "The Psychic", "The Snare" and "747."

THE INCREDIBLE HULK series was much like the series KUNG FU -- a sympathetic humanitarian and seemingly meek outcast rights wrongs using his very special abilities. However, THE INCREDIBLE HULK ran for 5 years with only three regular cast members. I am not sure if any other long running TV drama ever had a smaller cast.

Interestingly, Bill Bixby's COURTSHIP OF EDDIE'S FATHER co-star Brandon Cruz appeared in the first season of the HULK in the episode "747."

Bixby oozed charm and charisma, and made believable the idea that he could so easily win trust and find employment in a new town each and every week.

The music was exceptional. Among the best Hollywood TV has ever produced.

A primary complaint about this TV show is that it wasn't like the comic book. Whether or not the TV show was like the comic book is irrelevant. The Hulk performed physical feats in the comic that would have been impossible to duplicate when this series was running, and comic books are so simplistic and often violent, they never would have allowed it on prime time TV.

That said, the Incredible Hulk was a good TV show with strong acting by Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno that was, mostly, harmless fun for the whole family. The Hulk represented a kind of "Elephant Man" character, who certainly looks scary, but is genuinely kind and gentle and wants to help people in trouble (sort of a one man A-Team). I don't remember him ever seriously hurting anyone, and most of the physical parts involved him bending gun barrels so they couldn't be fired or turning cars over on their roofs. With the kind of strength the Hulk had, he could have torn people in half, but he settled for bending steel piping around them and leaving them helpless for the police to take to jail. He was gentle with animals and young people as well as old.

The story is a very sad one: Bixby, playing scientist David Banner, is stuck in a life on the run from an obsessed reporter who wants to become famous by photographing the Hulk. Banner and the Hulk represent the ultimate misunderstood hero/antihero: someone who is a better person than most of us are, yet is persecuted because of other people's misunderstandings.

Harmless fun for the whole family, and some good lessons for youngsters about kindness and not judging others for their appearance.

The famous "Lonely Man" theme from "The Incredible Hulk" is one of the saddest things I've ever listened to. Seeing Bill Bixby hitchhike away from another town the Hulk smashed was always dramatic.

Okay, sure this show is like "The Fugitive", but I don't see Richard Kimble turning into a green monster every week. Bill Bixby turns in the performance of a lifetime, and even Jack McGee (the reporter who's after him) is shown in a few episodes to be a decent guy at heart.

Every week, David Banner would search desperately for a cure, and every week he'd help some person in need (similar to other traveling angel shows like "Quantum Leap" and "The Pretender"). Lou Ferrigno is a great Hulk.

I have such nostalgic memories of this growing up. I look back on it now and I think the series itself holds up really well. A few things I would like to comment on:

When David went back to himself after a change.....his clothes were always evenly ripped and cut....as if someone had cut them with scissors!!!

David Banner could have been one of the most talented guys on the planet. The amount of different jobs and trades he had were endless!!!

Where did he get those endless supplies of brown chords, checked shirts and beige coloured jackets???

He was the most gentle, helpful and polite guy ever and wherever he went, people could not wait to pick on him. They sort of saw him as a know all!!!

He pulled more women than 007!!!

Where did he get those fake surnames......Becker, Beamon, Beddiger, Beckham, Bannon, Bander.....etc????

All of this said...what a brilliant show it was and I am proud to have grown up with it. I loved the suspense when he changed and I also felt really sorry for Dave when he was alone, walking to a new town at the end with the famous tearjerking piano music in the background!!!

Respects to the late Bill Bixby. RIP.