The Hulk is the strongest one there is, having been the Marvel Universe’s premiere monster for years now. The Jade Giant has grown from a man hobbled by the hubris of science and transformed into something inhuman, battling aliens, monsters, and abominations of technology and becoming something new. He’s become one of the most psychologically complex heroes out there, his transformations a part of the mental issues that have plagued him since he was abused as a child. The duality of the Hulk – the genius Bruce Banner and the monosyllabic monster – have always been an interesting part of the character’s struggle, so Marvel has at times made the Hulk and other related gamma mutates more intelligent than the base version of the Green Goliath.
Videos by ComicBook.com
There have been numerous Hulks, both ones that Bruce transformed into and other people who have been mutated with gamma radiation into Hulks, with some of them being rather intelligent. Smart Hulks are always interesting because sometimes, they’re less physically powerful and have to depend more on their wiles and other times they’re able to access the full power of the Hulk. They bring a new facet to the tales of everyone’s favorite rage monster. These are the five smartest Hulk in Marvel history, each of them more intelligent than the last.
5) She-Hulk
She-Hulk has become an iconic character, part of ’70s Marvel’s effort to make more women into superheroes. At first, she was the Savage She-Hulk, basically just a female version of the Jade Giant, but that would change as the years went by. Jennifer Walters was an amazing attorney in her civilian life and it was soon decided that she would be a better character if she was allowed to keep her intellect. Her stories showcased the shenanigans she could get into as a Hulk who was always smart, which wasn’t something fans were used to. While Jenn isn’t some scientific genius who can figure out anything, she’s a great litigator, known for her cleverness and her gift of gab. While she can sometimes find her powers hard to manage, she’s mostly in control of her faculties at all times. Her original stories were fine Hulk tales in their own way but once she was allowed to keep her smarts, she was able to become her own hero and reach legendary status.
4) Red Hulk
General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross devoted his life to the military, becoming one of the finest officers in the United States Army. He was eventually put in charge of the gamma bomb program, where he met Bruce Banner. The two didn’t like each other, partly because Bruce was dating Ross’s daughter Betty, and the rise of the Hulk would see their enmity transformed to hatred. Ross proved to be a clever, if impetuous, military commander, doing his best to corral the most powerful destructive force he had ever seen. After years of defeats, and the seeming death of his daughter, he decided to let the Intelligencia make him into the Red Hulk. Red Hulk was immediately a massive threat to everyone; he started out by killing Abomination and went on from there, taking down all of the most powerful heroes on Earth. Ross also isn’t some super scientist, but he has a great mind for tactics and combat. He knows how to play politics and is as cagey as they come.
3) Professor Hulk
The intelligence of the Hulk went up and down throughout the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s. Writer Peter David started his run on the character 1987’s issue #331 and experimented, digging deep into the psyche of Bruce Banner and changing the hero. This led to him realizing that the various Hulks in his mind were all different identities and he was able to merge them all into the Professor Hulk. This was basically Bruce Banner with the power of the Hulk, meaning that he had access to all of the intelligence of the man who invented the gamma bomb. He worked with Agamemnon and the Pantheon back then, was a part of the fight against Thanos in Infinity Gauntlet, battled the Leader and the Abomination, and had loads of great superhero adventures. While the Hulk is better known as a horror character right now, David was able to make him into a more standard superhero and an entire generation of readers learned to love the super-intelligent, super strong Professor Hulk.
2) Amadeus Cho
Amadeus Cho was introduced after the Hulk was shot to the planet Sakaar by the Illuminati. He was one of the smartest people on the planet (back when he first debuted, it was said he was the third smartest Hulk) and he wanted to help out his favorite superhero. He dug into what happened to the Jade Giant, even breaking into the Baxter Building to learn the truth behind his disappearance, recruiting some of Hulk’s friends to do something about the situation, right as he returned as the Worldbreaker and attacked the planet. Cho became one of the Hulk’s most important allies, his prodigious intelligence allowing him to keep up with the strongest hero on the planet. Eventually, he would help cure Banner and ended up becoming the Totally Awesome Hulk, fighting his enemies with his brainpower and good old fashioned gamma enhanced muscle. Eventually, his powers would start to fade and Banner came back as the Green Goliath, so he changed his name to Brawn and still hangs out with the Hulks.
1) The Maestro
The Maestro is one of the most powerful Hulk villains and he’s always been the smartest of the Hulks. This version of the Jade Giant lived through a massive war that destroyed much of the Earth. He decided that his way was the best way to save the world and went about conquering what was left of the world. He gained access to the greatest technology in the world and began using to clean up the radiation-irradiated wastelands, creating a place for the last remnants of humanity to survive. He had all of the intellect of Bruce Banner, but with years of added experience. After he took over, he had time to study and experiment at his leisure, becoming more intelligent than ever. This Hulk isn’t just going to roar at you and beat you within an inch of your life; he’s going to out think you and out plan you and there’s a good chance that he’ll bring some tech that you’ve never seen before.
Who do you think is the smartest Hulk? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
