Jennifer Walters has survived the Civil War, but not unscathed. On December 28, she rises from the rubble, re-entering the world as a different kind of hero in the brand new HULK #1! Marvel is pleased to present your look inside the debut issue from Eisner Award-winning writer Mariko Tamaki (This One Summer) and rising star artist Nico Leon (SPIDER-MAN)! Be there as they chronicle the ongoing adventures of Jennifer Walters – and bring you a Hulk book for Marvel NOW! the likes of which you’ve never seen before!

Following the traumatic events of Civil War II, Jen is determined to move forward, to go on with her life. But there is something bubbling under the surface. A quiet rage. The physical and mental wounds are still fresh. The pain of the past and all she’s lost is always there – an undercurrent, a pulse, waiting to quicken and trigger her transformation into the one thing she doesn’t have control over…the HULK! Jennifer Walters’ greatest battle is about to begin. One that will pit her against the monster inside. Can she control the rage that consumed her cousin Bruce for so long? Or will she succumb to it? Find out when Tamaki and Leon bring you the can’t-miss HULK #1 – coming to comic shops and digital devices on December 28!

HULK #1 (OCT160788)
Written by MARIKO TAMAKI
Art by NICO LEON
Cover by JEFF DEKAL
Variant Cover by PIA GUERRA (OCT160791) and DALE KEOWN (OCT160789)
Action Figure Variant by JOHN TYLER CHRISTOPHER (OCT160794)
Hip-Hop Variant by RAHZZAH (OCT160793)
Classic Variant by JUNE BRIGMAN (OCT160792)
Young Variant by SKOTTIE YOUNG (OCT160790)
ICX Variant Also Available (OCT160795)
FOC – 12/5/16, On-Sale – 12/28/16

The original Defenders formed when Doctor Strange realized he needed some muscle in the form of Hulk and Namor to take on a threat. Since then, the founders—plus Silver Surfer who joined not long after—have infrequently called on one another for aid.

As the new DEFENDERS title debuted in 2012, writer Matt Fraction utilized The Hulk and the Fear Itself event to set Doctor Strange, Namor, Silver Surfer, Red She-Hulk, and Iron Fist on a mission to stop Nul, a threat even more dangerous than a berserk Jade Giant. But that proved just the opening salvo of a year long journey that not only threatened all life on Earth, but also explained what makes the planet such a special place filled with amazing heroes.

To tell the story, Fraction teamed up with artists Terry Dodson, Michael Lark, Mitch Breitweiser, Victor Ibanez, Jamie McKelvie, Mike Norton and Mirco Pierfederici. After taking care of Nul, the Defenders discovered a strange, reality-altering device dubbed the Concordance Engine that fueled the rest of their adventures in the 12-issue series.

Defenders (2011) #1

• Published: December 07, 2011
• Added to Marvel Unlimited: January 25, 2013
• Writer: Matt Fraction
• Cover Artist: Terry Dodson

Read Buy Digital Copy

What is Marvel Unlimited?

Along the way, the group lost Namor for a time but picked up Black Cat, Scott “Ant Man” Lang, and an alternate dimension Nick Fury from the 60’s. Doctor Strange accidentally brought an old flame back to life, Iron Fist fought his fellow Immortal Weapon John Aman, and reality bent as they dug further into the truth behind the Engines.

As Silver Surfer discovered and John Aman later explained, a group of incredibly powerful beings seeded Earth with the potential to defend against those who seek to destroy worlds in search of the new, otherwise known as the Death Celestials. The engines actually bent physics and probability in the favor of the heroes who would fend off destruction at the hands of the Death Celestials.

Before long the truth came to light: in moving one of the Concordance Engines, the Defenders screwed up the whole plan, allowing the Death Celestials to more easily overtake the planet. To combat the problem, Doctor Strange used the Concordance Engine itself to travel back in time in his cosmic form to alter the day Hulk asked him for help in the first issue. Not only did Past Stephen make good on a previously bad choice, but Future Stephen saved the world by essentially erasing all their meddling.

Opening the Book of Vishanti

While still important to the overall story, DEFENDERS #4 acted as a Doctor Strange solo story. In the first issue he slept with a college student named Molly interested in the arcane and didn’t treat her too well afterwards. At the time he didn’t realize how lonely he had had been, but that changed when an old flame named Martha appeared out of nowhere. The problem? She was supposed to be dead. Stephen posited that he accidentally conjured her up not through magic but thanks to his proximity to the Concordance Engine.

For over 50 years, the Incredible Hulk has been smashing his way through the Marvel Universe and into the hearts of fans. Whether you’ve discovered the tale of Bruce Banner and his other self through comics, TV, or film, get the whole story here…

Hulk and the Defenders invaded Atlantis in DEFENDERS #11 to restore their comrade Namor to the throne, and in DEFENDERS #12 warded off an attack by strange stone creatures. When the jade giant returned to the side of his non-team partners in THE ORDER #1, he joined them in a reign of terror against cities across the globe.

