One Of The Best Hulks Just Smashed Into The MCU
The Hulk known as Skaar, son of Bruce Banner, showed up in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law just released its ninth and final (at least until we have word of a second season) today, and casually introduced one of the best characters in the Hulk family: Skaar, son of the Incredible Hulk we know and love. In the final moments of the She-Hulk finale (which we had some thoughts on), the Smart Hulk version of Bruce Banner shows up at a backyard barbecue and introduces his son Skaar, who he apparently connected with on his recent unseen time on Sakaar.
This version of Skaar (played by Wil Deusner) does not have any lines, but has the classic Hulk familial traits of being big, green, and a little sullen-looking, though that might just be him being a teenager. In addition to Skaar, the barbecue was also attended by Hulk’s cousin Jennifer Walters, Daredevil in his Matt Murdock civilian identity, and a number of other relatives who seemed to have picked up on some kind of romantic deal between the two superpowered lawyers. Probably a little awkward to be grilled by your hookup’s relatives at a cookout, even before an extraterrestrial teenager shows up.
Barbecues aside, the introduction of Skaar, son of the Hulk, to the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a pretty big deal. While he is a relatively new character to Marvel Comics canon, Skaar has been pivotal in a number of major events, and that is likely to continue in the MCU. Specifically, Skaar was a huge part of both the Planet Hulk and World War Hulk crossover events, which adds some weight to the rumor that Marvel will be doing some version of them.
Of course, is it really a rumor when famous accidental leaker Mark Ruffalo actually just up and says that Marvel Studios is working on World War Hulk? While the Hulk has been a consistent part of the main Marvel Cinematic Universe storyline since nearly the beginning, there has not been a solo Hulk movie since the 2008 film starring Edward Norton as Bruce Banner. The appearance of Skaar along with the Disney+ She-Hulk: Attorney at Law series seems to indicate that Marvel may be increasingly interested in Hulk-centric storylines.
Skaar was first introduced in Marvel Comics in What If? Planet Hulk #1, then in mainstream canon in World War Hulk #5. He also received a brief solo series, but has been a consistent character in Hulk-related stories ever since. In Marvel Comics, in addition to the classic Hulk powers of super-strength and durability, Skaar also is consistently portrayed as having cosmic control over lava and stone (via his mother, an alien named Caiera).
However, Marvel Studios is known to take characters and comics storylines as more of a point of inspiration than something it needs to be slavishly devoted to. Considering the original PlanetHulk and World War Hulk events were heavily predicated on the existence of the Illuminati, who have thus far only appeared in a parallel dimension in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, whatever happens in the MCU will likely be very different. But now that Skaar is here, we can expect something pretty big to happen to the Hulk family.
