While Wolverine. With an adamantium-laced skeleton, lethal metal claws, and an acute healing factor, Wolverine has proven to be a worthy adversary for the Hulk, who has been forced to move past his own brute strength and outsmart his foe.
The rivalry between Marvel heavy hitters Hulk and Wolverine stretches back to Wolverine's original comic debut in 1974's The Incredible Hulk #181 from the late Len Wein and Herb Trimpe. The landmark issue saw the two heroes battle it out in the Canadian wilderness, beginning a lengthy rivalry that would last for decades to come. Perhaps the most brutal encounter between the two occurred in 2007's World War Hulk: X-Men tie-in miniseries by writer Christos N. Gage and Andrea DiVito. Following his banishment from Earth by the secret superhuman society known as the Illuminati, the Hulk finds himself stranded on the war planet of Sakaar. It does not take long before the Hulk takes over the planet and gains control of both the planet as well as the loyalty of its alien inhabitants, before a large aspect of the monster's new life is taken away from a bomb seemingly initiated by the Illuminati of Earth.
A war-bound and angry Hulk does not waste any time in making a return trip back to Earth, with absolute revenge on the Illuminati on his mind. One of the first trips on the Hulk's agenda is Westchester, New York, the location of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. The school is the residence of Illuminati member Professor Charles Xavier and his superhero group the X-Men along with a handful of mutants in training. Xavier's mutants prove to be nothing more than a swift exercise for the Hulk, until the violent intruder is confronted by his old rival, Wolverine. With the Hulk's durable skin even tougher than usual, Wolverine opts to target the giant's eyes but fails. The Hulk is aware of Wolverine's healing factor and rather than risk a defeat, opts to maneuver around the mutant's famous healing factor "head on." Hulk makes repeated punches to Wolverine's adamantium skull, ultimately taking his former foe out of the fight.
Hulk Uses Logan's Brain Against Him
After years of facing off against Wolverine, the Hulk clearly understands his foe's physical advantages and weaknesses. Noting that Logan's healing factor means he's extremely difficult to kill, Hulk knows that multiple blows to the head will smash his brain into his thick adamantium skull again and again. Hulk himself makes note of the fact that his chosen attacks are modeled after a boxer who takes multiple hits to the head, drawing signs of CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy). CTE is a common brain condition derived from repeated trauma to the head, with symptoms ranging from memory loss to periods of mood swings. The condition of CTE is often associated within the realm of close sports, including but not limited to boxing, football, wrestling, ice hockey, and soccer.
Hulk and Wolverine's X-Mansion brawl is a far cry from their earliest interactions, which simply involved the two heroes duking it out until they beat each other into submission. Thanks to the founding Avenger's extended period on Sakaar, this is a new Hulk who uses his brain just as much, if not more than his increased brawn, to take down his old rival Wolverine.
