Not to say too much here except – Hawkeye is in so much trouble!

Alright, while I work on the reviews for the comics came out today – I give you one of the baddest covers to rock a Hulk annual! The Hulk and Abomination have had some killer fights over the years – and I know he’s dead right now, shot by the Red Hulk, but I hope this isn’t for long – because you can’t replace the history of these two – the blow for blow fights and years of hatred. It just can’t be replaced with a red version of our favorite Jade Giant.

But yeah – reviews are on the way – I will hopefully get them posted by today…

This issue – from way back in 1991 – has an image of Abomination that reminds me a lot of the Bowen bust.  But let’s face it – the X-Men have a hard enough time taking down the Hulk – the Abomination is a perfect villain for the X-Men.  Isn’t Speedball another name for crack?  I could be wrong about that – who knows – but I thought I heard that somewhere…

In the later 90’s there were quite a few mini-series out there – including this mini called the Abominations.  If you are a fan of Future: Imperfect – this may be a series you want to check out.  It has a future version of the Abomination in it – just as ruthless as the Maestro.

You know what’s so great about the Abomination?  That he’s not totally evil – and that is what makes a great villain – they may do evil things – but they can explain it in a way that makes it… almost okay… ALMOST.  In this annual – which the Hulk doesn’t really appear in – except in flashbacks and make believe stories – we see the Abomination in a different light – we get to see the world through his eyes – how he feels that he’s the cursed hero…

Abomination, Thing and Armageddon

A few of the Hulk villains were also made into these little plastic figures!  Check it out!  Most notably the Abomination is in there – I only got the sparkly (or cosmic) Abomination right now – but there’s also Absorbing Man, Rhino, and Iron Clad.

Iron Man, Absorbing Man, Rhino, Iron Clad

They’ve made some heroes – that are also some of Hulk’s foes – like the Thing, Hulkbuster Iron Man, and Wolverine.  There’s also a unique choice – a Hulk villain from out of nowhere – Armageddon.  Remember him?  If not go get issues #413 - #416 to refresh your memory.

from WorstPreviews.com

We have previously heard that “The Avengers” will use characters from “The Incredible Hulk” and Edward Norton has hinted that he has spoken to Marvel about appearing in the film. But who are these characters?

Tim Roth, who played Emil Blonsky/The Abomination, has revealed at the Television Critics Association that he Marvel has signed him for three more films. “They have, but in a very different way,” he said.

Could Roth return for two more “Incredible Hulk” movies and “The Avengers”? Or is it a bunch of cameos in different films. “It could be anything,” Roth said in response.

A neat little sidebar running with Chris Broussard’s ESPN.com story about the impending trade of Shaquille O’Neal from Phoenix to Cleveland (dude just stays getting put alongside All-Eternity wings, huh?) provides a win-loss breakdown of the impact that the Emperor of Big Men has had when coming to a new team. Nestled within said sidebar is an interesting nugget about how Shaq’s arrival in the desert was a little different:

At first glance, you might think this a simple mistake — that in his/her haste to assemble the sidebar and get it posted up as soon as possible, the ESPN.com staffer accidentally wrote “abomination” when “aberration” was the intended choice.  (Mr. Todd Ruffin has cast his vote for this possibility.)

But the screen-grab was taken at about 8:30AM Eastern time; it’s now 12PM, and the word remains unchanged.  Which leads me to believe that there’s another, more frightening, way more stupidly obvious explanation:

When he was traded from Miami to Phoenix, Shaq realized he’d have to do battle with a variety of skilled, agile and quick big men in the Western Conference — many of whom are younger and more gifted than he is at this stage in his career.  And the Diesel knew he needed a leg up.

An upleg that came from a series of injections of an experimental, gamma-irradiated serum.

