In the first few pages of Journey Into Mystery #112 (published in 1965), the thunder god of Marvel swoops down from the sky to quell what appears to be a riot between two gangs of angry, yelling youths, as depicted by Jack Kirby and Chic Stone’s dynamic artwork. A thought balloon from Thor provides context: “Those kids seem to be arguing about who is… stronger… the Hulk… or myself!” ”
The cover of issue #112 of Journey Into Mystery billed it as “The Epic Battle of the Age!” Marvel’s Incredible Hulk takes on Thunder God! Right Here It Is! This is the Fight You’ve Been Hoping for! The issue came out only three years after the debut of both characters in comic books and one year after they had met for the first time as co-stars of the then-newly launched Avengers. (Whether or not fans had been waiting for the battle is debatable.)
And yet, Marvel was looking to cash in on the rivalry between Thor and the Hulk because it had become such a hot-button topic.
Truth be told, it’s hard to picture Thor and the Hulk as anything but bitter enemies. One is a science fiction character and the other is a supernatural/mythological one, so they don’t come from the same subgenre. With their respective strengths and abilities, a fight between the two should be over in a flash. After all, one of them is a god with the ability to fly and control the weather, while the other is a powerful warrior with similar abilities.
Nevertheless, Marvel has spent decades trying to persuade readers that they want the same thing as teenagers in 1965. In fact, in a matter of weeks, fans can look forward to a rematch between Thor and Hulk.
In this case, things went off the rails: “Hulk vs. Thor” is one of Marvel’s most legendary battles, even though such brawls are often strange, improbable, and pointless.
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The Epic Battle of the Ages!
The majority of the creators seem to be fully aware of the absurdity of the situation, and they play into it accordingly. In Defenders #10 from 1973, Bruce Banner and Donald Blake’s doppelgängers wrestle to a standstill for more time than an episode of Game of Thrones.
Steve Englehart’s frantic narration states, “For ten minutes they hold their pose, each straining futilely to break the status quo.” “They have held for twenty minutes! Time remaining: 30 minutes! Within the next hour! There is no sign of fatigue from either of them. ” (Their tussle is ultimately broken up by other heroes arriving.)
It’s worth noting that the Defenders’ fight boils down to a single wrestling hold. It’s interesting how Journey Into Mystery #112 presents the conflict between Thor and the Hulk as a test of physical prowess. The only way for the rivalry to last more than a few panels is for creative teams to figure out a way to bring Thor down to Hulk’s level, and this was a recurring theme in the earliest attempts to explore and exploit fans’ desire to see the two fight.
Thor has a long history of being manipulated into giving up his advantages in fights against the Hulk. If he wants to prove his strength, he either has to ask Odin to de-magic his hammer, get blackmailed into giving it up by the Hulk, or get goaded into a dick-measuring contest where anything but raw strength would be an affront to his honor.
Okay, that last one is an exaggeration, but just barely; in Incredible Hulk #255 from 1981, Thor says, “If we seemed evenly matched, it was only because I had requested a boon from my noble father, the all-seeing Odin, lord of Asgard — that I might face you for five minutes without my Uru hammer in a test of muscle against muscle — sinew against sinew!” When we fought, it was a draw. ”
Oh, sure. If it makes you feel better, then do it. It’s important to note that the Hulk is just as caught up in the toxic masculinity contest as everyone else; in The Mighty Thor #385 from 1987, the Hulk yells, “Thor is nothing!” Thor is weak, but Hammer is powerful. Drop the hammer and let Hulk prove himself. ”
This dynamic, which combines elements of defensiveness, sibling rivalry, and machismo, has proven to be so effective that it has spread to other artistic disciplines. In 1988’s The Incredible Hulk Returns, a TV movie adaptation of the 1970s series, Thor made the journey with the Hulk. Thor: Ragnarok (2017) was Chris Hemsworth and Mark Ruffalo’s best MCU appearance to date, recasting them as a squabbling, frenemy-like duo closer to their comic book relationship (albeit funnier and more handsome, but that’s pretty much what audiences expect from the MCU at this point).
Both characters have also squared off against one another in animated forms over the years, most recently in the 2009 direct-to-DVD release Hulk vs. Thor. You can bet that if a person has been following either Thor or the Hulk for a long enough period, in whatever medium, they will have witnessed a fight between the two.
So, why do people like Thor and Hulk so much, and why do people keep making new versions of them?
Why Titans Clash (Again and Again)?
Since Wil Moss, the editor of both Hulk and Thor at Marvel, would know, he says that the most important thing is that they give each other someone on whom they can truly unleash. “Both characters are so ridiculously powerful that in most fights, one or both of them has to hold back to some degree, or the story has to handicap them in some way, or they win the fight fairly quickly. Knowing that these two don’t have to hold back and have a fight that you know will be one to remember is, in my opinion, a big part of the appeal of a Hulk vs. Thor fight.
Since the release of Hulk vs. Thor: Banner of War Alpha #1, a one-shot story that sets the stage for a crossover between the two titles running until June, it’s safe to assume that Moss has been giving this a lot of thought. The title suggests that the storyline will pit the two characters against each other once again, but Moss hints that there will be more going on than a three-month-long fight to the finish.
He reassures us, “It’s not all fighting, but there is a lot of Hulk vs. Thor fighting in this story.” The story takes a surprising turn that changes the dynamic between the protagonists.
Moss, perhaps most surprisingly, also claims that this latest fight will finally produce a definitive victor after more than half a century of battles. Those 1965 high school students who can’t decide between Thor and the Hulk: will they ever settle the score? The editor is being vague for fear of spoilers. That the answer is being worked on by Donny Cates, a writer, and Martin Coccolo, an artist, is all I’ll say.
After more than fifty years of uncertainty and confusion, perhaps the end is in sight, giving everyone in the Marvel universe and the regular universe the serenity they need to move on to more pressing matters.
Is it possible that the United Nations in the Marvel universe could unite to impose economic sanctions on Latveria if Victor Von Doom doesn’t resign? No one in the Marvel universe could be an atheist, what with the Avengers consisting of actual gods and everything. To top it all off, who has better elasticity: Mr. Fantastic or Ms. Marvel?
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