Skaar, the son of the Hulk, recently arrived on Earth, seeking revenge against his father (during PLANET SKAAR). But the Red Hulk has sapped the Green Goliath of his gamma-spawned might, turning him back to Bruce Banner permanently (during HULK NO MORE!). Banner’s convinced that the Hulk will return, so he decides to take Skaar under his wing to prepare him for the inevitable clash of titans.
However, Norman Osborn is keen to obtain Skaar’s Old Power for himself and has plans to draw him and Banner out by using Kate Waynesboro (who also gained some of the Old Power during WORLD WAR HULK: AFTERSMASH!) as bait…
Related Events: With a primary mini-series and numerous related tie-ins, Infinity Gauntlet is considered to be one of the biggest events in the history of the Marvel Universe.
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.
Previous events that directly impact this story:
- SON OF HULK – Skaar is born on the savage planet Sakaar
- PLANET SKAAR – Skaar comes to Earth
- HULK NO MORE! – Banner loses his gamma powers
Want to keep it simple? Here’s the chronological reading order without story descriptions, or spoilers:
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #601 [1/2]
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #602 [1/2]
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #603 [1/2]
- ✔ Dark Reign – The List: Hulk #1 [1/2]
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #604 [1/2]
- ✔ Incredible Hulk #605 [1/2]
| Must Reads | Title, Issue Number & Synopsis |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #601 [1/2] Bruce Banner is solely relying on his smarts and his technology now that he’s unable to transform into the Hulk. When he arrives in New York, he’s met by the Avengers, X-Men and Fantastic Four (largely because of the events of WORLD WAR HULK). He heads to the Baxter Building with Mister Fantastic to reclaim the sword used by the ‘Worldbreaker Hulk’, then immediately teleports to the Mojave Desert. He dons his old anti-radiation armour and calls out Skaar, offering to train him to stand a better chance of killing the Hulk when he returns. Banner taps into a satellite which blasts the Juggernaut‘s mobile home, along with the money he recently stole… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #602 [1/2] Banner explains to the Juggernaut that Skaar needs a punching bag. Skaar and Juggernaut pound on each other until Skaar transforms into his true child-like form, catching the Juggernaut off guard and surprising Banner. Skaar uses his Old Power to blast Juggernaut into the air, then bring him crashing down through the ground and into lava. Skaar tricks Juggernaut again and launches him into space. Beast and Mister Fantastic decide Bruce Banner is more dangerous than the Hulk. Banner is explaining a Conan reference to Skaar in a comic shop when Wolverine turns up… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #603 [1/2] Skaar punches Wolverine through a wall and heads to a bar where he’s approached by Wolverine’s son, Daken, who offers him a place on the Dark Avengers (formed during DARK AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!). Skaar reveals his true form to Daken and whispers something to him. Daken stabs Skaar with his Muramasa claw which negates healing abilities. Banner threatens to kill Wolverine with his Old Power gun if Daken doesn’t stand down, potentially robbing Daken of the chance to kill his father. Banner reveals that he believes he didn’t kill his father Brian Banner by accident (despite how it looked during THIS MEANS WAR!) and that the Hulk exists to protect the world from Banner, rather than the other way around. Banner drags Skaar away, unaware they’re being watched by the Leader… |
| Must Reads | Title, Issue Number & Synopsis |
