Giant-Size Hulk #1
Giant-Size Hulk #1 (2024) is part of Marvel's program marking the 50th anniversary of the Giant-Size format, a line historically tied to some of the most consequential moments in Bronze Age Marvel storytelling. The issue extends Phillip Kennedy Johnson's horror-inflected Incredible Hulk run into an oversized one-shot format, deepening the mythology of Bruce Banner's supernatural road journey while introducing the new villain Patchwork Jack — a crossroads devil conceived specifically for this expanded canvas. Its back-half reprint of Incredible Hulk #372 by Peter David and Dale Keown serves the Giant-Size tradition of pairing new material with archival classics, giving the issue resonance as both a chapter in an ongoing run and a curated artifact of Hulk publishing history.
In "Reuben's Train," Bruce Banner finds himself caught between two worlds when he sneaks into a nunnery to reach Betty, only to discover her life has moved on in ways he never expected. When the Green Hulk erupts from Bruce during an attack by Prometheus, the rift between man and monster tests their fragile reunion. Written by Peter David and illustrated by Dale Keown, with inks by Bob McLeod and colors by Glynis Oliver, this emotionally charged story unfolds with striking visuals and heartfelt tension, all framed by Bryan Hitch’s dynamic cover.
In "He's Back," Bruce Banner returns to the nunnery where Betty has found peace, hoping to reconnect—but his presence stirs old wounds and new dangers. When a violent attack unleashes the Green Hulk from within, Bruce must confront the cost of his dual existence as he and Betty face the impossible choice between love and survival.
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The issue grew directly out of Johnson's acclaimed horror-driven run on the 2023 Incredible Hulk relaunch, with Marvel's editors commissioning the one-shot as a vehicle for a story Johnson said had been in his mind since he began writing the series. Johnson teamed with artist Andrea Broccardo — rather than regular series penciller Nic Klein — with cover art by Bryan Hitch, who provided covers for the wider 2024 Giant-Size anniversary initiative. The book was part of a monthly wave of Giant-Size one-shots that launched in January 2024 with Giant-Size Spider-Man #1 and continued through the year, each by the writer of the character's current ongoing title.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson (current Incredible Hulk series writer) with interior art by Andrea Broccardo and a cover by Bryan Hitch; released April 17, 2024.
- One of several Giant-Size one-shots published throughout 2024 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Marvel's Giant-Size format, which originated in 1974.
- The new story follows Bruce Banner hopping a freight train and confronting Patchwork Jack, a crossroads devil who demands a 'toll' from stowaways — and who attempts to claim both Hulk's body and the soul of Charlie Tidwell, which Banner is carrying inside a small doll.
- Charlie Tidwell (Charlene Tidwell), Hulk's young companion introduced in Incredible Hulk Vol. 6 #1 (June 2023) by Johnson and Nic Klein, appears in the story in the unusual form of a soul trapped inside a doll — a continuation of plot threads from the main series.
- The back half of the issue reprints Incredible Hulk #372 (1990) by Peter David and Dale Keown, continuing the Giant-Size tradition of coupling new stories with archival Hulk material.
- The issue ships with multiple variant covers, including a 1:25 Mahmud Asrar variant, a Chris Allen Stormbreakers variant, and a Dave Bardin 'Deadly Foes' variant.
- Johnson described the story as one he had conceived at the start of his run, calling it a summation of the horror-driven direction of his Incredible Hulk tenure.
- The issue fits tonally within Johnson's ongoing run, which continued the supernatural horror approach established by Al Ewing's Immortal Hulk, pitting Banner against monsters during an aimless journey through backroads America.
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Reprints
↩ Reprints The Incredible Hulk #372 (1990)
Reprinted in Incredible Hulk #3 (2024)
Variants (2)
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