The other Defenders discovered the core personalities of Hulk, Doctor Strange, Namor, and The Silver Surfer to be missing in THE ORDER #2, and when they failed to defeat their comrades, the Avengers swept in to engage the now-evil group. As Earth’s Mightiest Heroes fought valiantly against the Hulk and his partners in THE ORDER #3, the Defenders rallied to gather Namorita, Clea, and She-Hulk to aid them against their male counterparts.

Stabbed with a mystic blade in THE ORDER #4, Silver Surfer unwittingly created his own female counterpart, Ardina. Later, Hulk helped send the Defenders into exile to the planet Yann in THE ORDER #5, where the heroes learned of a way to break Yandroth’s curse on their comrades. As Earth’s heroes continued their struggle, the Defenders restored the Hulk’s true self as well as his friends’ personalities in THE ORDER #6 and broke Yandroth’s hold on them.

In INCREDIBLE HULK #34, Bruce Banner found himself on the run again and his alter-ego accused of the death of a young boy, Ricky Myers. Federal agents joined the hunt in INCREDIBLE HULK #35, as well as a woman named Sandra Verdugo and Banner’s old rival Doc Samson in INCREDIBLE HULK #36.

Incredible Hulk (1999) #34

• Published: January 01, 2002
• Added to Marvel Unlimited: April 28, 2007
• Rating: T
• Writer: Bruce Jones
• Penciller: John Romita
• Cover Artist: Kaare Andrews

Read

What is Marvel Unlimited?

All the pursuers convened in INCREDIBLE HULK #37 to face off against Hulk in a small diner in INCREDIBLE HULK #38. Sandra managed to capture Banner’s laptop in INCREDIBLE HULK #39, and then revealed to the scientist that she and Samson lost their son: Ricky Myers.

Bruce Banner stood in the way of a convenience store hold-up in INCREDIBLE HULK #40, and while holding Hulk back from emerging during the crisis in INCREDIBLE HULK #41 ended up in the crosshairs of Agent Pratt, a representative of a shadowy government cell. Pratt went after the rampaging green behemoth in INCREDIBLE HULK #42, but when faced with his opponent in INCREDIBLE HULK #43 he seemingly died during the battle.

The secret organization placed a camera in Doc Samson’s eye in INCREDIBLE HULK #44 to spy on Bruce Banner, who ran once again in INCREDIBLE HULK #45 only to run headlong into a resurrected Agent Pratt. When Banner wound up in a hospital afterward in INCREDIBLE HULK #46, Pratt kidnapped him and offered a few explanations for who and what he seemed to be.

You didn’t need to be Ulysses to see that Civil War II would change the face of the Marvel Universe. And with only a matter of weeks before the final issue of CIVIL WAR II sees the light of day on December 28, we look back on some of the most shocking game-changers from the first seven issues of the series.

It’s War (Again)!
Last December, Marvel announced a second super hero civil war 10 years after the first one, which rocked the Marvel Universe for years to follow. It only makes sense then that this moment provides us with our first game-changer. As [series editor] Tom Breevort said at the time “neither [side] being painted as absolutely right or absolutely wrong” might force readers out of their traditional camps to consider other viewpoints.

If we know anything from the initial Civil War, scars ran deep and no doubt, the heroes and fans alike will feel after effects from this family feud for years to come.

War Machine: Out of Order
When the Avengers set an ambush to bring in Thanos, thanks to the use of Ulysses’ precognitive powers, few expected the cost to include War Machine’s death. This event lit the fire that became Civil War II with Tony Stark seeking to prevent similar tragedies from occurring while Carol Danvers still believed in restricting criminals, such as Thanos, of their freedom to act.

Hulk DOWN!
With War Machine dead and She-Hulk in critical condition, the Avengers soon faced yet another staggering loss with the death of one of its founding members: The Incredible Hulk. Recognizing his capacity for destruction, Bruce Banner created a failsafe to prevent further Hulk-fueled havoc that would result in his death. Only fans had no idea just what that “failsafe” would look like…

BULLSEYE! Give the Man 20 Years to Life!
Few would accuse Hawkeye of fitting the same super hero mold as Captain America or Spider-Man, but as Bruce Banner understood, sometimes being heroic means doing the things no one else will do. Given how often Clint Barton received the call for those kinds of missions on behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D., it should have come as no surprise when readers discovered him as Banner’s failsafe, as he killed his longtime friend and fellow Avenger to halt another Hulk incident.

