Journey Into Mystery #66
"The Return Of The Hulk!"
March, 1961
Story: Unknown
Pencils: Jack Kirby
Inks: Dick Ayers
The Hulk... the inhuman creature from another world, who threatened the
Earth. The giant alien had been defeated once, but read on for... "The
Return Of The Hulk!"
The Hulk has escaped from a prison planet in a distant galaxy. The ship
was unable to reach the alien's planet of origin, and traveled as far as
the solar system -- where it crashed. An Earthman located his
half-buried body at the edge of a hidden swamp... The electrician has
had experience with difficult tasks -- but maybe he should be able to
bring this dormant giant back to life. Unaware of the creature's true
nature, he worked tirelessly until the Hulk began to stir. It was at
this moment that the electrician became his prisoner. With its
tremendous power of the mind, the Hulk planned to hypnotize all of the
planet's inhabitants, and turn them into mindless slaves to serve him.
It took only forty-eight hours for the alien to carry out his threat...
with the Hulk commanding his slaves to build him a spaceship powerful
enough to return him back to his homeworld.
While the rest of the planet remained under hypnosis, the Hulk released
the electrician from his trance, and told him the fate of his world.
When the spaceship is launched, Earth will be thrown off its axis... the
vibrations will cause the world to explode. In order to save his planet,
the electrician came up with a plan... Two wires within the control
panel of the spaceship would prove to be mankind's salvation. The next
morning, the Hulk entered the craft, and prepared for launch. When the
controls were activated, the resulting short circuit glued the alien
creature to the control panel. The electrician guided the spaceship from
a remote control center on Earth. The ship now launched at a fraction of
the intended thrust, so that the planet would not be harmed. It headed
for the sun, where it would remain in orbit, and would stay there until
the end. When the Hulk left the planet, his hypnotic influence was
broken, and mankind awoke with no memory of what had occurred. Only the
electrician who had brought the Hulk to life knew what had happened. The
latest satellite to be seen in the sky was the intended prison for the
giant from another world.
Three months later, a small asteroid passed within a hundred yards of the
spaceship. The Hulk sees his chance and goes for it. With the last of
his mental power... he sends the energies out towards the passing
asteroid. With it under his control, the asteroid strikes the ship at
just the right angle, and the new course is set for Earth. While the
world slept, the Hulk had returned to the United States. Upon landing,
the electrical current which had held the alien captive was gone, and the
Hulk was now free to walk the Earth once more.
With his hypnotic powers diminished from controlling the asteroid, the
alien giant would be able to hypnotize only one man. Seeing carnival
wagons before him, the Hulk lumbers closer, and confronts the owner of
the once-thriving carnival. In seconds, the man is enslaved, and is told
what to do. The carnival finds its way into the town of Pineville, where
the citizens feast their eyes upon a most unusual sight. When asked by
the townspeople what the old man is hauling behind him, he tells them
that it is a robot. He is its creator and there will be a demonstration
at the theater this evening. They are all invited to attend and the
admission is free.
The townspeople gathered inside the theater to witness the robot
firsthand. When everyone has taken a seat, the old man turns towards the
hairy giant, and tells his master that his command has been fulfilled.
They hear him call the "robot" master. They hear him say that it was the
robot who commanded him. They now wonder what the heck it was they have
just walked into. The Hulk's voice is now heard within the theater, and
the townspeople now know fear. Before they can even escape, the Hulk
blocks the exit with his giant form, and addresses the captive audience.
Now with the townspeople trapped within the theater, the Hulk convinced
them of their peril, and began to lift up the building from its
foundation.
Now aware of the extent of the Hulk's strength, and after hearing his
threat to turn their home into a desolate valley, the townspeople have no
choice but to obey. If they wish their town to be spared, they must
follow his instructions. While the alien creature kept an entire town
captive, the electrician who had defeated the Hulk has lost sight of the
spaceship circling the sun, and wonders what happened to it. In
Pineville, the town is fenced off with barbed wire, and roadblocks are
erected to prevent both entry and exit. Once the town had been secured,
the Hulk sent the townspeople for much-needed supplies, for he was about
to construct something which has never been seen upon the planet. The
giant star-reflector will provide him with the necessary energy for mass
hypnosis. News of Pineville sealing itself off from the outside world
reaches the electrician, who knows that the supplies could be for a type
of reflector. He realizes that this must be the handiwork of the Hulk.