While the typically morally bankrupt Suns-employed doctors warned of potentially horrifying side effects, things worked out pretty well for Shaq, who averaged 18 points and 8 rebounds a game (those are Mehmet Okur numbers!) in his only full season with Phoenix.  But as the aforementioned sidebar indicates, it didn’t work out so hot for the Suns, who are now a not-so-good team that makes mad Internet kids sad, because does anybody remember Seven Seconds or Less and when fun times were going to last forever?

But now, Shaq’s revitalized unholy strength and speed come to a new city.  One can only hope that the rumored apocalyptic reptilian freakouts that allegedly led Steve Kerr to pull the trigger don’t manifest themselves in Cleveland.

Lord knows that downtown can’t take much more destruction.

The Silver Surfer #12

Last week I had fun showcasing a week’s worth of art that I hadn’t shown – believe it or not there’s still a few more pieces – but this week I decided to showcase a few of the rarer comics I have have that feature the Hulk, or – in this case –  the Hulk’s supporting cast.  I also have done a whole lot of work gathering information for the COMICS page – check it out – I have been compiling a check list for all who have asked and am on my way.  It’s far from being finished – but it’s certainly off to a good start!

Anyways, Stan “The Man” Lee wrote this issue – and it’s such a great one!  It’s a basic story but it starts with a group of Wizards and Warlocks that are all upset at how the outside world treats them.  They hate the fact that people think they are a joke so they plan on showing the world just what they can do.  Surfer meanwhile, is pining over his lost love, and while he attempts to try and break the force field he hits it so hard he knocks himself unconscious.  He hurtles toward the earth with a cluster of asteroids and lands right where the head warlock is heading home.  The warlock takes the knocked-out Surfer to his house and when the Surfer regains consciousness the warlock once again knocks him out with a spiked tea.  (The Surfer likes tea?  I wonder what kind… was he like “Is is English Grey?  I love English Grey!”

Did the Abomination really think he could win?

The group of Warlocks and Witches decide to raise a demon of some sort to defeat the Surfer.  They think that if they show the world that they have beaten the Silver Surfer then the world will take them more seriously.  Unfortunately the monster they raise is the Abomination, releasing him from “The Stranger’s” imprisonment.  He immediately tells them that he doesn’t work for anyone – and to prove it he beats the heck out of the head Warlock and kills him.  The Surfer arrives and refuses to fight a fight that is not his but he does bring the warlock back to life.  The Ab0mination, meanwhile, is destroying the nearby town.  When the Surfer sees this he goes to fight, but is weakened from using his powers to revive the dead warlock and as he swoops in Abomination hits him hard and knocks him off his board with one hit.

Abomination rejoices and celebrates a little early because as Surfer regains his bearings he comes back strong.  He literally takes the Abomination down in a few panels.  In fact the Surfer doesn’t just want to win – he wants to stop the rage – so he uses the Power Cosmic and suppresses the Abominations rage.  He returns him to the Warlock and his group – all of them stunned to see the Silver Surfer victorious.

Fantasy Masterpieces #12

This is such a classic match up.  Shows why the Surfer is such a great character when written correctly.  This whole issue is just a whole lot of fun.  This is Silver Surfer #12 – but also a cheaper route is to find Fantasy Masterpieces #12 where this story is reprinted.  Grade: A-

Roger Andrews Commission

I’m not even done showing you the art I picked up from the Boston Comic Con.  The October Con I picked up a sketch from Roger.  If you look on the ART page you’ll see the Hulk sketch he did – but this time I went for a full commission. RA has a great cartoony style that would totally rock in a comic.  He’s a pretty easy guy to talk to and joke around with and being this talented is only the icing on the cake with him.  I may have to go back to get another from him at some point – I would love to see what he could do with Maestro.

Hulk is probably saying - You are one ugly mother fu-

In my quest to collect every Hulk comic I have also found quite a few Abomination appearences.  Abomination has made the rounds in the Marvel Universe quite a lot including one of my favorite most laughable fights – Abomination vs. The Silver Surfer.  I’ll have to show that comic in the upcoming weeks…

He even has the Abomination a little taller then the Hulk - what attention to detail!

