The Incredible Hulk Returns

This was a fantastic movie. After an absence of about six years the Hulk was back teaming up with the Norse god Thor to battle a bunch of gangsters. The film may have had minor faults but not enough to spoil my enjoyment of the movie.

The Hulk certainly looked different. He seemed a lighter shade of green, he seemed taller and he definitely looked more muscular. But he looked in great shape as he battled with Thor and then teamed with Thor.

Thor was another comic book character from Marvel. The comic book Thor had a red cape and could fly. This Thor could not fly and had no red cape but to be honest that would have looked rather corny on film. Eric Allen Kramer played Thor who laughed in the face of danger and only seemed truly happy when he was involved in a battle.

The movie itself could be considered different to the original series. This movie was more like an episode of Knight Rider with it's stunts and it's action but I'm not complaining.

Jack Colvin was back as Jack McGee in this movie. It would be the final time we saw McGee as he would not return in the next two films. He didn't really have a prominent role in this film, certainly not as prominent as he had in the series. That was my only complaint.

All in all, a great movie. Fans of comic books will love it.

For those who didn't exactly take the series seriously might have a heck of a time with this comeback movie for The Incredible Hulk. But for those who did take them seriously (those being me), I find this a rather silly entry.

The humane aspect is what fueled the series. Bill Bixby was an irresistible lead and his quest for a cure never failed to be interesting. In short it was the drama that made the show as appealing as it was. In The Incredible Hulk Returns we see him team up with Thundergod Thor as David's attempts to cure himself are once again thrashed. The Hulk and Thor battle criminals who are out to steal David's machine, the one he built which might have helped to cure him.

The film starts off well and then goes downward after Thor's introduction. He's made to be pretty silly but still he's engagingly played by Eric Kramer and somehow he's pretty likable. The action scenes are fine and the Hulk moments are solid. Lou Ferrigno looks incredible and everything concerning David Banner and the Hulk is good stuff. But the campy feel and humor is something the shows didn't go much for and undermine the whole proceedings, like it wasn't taken seriously enough. But maybe that's what they were aiming for.

Jack Colvin makes a welcome return as relentless reporter Jack McGee who once again misses out on the big story. As always Bixby is rock solid and the flick works in some places but misses in others.

It's still an above average entertainment for a fan of the series.

RELEASED TO TV IN 1988 and written & directed by Nicholas Corea, "The Incredible Hulk Returns" is the first of three movies in the wake of the TV series that ran from 1977-82.

PLOT: Bill Bixby stars as Dr. David Banner, who is working incognito at a research facility in Southern California and on the verge of curing his gamma radiation-induced curse. Meanwhile Banner reunites with younger colleague Don Blake (Steve Levitt), who has found a magical Norse hammer, which can summon Thor (Eric Allan Kramer), an ancient Viking warrior. When a vital piece of technology is nearly stolen and David's sweetheart is kidnapped (Lee Purcell), the Hulk (Lou Ferrigno) and Thor must team-up to save the day. Jack Colvin returns as nosy reporter Jack McGee.

Despite the TV-budget limitations, this is a very entertaining Hulk movie, even better than the pilot movie from 1977. This is mostly due to the inclusion of Thor, who's pretty close to the Marvel Comics version (Stan Lee was a consultant), albeit with a brown costume rather than dark blue. This is because Thor here is (evidently) NOT the god of thunder from Asgard, but rather a mighty Viking from the distant past aided by the mystic hammer. His personality isn't like Thor in the comics (i.e. one-dimensionally noble and boring), but rather like Marvel's Hercules, where he's hearty, loves a good fight, women & brew. Kramer knocks the role out of the ballpark with his merry & mighty charisma.

The biker bar episode is a highlight with Peisha Arten standing out as one of the "Whoa, Mama" biker babes. The ending is kind of sad accompanied by Joseph Harnell's melancholic piano theme.

THE FILM RUNS 93 minutes and was shot in California (Malibu, North Hollywood and Los Angeles). ADDITIONAL DIRECTING: Bill Bixby. ADDITIONAL CAST: Charles Napier, Tim Thomerson and Jay Baker.

GRADE: B+

I first watched this movie when i was 6 years old. Im 15 now and i still enjoy it. I was always fascinated by the incredible hulk, and with Lou Ferrigno's wonderful performance, you'll never be able to leave your seats.

My favourite scene was David Banner seeing thor for the first time i thought that scene was brilliantly done. However, this film has its weaknesses. The main weakness was the scene where the hulk is trying to pull the helicopter down, i thought he could do that himself and not have thor to help him, despite that they still couldn't pull the helicopter down.

However this didn't really effect the entertainment too much. It is a great shame that the late Bill Bixby isn't with us.

The Incredible Hulk was a great series. It had heart, drama, Action, and sadness. The way Bill Bixby played the character was amazing. He knew this character. He must have read the comics before he started filming the first episode. Now I don't know what's so wrong about this film people don't like. Me I love it. The Hulk is my favorite show and this film was a great way to bring back on TV. I have never read a Thor comic book, but I do agree that they could of written a better character for this film then the Thor we see. It's not the actor's fault. Whomever wrote this should of written more for Bill and should of insisted on Eric Kramer builking up more for the role. But other then that this is a great film with some good action scenes. Bill should have taking charge of the script and re-worked it. For Hulk fans this is a must see. make your own judgment.