I really loved the first major arc of Benjamin Percy’s Red Hulk, which I reviewed as Volume 1 of the series trade paperback release. I was hoping to enjoy Volume 2, Red Hulk: Mission: Latveria just as much. Unfortunately, I was left feeling a bit unsatisfied, with a seemingly rushed ending and a lack of a compelling villain, although I really enjoyed the art and action.
Red Hulk Vol. 2 has gorgeous artwork inside, with issues #6 and #8 illustrated by Geoff Shaw, #7 by Jethro Morales, and the final two issues by Gabriel Guzman, all colored by Bryan Valenza. From start to finish, the art in this trade is beautiful, violent, and oftentimes downright gross. I loved it! I particularly dug all of Ross’s nasty transformations into Red Hulk under the experimental eye of Captain Ryker, and the final battle between Red Hulk and War Wolf.
One of the things I enjoyed most about Red Hulk Vol. 2 was Percy’s reintroduction of Tamika Bowden, or Wildstreak. Bowden debuted in 1994 and was last seen nearly two decades ago in 2007’s Civil War, where the Invisible Woman helped her escape from custody under the Superhuman Registration Act. She was a good addition to the series, and I am glad Percy brought her back from Marvel Comics limbo. I hope she will be used more in the future, and it would also be badass to see her team up with Misty Knight, another strong-headed and powerful Black woman with a cybernetic arm.
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Other things I enjoyed about Red Hulk Vol. 2 include the bigger role that Machine Man had, a character I have loved since reading Earth X years ago, and the friendship between Machine Man and Deathlok. I also loved the moment when Bowden fully ripped the fake flesh off of a Doombot’s face; that was hilarious and brutal. I think War Wolf’s transformations were incredibly well done, and I also liked the moment when Ross shot Ryker in the shoulder instead of letting Ryker give a tropey villain speech. That was funny and very on brand for Ross.
Unfortunately, there were a few things I did not love about these issues of Red Hulk. First of all, while Ryker’s War Wolf transformation was fun and visually exciting, Ryker so quickly siding with Doom and becoming the main enemy didn’t make much sense to me. He started out as a fellow prisoner of Doom in the first issue, and by issue number 5, he is secretly working for Doom and has become the highlighted antagonist. That just felt a bit confusing. I also think, because of this, the ending wasn’t that satisfying, since Red Hulk didn’t get to fight Doom once. Of course, this is all under the banner of One World Under Doom, where Doom is fighting the whole Marvel superhero community, but it just felt like the promise of the book ended up hollow.
I was pleasantly surprised to see Thaddeus Ross’s assault against American forces in Red Hulk Vol. 1. While maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised that Ross has remained a jingoistic war hawk, I was kind of hoping to see some growth in the conservative antihero. Listen, I know I am not supposed to love Thaddeus Ross. He is an antihero and has always prioritized America, the country, over American values or the lives of innocents. Yet, especially with everything politically happening in the United States right now, it just felt a bit hard to root for Red Hulk at all. Yes, he recognizes the fascism that Doom’s ascendency has wrought… but he can’t recognize that American imperialism is barely one step away from the same fascism?
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In many ways, I recognize that is the point. He continues to be blinded by his jingoistic obsession with America as a state, whereas Steve Rogers has explicitly stated that he fights for American values, not the country of America. Maybe it is on me for expecting too much from Ross, but after the first half of the book, I was hoping for something to shake loose in his brain, and get to at least slightly step away from his American supremacy ideals. Honestly… I have just convinced myself in writing this review that this was not a character failing on Percy’s part, but in fact a purposeful critique of American politicians and warhawks, who refuse to fight back against their own broken regime, even after witnessing its failings. No duh, I wanted Ross to change, and also obviously… he didn’t!
Thank you, dear reader, for making it this far in the review, if you are still reading, because clearly my opinions about this comic have changed even while writing this review. Red Hulk remains an America First weirdo who will always view himself as “necessary violence,” and it seems that was Percy’s point. Ross stating, “The American dream is only impossible because of nightmares like me,” doesn’t mean that statement is true; it just highlights how terrifying it is that many people actually believe that, hence our current nightmarish war in Iran and our government’s continued support of Israel. This comic has really made me think, which I love, and it is also a timely and relevant adventure with epic battles and beautiful art. I’ve convinced myself. This is a good series. You should read it!
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