When the Hulk has one rampage too many, the Illuminati decide it’s time to put a stop to his devastating tantrums once and for all. The plan might be logical and humane, but things never go smoothly for the Green Goliath and he soon finds himself fighting for his life! And when all’s said and done, it’ll be time for WORLD WAR HULK…
Related Events: While it’s not officially recognised as a crossover event, a number of stories do relate directly to the events in the Hulk’s own series. The two final She-Hulk issues act as a lead-in to World War Hulk, hence their consideration as required reading.
Must Reads: Story arcs marked with a ✔are must-read stories from this time period, along with any key related stories and often-forgotten tales that are worth a read.
Anthology Issues: When an issue contains multiple stories, the relevant story is denoted with square brackets. For example, [2/5] refers to the second story of the five stories in that issue, so you don’t need to read the other four.
Want to keep it simple? Here’s the chronological reading order without story descriptions, or spoilers:
- Fantastic Four #533 (tie-in)
- Fantastic Four #534 [1/2] (tie-in)
- Fantastic Four #535 (tie-in)
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #88-91 (tie-in)
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #92
- 4 #29 (tie-in)
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #93-95
- Planet Hulk: Gladiator Guidebook #1
- ✔ Giant-Size Hulk #1[2/3]
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #96-99
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #100 [1/5]
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #100 [2/5]
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #101-103
- She-Hulk #15-16 (tie-in)
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #104-105
- ✔ She-Hulk #17-18 (tie-in)
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| Must Reads | Title, Issue Number & Synopsis |
| Fantastic Four #533 (tie-in) The Hulk agrees to carry out a mission for SHIELD defusing a gamma bomb set by Hydra in the Nevada Desert. But the bomb goes off and sends the gamma-dosed Hulk on a rampage. SHIELD call on the Thing and Human Torch of the Fantastic Four to bring him in. Meanwhile, Mister Fantastic and the Invisible Woman (Reed & Sue Richards) meet with the Child Welfare Department who are threatening to take their children away. In a surprising move, the couple agree to the decision… | |
| Fantastic Four #534 [1/2] (tie-in) The overgrown Hulk is experiencing delusions and flashbacks and doesn’t seem to be aware that he’s fighting two members of the FF while smashing his way through Vegas. Realising he’s not in his right mind, the Thing makes the mistake of trying to reason with the grey goliath… | |
| Fantastic Four #535 (tie-in) The news that Franklin & Valeria Richards – Reed & Sue’s kids – have been re-homed leaks out to the FF’s enemies and the house they’re reported to be living in is bombed to oblivion. It turns out to be a ruse devised by Reed to prove the safest place for their kids is at home, under their protection. In Las Vegas, the Thing takes a serious pounding from the Hulk and it’s only the Human Torch’s nova blast that saves him from being beaten to death. But it gives the Hulk a chance to snap out of it and get dropped back home by SHIELD. The Thing jokes to Reed that, if this happens again, they should blast the Hulk into space… | |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #88 (tie-in) Bruce Banner takes to living in the wilderness as ‘Robert’. The pilot who flies supplies out to Robert convinces him to come join in with a local shindig on Saturday night. Witnessing a group of guys trying to sexually assault a drink woman causes Bruce to unleash the Hulk to protect her. With his cover blown, Bruce is about to move on when the pilot reveals himself as a SHIELD agent and passes on a message from Nick Fury who has a mission for him… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #89 (tie-in) Sticking his head out above ground properly for the first time since the SECRET WAR, he’s sought out Bruce Banner to help destroy a Hydra satellite that can easily intercept technological threats. Now that its A.I. has evolved and threatens the world, SHIELD launch the Hulk at it like an organic missile. When the Hulk collides with the Godseye satellite in orbit, he learns it’s actually a SHIELD satellite… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #90 (tie-in) Hulk’s assault on