The Incredible Hulk #417

Name: The Incredible Hulk #417
Brand: Marvel
Availability: InStock

May 1994 · Marvel · 1.50 USD; 2.05 CAD

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“Party Animals”

★ 1st appearance — Betty-6

About this Issue

Incredible Hulk #417 is a showcase of Peter David's gift for weaving genuine emotional weight into broad ensemble comedy: directly following the grim Future Imperfect two-parter, it uses Rick Jones's bachelor party as a pressure-release valve while still showing Bruce Banner shaken by post-traumatic visions of the Maestro. The issue also stands out for a quietly courageous moment in which Pantheon member Hector openly declares his homosexuality and pushes back against Ulysses's dismissive prejudice — a frank, non-sensationalized treatment of LGBTQ identity rare for a mainstream Marvel superhero title in 1994. Its dense cross-title guest roster, anchoring nearly every active corner of the Marvel Universe around a single civilian celebration, exemplifies David's run-long ambition to treat the Hulk title as the connective tissue of the broader Marvel line.

In "Party Animals," Rick Jones' bachelor party takes a turn no one saw coming—especially not the Hulk, who finds himself caught in the middle of chaos both bizarre and personal. With Marlo's stag party unfolding in equally unpredictable fashion, the line between celebration and catastrophe blurs, all drawn in bold, dynamic art by Gary Frank and Cam Smith.

writer Peter David · artist Gary Frank · inker Cam Smith · colorist Glynis Oliver · letterer Joe Rosen · cover Gary Frank, Cam Smith

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (NM) $6

CGC 9.8 · 7 in census $39*

CGC 9.6 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 9.4 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 9.2 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 9.0 none in existence

CGC 8.5 · 1 in census $20

* estimate — limited direct-sales data at this grade

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

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CGC 9.6 $170 1 listing CGC 9.4 $127 1 listing

Raw — NM ▾ $4–$7.25 2 listings

NM $4 NM $7.25

Raw — NM- $3.99 1 listing

Raw — VF/NM ▾ $2.99–$9.98 2 listings

VF/NM $2.99 VF/NM · Newsstand $9.98

Raw — VF+ ▾ $2.99–$8.95 3 listings

VF+ $2.99 VF+ · Newsstand $8 VF+ $8.95

Raw — VF ▾ $2.85–$19.8 7 listings

VF $2.85 VF $3.14 VF $4 VF $5.27 VF $7.98 VF $9.99 VF $19.8

Raw — FN/VF $6.8 1 listing Raw — FN $5 1 listing Raw — VG+ $3.8 1 listing Raw — VG $3.4 1 listing

Raw / ungraded ▾ $2.95–$10.99 24 listings

Verified matches for The Incredible Hulk #417 · eBay asking prices, seen 22 days ago

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NM $2.99 Hulk Comics!!! She-hulk, weapon H, immortal, incredible $2.25 The Incredible Hulk Issue 417 Marvel Comic Book $3.99

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History

The issue falls squarely within Peter David's celebrated long tenure on the title, arriving immediately after the conclusion of the Future Imperfect Elseworlds-style limited series he wrote with artist George Pérez. Artist Gary Frank and inker Cam Smith — the regular art team of this era — handled both cover and interiors, with Glynis Oliver on colors and Joe Rosen on letters. Bobbie Chase served as editor with James Felder as assistant editor, and the issue was produced under the Marvel-wide editorial oversight of Editor-in-Chief Tom DeFalco and Senior Executive Editor Mark Gruenwald, whose names appear on the masthead rather than as creative contributors to this specific issue.

Trivia · 8 facts

Published May 1994 by Marvel Comics; story titled 'Party Animals!'; 36 pages; both Direct Edition and Newsstand Edition exist.
Written by Peter David; pencils by Gary Frank; inks by Cam Smith; colors by Glynis Oliver; letters by Joe Rosen; edited by Bobbie Chase.
Tom DeFalco served as Editor-in-Chief and Mark Gruenwald as Senior Executive Editor — both are masthead credits, not story contributors.
Narrative directly continues from Incredible Hulk: Future Imperfect #2, with Banner haunted by visions of the Maestro (his future evil self) and recounting that ordeal to Doc Samson.
First appearance of Elsa Chandler, Marlo Chandler's mother, who arrives in Reno ahead of the Rick Jones–Marlo Chandler wedding.
Pantheon member Hector is explicitly confirmed as gay in a scene with Ulysses, one of the more direct depictions of a gay superhero-supporting character in a mainstream Marvel comic of the mid-1990s.
Guest stars an unusually large cross-publisher slice of the Marvel Universe: Captain America, Iron Man, War Machine, She-Hulk, Silver Surfer, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, Thing, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Quicksilver, Hercules, Crystal, Sub-Mariner, Impossible Man, Doc Samson, and the Teen Brigade all appear.
Reprinted in Incredible Hulk Epic Collection #20: Future Imperfect (2017) and Incredible Hulk by Peter David Omnibus Vol. 3 (2021); original copies included bound-in Marvel Masterprints trading cards.