Since he was the only one who remained unhypnotized the last time, this
time, the electricians warnings fall upon deaf ears. Both the police and
the military regard him as a nuisance. The press are not interested in
the news he has brought them. Only the electrician stands a chance of
foiling the Hulk's plans. Twelve hours later, he arrives at Pineville,
and sees the giant alien using the reflector to absorb energy from the
stars. The Hulk will soon be able to enslave the planet once more, but
the electrician must stop him, or else mankind is doomed.
RRRRRRR RRRR RRRR As he crawls from under the fence, the Earthman
finds himself in danger, as the alarm alerts the Hulk to his presence.
Seeing the one who had defeated him last time, the Hulk confronts the
electrician who would dare to oppose him. The Earthman turns to flee,
with the hairy giant lumbering after him. With only a moment to come up
with a plan, he tries to hide behind a statue, with the Hulk's mighty
fist shattering it into so much debris.
The electrician heads for the oil refinery, with the alien creature close
behind. The electrician climbs up one of the large drums, where they
will have their final meeting, and where his plan must succeed.
With nowhere else to run, the Earthman must confront the onslaught of the
Hulk. The electrician listens to the beating of his heart pounding
loudly in his ears. He is now at the alien's mercy, and the Hulk has no
mercy. The Earthman hears the words he has hoped for... Instead of
crushing the life from him, the giant from another world plans to
hypnotize the electrician's very atoms -- and make them come apart. He
will be disintegrated -- reduced to nonexistence. The moment the Hulk
focused his attention upon the Earthman -- the very moment he applied his
devastating mental energy -- the electrician pulls out his "weapon" and
aims it towards him. The hairy giant sees what he's holding -- screams
in fear, and begs for him to put it away.
Although he continues to plead in vain, the electrician keeps his
"weapon" trained upon the Hulk... whose very existence endangers the
entire world -- the universe itself -- and he must be destroyed... With
his destruction, mankind will be able to continue on without fear. Now,
he is gone... forever. It had been his only chance. He had hoped that
the Hulk would not use his great strength -- but rely instead on his
hypnotic power. When it was used, the power was sent back at him by a
simple mirror. Before leaving Pineville, he makes a promise to the
townspeople... If anyone learns what took place there, the valley would
be crowded with curious tourists. The electrician keeps his promise and
remains silent. Back home, the reporters who had rebuffed him hear him
admit that there's no such thing as the Hulk.
This story was reprinted in Monsters On The Prowl #14 (December, 1971) as
"The Return of the Titan!"
The Grand Comics Database says that the job number came from Tom Lammers
and Ger Apeldoorn via the Atlas/Timely Discussion Group.
On the cover of Monsters On The Prowl #14 by Gil Kane, the startled
citizens are up to their nostrils in trouble from the "Return Of The
Titan!"
In the 1970's, the original Hulk was renamed "Xemnu The Titan".
The sight of the hairy white Hulk reminds me of the red hairy monster
from a Bugs Bunny cartoon.
With the metal helmet perched upon his head, the Hulk looks like the
world's largest Bar Mitzvah celebrant in the known universe.
With the alien giant's lumbering gait, the whole planet is his bottle,
and the entire Earth is one hairy foot away from its destruction.
Only in a Marvel Monster story can an electrician come upon a white hairy
giant in a swamp, and the first thing on his mind is to restore him to
life.
The unnamed electrician is a pipe smoker, and this quality probably
doesn't endear him to the authorities when he tries to tell his story.
After hearing about the odd assortment of supplies being brought into the
valley town, the electrician figures out that it can only be a reflector,
and his alien foe is behind it.
The anonymous Earthman should go on some game shows and seek out his
fortune.
Even when making his way under a fence in the dark, the electrician
manages to hang onto his hat.
Xemnu The Titan has fought the likes of the Incredible Hulk, the
Defenders, and the She-Hulk.
If the hairy alien giant from another world hadn't had his name changed,
would we be reading about Bruce Banner's adventures as "The Terrible
Titan"?
Steve Chung
"The Review Of The Hulk!"
