Editing Hulk (section)

{{Short description|Marvel Comics Character}}
{{Redirect-multi|3|Bruce Banner|The Hulk|The Incredible Hulk|the Marvel Cinematic Universe character|Bruce Banner (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|other uses|Hulk (disambiguation)|and|The Incredible Hulk (disambiguation)}}
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{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2016}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2016}}
{{Infobox comics character<!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics-->
| character_name = Bruce Banner<br />{{small|Hulk}}
| image          = Hulk (circa 2019).png
| caption        = Cover art for the comic book issue ''[[The Immortal Hulk (comic book)|The Immortal Hulk]]'' #20 (July 2019)<br>Art by [[Dale Keown]] and [[Peter Steigerwald]]
| converted      = y
| publisher      = [[Marvel Comics]]
| debut          = ''[[The Incredible Hulk (comic book)|The Incredible Hulk]]'' #1 (May 1962)
| creators       = [[Stan Lee]]<br>[[Jack Kirby]]
| full name      = {{ubl|Robert Bruce Banner<ref name=CBR>{{cite web|url= http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/11/03/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-23/|title= Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #23|first= Brian|last= Cronin|date= November 3, 2005|website = [[Comic Book Resources]]|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150427015712/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/11/03/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-23|archive-date= April 27, 2015|url-status= dead|quote= [Stan] Lee began referring (for more than a couple of months) to the Incredible Hulk's [[Alter ego]] as 'Bob Banner' rather than the 'Bruce Banner' that he was originally named. Responding to criticism of the goof, Stan Lee, in issue #28 of the ''Fantastic Four'', laid out how he was going to handle the situation, 'There's only one thing to do-we're not going to take the cowardly way out. From now on his name is Robert Bruce Banner-so we can't go wrong no matter WHAT we call him!'}}</ref>}}
| species= Human mutate{{efn|name=mutate|In Marvel comics, the term "mutate" is used as a noun to designate characters that received superpowers from an external source, as opposed to Marvel's [[Mutant (Marvel Comics)|mutants]].}}
| alliances      = [[Avengers (comics)|Avengers]]<br>[[Defenders (comics)|Defenders]]<br>[[Horsemen of Apocalypse]]<br>[[Fantastic Four]]<ref>{{cite comic|writer= [[Walt Simonson|Simonson, Walt]]|penciller= [[Arthur Adams (comics)|Adams, Arthur]]|inker= [[Art Thibert|Thibert, Art]]|story= Big Trouble on Little Earth!|title= Fantastic Four|issue= 347|date= December 1990}}</ref><br>[[Pantheon (Marvel Comics)|Pantheon]]<br>[[Warbound]]<br>[[Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H.|S.M.A.S.H.]]<br>[[Secret Avengers]]
| partners       = [[She-Hulk]]
| aliases        = The Incredible Hulk, Joe Fixit, World-Breaker, [[Devil Hulk]], Jade Giant, Jade Jaws,<ref>''World War Hulk: Gamma Files'' #1</ref> Doc Green, [[Guilt Hulk|Guilt Hulk/Guilt]], [[Horsemen of Apocalypse|War]]

|powers         = {{collapsible list
 | titlestyle = background:transparent;text-align:left;font-weight:normal;
 |title = ''See list''
 |{{small|'''As Bruce Banner:'''}}
*[[Genius]] level intellect
*Proficient scientist and engineer
{{small|'''As Hulk:'''}}
*[[Superhuman strength|Enormous superhuman strength]], [[Speedster (fiction)|speed]], stamina, [[agility]], reflexes, senses, durability, endurance, and longevity
*Invulnerability
*Anger empowerment
*[[Regeneration (biology)|Regeneration]]
*Super jumps
*Shockwave generation
*Energy absorption
*[[Gamma ray]] emission and manipulation
*Ability to breathe underwater, breathe in space and see ghosts and other astral entities
}}
| cat     = super
| subcat  = Marvel Comics
| sortkey = Hulk (comics)
}}

