One of the bestHulkscenes theMCUhas produced came from an ad, not from any MCU movie, and I can’t quite get my head around it. It is a commonly held belief that Hulk has been somewhat underserved by the MCU, with just one solo movie under his belt to fully flesh out the otherwise incredibly compelling character duo that is Hulk and Bruce Banner.Hulk is instead confined to Avengers moviesand the solo ventures of other characters like Thor and his cousin, Jennifer Walters.
Worse still is the fact thatSavage Hulk was sidelinedas ofAvengers: Infinity War. After being summarily pummelled by Thanos aboard the Statesman, Hulk retreated from the MCU out of either fear or shame, with the Savage Hulk persona still being sidelined in favor of Bruce Banner’s. Now, Smart Hulk feels confined to more cerebral matters, with his greatest scene in his last cinematic appearance,Avengers: Endgame, arguably being the moment he Blipped everybody back to life. Now, we may never get to see Hulk engaging in one of his iconic rampages again.
The Hulk’s Rampages Were Historically The Best Scenes In His MCU Story
These Moments Showcased Hulk’s Superpowers
Some of SavageHulk’s most defining scenes in the MCUwere his rampages.The AvengersandAvengers: Age of Ultronwere at least filled with these scenes, with Hulk laying waste to an army of Chitauri, a Leviathan, and Loki inThe Avengersalone. Meanwhile, the dangers Hulk poses to both civilization and his superhero teammates were laid bare inAvengers: Age of Ultron, when Wanda Maximoff warped his mind to provoke a rampage through Johannesburg, allowing Iron Man to debut his Hulkbuster suit.
While Bruce Banner is also a valuable asset to the Avengers for his genius, the fact that two of his greatest feats, creating Ultron and time travel, both required the help of Tony Stark, shows that this isn’t exactly the main thing he brings to the table.
This is where Hulk demonstrates what makes him such a formidable part of the team. While Bruce Banner is also a valuable asset to the Avengers for his genius, the fact that two of his greatest feats, creating Ultron and time travel, both required the help of Tony Stark, shows that this isn’t exactly the main thing he brings to the table. Instead,Hulk’s combined strength and no-holds-barred brutality have always been a unique selling pointfor the character.
One Of The Hulk’s Last MCU Rampages Showed Up Where You Might Least Expect It
Hulk And Ant-Man Starred In An Add For Coca-Cola
Back in 2016, Coca-Cola partnered with Marvel Studios for an ad. In it, a suited-up Ant-Man sneaks into Bruce Banner’s lab to steal a small can of Coke.This provokes Hulk into emerging before proceeding to chase Ant-Man through the city streetsand threatening him into returning the drink. The ad then ends with Hulk struggling to open the can with his giant hands, before Ant-Man offers his aid.
Sure, the ad is short and sweet, but I have to admit thatthe short action sequence featuring Hulk makes me feel nostalgic for a time when this was the normfor the Jade Giant. The ad showcases him achieving such characteristic feats as super-jumping and clinging to the sides of buildings, and concludes with a humorous moment where Hulk’s size and impatience see him struggle with the process of opening a can, highlighting his childish persona. Now, I miss the days of Savage Hulk even more.
Hulk Would Only Reappear Properly In One More Movie
The Coca-Cola ad was released in 2016, a year afterAvengers: Age of Ultronand one year beforeThor: Ragnarok. The latter would be the last time thatSavage Hulk would be spotlighted, withhis next appearance inAvengers: Infinity Warbeing as brief as it was humiliating. This means that this ad, which spotlights Hulk at the height of his Avengers career, was one of the last times that we got to enjoy seeing Savage Hulk in all his glory on-screen.
Smart Hulk is an adaptation of Marvel Comics' Professor Hulk persona.
Smart Hulk has now been a part of the MCU for six years and hasn’t been nearly as activeas his predecessor. WhileShe-Hulk: Attorney at Lawteased a return in the future with the arrival of Hulk’s son, Skaar, Mark Ruffalo was worryingly excluded from theAvengers: Doomsdaycast announcement. Not only do I hope that this will soon be rectified by an additional cast announcement down the line, but I also hope that this will herald a return for the SavageHulkpersona, granting him at least one last rampage before he potentially steps aside aftera rumored MCU soft reboot.