Godseye fails and the sentient satellite prepares to retaliate against planet Earth. Fury’s attack jets are absorbed into Godseye due to their technological nature. Bruce Banner finds himself aboard the satellite itself and learns it’s also attempting to assimilate him. It converts its stored subatomic power to gamma power and creates a mechanical humanoid representative to communicate with Banner… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #91 (tie-in) Banner becomes the Hulk and fights the sentient humanoid Godseye which proves itself unable to contain the gamma radiation and explodes. When the Hulk boards the shuttle that was due to take him home, he’s played a recorded apology from the Illuminati and fired deeper into space… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #92 Mister Fantastic, Black Bolt, Doctor Strange and Iron Man have taken it upon themselves to exile the Hulk to a serene, life-sustaining world with no inhabitants for him to hurt. They don’t realise their plan has failed and the shuttle is sucked through a wormhole that takes it to the inhabited planet Sakaar. Hulk is captured and finds himself fighting for his life in a gladiatorial arena for the entertainment of Sakaar’s ruler Angmo-Asan – the Red King. Hulk lunges at the Red King himself who is defended by his bodyguard, Caiera the Oldstrong. The Red King dons his battle-armour and tackles the Hulk head-on. Hulk proves himself to be more formidable that the Red King was prepared for, but Caiera’s intervention allows him to deliver a blow that brings the Hulk down. Hulk is sent to the Maw, a pit that few survive… |
| 4 #29 (tie-in) The remnants of Godseye crash in the Savage Land, but the supposedly inert pieces of sentient satellite aren’t all that inert, after all! SHIELD send the Fantastic Four to contain it, but the Invisible Woman gets the feeling there’s more to the situation than Mister Fantastic is letting on. Reed doesn’t exactly deny he’s keeping secrets, but Sue fights her instincts to keep her faith in her husband. The FF destroy what’s left of Godseye rather than return it to SHIELD. | |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #93 Hulk gains an unwanted ally in the form of the bug-like Miek, defeats the Maw’s lava monster and gains the attention of the Sakaaran rebels. The guards implant the lava-scarred Hulk with an obedience disk and order him to fight against his fellow prisoners to see who will leave the Maw and return to the arena. Only the Hulk, Miek, Korg (a Kronan), No-Name (a Brood), Elloe Kaifi (daughter of a Sakaaran Imperial), Lavin Skee (Elloe’s bodyguard) and Hiroim the Shamed (a former Oldstrong Shadow Priest) survive and form an alliance. The group’s mission to fight Wildebots and a Sakaaran Eggbreaker are broadcast across the planet and some begin to believe that the Hulk (referred to by many as the ‘Green Scar’) is the prophesied saviour who will depose Angmo-Asan. That night, a band of rebels break into the groups’ quarters and ask them to join them in the fight against the Red King… |
| Must Reads | Title, Issue Number & Synopsis |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #94 The rebels are taken down by Death’s Head cyborgs, ending the possible uprising. Concerned about the Hulk’s popularity, the Red King sends Caiera to convince him to leave the city and find peace at the Steppes. Hulk refuses. The Red King dispatches an Imperial Dreadnaught to kill the Hulk while the rest of the group battle an army of Death’s Heads. The group successfully fight back, but Lavin Skee dies. Later, the battered warriors recount their origins (including Korg’s battle against Thor) and learn they need each other to survive, naming their group the Warbound. Meanwhile, a familiar alien prisoner dubbed the ‘Silver Savage’ is being prepped to fight the Hulk in the arena… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #95 With vegetation popping up wherever the Green Scar’s blood was spattered, the population of Sakaar become more certain that he’s the one who’s destined to save their world. The Silver Surfer arrived on Sakaar via the same portal that drew the Hulk in. With an obedience disk implanted in him, the Surfer defeats the Warbound before facing his old Defenders team-mate, the Hulk, in the arena. The Hulk smashes his obedience disc and pummels the Surfer into the ground. Hulk then demands the Red King grant the Warbound their freedom. Instead, the Surfer uses his powers to destroy everyone’s obedience discs and the Hulk leads the slaves and gladiators to their freedom. Hulk turns down the Silver Surfer’s offer to take him home to Earth and opts to stay on Sakaar when the Surfer leaves. |
