The Incredible Hulk #125
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeIncredible Hulk #125 serves a dual role in Marvel history: it is the first time the Absorbing Man — a Thor villain created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1965 — crosses over to battle the Hulk, establishing Crusher Creel as a shared heavy across the Marvel Universe rather than a character locked to a single title. The issue also contains the cameo debut of Barbara Norriss, a cult member who would eventually become the human host for the Asgardian Valkyrie and a founding presence in the Defenders; her brief, unnamed panel here makes this the earliest thread in a narrative chain that would build, through the following issue's Doctor Strange appearance, toward the organic formation of Marvel's most celebrated non-team. As the penultimate chapter before writer Roy Thomas's proto-Defenders 'Undying Ones' storyline kicked into full gear in #126, this issue sits at a genuine creative hinge point in early Bronze Age Marvel storytelling.
In "…And Now, the Absorbing Man!", Bruce Banner pilots a rocket to destroy a deadly comet, only to find the Absorbing Man has stowed away—turning the journey into a high-stakes collision course. With the Hulk’s rage on full display and Creel’s powers at their peak, the two forces meet head-on in a battle that defies control. Written by Roy Thomas and illustrated by Herb Trimpe, this 1970 Marvel classic features dynamic art and a tense, action-packed showdown, with cover art by Herb Trimpe.
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The issue was written by Roy Thomas, who was simultaneously scripting the Hulk, Doctor Strange, and Sub-Mariner titles in late 1969 — a workload concentration that, by necessity, allowed him to weave characters and storylines across those books and plant the seeds for the Defenders. Herb Trimpe handled both pencils and inks, as well as the cover, maintaining his long tenure as the Hulk's primary visual architect of the era; Stan Lee served as editor. The book shipped on December 9, 1969, carrying a March 1970 cover date and a 15-cent cover price. Thomas reused the Absorbing Man's established backstory of Odin exiling him into space — though the issue's own footnote incorrectly credits Thor #123 rather than the correct Journey Into Mystery #123 for that prior event.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Published March 1970 (on-sale December 9, 1969); written by Roy Thomas, penciled and inked by Herb Trimpe, lettered by Sam Rosen, edited by Stan Lee.
- Story title: '...And Now, the Absorbing Man!' — the first time the Absorbing Man (Carl 'Crusher' Creel) appears in a Hulk comic, crossing over from his Thor/Journey into Mystery origins.
- The Absorbing Man was originally created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and first appeared in Journey into Mystery #114 (March 1965); his exile into space by Odin — the premise that brings him back to Earth here — occurred in Journey into Mystery #123.
- Contains the cameo (first) appearance of Barbara Norriss, shown briefly and without a name as a member of a demonic cult; she would receive her first full appearance in the very next issue (#126) and eventually become the human host of the Valkyrie in Defenders #4 (1973).
- Jack Norriss, Barbara's husband and a later Defenders supporting character, is also co-created by Roy Thomas and Herb Trimpe in this issue.
- The issue's letters page, 'Green Skin's Grab Bag,' includes a letter from Alan Brennert, who would go on to become a respected comics writer himself.
- Reprinted internationally in The Mighty World of Marvel #83–84 (Marvel UK, 1974), Hulk E I Difensori #2 (Editoriale Corno, Italy, 1975), Hulk #1 (Arédit-Artima, France, 1976), Marvel Super-Heroes #77 (Marvel, December 1978), and collected in Essential Hulk Vol. 3 (Marvel, April 2005).
- The issue's story was adapted into the 1978 Incredible Hulk View-Master reel set (J 26), produced by GAF.
Full credits
Reprints
Reprinted in The Mighty World of Marvel #83 (1974), The Mighty World of Marvel #84 (1974), Hulk E I Difensori #2 (1975), Hulk #1 (1976), Marvel Super-Heroes #77 (1978), The Incredible Hulk: The Secret Story of Marvel's Gamma-Powered Goliath #[nn] (1981), Hulk #7 (1984), جريندايزر [Garindayzir / Grendizer] #135 (1994), Essential Hulk #3 (2005), Marvel Masterworks: The Incredible Hulk #6 (2011), Essential Hulk #3 [Second Edition] (2012), Incredible Hulk Epic Collection #4 (2019), The Incredible Hulk Omnibus #2 (2023), Der unglaubliche Hulk #5, La Increible Mole #24
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