Civil War II #8 cover by Marko Djurdjevic

Tony Stark Goes Black Ops
Although many readers no doubt questioned Carol Danvers’ use of precognitive policing, Tony Stark crossed a line of his own when he not only kidnapped Ulysses from the Inhumans’ compound but also tortured the young man and conducted non-consensual tests on him. Although Tony used this information to discover Ulysses’ powers were fallible and based only on probability, it failed to convince Captain Marvel to stand down. Further, it failed to convince many readers of Tony’s moral high ground.

Let’s Get Ready to Ruuummmbbbllleee!!!
By the fourth and fifth issues of CIVIL WAR II, the super hero fight began, and for fans of fantasy battles, the major teams found themselves duking it out for all to see. Of course, some heroes seemed to take some real pleasure in finally getting to lay the smack down on each other. Once the dust settles from this drawn-out slobber knocker, however, the question remains of how—or if—they will ever stand side-by-side again?

Did Carol Just Do What We Think She Did …
At the end of CIVIL WAR II #7, we see Iron Man confronting Captain Marvel on the steps of the Capitol in a suit that looks like a super-sized version of War Machine’s armor. This time, Carol plays the role of Thanos as she delivers a shot so powerful that, once again, we see another War Machine fall…

Get the big finish in CIVIL WAR II #8, available December 28 from Brian Michael Bendis and David Marquez!

Face front, True Believers and prepare for the return of the iconic Marvel Corner Boxes! Marvel is pleased to announce a series of over 20 Corner Box Variant Covers, coming to select comics throughout the month of February! All rendered by legendary artist Joe Jusko, these covers feature lush paintings inspired by the classic Marvel corner box artwork of yesterday!

“We’re elated to have Joe Jusko do a series of variant covers based on the classic Marvel corner boxes,” says Marvel SVP Sales & Marketing David Gabriel. “Joe perfectly recaptures what made that artwork so iconic in the first place, and he’s bringing that sense of gravitas to some brand new Marvel Corner Boxes featuring modern characters like Spider-Gwen, Deadpool and more.”

Marvel is pleased to reveal the first eight Corner Box Variants, coming to these February titles:

1.       AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #24

2.       AVENGERS #4

3.       CAPTAIN AMERICA: STEVE ROGERS #11

4.       DAREDEVIL #17

5.       HULK #3

6.       INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #4

7.       INHUMANS VS. X-MEN #4

8.       ULTIMATES2 #4

Plus, be on the lookout for more Marvel Corner Box Variants, featuring loving recreations of classic corner boxes and brand new ones highlighting contemporary characters:

1.       BLACK PANTHER #11

2.       CHAMPIONS #5

3.       DEADPOOL #26

4.       DOCTOR STRANGE #17

5.       GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #17

6.       THE MIGHTY THOR #13

7.       NOVA #3

8.       SPIDER-GWEN #17

9.       THANOS #4

10.   THE MIGHTY CAPTAIN MARVEL #2

11.   THE PUNISHER #10

12.   UNCANNY AVENGERS #20

13.   VENOM #4

Run, don’t walk to your local comic shop this February to get your hands on these can’t-miss CORNER BOX VARIANT COVERS!

It’s the first of December and what other way to start a new month than with a brand new episode of This Week in Marvel!

Ben and Ryan tackle this week’s new comic releases, including GHOST RIDER, IVX, NEW AVENGERS, and more! Marc and Christine cover film and TV news. Plus, we answer your questions, comments, and emails on This Week in Marvel #266! Tweet your questions and comments using #ThisWeekinMarvel, and email us at twimpodcast@marvel.com!

Read THOR THE MIGHTY AVENGER  for the next This Week in Marvel Unlimited Reading Club and share your thoughts using the hashtag #TWIMURC!

Download episode #266 of This Week in Marvel from Marvel.com, check out Marvel Podcast Central, grab the TWiM RSS feed and subscribe to This Week in Marvel on iTunes, so you never miss an episode! We are now also on Soundcloud! Head over now to our new hub to listen to the full run of This Week in Marvel including our latest episode!

This Week in Marvel will focus on delivering all the Marvel info on news and new releases–from comics to video games to toys to TV to film and beyond! New episodes will be released every Thursday (or so) and TWiM is co-hosted by Marvel VP & Executive Editor of Digital Media Ryan “Agent M” Penagos and Marvel Editorial Director of Digital Media Ben Morse, along with Marvel.com Editor Marc Strom, Marvel.com Assistant Editor Christine Dinh, and Manager of Video & Content Production Blake Garris. We also want your feedback, as well as questions for us to answer on future episodes!  Tweet your questions, comments and thoughts about TWiM to @AgentM, @BenJMorse, @chrissypedia or @Marvel with the hashtag #ThisWeekinMarvel!