"The Return Of The Hulk!"
March, 1961
Story: Unknown
Pencils: Jack Kirby
Inks: Dick Ayers
The Hulk... the inhuman creature from another world, who threatened the
Earth. The giant alien had been defeated once, but read on for... "The
Return Of The Hulk!"
The Hulk has escaped from a prison planet in a distant galaxy. The ship
was unable to reach the alien's planet of origin, and traveled as far as
the solar system -- where it crashed. An Earthman located his
half-buried body at the edge of a hidden swamp... The electrician has
had experience with difficult tasks -- but maybe he should be able to
bring this dormant giant back to life. Unaware of the creature's true
nature, he worked tirelessly until the Hulk began to stir. It was at
this moment that the electrician became his prisoner. With its
tremendous power of the mind, the Hulk planned to hypnotize all of the
planet's inhabitants, and turn them into mindless slaves to serve him.
It took only forty-eight hours for the alien to carry out his threat...
with the Hulk commanding his slaves to build him a spaceship powerful
enough to return him back to his homeworld.
While the rest of the planet remained under hypnosis, the Hulk released
the electrician from his trance, and told him the fate of his world.
When the spaceship is launched, Earth will be thrown off its axis... the
vibrations will cause the world to explode. In order to save his planet,
the electrician came up with a plan... Two wires within the control
panel of the spaceship would prove to be mankind's salvation. The next
morning, the Hulk entered the craft, and prepared for launch. When the
controls were activated, the resulting short circuit glued the alien
creature to the control panel. The electrician guided the spaceship from
a remote control center on Earth. The ship now launched at a fraction of
the intended thrust, so that the planet would not be harmed. It headed
for the sun, where it would remain in orbit, and would stay there until
the end. When the Hulk left the planet, his hypnotic influence was
broken, and mankind awoke with no memory of what had occurred. Only the
electrician who had brought the Hulk to life knew what had happened. The
latest satellite to be seen in the sky was the intended prison for the
giant from another world.
Three months later, a small asteroid passed within a hundred yards of the
spaceship. The Hulk sees his chance and goes for it. With the last of
his mental power... he sends the energies out towards the passing
asteroid. With it under his control, the asteroid strikes the ship at
just the right angle, and the new course is set for Earth. While the
world slept, the Hulk had returned to the United States. Upon landing,
the electrical current which had held the alien captive was gone, and the
Hulk was now free to walk the Earth once more.
With his hypnotic powers diminished from controlling the asteroid, the
alien giant would be able to hypnotize only one man. Seeing carnival
wagons before him, the Hulk lumbers closer, and confronts the owner of
the once-thriving carnival. In seconds, the man is enslaved, and is told
what to do. The carnival finds its way into the town of Pineville, where
the citizens feast their eyes upon a most unusual sight. When asked by
the townspeople what the old man is hauling behind him, he tells them
that it is a robot. He is its creator and there will be a demonstration
at the theater this evening. They are all invited to attend and the
admission is free.
The townspeople gathered inside the theater to witness the robot
firsthand. When everyone has taken a seat, the old man turns towards the
hairy giant, and tells his master that his command has been fulfilled.
They hear him call the "robot" master. They hear him say that it was the
robot who commanded him. They now wonder what the heck it was they have
just walked into. The Hulk's voice is now heard within the theater, and
the townspeople now know fear. Before they can even escape, the Hulk
blocks the exit with his giant form, and addresses the captive audience.
Now with the townspeople trapped within the theater, the Hulk convinced
them of their peril, and began to lift up the building from its
foundation.
Now aware of the extent of the Hulk's strength, and after hearing his
threat to turn their home into a desolate valley, the townspeople have no
choice but to obey. If they wish their town to be spared, they must
follow his instructions. While the alien creature kept an entire town
captive, the electrician who had defeated the Hulk has lost sight of the
spaceship circling the sun, and wonders what happened to it. In
Pineville, the town is fenced off with barbed wire, and roadblocks are
erected to prevent both entry and exit. Once the town had been secured,
the Hulk sent the townspeople for much-needed supplies, for he was about
to construct something which has never been seen upon the planet. The
giant star-reflector will provide him with the necessary energy for mass
hypnosis. News of Pineville sealing itself off from the outside world
reaches the electrician, who knows that the supplies could be for a type
of reflector. He realizes that this must be the handiwork of the Hulk.