The '''Hulk''' is a [[superhero]] appearing in [[American comic books]] published by [[Marvel Comics]]. Created by writer [[Stan Lee]] and artist [[Jack Kirby]], the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''[[The Incredible Hulk (comic book)|The Incredible Hulk]]'' (May 1962). In his comic book appearances, the character, who has [[dissociative identity disorder]] (DID), is primarily represented by the [[alter ego]] Hulk, an immense, green-skinned, hulking brute, possessing a limitless degree of physical strength, and the alter ego '''Dr. Robert Bruce Banner''', a physically weak, socially withdrawn, and emotionally reserved physicist, both of whom typically resent each other.

Following his accidental exposure to [[gamma ray]]s while saving the life of [[Rick Jones (character)|Rick Jones]] during the detonation of an experimental bomb, Banner is physically transformed into the Hulk when subjected to emotional stress, at or against his will. This transformation often leads to destructive rampages and conflicts that complicate Banner's civilian life. The Hulk's level of strength is usually conveyed proportionate to his anger level. Commonly portrayed as a raging savage, the Hulk has been represented with other alter egos, from a mindless, destructive force ('''[[Horsemen of Apocalypse#Hulk|War]]''') to a brilliant warrior ('''World-Breaker'''), a [[Self-hatred|self-hating]] protector (the '''[[Devil Hulk]]'''), a genius scientist in his own right ('''Doc Green'''), and a [[gangster]] ('''Joe Fixit''').

Despite Hulk and Banner's desire for solitude, the character has a large supporting cast. This includes Banner's love interest [[Betty Ross]], his best friend, [[Rick Jones (character)|Rick Jones]], his cousin [[She-Hulk]], and therapist and ally [[Doc Samson]]. In addition, the Hulk alter ego has many key supporting characters, like his co-founders of the superhero team the [[Avengers (comics)|Avengers]], his queen [[Caiera]], fellow warriors [[Korg (character)|Korg]] and [[Miek]], and sons [[Skaar (character)|Skaar]] and [[Hiro-Kala]]. However, his uncontrollable power has brought him into conflict with his fellow heroes and others. Despite this, he tries his best to do what's right while battling villains such as the [[Leader (character)|Leader]], the [[Abomination (character)|Abomination]], the [[Absorbing Man]], and more.

Lee stated that the Hulk's creation was inspired by a combination of ''[[Frankenstein's monster|Frankenstein]]'' and ''[[Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (character)|Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde]]''.<ref name="HulkTIG">{{Cite book | last=DeFalco | first=Tom | title=The Hulk: The Incredible Guide | publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]] | date=2003 | location=London, United Kingdom | page=200 | isbn=978-0-7894-9260-9 | url=https://archive.org/details/hulkincrediblegu0000defa | url-access=registration }}</ref> Although the Hulk's coloration has varied throughout the character's publication history, the usual color is green.

One of the most iconic characters in popular culture,<ref name="HulkIconic"/><ref name="HulkIconic2"/> the character has appeared on a variety of merchandise, such as clothing and collectable items, inspired real-world structures (such as theme park attractions), and been referenced in several media. Banner and the Hulk have been adapted into live-action, animated, and video game incarnations.

The character was first played in live-action by [[Bill Bixby]] and [[Lou Ferrigno]] in the 1978 television series ''[[The Incredible Hulk (1978 TV series)|The Incredible Hulk]]'' and its subsequent television films ''[[The Incredible Hulk Returns]]'' (1988), ''[[The Trial of the Incredible Hulk]]'' (1989), and ''[[The Death of the Incredible Hulk]]'' (1990). In the 2003 film ''[[Hulk (film)|Hulk]]'', the character was played by [[Eric Bana]]. In the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]] (MCU), [[Bruce Banner (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|the character]] was first portrayed by [[Edward Norton]] in the film ''[[The Incredible Hulk (film)|The Incredible Hulk]]'' (2008) and then by [[Mark Ruffalo]] in later appearances in the franchise.