| Planet Hulk Gladiator Guidebook #1 The guidebook explains the geography, history and society of Sakaar and provides character profiles, maps and more. | |
| ✔ | Giant-Size Hulk #1 [2/3] The Hulk and his fellow travelling heroes, the Warbound, take a rest from roaming Sakaar. On the shared mental plane within the Hulk, Bruce Banner watches as the Green Goliath relives past glories in his dreams. But Banner starts turning these dreams against the Hulk and briefly regains control. Miek wakes to see Banner’s frail human form in the warrior’s oversized armour. But when he blinks, the Hulk is back having forced Banner to submit once again… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #96 In the wilderness of Sakaar, the Warbound save a village from Wildebots, only to discover they’re using Miek’s people – his Hive – as slaves. They torch the village and move on, adding the Hive to their numbers… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #97 The Hulk leads the rebels to the Maw and frees the slaves. Miek’s ruthlessness grows and he tries to kill the Red King’s men after they’ve surrendered. Caiera the Oldstrong leads the Red King’s forces in a hunt for the Hulk and his Warbound. She sees that the Red King is willing to sacrifice his own people to destroy the Hulk. Hulk decides to leave the Warbound and be alone, but Miek mutates to gigantic proportions and orders him to stay… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #98 Miek and the Hulk fight it out until Korg steps in to stop the Hulk from delivering a killing blow, severely injuring Korg in the process. Caiera finally has her showdown with the Hulk, who many now believe to be the ‘Sakaarson’ – this world’s prophesied saviour. When it looks as though Caiera won’t win, the Red King decides to sacrifice her by launch a projectile at her and the Hulk that contains the Spikes – spores that infect, mutate and zombify any organic being they come in contact with… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #99 Hulk and Caiera join forces to save themselves and a nearby village. Hulk even overcomes Spike infection, while Caiera questions her loyalty to the Red King. In the depths of the village, Miek finds the last Native Queen on the planet and the Hulk frees her from Spike infection. The Red King drops bombs on the Spikes in the hope of killing the Hulk, wiping out most of the villagers instead. This cements Caiera’s decision to switch sides and join the Warbound. Hulk publicly declares war on the Red King… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #100 [1/5] The Hulk’s roaming forces may have grown, but that’s just forced the psychotic Red King to up the ante. Along with the Warbound and Caiera the Oldstrong, the Hulk protects his people and destroys the pursuing armies and the Spikes, supporting the belief that he may be the prophesied saviour of their world. |
| Must Reads | Title, Issue Number & Synopsis |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #100 [2/5] Back on Earth, Hulk fan and seventh smartest person in the world, Amadeus Cho, is on the run from SHIELD who believe his intelligence is superhuman (and, therefore, should be registered due the events of CIVIL WAR). Cho locates one of Bruce Banner’s hidden bases and calls the direct line to Reed Richards, hacking his systems and warning him that he knows what the Illuminati did to the Hulk. Cho promises that the Hulk will return and have allies who’ll be willing to help him get his revenge. Reed learns the rocket they sent him off in went off course and informs SHIELD Director Tony Stark – aka Iron Man – that the Hulk could return to Earth, looking for them… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #101 On Sakaar, Hulk meets the Shadow Elders who test the theory that the Hulk is the Sakaarson. Learning his heart is full of hate and rage, they decide he’s not the one. But the Hulk’s true intention was to claim their stone ship to use against the Red King and his armies. Meeting with the masters of the Spikes, Hulk convinces them to join him, too. Now it’s time to face the remorseless Red King head-on… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #102 The Red King’s battle armour and sword prove capable of hurting the Hulk. But even in defeat, he tries to make