Since he was the only one who remained unhypnotized the last time, this
time, the electricians warnings fall upon deaf ears. Both the police and
the military regard him as a nuisance. The press are not interested in
the news he has brought them. Only the electrician stands a chance of
foiling the Hulk's plans. Twelve hours later, he arrives at Pineville,
and sees the giant alien using the reflector to absorb energy from the
stars. The Hulk will soon be able to enslave the planet once more, but
the electrician must stop him, or else mankind is doomed.
RRRRRRR RRRR RRRR As he crawls from under the fence, the Earthman
finds himself in danger, as the alarm alerts the Hulk to his presence.
Seeing the one who had defeated him last time, the Hulk confronts the
electrician who would dare to oppose him. The Earthman turns to flee,
with the hairy giant lumbering after him. With only a moment to come up
with a plan, he tries to hide behind a statue, with the Hulk's mighty
fist shattering it into so much debris.
The electrician heads for the oil refinery, with the alien creature close
behind. The electrician climbs up one of the large drums, where they
will have their final meeting, and where his plan must succeed.
With nowhere else to run, the Earthman must confront the onslaught of the
Hulk. The electrician listens to the beating of his heart pounding
loudly in his ears. He is now at the alien's mercy, and the Hulk has no
mercy. The Earthman hears the words he has hoped for... Instead of
crushing the life from him, the giant from another world plans to
hypnotize the electrician's very atoms -- and make them come apart. He
will be disintegrated -- reduced to nonexistence. The moment the Hulk
focused his attention upon the Earthman -- the very moment he applied his
devastating mental energy -- the electrician pulls out his "weapon" and
aims it towards him. The hairy giant sees what he's holding -- screams
in fear, and begs for him to put it away.
Although he continues to plead in vain, the electrician keeps his
"weapon" trained upon the Hulk... whose very existence endangers the
entire world -- the universe itself -- and he must be destroyed... With
his destruction, mankind will be able to continue on without fear. Now,
he is gone... forever. It had been his only chance. He had hoped that
the Hulk would not use his great strength -- but rely instead on his
hypnotic power. When it was used, the power was sent back at him by a
simple mirror. Before leaving Pineville, he makes a promise to the
townspeople... If anyone learns what took place there, the valley would
be crowded with curious tourists. The electrician keeps his promise and
remains silent. Back home, the reporters who had rebuffed him hear him
admit that there's no such thing as the Hulk.
This story was reprinted in Monsters On The Prowl #14 (December, 1971) as
"The Return of the Titan!"
The Grand Comics Database says that the job number came from Tom Lammers
and Ger Apeldoorn via the Atlas/Timely Discussion Group.
On the cover of Monsters On The Prowl #14 by Gil Kane, the startled
citizens are up to their nostrils in trouble from the "Return Of The
Titan!"
In the 1970's, the original Hulk was renamed "Xemnu The Titan".
The sight of the hairy white Hulk reminds me of the red hairy monster
from a Bugs Bunny cartoon.
With the metal helmet perched upon his head, the Hulk looks like the
world's largest Bar Mitzvah celebrant in the known universe.
With the alien giant's lumbering gait, the whole planet is his bottle,
and the entire Earth is one hairy foot away from its destruction.
Only in a Marvel Monster story can an electrician come upon a white hairy
giant in a swamp, and the first thing on his mind is to restore him to
life.
The unnamed electrician is a pipe smoker, and this quality probably
doesn't endear him to the authorities when he tries to tell his story.
After hearing about the odd assortment of supplies being brought into the
valley town, the electrician figures out that it can only be a reflector,
and his alien foe is behind it.
The anonymous Earthman should go on some game shows and seek out his
fortune.
Even when making his way under a fence in the dark, the electrician
manages to hang onto his hat.
Xemnu The Titan has fought the likes of the Incredible Hulk, the
Defenders, and the She-Hulk.
If the hairy alien giant from another world hadn't had his name changed,
would we be reading about Bruce Banner's adventures as "The Terrible
Titan"?
Steve Chung
"The Review Of The Hulk!"
