The Incredible Hulk has won too many battles to count. When you’re the strongest being on the Earth (and most other planets), beating your enemies into submission is often a way of life. Even so, the Hulk’s been known to use unconventional tactics to defeat his trickier foes. As an experienced fighter, Hulk is surprisingly cunning even in his “dumber” forms, and villains underestimate the Green Goliath at their peril.
Ironically, then, one of the Hulk’s most effective moves happened completely by accident in the climactic chapter of The Infinity Crusade, the final chapter in Marvel Comics’ original Infinity Saga (which was preceded by The Infinity Gauntlet and The Infinity War). The Hulk wound up playing a decent role in all of these epics, although not always by choice…
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In the story, an aspect of the powerful being Adam Warlock separated itself from him, renaming itself “The Goddess” (all things considered, not out of the ordinary for this era of Marvel cosmic stories). Claiming she was the “good” aspect of Warlock, the Goddess approached many heroes and claimed she was there to recruit them to help bring about universal peace. After brainwashing her chosen few, she turned them into an army on a distant planet.
Meanwhile, the heroes who were not chosen (including the Hulk), mounted a counter attack/rescue mission. The Hulk – who was at this point in his “smart” form of Professor Hulk – was particularly skeptical about the Goddess’ motives, having been manipulated by several beings with supposedly good intentions himself. And his skepticism was confirmed when the goddess began pitting her heroes against their former friends.
As one of the “big guns” in his team’s strike force, the Hulk was stationed in deep space with an oxygen mask, and assigned to work with Drax the Destroyer to help create a diversion allowing the other heroes to infiltrate the Goddess’ planet. The diversion turned out to be an overcharged Silver Surfer that Drax and the Hulk helped direct at the planet like a bomb, distracting the Goddess’ army. Hulk then bought the heroes time to fly down to the planet in shuttles by taking on Thor in a fistfight, once the god of thunder flew into space to stop the heroes from entering. Although Drax and Hulk managed to divert Thor, the Asgardian destroyed Hulk’s mini propulsion unit… stranding him in outer space.
Fortunately, Hulk’s superhuman body proved resistant to the vacuum of space – and the planet’s gravity eventually pulled him into its atmosphere where he fell like a meteor. Re-entry friction burned away Hulk’s clothes and oxygen supply, but his skin proved impenetrable. However, lack of air soon caused the Hulk to pass out.
Unknown to the Hulk, the ground forces had engaged the heroes in multiple battles on the planet’s surface. One of those battles was between Sasquatch, a monstrously huge hairy member of the Canadian superhero team Alpha Flight, and Maxam, an ally of Adam Warlock. Before the two could come to blows, however, Hulk dropped out of the sky and fell on Sasquatch – knocking him unconscious. Grateful for the assist, Maxam complimented the Hulk on his “battle move” but then wondered if the Hulk always went into battle in “such a natural state.”
The rest of the battle proceeded without the Hulk’s direct involvement, but Banner got one last sight gag. When Sasquatch woke up – free of the Goddess’ brainwashing – he noticed that his entire back was shaved. Meanwhile, Hulk just stood next to him innocently – wearing a loincloth he’d created out of Sasquatch’s hair.
While Hulk generally wins his fights with his fists and not his toppling body, his “move” against Sasquatch still counts as one of his funnier yet effective moves. Being a 1000 pound, green rage monster inevitably guarantees you’ll win most of your fights – even when you don’t intend to.