the Hulk kneel before him. Instead, Hulk uses his immense strength to undo the damage done to Sakaar following the constant attacks on him by the Red King. With the planet now safe, Hulk hurls the Red King into the wilderness where he’s set upon by Wildebots. The Sakaarans want the Hulk become ruler. He takes the throne as King Hulk with Caiera beside him as his queen. But his promise to allow the Spikes to feed from him begins to leave him drained… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #103 The Warbound defend the capital from Red King’s remaining soldiers, but Elloe Kaifi and Miek disagree on methods of disposing of their foes. Hulk allows them to fight in the arena but interrupts the battle to defeat them both. Hulk reveals his weaker side, Bruce Banner, to Caiera who kisses Banner, but the Hulk regains control to be by her side. Miek and No-Name discover the shuttle that brought Hulk to Sakaar… |
| She-Hulk #15 (tie-in) Back on Earth, registered heroes now find themselves employed by SHIELD as members of the Initiative (due to the events of CIVIL WAR) and they draft She-Hulk to apprehend all of the Hulk’s foes. Alongside Clay Quartermain and a new Hulkbuster squad, She-Hulk (Bruce Banner’s cousin, Jennifer Walters) starts by taking down the Abomination… | |
| She-Hulk #16 (tie-in) She-Hulk and Wolverine join forces to hunt the Wendigo, bringing him down with a fastbowl special and ripping his centre out. Afterwards, She-Hulk suggests hooking up with Wolverine, but he turns her down because of her past association with the Juggernaut, leaving her wondering why everyone thinks she slept with him. Back on the SHIELD Helicarrier, a shadowy figure has bigger plans for the growing army of captured Hulk villains… | |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #104 Miek reminds the Hulk of the message left by the Illuminati and he’s still angry at his former friends for betraying him. Hulk sends the Spikes back into space, freeing them from Sakaar and freeing the Sakaarans from the Spikes. He returns to the arms of Caiera who reveals she’s pregnant with his child. Just as the Hulk finally has the happy ending he never dreamed possible, the pod that transported him to Sakaar explodes… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #105 The explosion wipes out almost everyone in Crown City. The pregnant Caiera dies in the Hulk’s arms and the Warbound take as many survivors as they can aboard the Shadow People’s Stone Ship. Losing happiness as quickly as he found it, the Hulk joins the others aboard the ship and leads them towards Earth where he plans to have his revenge on the Illuminati… |
| ✔ | She-Hulk #17 (tie-in) She-Hulk has apprehended the Glob, Toad Men, Zzzax and the U-Foes, but there’s still no sign of the Hulk himself. Tony Stark debriefs She-Hulk in bed, while the gamma-powered prisoners are taken for experimentation with Project: Achilles. The energy-based Zzzax sends his consciousness through the Helicarrier and takes over an army of Nick Fury Life Model Decoys (LMDs). She-Hulk and Iron Man beat the LMDs while they spout recently uttered sentences from their past few missions, including one about Bruce Banner. In New York, Mallory Book attempts to regain credibility with her super-villain clients with help from the Two-Gun Kid. |
| ✔ | She-Hulk #18 (tie-in) She-Hulk takes the head of the Nick Fury LMD to her employer, Goodman, Lieber, Kurtzberg & Holliway, where Artie Zix gets to work deciphering the files – unaware he’s being assisted by Amadeus Cho. The Hulkbusters find the Leader in New Mexico. She-Hulk realises Iron Man knows where the Hulk really is and attacks him. Iron Man uses the result of Project: Achilles on her… SPIN Tech (Super-Power Inhibiting Nanobots) to render her powerless… |
| Must Reads | Issue & Fallout | Event / Crossover |
| Fantastic Four #540 (2006) Mister Fantastic’s continued secretive behaviour results in the Invisible Woman temporarily leaving him. | CIVIL WAR | |
| All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: A-Z Update #1 (2007) The Death’s Head cyborgs’ presence on Sakaar is explained. | ||
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #106 (2007) The powerless She-Hulk meets Amadeus Cho; Cho begins to build his team of Hulk allies. World War Hulk Prologue: Worldbreaker #1 (2007) Hulk and the Warbound journey toward Earth. | WORLD WAR HULK |
| Avengers: The Initiative #3 (2007) SPIN tech is next used by the Initiative on a mission to take down Spider-Man. | THE INITIATIVE | |