Abomination FACED!

Dynabol – or Matt Brundage – is such a great guy.  I have seen quite a few of his commissions and artwork, including his amazing kit that I already posted, and I wanted something from him.  I asked if he would draw something for me – something that can commemorate the fact that my wife and I are expecting our first child.  He did.  Believe it or not this is not even it – this was something he drew up, having fun sketching, maybe even getting an idea for the actual commission he was planning for me.  He emailed this to me and asked if I would like this along with the commission.  After I picked my jaw up I said “F – Yeah!”.  I mean, how freakin’ cool is this?  Hulk taking on the Abomination while protecting a little Hulk baby!  Look at the Hulk baby!  Man, this is such a great piece – don’t forget now, this isn’t even the actual commission yet!  This was just a fun little sketch!  A bad-ass, unbelieveable fun little sketch!  I will post the actual commission next Thursday.  I will give you a hint about what you’re in store for – Hulk’s Rouge Gallery!  But I was psyched to get this.  It has such personality and impresses me everytime I look at it.

Abomination Statue

Welcome March!  It’s freakin’ snowing!  Anyways, it must be so difficult there days to sculpt  a classic character and make everyone happy with the outcome.  This is the pressures that BD faces every time they announce a new Full Statue coming out.  So many amazing artists out there have done excellent versions of each character that every fan wants to see specific details in their sculpts.  With the Hulk – some fans want the ripped seething merged Hulk – and others are always looking for a classic 70’s style Buscema Hulk.  Trying to please everyone must be really aggravating some days…

Abomination - Full Shot

Bad-Ass Profile

But Bowen has hit the ball out of the park so many times with his statues that he has quickly become my favorite sculptor working out there today.  His company seems to strive in delivering a product that even the most die-hard fan will appreciate.  This, his latest Hulk universe release, is one of the most amazing triumphs to date.  While the new Hulk sculpts coming out are looking good this version of Hulk’s #1 villain (and that pains me to say being a huge Leader fan) is far and away one of the best things I’ve seen!  Take a look at what an incredible job Bowen did at capturing every classic detail on this character.  It’s a huge leap forward from the bust he did a years back.  While that bust had mixed reviews of looking too much like an under water creature – this statue has had NO complaints from even the harshest critic.

This piggy ate roast beef - and this little piggy is wondering where the rest of the piggies went...

Abomination doesn’t just pair up well with the 2007 Hulk FS – but also the 2003 FS – and believe me I have plenty of pics to showcase the greatness that is this new addition to my collection.  A lot of statues have that static pose, that (for the lack of a better term) grandiose homo-erotic pose, that don’t ”work” with other statues when displaying them.  But now we have sculptors working to make their sculpts work well together.  We saw it with the Action Wolverine and Hulk pics – and now we have these:

2009 vs 2003

The smack down begins...

I have to give a quick shout-out to my friend Corry and Ben, the owner of Zapp Comics in New Jersey, who have always been able to provide me with anything I ask for.  The shop is certainly one of the best places to get anything comic related.  Check it out if you’re in the area!  Thanks Corry – as always – you’re a good friend!

Hulk's ready to punish!

 I know Sideshow has announced the release of their PF Abomination.  I can tell you with all certainty that I will NOT be picking that up – because, let’s face it, Bowen’s is far superior – and the Thing is a better companion for the SS Hulk.  Let me know if any of you out there have picked this up – and what you think!  It’s totally worth every penny!

Two against one!

Tables are turned!

TRU Exclusive Mini-Mates

Well, well, it is an “exclusive” I guess.  But it’s just the package.  But the package has little windows!  Windows!  So, the figures can look out or we can look in – either way – it’s YAY!   We can see the figures!  If you want to call this a variant, go ahead, no one’s going to stop you – but all it is is a different package.  They did pair the Hulk and the Abomination in one package.  In the regular packages they paired Abomination with Blonsky and the Hulk with Banner.  So here, the figures are at the very least together.  Still cool though.

