Cover Art for Hulk Smash Everything #4 - Written by Ryan North, Art by Vincenzo Carratù, Colors by Federico Blee and Letters by VC’s Joe Caramagna. Cover Art by Adam Kubert and Laura Martin.
“NOW YOU SEE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU NOT LEAVE HULK ALONE!”
There’s a moment in Hulk Smash Everything #4 where I just had to sit with the page for a minute. This moment, found in the last third of the issue, is a splash panel of epic proportions. It drives home just how screwed the Marvel Universe truly is. The best part? It’s not a massive battle scene, and it’s not the Hulk beating up some god or ancient being—it’s simply a moment that proves why the Leader and everyone else really should have left the Hulk alone, because now… he truly is going to SMASH EVERYTHING.
In a story where the Hulk has not only fought dinosaurs, Dr. Strange, a black hole, and the being he calls “Stupid Hat” (Galactus), this latest issue continues to prove that there are no limits to the boundaries of Ryan North’s limited Hulk series. North, along with the superb art team of Vincenzo Carratù and Federico Blee, have crafted one of the most fun Hulk series I’ve ever read, and I truly wasn’t sure how they would top issue #3. But my god, they’ve done it. The Hulk is no longer just the angry being he was at the beginning of this tale. He’s now a gamma- and cosmic-fueled force who wants nothing more than to destroy the Leader, the other heroes, and—well, at this point, like the title says—everything. Hulk Smash Everything #4 is a dynamite issue and one that I won’t forget for quite some time.
Spoiler Warning for Hulk Smash Everything #4 now in effect.
Hulk Returns to Planet Earth
Hulk Smash Everything #4 picks up right where issue #3 left off. The Hulk, now the size of a small building and imbued with gamma and cosmic energy, has been returned to his correct time period by Franklin Richards. The Leader is beside himself—how can the Hulk be back after being tossed into a black hole? Hulk immediately goes to smash the Leader but ends up destroying the time platform the Leader has been using, and the chase through the streets of Latveria is on. Carratù and Blee’s new Hulk design, introduced last issue and featured throughout this one, is a joy to see on every page. The gamma spikes, the glowing green eyes, the massive size… it may not be the most radical redesign of the big green guy, but it’s certainly one of the coolest.
It’s a bad day to be a citizen of Latveria, as the Hulk stops at nothing to get to the Leader during this issue’s initial rampage. Buildings are destroyed, explosions erupt, and the populace flees in horror within the issue’s first four pages. The Leader makes his escape through a portal and returns to the place where our tale began: Marvel’s New York City. After being confronted by Iron Man, Dr. Strange, and Mr. Fantastic in the middle of the city for antagonizing the Hulk, the Leader attempts to escape once again—but he isn’t going anywhere. A roar cracks the air, and a shadow falls over the group as the Leader quickly realizes that Hulk “leapt here from Latveria.” Yes, you read that right. The Hulk leapt to New York City from Latveria. The level of power contained within this version of the Hulk is pushing limits we haven’t seen in a long time—and it only gets worse for Marvel’s New York from here.
Hulk arrives on the scene in a three-panel splash page, screaming, “HULK! SMASH! BIG BRAIN!” as he slams into the heart of New York City, beginning his second rampage of the issue. Over the next few pages, Dr. Strange, Iron Man, Mr. Fantastic, and many other heroes of the Marvel Universe band together to try to stop the Hulk from causing city-shattering destruction. The combined might of the aforementioned trio, alongside Invisible Woman, The Thing, Spider-Man, Thor, and others, isn’t enough to push back the Hulk. The heroes quickly realize that this is the strongest version of the Hulk they’ve ever faced. Brute force isn’t going to cut it—they need a new plan…
Carratù and Blee do a wonderful job on the Hulk’s NYC rampage, and there are some little moments worth highlighting. First, Mr. Fantastic wrapping around the Hulk to try to stop him looks really cool, but the comedic bit where the Hulk begins to rip him off by putting two fingers in his nose and stretching it out is great. The panel of all the Marvel heroes jumping out of a portal to help is really striking, featuring classic character designs with fantastic coloring. Finally, when the Hulk tears through Invisible Woman’s bubble, we not only see her force field shatter, but the very street beneath the Hulk begins to give way. It’s a clever artistic choice, showing that even the ground he walks on isn’t enough to support his massive weight. North also makes a key narrative decision here when Reed begs “Bruce” to stop, warning that he will kill the Leader, and the Hulk responds, “No, Bruce! Only Hulk.” This makes it clear that there is no trace of the scientist left inside. After being ripped apart by the black hole in space and then putting himself back together, Bruce’s consciousness wasn’t part of the repair process. I like North’s choice here because we are now dealing exclusively with the monster, not Bruce. Now, back to the story.
