After reviewing the film version of The Incredible Hulk a short time ago; it came as a rather interesting opportunity to review the entire collection of the old school television series. Childhood memories have me remembering a few things in particular about the series, but not many considering I haven’t seen a single episode in over fifteen years easy. I recall how awesome Lou Ferrigno looked at the time painted green and being the Hulk, and I also remember the ending credits where Bruce Banner hitchhiked to slow piano music. Checking out this whole series in one collection would be more then worthwhile for me, but for those that already bought any of the five seasons; you may just want to keep purchasing them all separately to complete your set because there’s nothing new to be found.
Believe it or not, the two feature films dealing with Hulk brought more of a storyline then all five seasons of the television series combined. In a nutshell, David Banner (Bruce in the comics and films) was exposed to gamma radiation and now when he can’t control his anger; it shows itself in the form of a giant green monster living inside of him. He now travels all around to different cities in hopes of finding a cure for his problem. If that isn’t possible, then maybe he’ll at least be able to rest for a while before moving on down the road. Sadly though, his rest or research usually never happens because Banner ends up hulking out to help someone in trouble and save the day. But no-one ever can comprehend why the green giant shows up and therefore Banner must move on to avoid any trouble and hopefully find out how to get back to normal.
There is no real rhyme or reason other then that for the entire series and it somehow survived five seasons on the air before going the way of cancellation heaven. Don’t go expecting much else in way of plot development or storyline because you won’t get much more then that. And I hope you’re not looking for any fancy special effects and all that either because let’s face it people, this was the seventies and early eighties. Bill Bixby plays David Banner and when it’s time for the Hulk to come into the picture, Lou Ferrigno takes over in tattered purple shorts and green body paint. It’s corny, cheesy, and just downright laughable at times, but it’s still pretty fun to watch.
The Incredible Hulk will get boring from time to time merely because each episode is almost exactly the same as the last. You’re going to find yourself wanting to skip episodes and just jump around to find random ones to watch, and there is no problem with that because it’s not like anything carries over from episode to episode. There’s really not much else to say about the series because it is pretty cut and dry throughout every season, but for some reason I’m drawn to it every once and again. Maybe it’s just because I remember watching this show as a kid and it brings back some memories for me, but other then that…I don’t get much out of it.
And no, that doesn’t make me angry.
Episodes
Season One
Disc One:
Pilot: The Incredible Hulk
The Incredible Hulk: Death In The Family
Disc Two:
The Final Round
Of Guilt, Models And Murder
The Beast Within
Terror In Times Square
Disc Three:
747
Never Give A Trucker An Even Break
The Hulk Breaks Las Vegas
Life And Death
Disc Four:
Earthquakes Happen
The Waterfront Story
Season Two
Disc One:
Married [AKA: “Bride Of The Incredible Hulk”]
The Antowuk Horror
Ricky
Disc Two:
Rainbow’s End
A Child In Need
Another Path
Alice In Disco Land
Killer Instinct
Disc Three:
Stop The Presses
Escape From Los Santos
Wildfire
A Solitary Place
Like A Brother
Disc Four:
The Haunted
Mystery Man [Part 1]
Mystery Man [Part 2]
The Disciple
No Escape
Disc Five:
Kindred Spirits
The Confession
The Quiet Room
Vendetta Road
Season Three
Disc One:
Metamorphosis
Blind Rage
Brain Child
The Slam
Disc Two:
My Favorite Magician
Jake
Behind The Wheel
Homecoming
The Snare
Disc Three:
Babalao
Captive Night
Broken Image
Proof Positive
Sideshow
Disc Four:
Long Run Home
Falling Angels
The Lottery
The Psychic
A Rock And A Hard Place
Disc Five:
Deathmask
Equinox
Nine Hours
On The Line
Season Four
Disc One:
Prometheus Part 1
Prometheus Part 2
Free Fall
Dark Side
Disc Two:
Deep Shock
Bring Me The Head Of The Hulk
Fast Lane
Goodbye, Eddie Cain
King Of The Beach
Disc Three:
Wax Museum
East Winds
The First Part 1
The First Part 2
The Harder They Fall
Disc Four:
Interview With The Hulk
Half Nelson
Danny
Patterns
Season Five
Disc One:
The Phenom
Two Godmothers
Veteran
Sanctuary
Disc Two:
Triangle
Slaves
A Minor Problem
The episodes are shown in 1.33:1 Full Screen format and they really don’t look that good. A lot of grain is evident and the colors are rather dull, but the series is over twenty years old. Still, there could have been some touch-ups done to make it look a little more decent.
The episodes are heard in Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround Sound and it actually is fine even though it doesn’t appear to have been remastered at all either. Everything can be heard clearly.
“The Incredible Hulk” Episode Commentary (Season One) – Creator Kenneth Johnson talks a lot during this episode about how the series came about and became what it was through all five seasons. He talks about filming locations, casting, and just about everything that could come about from creating a television series.
“Stop The Presses” From Season Two (Season One) – This is merely an episode from the second season.
Bonus Episode From Season Three: “Homecoming” (Season Two) – Again, exactly what it says it is, the episode entitled “Homecoming” from season three.
A Behind The Scenes Look At The Incredible Hulk Featuring Interview With Edward Norton (Season Three) – Nothing more then a four minute look at the feature film with star Edward Norton.
Remembering “The Incredible Hulk”: An American Classic (Season Three) –
Audio Commentary On “Prometheus” (Season Four) – Creator Kenneth Johnson sits alone for both parts of the “Prometheus” episode and sheds a lot of light on such a simplistic series. He had a great deal of affection for Bill Bixby and it shows here and he also cared dearly about the series itself.
Creating An Iconic Character: The Hulk (Season Four) – I like this ten minute feature a lot as it shows how they took the comic book creature and molded it into a live form. It may not be long in length, but it gives a lot of information on how they got the look for Ferrigno and now they wanted him to act when in Hulk form.
Inside An Episode: “Prometheus” Photo Gallery (Season Four) – Just a bunch of stills from that particular episode.
A Behind-The-Scenes Look A The Incredible Hulk Featuring Interview With Edward Norton (Season Four) – This is exactly the same featurette included with the season three extras.
Behind The Success: The Story Of The Incredible Hulk (Season Five) – Creator Kenneth Johnson and some of the different writers from the series sit down and discuss how it was making some of the episodes and other things that happened during filming and production. This feature runs just around eighteen minutes.
Gag Reel (Season Five) – This six minute gag feature is actually really good and quite hilarious. Bixby goes off a few times to mess people up and the flubbed lines and mistakes are quite the laugh riot.
It starts out with a bang and then quickly drifts off into the midst of being extremely mediocre. The reason that happens is because of the similarities in each episode and the monotony that starts soon after the first couple episodes. The Incredible Hulk is a fun series if watched in small amounts and over time if you wish to get the entire series in, but don’t sit through it for big stretches. If you have any of the season sets already, then I’d sincerely recommend you just pick up the rest of them separately instead of going ahead and buying this huge set because there is absolutely nothing new that wasn’t on any of the previous releases. You kind of figure they could have given us something new with the made for TV films that hit the airwaves years after the series ended, but no luck. It’s not a bad set, but unless you’re a hardcore fan of the series then it probably won’t be for you. Ggggggggrrrrrr…arrgggh…smash….meh.
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Universal Studios presents The Incredible Hulk: The Complete Series. Created by: Kenneth Johnson. Starring: Bill Bixby, Lou Ferrigno, Jack Colvin. Running time: 3799 minutes on 20 discs. Rating: Not Rated. Released on DVD: October 21, 2008. Available at Amazon.com
