Finally! A comic we can enjoy on its own terms. Good old Hulk. The story of mild-mannered scientist Bruce Banner, caught in gamma bomb explosion and mutated in the rampaging green monster, the Hulk. Yeah, Hulk Smash! Simple enough for anyone to understand and gloriously timeless to boot.

What’s that you say? He’s RED now? Well, that’s sort of interesting. Oh, and he’s not Bruce Banner? That’s… well that’s a bit weird, but okay. Sorry? He’s NOT rampaging anymore, but instead he’s shooting the Abomination in the head with a pistol? Excuse me, I think I may have picked up the wrong comic, just let me check the cover a second. Nope, nope, definitely says Hulk #1 on the front… What’s that smaller word there?  Something like lo…loed…aha! It’s LOEB. This comic is written by JEPH LOEB!

Oh.

Yes, friends, the man who recently brought us a solid contender for the most widely mocked comic of 2007 has somehow found time to work his magic on the Jade Giant (or should that be Crimson Colossus?) Much like Ultimates, it’s hard to list Hulk #1’s faults because it’s so brainless. Perhaps the funniest thing is that Loeb has used the same assassination mystery in both Hulk and Ultimates, as both titles now set about investigating who just shot their long-standing cast member. One assumes Loeb simply phoned the scripts in during coffee breaks on the Heroes set.

Even John Byrne’s famously stalled reboot (the last time we saw a Hulk #1) was better than this - trust me, I was there. When the next Hulk movie comes out this year and people flock to the stores to buy the latest Hulk collection, they are going to find the TPB that starts with this issue, and then they’re going to come back the following day and punch their bookseller in the ear.

The mystery behind the red Hulk appears to relate to the Cold War. Well, as Calvin Harris once said, it was acceptable in the 80s. The new Hulk is red like a Soviet Socialist and chances are he’ll be a Russian Super-Soldier of some kind, hence the appearance of Marvel’s generic Russian superheroes, the Winter Guard. In fact, the new Hulk isn’t even IN this issue, only the supporting cast. That nonsense might fly over in Captain America, but Loeb’s no Brubaker.

The good? Well… Rick Jones is back, and he’s been absent for too long. Okay, last time we saw him he was speared through the gut, but I assume that’ll be addressed. There’s some nudging for us to infer that he’sthe Red Hulk, but I’m not buying it even a little bit. McGuinness’ art may not be to everyone’s taste, but it is pleasingly chunky, which is good for a title that relies on the sheer scale of its lead character’s appearance.

And… that’s about it. This is indeed a rare thing – a Hulk comic for people who don’t want to read about the Hulk. Loeb spent most of 2007 demolishing his reputation with some high-profile misfires and only one genuinely decent series (Fallen Son) to his name. 2008 isn’t off to a good start.