On to the Savage Land to share his savagery.
Originally written 10-2-11
After his battle with Zeus during the Chaos War story arc which leaves him in bad condition, the Hulk receives a message to pay a visit to the Savage Land from Kazar. It appears that many of the Sakaar people whom fled there after his defeat in NY are being viciously attacked. Kazar states that he's never seen these kind of bite marks before. Together with the Warbound and his son, Hulk attempts to put an end to whatever is attacking the people. -summary
I really enjoyed the direction taken since the World War Hulk storyline, and the two following story arcs, Fall of the Hulks and World War Hulks proved to be some fun romps with lots of surprises, so it was due time for a simpler and shorter story arc. Therefore, I found Planet Savage to be a breath of fresh air and an ok story at best. Written by Greg Pak, The Incredible Hulks - Planet Savage sees the Green Goliath tackle two nemesis; one newer threat in the form of Warbound traitor Miek, and in a much older enemy in the form of Tyrannus in a second story. Both proved to be straight forward and fun Hulk stories.
Now for the record, I was never interested in Kazar or his environment, even when it was featured in the pages of X-Men. I always found them to feel kind of out of place, so the stories left me feeling a bit uneasy I should say. However, in the case of the Hulk, he seems to be the right fit with the dangerous environment, and it quickly shows as he tries to level a beast with a single blow. For the most part, this is a basic Hulk story with lots of action, but when the plot twist finally comes around it proves to be a bit deeper than that.
Miek attacks the Warbound and organizes the Hulk's kidnapping for his own personal reason, and surprisingly, it has nothing to do with revenge. This is actually one of those wow moments that shouldn't be spoiled by anyone. The end result happens to tie up loose ends so to speak, with the Hulk making a decision that was pretty easy to see coming. The battle itself is mainly against giant insects, so it's safe to expect some gruesome moments and there are a few.
The second story sees the Hulk as Bruce Banner going undercover into a party hoping to convince Betty Ross not to continue changing into the Red She-Hulk. Amadeus Cho guest stars in this story, and he believes that Betty has either three or four transformations before it becomes permanent. Things become complicated when Tyrannus goes after a mystical object that could probably change the world either for better or worst. This is a chance he has no trouble taking. This story blends in good action, drama, and well placed comedy. It's not as deep as the first, but it isn't bad either.
The pencils by Dale Eaglesham and Tom Grummett delivers some nice character designs with some freakish looking beast. I really liked how the giant insects were drawn with so many in one place but many different designs. They have a really creepy-crawly feel to them, and the female characters like Red She Hulk for example are drawn very well too. I think the backgrounds for the Savage land had some good detail combining the prehistoric and tropical rain forest settings. There are plenty of nice moments with the art, and the inks just bring out the best.
Incredible Hulks: Planet Savage is a good story if you're really familiar with the Hulk universe. However, I don't see this as a good introduction to those whom are either new to the Hulk or have been away from comics for a long time. In addition, while it does have some nice moments, it's simply a cool down storyline that really isn't too spectacular and it shouldn't be a priority on anyone's "to read list".
In closing, I mainly recommend this book to those whom are die hard fans, and are vastly familiar with the Hulk by this point. For those whom have been out of the loop for a very long time. Planet Hulk would be a nice place to start.
Pros: Interesting first story, artwork, and action
Cons: Not a good place to start, second story is very average compared to first.