| ✔ | World War Hulk #1 (2007) Hulk publicly reveals the existence of the Illuminati when he returns to Earth to begin his campaign of revenge on them. Avengers: The Initiative #4 (2007) Tony Stark temporarily disables Jennifer Walters’ nanos, allowing her to help out against the raging Hulk. World War Hulk #2-5 (2007) Hulk and Thing have their next clash; the Hulk has his final showdown against the Illuminati; the true culprit behind the exploding pod is revealed; the Hulk and Caiera’s son, Skaar, emerges from the ruins of Sakaar. | WORLD WAR HULK |
| She-Hulk #19-20 (2007) Mallory Book reclaims her reputation when she gets the Leader off the hook; the origin of Artie Zix is revealed; Stu Cicero returns to Earth-616. | ||
| ✔ | She-Hulk #21 (2007) Jennifer Walters becomes She-Hulk again thanks to Jennifer Walters of Earth-721 (who is revealed to be the She-Hulk who slept with Juggernaut on a previous visit to Earth-616). | |
| ✔ | What If? featuring Planet Hulk #1 (2007) A number of alternate universes reveal how the Hulk’s life on Sakaar could have ended differently; on Earth-7121, the Hulk is killed in the explosion on Sakaar and Caiera comes to Earth looking for revenge; on Earth-2713, the Hulk lands on the planet the Illuminati were aiming for; on Earth-1237, Bruce Banner finds himself on Sakaar rather than the Hulk. |
| Must Reads | Issue & Fallout | Event / Crossover |
| Hulk #1-4 (2008) The Abomination is killed by the Red Hulk; Clay Quartermain is one of those killed when the Red Hulk attacks the SHIELD Helicarrier (though he’s later revealed to have been a specific target and murdered by a mystery assailant). | GREEN HULK/RED HULK | |
| ✔ | Skaar, Son of Hulk #1-10 (2008) It’s revealed that Caiera used the Old Power to preserve Skaar’s life and age him to a pre-teen; Hiro-Kala, Skaar’s twin brother, is also revealed to have been born much the same way; the Silver Surfer returns to Sakaar; the Red King is revealed to have been saved and rebuilt by the Wildebots; Skaar is sent hurtling to Earth. | SON OF HULK |
| ✔ | Planet Skaar Prologue #1 (2009) Skaar arrives on Earth and meets his father. Son of Hulk #13 (2009) Sakaar is destroyed by Galactus; Hiro-Kala escapes on the last stone ship. | PLANET SKAAR |
| ✔ | Son of Hulk #15-17 (2010) The Old Power is revealed to be an artificial version of the Power Cosmic created by the Shadow People. | |
| Incredible Hulk #602 (2009) Further experiments on the Abomination, Glob and Zzzax are revealed; their powers are duplicated and given to Gamma Squad: Black. | ||
| Avengers Academy #34-37 (2012) Jeremy Briggs refines SPIN Tech and attempts to unleash it across the Earth to remove all superhuman powers. | ||
| ✔ | Avengers #28 (2014) The Hulk joins the Illuminati. | ALL-NEW MARVEL NOW! |
| Planet Hulk #1-5 (2015) Greenland – one of the territories on Emperor God Doom‘s patchwork Battleworld – is riddled with Hulks and ruled by a different Red King; this territory has no actual connection to the original Sakaar. | SECRET WARS | |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #709-713 (2017-2018) Having become the new Hulk, Amadeus Cho answers a distress signal from Sakaar and discovers its return. | MARVEL LEGACY |
| ✔ | Planet Hulk: Worldbreaker #1-5 (2023) In an alternate universe, 1000 years into the future, the Hulk, Amadeus Cho, She-Hulk, Tala and Korg fight to free Sakaar from the reign of Grand Priestess Venkiera and her Sentinels. |
Notable collected editions featuring the Planet Hulk 2006-2007…
| Collected Edition Title | Collects… |
| Hulk: Planet Hulk Omnibus | Amazing Fantasy (20040 #15 [part] Fantastic Four #533-535 Giant-Size Hulk #1 [part] Incredible Hulk #88-105 Planet Hulk Gladiator Guidebook #1 What If? Featuring Planet Hulk #1 |
| Hulk: Planet Hulk Prelude | Fantastic Four #533-535 Incredible Hulk #88-91 |
| Incredible Hulk: Planet Hulk Prelude | Incredible Hulk #88-91 |
| The Incredible Hulk: Planet Hulk | Amazing Fantasy (20040 #15 [part] Giant Size Hulk #1 Incredible Hulk #92-105 Planet Hulk Gladiator Guidebook #1 |
| Collected Edition Title | Includes… |
| Fantastic Four: The Resurrection of Nicholas Scratch | 4 #29 |
| She-Hulk vol.5: Planet Without a Hulk She-Hulk by Dan Slott Omnibus She-Hulk by Dan Slott: The Complete Collection vol.2 | She-Hulk #15-18 |
| Fantastic Four: The Life Fantastic | Fantastic Four #533-535 |
Reading Order ©OmniverseComicsGuide 2023
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