Hulk’s rage reaches untapped bounds
The heroes realize they can’t beat the Hulk back and decide they need to send him somewhere to calm down. Something tells me he won’t—but hey, more power to them. Dr. Strange and the Scarlet Witch open a portal to the Antarctic ice shelf and use their magic to make sure the Hulk can’t jump back through it. Now… the full consequences of the Leader’s actions have finally come. Trapped in Antarctica, the Hulk’s anger reaches a fever pitch. The heroes never leave him alone. The Leader won’t leave him alone. Even at the ends of the universe and of time, there are beings like Galactus who won’t leave him alone. All the rage trapped within him, all the anger he feels, and all the immense cosmic and gamma power contained in his body come together to fuel a feat of strength that ranks among the strongest ever seen in the Marvel Universe. Not only does he split the Antarctic Ice Shelf in two, but… I’ll let writer Ryan North take it away here; his narration over this section is excellent:
“Hulk hits the Earth impossibly hard. Again. And again. And again. He hits planetary crust harder than it has ever been hit before. He’s stronger than anyone. Angrier than anyone. His impacts hit like a jeweler cleaving a diamond. And all that energy has to go somewhere. And just as with a diamond, the right impact— in the right place, with the right force… can split the world in two.”
With one final scream of “HULK SMASH EVERYTHING!” a crack begins to split the Earth’s continental shelf. This is the moment I mentioned way back at the beginning of this review, and the splash page is gorgeous. We don’t see the Hulk; rather, we see a massive green explosion of light on Earth from the perspective of the Moon, complete with the lunar lander and the American flag. A crack begins to form as it crosses the middle of the planet. This scaled-back piece of art gives us a great perspective on how strong the Hulk has become. And the best part is: the issue isn’t over yet. His strength has not reached its limit. North’s narration, combined with the masterful artistic choices from Carratù and Blee, make this section of the issue one of the very best.
In the final act of this issue, the Hulk continues to—you guessed it—smash. He keeps going deeper toward the very center of the Earth and eventually causes a massive crack in the planet’s outer core. A “maelstrom of trillions and trillions of tons of liquid metal,” under “unimaginable pressure” and at a temperature “equal to the surface of the Sun,” now has a point where all that pressure can be released. The Hulk’s body is surrounded by flames, heat, and pain, but he doesn’t care because, as North tells us, “Hulk wants the world to burn.”
A World on the Brink and Final Thoughts
Back in NYC, Reed Richards and the heroes feel the immense vibrations of the Hulk’s actions. At first, they assume it’s an earthquake, but Reed tells the group that the planet’s magnetic poles are shifting. With the Antarctic Continental Plate collapsing downward, the Earth is beginning to hollow out, which means, as Reed tells the group of heroes: “My friends, this is not just the end of life on this world… It's the end of EVERYTHING.” We end on an incredible splash page of the Hulk, using every ounce of his rage, continuing to pound the Earth as he screams.
The Hulk is powered up to one of the highest levels he’s ever been. The planet itself is now fully at risk, and the nightmare so many of Marvel’s premier heroes feared has come to fruition. How are they going to stop him? Can they stop him? Will he succeed in destroying Earth? Next issue, the final issue, is being set up to be quite the explosive conclusion, and it’s going to be very fun to see how this form of the Hulk is ultimately dealt with and hopefully brought back to normal.
In Hulk Smash Everything #4, the consequences of the Leader’s actions are fully realized in what is a fantastic penultimate issue of this limited series run. Ryan North’s compelling story and narration are perfectly complemented by the artistic choices of Vincenzo Carratù and Federico Blee. The Hulk, with his cool new design, looks incredible every time he appears on the page, and the massive, violent moments of rage come to life in spectacular fashion. This is an issue every Hulk fan will enjoy, and I’d recommend it to any comic fan looking for a story that doesn’t take itself seriously and fully embraces how wild and wacky comics can be.
RATING: 9/10