The Hulk has had many monikers: the Green Goliath. Jade Giant. Greenskin. Joe Fixit. Green Scar. Doc Green. World Breaker. But now the Incredible Hulk has a new name: Herald Hulk. Marvel’s What If…? Galactus Transformed Hulk? #1, from writer Mat Groom (Giant-Size Silver Surfer) and artist Lan Medina (Gamma Flight), is the first in a series of one-shots reimagining some of Earth’s mightiest heroes — Moon Knight, Spider-Gwen, and Rogue and Gambit of the X-Men — as the cosmic-powered herald of Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds.
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Rather than Norrin Radd, who offered to seek out planets to satiate Galactus’ hunger so his homeworld Zenn-La would be spared, the issue imagines Bruce Banner as the silver-skinned herald. (In this reality, Galactus appeared before Banner in search of a new herald after the Fantastic Four’s Reed Richards used the Ultimate Nullifier to ward off the eater-of-worlds in 1966’s Fantastic Four #50).
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What If… The Hulk Was the Herald of Galactus?
When Galactus returned to Earth, he sought the mightiest of Earth’s mightiest heroes: the Hulk. Believing that Banner was wasting the Hulk’s power hiding in self-imposed exile, he told Banner that his monstrous alter-ego would cause no further harm if he instead served Galactus. Banner accepted to forever spare Earth of the Hulk’s rampages and destruction.
As the herald, Banner warned of the coming of Galactus and evacuated the inhabitants of each planet aboard colony ships. When Galactus sent Banner to Elysion-3 to prepare the planet for his arrival during the Kree-Skrull War, he was confronted by the Avengers: Iron Man (Tony Stark), Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers), and the Vision.
Herald Hulk… Smash!
Banner accused the Avengers of turning a blind eye to planets other than Earth, so Stark retorted that his former teammate became an “errand boy” for a “genocide machine.” This enraged Banner, who then Hulked out and smashed the puny Vision and Captain Marvel in the span of 60 seconds.
Meanwhile, Stark suited up in an upgraded Iron Man Hulkbuster Armor incorporating tech from Doctor Doom’s confiscated cosmic harness, making him super-charged and able to withstand the Hulk’s cosmic energy blasts. Hulk and Iron Man pummeled each other in a knock-down-drag-out fist fight that leveled Elysion-3, destroying Banner’s colony ship in the process and dooming the planet’s people. This only added to the Herald Hulk’s anger, and as he destroyed the Hulkbuster, a defeated Stark realized Banner truly cared for the innocents he evacuated as Galactus’ herald.
Stark then told Banner the truth: when Galactus returned to Earth, he told the heroes he would spare their planet if they let him take their most powerful warrior as his herald. The Avengers offered the Hulk to Galactus not just to save the world from its fate, but from the Hulk.
“We thought maybe Galactus was the one being in all of existence who could contain — could master — the Hulk.”
As Stark acknowledged they were wrong to send the Hulk away as Galactus’ monster, Hulk saved a Kree girl trapped beneath rubble and reverted to his Silver Banner form. He only wanted to save people from Galactus, but he realized that Galactus is inevitable.
“He’s not. That’s just what he needs you to think,” Stark said. “Because there’s only one thing that’s truly inevitable… the Hulk has no master.” And that made Hulk angry.
A raging Silver Hulk, glowing green with gamma radiation and the power cosmic, leapt into space with a warning to Galactus:
“HULK IS COMING.”
What If…? Galactus Transformed Hulk? is on sale now from Marvel Comics. What If…? Galactus Transformed Gambit? goes on sale Jan. 8, followed by What If…? Galactus Transformed Moon Knight? on Jan. 15, What If…? Galactus Transformed Rogue? on Jan. 22, and What If…? Galactus Transformed Spider-Gwen? on Jan. 29.
