REVIEW: Marvel Universe's Hulk (Secret Wars and Modern Variants)

Secret Wars Hulk/Modern Hulk | Produced by Hasbro | Released 2009

HULK SMASH!

With the Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger hype-machines about to launch an all-out assault and Hasbro's planned Original Avengers Team Pack following-up swiftly behind, That Figures is taking a look at All Things Avengers. We've already seen Thor and Iron Man and today it's the turn of the not-so jolly Green Giant, The Hulk.

The Hulk (Secret Wars)

The Hulk is available in a number of guises within the Marvel Universe line. Not only is there a Grey Hulk but there are a couple of versions of the regular, Green Hulk. The first one we're looking at today is the Secret Wars Hulk, released as part of a comicbook double-pack along with Cyclops.

The sculpt is fairly good, overall, with a pretty accurate rendition of the Hulk's bulging muscles and incredible bulk. His torso is suitably huge and there's a lot of detail on his muscles, with his stand-out tendons giving a real sense of seething rage. I also like that there's texture to his skin and details like fingernails and well-formed knuckles really set-off the sculpt. His back is an exercise in muscle-casting and looks like the cover of a bodybuilding magazine taken to the ultimate degree. His lower body is sculpted with his trademark ripped purple pants with is (huge) feet being a particularly well-defined bit of sculpting. Tendons and toes (complete with toe nails) are all present and well-defined.

The head sculpt is perhaps the most important aspect of this Hulk when compared to the Modern Hulk. This Hulk's face is not as feral as some incarnations (at the time of the Secret Wars, Banner retained his personality when transforming into the Hulk) although he does still appear somewhat POed. It reminds me somewhat of the Sal Buscema take on the character, rather than, say Kirby's more monstrous version.

Articulation is both very good and limited. The upper half of the Hulk is great. Despite his muscular bulk, the arms move well and can be positioned with ease. A twist at the torso allows you to also add some real dynamism to the Hulk's punches and although his head is limited in its movement range, there's enough to allow you to get some cool poses out of him.

What's not so great though is his lower body, specifically his hips. The knees and feet have great joints on them that can bend to accommodate most stances (he stands perfectly well without a base) but hip movement is limited to a swivel-joint only. Don't expect to be able to make your Hulk kneel, sit or do much else but stand around looking angry. 

Paint is cleanly applied on the whole. You'll notice this Hulk is bright, Gamma-green. There's a nice darker wash applied though that helps pick-out a lot of the muscular detail, which is a nice touch. Hair and eyebrows are clean apps, as are his teeth. It would have been good to see some dark paint within his mouth though, just to accentuate the teeth further.

Modern Hulk

The Modern Hulk - which was released as part of 2009's Marvel Universe Wave 2 - is almost identical to the Secret Wars Hulk, but for a couple of changes to the sculpt and a different paint job.

The first difference comes with the hand sculpts. The Secret Wars Hulk features both hands as fists, whereas the Modern version's left hand is sculpted in with an open hand. This sculpt is superb, with creases, tendons and fingernails all being present and correct. The pose is particularly good: it works as a ''gripping'' hand for combat poses but also as an expression of seething rage.

The other big difference is the head sculpt. It's slightly smaller than the Secret Wars Hulk and has a much less human look to it. The head is, like the body, looks like skin stretched over muscle that's ready to burst-out at any moment. His cheekbones are more prominent and the jaw is set in a permanent grimace, with wide, bulging eyes and a seriously mean look to it.

Paint is, again, well-applied, with this Hulk's skin being a darker, less neon-glow hue. Again, a dark wash adds some definition to the sculpt and details such as eyes are cleanly done. In a nice little touch, his pupils are a bright green, unlike the Secret Wars Hulk who simply has two black dots to represent his eyes.

These differences aside, the figures are identical.

Extras

Secret Wars Hulk was bundled with the X-Men's Cyclops and a copy of Secret Wars #4. Modern Hulk comes with his SHIELD file but no stand (not that he needs one anyway.)

Final Thoughts

The Hulk is one of Marvel's best-known characters so it's good to see he has not only one, but two cool representations within the line. As to which one is best, that depends entirely upon your personal tastes. If you're a vintage Marvel fan, then the Secret Wars Hulk is a great representation of the character. Even as Banner, this figure still captures that slightly bewildered look the Hulk often had and I like that. Then again, if the moder modern take on the Hulk - as a force of unleashed rage - is your bag, then the Modern Hulk will be your figure of choice.

Either way, you'd be making a great choice to pick-up these figures, as both are great.

Scores
Secret Wars Hulk

Sculpt	B+
Paint	B
Articulation	C+
Production Quality	B+
Final Score	B+

Modern Hulk

Sculpt	B+
Paint	B+
Articulation	C+
Production Quality	B+
Final Score	B+

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