Abomination Lead Figure

It was just a matter of time before they made the Abomination – with the Hulk, the grey Hulk and the Leader all present it’s only fitting that they released the Abomination here in the States before the year is through.  I say here in the States because these figurines, all painted in lead paint – yes it’s harmful – but only if you digest it, so keep these out of your mouths, are actually made and released overseas.  Only specialty comic shops carry these, so you most likely won’t find them in any major chain stores. 

Profile - Side View

They are obviously taking a little more interest into making bases for these figures – I like bases with a little more pizazz – I like figures that tell a bit of a story rather than just standing there.  As you can tell comparing the Hulk’s standard black base to the Abomination’s rocky rubble base.  Abomination holding the steel pipe ready to knock the be-jesus out of someone is a perfect pose.  The Leader was posed in his classic pose but the Abomination doesn’t have what we can call a “classic” pose – so just showing aggression is as good as any. 

The Abomination Collectible Booklet

Side 1 of the Poster

Side 2 of the Poster

The great thing about the little collectible booklet that comes with these figures are the time lines of their story in the comics.  You can follow their every move – like, for example, I wasn’t aware that immediately following his debut in comics he went to Thor’s comic and then right back to Hulk’s.  The later 80’s and 90’s had Abomination popping in and out of a bunch of comic heroes.  West Coast Avengers, Hawkeye, Spiderman, Namor, X-Man, X-Men – and then of course came the Betty saga.  I wonder if Peter David meant for the Abomination to kill Betty?  I wonder if he laid the groundwork for such a memorable moment in Hulk history.

UPDATE: I emailed PD and he in fact confirmed that he always intended for the Abomination to be the one who killed Betty.  Kudos to Peter David for emailing back fans with such silly questions…

The Face-off

Look Out Hulk! Behind You!

Abomination & Blonsky Mini Mates

Blonsky and Abomination 2-pack

This is the best Mini-Mates set for one reason – it comes with accessories!  Everything can be made better with accessories!  I love the little Blonsky.  He and his unshaven little face comes with night vision goggles and a gun.  Abomination actually looks pretty good too – amazingly.  I think this version grew on me just a bit – but I’m still jonesing for the classic Abomination. 

The detail they pu into these little guys are sweet!  Look at Abomination’s little toe nails!  Can anyone explain why these sets come with extra little feet?  I’m not really sure what they are for.  Anyways, Abomination’s back bones that are shooting out of his skin are doing the same on this toy.  Art Asylum has always done a nice job with this line – Mini Mates have become huge for a good reason – they are some of the coolest little toys ever!

Shoot him Blonsky! Shoot him... errr - you!

Do not turn your back on me!

We just saw the Incredible Hulk last night. I can’t say it was a bad movie, because it honestly looks like a lot of effort was put into making this reboot. Any movie with Edward Norton and Tim Roth are justifications alone to go and see it, but I can’t say I was blown away by this one. I was probably expecting too much, I guess. It was hard for me not to make comparisons with Ang Lee’s version which unlike a lot of those out there, I liked immensely in spite of the “clunky and cartoonish” CGI. Come on, YOU try and make a Hulk without the aid of computers and see if it’s the least bit convincing. Too talky and introspective? I didn’t think so. The human interest throughout Lee’s take on the not-so-gentle giant kept the whole thing afloat between the action scenes.

Anyway.

I’m not saying the new one didn’t have scenes and dialogue of the same nature, but somehow there were a few things, in my opinion, that got in the way of fully enjoying the movie. I was probably expecting something else, but after a little hindsight I came to appreciate all the little details and references the film made to its pulp-based counterpart. After all, I never really read much of the comics to know how closely the movie follows the source material, but I think the key element still stands true in this version – namely, Banner’s perpetual quest for inner peace.

