Indestructible Hulk

Writer Mike Costa Artist Jake Wyatt

Introduction

The Arms Of The Octopus storyline had an extremely strong debut in the pages of All-New X-Men special #1. Yes, the event is completely unnecessary with so many others going on at both of the big two right now. Even though critics and others have the potential to be cynical, at the end of the day a good story is a good story. It may have slightly helped if this tale was accessible to newer fans who might be more interested, many will be confused that this story stems so deep in the continuity of Marvel Now. By far the most painful part of the issue was the steep price tag that it carried, $4.99 hurts the wallet. This can also be a tough sell from unproven name for most, like Mike Costa. The big draw for the previous installment of the storyline, was the art from Kris Anka. The artist has been giving lots of covers and character designs, but that was one of his first full interior images. Another excellent part of the title, was all the different ideas that Costa threw out at readers. Fun interaction and a new supporting cast was built around Hank McCoy.

Writer

Costa expertly demonstrates a strong understanding of the Hulk with a voice over filled splash page that is very well written. Then on third page there is beautiful moment that pays off the already great script. The tone in here takes on such a beautiful sense of brevity that so much Marvel work is capturing with playful ease. This story reads like an awesome issue of Indestructible Hulk, in the sense that it takes on some of the character traits and personalities then builds and builds on them. It fleshes out a really nice story, filled with fun aspects that we have not scene from these heroes before. Marvel Now has really shaken up status quota quite a bit, Costa does some beautiful work here shuffling around the odd continuity mess and the floor and using to his advantage.

Artist

Jake Wyatt is another new artist that is giving some crazy new interiors, that should serve to hook readers further into the title. The penciller has some insane indie sensibilities that clashes with modern superhero fare in a fascinating manner. At certain points faces can look downright silly, the Hulk suffers from this at many points in the issue. The All-New X-Men and Superior Spider-Man benefit from the interesting manner in which they are interpreted. There is a double page spread towards the end of the book, which will blow the minds of wednesday warriors along with newer fans of the Universe. There are certain qualities about the art of Wyatt, that feels so incredibly warm in the way his people interact. Beast looks silly in the sort of oafish manner that makes him so incredibly charming from panel to panel. Spidey has silly looking eyes reminiscent of irreverent 60’s Spider-Man cartoon. Hopefully the artist will transition to having more steady Marvel work, after this stellar pencil debut. Using this storyline to try out some new talent is a stroke of genius over at the publisher. Lichtenstein dots that Wyatt brings out in the issue give him some major props for looking spectacular.

Conclusion

This is an incredible issue that shows superb craft from Costa and Wyatt, Skeptical readers can leave their cynical notions at the door, and enjoy this infectiously uplifting reading experience.