The Incredible Hulk #318 [Direct]

(April 1986)

Baptism of Fire (Table of Contents: 1)

Hulk / comic story / 22 pages (report information)

Script

John Byrne (credited)

Pencils

John Byrne (credited)

Inks

John Byrne (credited); Keith Williams (credited) (backgrounds)

Colors

Andy Yanchus (credited)

Letters

Rick Parker (credited)

First Line of Dialogue or Text

A top-secret para-military installation, somewhere in the vastness of the american southwest.

Genre

superhero

Characters

Bruce Banner; Betty Banner; Doc Samson [Leonard Samson]; New Hulkbusters [Craig Saunders; Carolyn Parmenter (death); Samuel John LaRoquette; Dr. Armand Martel; Prof. Hideko Takata]; Hulk (robot, only appearance); Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (cameo, flashback)

Synopsis

Bruce continues to study the Hulk to try and figure out a way to bring him down. Doc Samson accidentally destroys the Hulk Robot the Hulkbusters are using for training so they attack him instead. One of the Busters is killed in the conflict and, rather than take responsibility, Samson warns them to stay out of his way. Betty agrees to marry Bruce.

Reprints

• in Alpha Flight (Planeta DeAgostini, 1985 series) #35
• in Coleccionable El Increíble Hulk (Planeta DeAgostini, 2003 series) #2
• in Incredible Hulk Visionaries: John Byrne (Marvel, 2008 series)
• in Der unglaubliche Hulk (Condor, 1980 series) #19
• in De verbijsterende Hulk Special (Juniorpress, 1983 series) #17 [2 pages omitted]
• in L'Incroyable Hulk (Editions Héritage, 1968 series) #178 (juin 1986)
• in Marvel Superheltene (Semic, 1987 series) #5/1988 ([oktober] 1988)
• in Marvels universum (SatellitFörlaget, 1988 series) #4/1990 ([april] 1990) [18 pages]
• in Fantastici Quattro (Edizioni Star Comics, 1988 series) #26 (30 Luglio 1990), #27 (15 Agosto 1990)
• in Marvel Super-Heroes Megazine (Marvel, 1994 series) #5 (February 1995)
• in Hulk: ¡Libertad! (Planeta DeAgostini, 1998 series) (Noviembre 1998)
• in Marvel Universe by John Byrne Omnibus (Marvel, 2016 series) #[nn] (2016)
• in 100% Marvel HC. El Increíble Hulk de John Byrne (Panini España, 2017 series) ([Julio] 2017)
• in Incredible Hulk Epic Collection (Marvel, 2015 series) #14 - Going Gray (2020)

Indexer Notes

Hulk does not actually appear in this story.

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 2)

Green Mail / letters page / 0.75 page (report information)

Script

Denny O'Neil

Letters

typeset

Indexer Notes

Letters submitted by Danny DeAngelo; Todd Erickson; David Anderson; Jeff Volpe

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 3)

statement of ownership / 0.25 page (report information)

Letters

typeset

Indexer Notes

Statement of October 1, 1985
Average number of copies sold during preceding 12 months (total paid circulation): 172,033
Actual number sold for issue nearest filing date (total paid circulation): 232,928
Owners: Cadence Industries Corporation, Sheldon Feinberg, Joseph Walsh, Joseph Calamari, Paul Hindin, James E. Galton, Jim Foy, all at 21 Henderson Drive, West Caldwell, New Jersey