Review of Hulk Vs. (2009) by Marty L — 28 Jan 2009

I gotta say I was worried about this double-feature being a flop but "Hulk Vs." is a DVD that will not disappoint comic book fans. Each film is true to the characters from the printed pages of Marvel, and the action is epic. Literally nothing but an hour and twenty-two minutes of "Hulk smash!" I even believe each is loosely based on actual issues of "The Incredible Hulk" and "The Mighty Thor".

My only complaint was that each film seemed a little too short. I was hoping for two full-length features and hence was a bit disappointed to find out each is less than an hour long. Still, "The Amazing Screw-On Head" was only fifteen minutes and it blew my mind. Also, I kept getting the impression that Hulk was more of a guest star in each, with more focus put on his combatant's story-line. The audience is given a few brief glances into life and mind of Bruce Banner, but it seems Hulk is just there to wreck stuff. As an adament Hulk fan, I have no problem with this though. It's tough to review both films as a whole, so I'm going to have to do it individually.

"Hulk vs Thor" was the longest of the two and, in my opinion, had a fuller story (Probably because it was longer). Great voice acting by the entire cast and I especially liked the opening monologue delivered by Loki. I have only two complaints. One, I was kinda hoping for a fight between Thor and...well...THE Hulk. Instead we get "Hulk possessed by Loki" and "Hulk seperated from Bruce Banner, so he's uber-angry". It left me wondering who would win in a fight between Thor and Hulk, if no one was messing around with Hulk's cabeza.

Also, once again Hulk seems to get treated as a guest-star rather than a co-star. There is more of a focus put on Thor and the characters in Asgard. If anything, however, the story serves to introduce these characters to the mainstream public. Although Thor is a popular character, his own comic line seemed to take a backseat to his role in the Avengers. As such a lot of the characters from the Mighty Thor come off as a bit obscure. Since there also happens to be a live-action Thor movie on the horizon, "Hulk vs Thor" helps to introduce characters like Volstagg and Rogun so audience members aren't like "Who the H-E-double hockey stick is that?" when they see them on the big screen.

"Hulk vs Wolverine"...Why, oh why, couldn't this film have been longer? Man, it was just nothing but non-stop badassery, but under forty minutes??? Are you kidding me?? A movie based on the first appearance of Wolverine and you can't shell out at least a hour's worth of material?? I'm sorry. This was obviously my favorite because it's one of the few times I've seen the character Wolverine written correctly; gritty and seemingly on the verge of going berserk at any moment. I mean stabbing Banner in the gut with his claws to get him to change into the Hulk? Classic. Again, more focus was put on the "Ol' Canucklehead" than the Hulk, but it was worth it to hear that traditional Wolverine dialogue.

That actually reminds me of another reason I liked this movie over "Hulk vs Thor". Hulk actually has dialogue, instead of just yelling. That got a little old after awhile in "Hulk vs Thor". It's that sweet, original third-person dialogue too. "Hulk smash, small man!" "Hulk is strongest there is!" "Hulk rip off talking-man's head!" Good stuff.

Almost everything about this movie was true to the comics. They even have Wolverine working for Department H, just like he is in the issue of Hulk the movie's based on.

I even liked the random Weapon X team they cobbled together (Which was essential a cadre of Wolverine villains). Each one was portrayed accurately as well; Sabretooth, Lady Deathstrike, Omega Red, and...DEADPOOL! Yes, this movie had Deadpool! The Merc with a mouth! I immediately threw two fists in the air(Pinky and pointer fingers extended, in your standard "Rock on" gesture). I mean it was cool to see Hulk and Wolverine go at it like Rottweilers, and all my favorite Wolverine villains to boot, but Deadpool was definitely the clincher. I'd like to see a Marvel Animated feature starring Deadpool. Right now.

Not since "Batman: Gotham Knight" and "Hellboy: Blood and Iron" have I been as impressed with an animated feature. "Hulk Vs" was the best film from Marvel Animated yet. Better than "Ultimate Avengers", even better than "Doctor Strange". Can't wait to see what's coming next.