| ✔ | Dark Reign – The List: Hulk #1 [1/2] Bruce Banner and Skaar force their way into a secret HAMMER facility in New Mexico where Kate Waynesboro is being drained of her Old Power. They learns Norman Osborn has another Old Power facility. Osborn sends Victoria Hand and Ms Marvel (aka Moonstone) to oppose them, but Banner destroys the facility. Skaar takes Banner and departs, when Ms Marvel reveals it’s a trap. The facility was an chance to expose Banner to radiation that ensures the Hulk’s return. Norman Osborn ticks Bruce Banner off his list. Also see DARK REIGN – THE LIST and DARK REIGN |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #604 [1/2] Bruce, Kate and Skaar have been joined by A-Bomb (the gamma-mutated Rick Jones – see GREEN HULK/RED HULK) and Korg. Bruce and Kate become close again, while breaking into one of the Leader’s labs. They discover files on Bruce’s deceased wife, Betty Banner, and are attacked by a gamma-powered Harpy who Bruce is convinced is Betty. But she turns out to be Marlo Chandler-Jones (Rick’s wife). A hologram of the Leader taunts Kate about Bruce’s taffections for Betty before the lab explodes. Kate parts with Bruce on good terms just as he receives news that giant monsters are terrorising Manhattan… |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #605 [1/2] Banner, Skaar and the others assist the Fantastic Four in fighting the monsters. Many of the Mole Man‘s monsters were killed by the Avengers (during THE ULTRON INITIATIVE), but he gained new monsters when Sakaaran creatures fell from the Hulk’s Stone Ship after its destruction (during WORLD WAR HULK). The monsters become increasingly savage, but now recognise Skaar as their king. Tyrannus arrives, infusing the monsters with Deviant enhancements and forcing Skaar to kill them all to end their threat. Tyrannus flees and Skaar is hailed by the people of New York as a hero. The Hulk stirs within Bruce Banner… |
See how this story fit into the the wider Marvel Universe with these reading orders:
| Must Reads | Issue & Fallout | Event/Crossover |
| Amazing Spider-Man #627 (2010) The Juggernaut finally crashes back down to Earth. | THE GAUNTLET | |
| ✔ | World War Hulks #1 (2010) A-Bomb and Marlo Chandler make the most of being reunited, despite a run-in with Ulik the Troll. | WORLD WAR HULKS |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #606 (2010) New York’s celebration of Skaar’s victory is cut short when Bruce Banner thinks he sees Betty Banner in the crowds. Hulk #21 (2010) The Leader and his fellow members of the Intelligencia reveal their master plan when they use the Cathexis Ray to transform AIM soldiers and costumed heroes into Hulks, creating their own army. | FALL OF THE HULKS |
| ✔ | Incredible Hulk #609-611 (2010) The recently-introduced Red She-Hulk is revealed to be the resurrected Betty Banner; Bruce Banner absorbs energy from an explosion which forces his transformation into the Hulk; Skaar finally gets his showdown with the Hulk. | WORLD WAR HULKS |
| ✔ | Wolverine: Origins #46-48 (2010) Wolverine and Daken have their next major face-off. | THE RECKONING |
| Incredible Hulks #623 (2011) Bruce Banner is reunited with Kate Waynesboro once again when he helps relocate the Warbound to the Savage Land. | ||
| Incredible Hulks #626-627 (2011) Tyrannus returns, angering the Hulk by starting a romantic relationship with Red She-Hulk/Betty Ross. | ||
| ✔ | New Avengers #18-22 (2012) Skaar accepts an invitation to join Norman Osborn’s new Dark Avengers, but is later revealed to be working for Steve Rogers against Osborn. | OSBORN RISES |
| Collected Edition Title | Includes… |
| Incredible Hulk: Son of Banner (vol.1) | Dark Reign – The List: Hulk #1 Incredible Hulk #601-605 |
| Incredible Hulks: Fall of the Hulks HC | Dark Reign: MODOK #1-4 Dark Reign – The List: Hulk #1 Fall of the Hulks: Alpha #1 Fall of the Hulks: MODOK #1-4 Fall of the Hulks: Red Hulk #1-4 Incredible Hulk #600-608 [part] |
| Dark Reign – The List | Dark Reign – The List: Avengers #1 Dark Reign – The List: Daredevil #1 Dark Reign – The List: Hulk #1 Dark Reign – The List: Punisher #1 Dark Reign – The List: Secret Warriors #1 Dark Reign – The List: The Amzaing Spider-Man #1 Dark Reign – The List: Wolverine #1 Dark Reign – The List: X-Men #1 |
Reading Order ©OmniverseComicsGuide 2023
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