Summary

  • April Booth wants to become the one true and best Hulk, and her goal is to kill the original Hulk, even if it means killing all the Hulks, including She-Hulk.
  • April and her husband, Mark, stole She-Hulk's blood samples to gain powers but their experiments went wrong, leaving April as a Hulk monster.
  • Bruce Banner, the original Hulk, is insulted and ionate about April's challenge to become the Hulk, and Hulk takes it as a personal attack on his individualism.

Warning: Spoilers for The Sensational She-Hulk #2!One of the newest additions to She-Hulk's rogues' gallery is challenging Bruce Banner for the right to be the one true Hulk. There are few versions of the Hulk or Gamma-powered characters who can rival his level of power. However, someone thinks they're strong enough to step up to the plate: April Booth, who first debuted as a She-Hulk villain in her last series, She-Hulk.

April Booth and her husband Mark return in The Sensational She-Hulk #2 by Rainbow Rowell, Andres Genolet, Dee Cunniffe, and VC's Joe Caramagna. While Mark reluctantly tags along to ensure his wife's safety while she's in her current state, April has only one goal in mind: to become the one, true, and best Hulk.

Mark and April Booth attack Hulk and She-Hulk

As far as April is concerned, the only way for her to do that is to kill the original Hulk, if not all the Hulks, Jen included. Judging by the end of this new issue, Bruce, at the very least, may be done for.

April Wants to Be the Hulk

April Booth calls herself the new Hulk

Mark and April Booth are scientists and founders of Booth Cybernetics. Inspired by the creation of the Hulk, they were determined to gain powers of their own and stole She-Hulk's blood samples from Stark Industries in order to begin their experiments. Unfortunately, their experiments were botched when April gave herself increased intelligence with an abnormally large head, while Mark's intelligence decreased as he gained a strengthened Hulk body. Eventually, April accidentally absorbed Mark's radiation, curing him, but becoming the Hulk monster she is now.

Flash forward to now, where April has been stalking Hulk, who leads April to She-Hulk's borough in New York. April's mental state has long deteriorated to the point that her only interest now is to prove herself as the best Hulk. Not the best She-Hulk, but the best Hulk. That's why she's been hunting down the original Hulk - the original source of the Gamma in Jen's blood samples that she and her husband stole before - in order to kill him and take his place as the best Hulk. She certainly makes a compelling argument at the story's conclusion, where she evades a charge from Hulk, forcing him to crash into a building that tumbles on top of him to end the issue.

Hulk Won't Give Up His Mantle and Namesake So Easily

April Booth tells Hulk she's no She-Hulk, Sensational She-Hulk #2

There have been many villains who have challenged Hulk indirectly as the strongest or the all-around best Hulk, but this is a rare instance of a villain's goal being to directly challenge for the right to be the Hulk. It's almost ironic just how insulted and ionate Bruce's Hulk is at the notion of this challenge. Bruce himself spent years not wanting to be the Hulk and to this day, the two would rather see each other obliterated than be attached to each other any longer. However, as much as Bruce hates turning into the Hulk and vice versa, Hulk takes great pride in being the Hulk. Understandably so, Hulk takes it as a personal attack towards his individualism for anyone to challenge that.

Sensational She-Hulk #2 is on sale now from Marvel.