Well thats the fourth time I have now watched the Hulk, And it’s still as impressive as the first time. One small thing that it’s taken me four watches to acknowledge. Emile Blonsky aka the Abomination in the film is Russian Born and brought up in the UK. Serving with the Royal Marines he was seconded to the United States for their special mission. Ok so far, but the scene where he is in full dress uniform talking to General Ross, quite clearly shows him in a US army uniform. Now when your seconded to another countrys military you wear your own uniform. Error or Lazy editing you decide

Abomination vs Hulkbuster

This is one of the two 2-packs that have appeared on the shelves.  It may be the last wave of these we will see so cherish them.  I like these 2-packs – and is it just me or is that Hulkbuster using the Abomination Blaster from Nerf?  He does know those are toys, right?  You really can’t take down the Abomination with a toy – maybe someone should have told him before he pulled that thing out.  Maybe he’s the new guy and it’s a little new guy hazing!  Sick little game.  Funny, but sick.

These figures might’ve sold better if they made these figures variants  – just a slightly different version of the figures we have.  But, hey – it is pretty cool that they gave them the toys that we can play with too!

Close up of 2 pack

Gamma-Charged Abomination

This figure was alluding me for so long I finally broke down and bought it off of Habro’s website.  And then, strangely enough, I went into the Taunton Target on Saturday and not only did they have the last 2 deluxe figures I needed they also had 2 Gamma Charged Abomination’s on the pegs!  2 of them!  I was almost tempted to buy another just so that I could say I bought it myself!  But, alas, I didn’t buy another.  There are a few of these on ebay – some are up for about $30.00 – but no one buys these off ebay.  The cool feature on these is the fact that when you press on the Abomination’s torso the spikes on his back “grow”.  They don’t make enough toys nowadays that are dangerous to kids – this is pretty much one of those toys and I for one am glad to see it!  Now, let’s see some kids poke their little eyes out on these!

Close -up of Abomination

back of package

I promised the coolest thing ever – and I deliver!  At least I think it’s the coolest thing ever.  The Hulk Head is a playset – it opens in the back – it can also hold all the open legos once you’ve opened all the packages.  Actually my favorite part to this playset is the tiny Hulk and Abomination figures that come with it.  Ever since I saw the Spiderman playsets I was waiting patiently for these to appear in my local Toys R Us.  They never did – I imagined that they never made them – but then, much to my surprise, I saw this on ebay not too long ago and thankfully was the only bidder!  You can set up the whole last scene from the movie and play it out right in your own backyard! 

The Abomination’s spikes on his back are so big that it makes him look like a punk rocker and, is it just me or does the Hulk look like a green, strung out Keith Richards?  They both are pretty hard to stand without the support of a lego base - well, no wonder!  Look how little their legs are!  Cripes, if they were really like this they would be dwarfs (or midgets, depending on how politically incorrect you want to get)

Yes, I will say it once more – this is absolutely my favorite item to come out of the Hulk merchandise - at least, so far…

Mutating Abomination

While the Gamma Charged Abomination has still eluded me I did find the third Abomination figure made from the movie.  It’s the 2-pack with the Emil figure.  The Emil figure fits snugly inside the Abom figure – but again, much like the Mutating Hulk figure, there has to be a sacrificein articulation.  The waist does not move – but he does come with a pair of nun-chucks!  Much like in the movie where the Abom broke off some concrete poles and used them in the final fight this figure has the chucks to swing around!  I am still pretty impressed by the likeness in the Emil and Banner figures.  Emil looks just like Roth!  The Banner figure looks just like Norton.  They may fit in perfectly with the G.I. Joe figures – and can you imagine!?!  Hulkbusters against G.I. Joe figures!  The Hulkbusters would win for sure!  They have to deal with the Hulk on a daily basis – what do the Joes have to handle?  A couple of guys in silver masks who scream alot?  Please… no contest!

Close up - of the sweet nun-chucks!