5 Old School Marvel Films That Need More Attention

1. The Incredible Incredible Hulk (1978) This is easily the best Marvel product they made before the Cinematic Universe began. I understand that I am making a very bold statement, but I stand by it ultimately. Before this, I was never too much of a Hulk fan. I felt him to be overrated, and just a glorified Jekyll and Hyde. Then I gave this series a shot. In the Incredible (ahem) pilot, we see David Banner (no word of a lie, the producers though Bruce sounded "too gay". Did they not see Jaws?) and his partner Elaina Marks, experimenting on Gamma rays due to the loss of his wife in a car accident. He takes this experiment too far and becomes the Hulk when provoked into anger. Pursued by a reporter, who is shown to be quite close to the pair, by the name of Jack McGee (this is where the line "Don't make me angry, Mr. McGee. You won't like me when I'm angry" came from), the lab wherein they are experimenting blows up, and Marks dies in the explosion, carried out by the angered Hulk. From McGee's perspective of the incident, however, it seems to McGee that the Hulk is the one who did this, and that Dr. Banner died in the explosion. Now he is on the run, helping people out whilst hiding his anger, all the while on the run from the world's most persistent reporter (five years on one story). There are no other characters from the comic books featured in the show (let's not mention the movie's just yet), but the original characters are just as thrilling. Elaina Marks, despite only appearing in the pilot episode, is set up as and given the character development of a main character. The only other main character present throughout (most of) the series is the reporter, played expertly by Jack Colvin. When you think about it, McGee is a very sweet character. He sees two of his friends seemingly die at the hands of a monster, and subsequently devotes a large amount of his time to tracking the creature down, to avenge his friends. In the only episode to not feature Bill Bixby's David Banner, we witness greater insight into McGee trying to track down the "hulking" creature, as he so often describes it. The only real tragedy of the show is it's endings. Jack McGee never found out the secret behind the Hulk, the series was cancelled with no real ending, and after the third reunion movie (only one of which featured McGee), the series abruptly ended with the Hulk falling from a plane to his death. In the planned fourth movie, he would be alive and semi-intelligent, but this moment never came to due Bixby's ill health. This truly is a great A-Team style TV show, and Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno's teamwork and chemistry (despite them only meeting on screen once or twice) is something to be admired (and is similar to David Hasselhoff and William Daniels as Michael Knight and the voice of KITT, in Knight Rider, who didn't meet until the first season wrap party). This truly is a recommendable show, and I urge you to close all of your tabs, browsers, documents and whatever else, and go out and buy The Complete Series (it growls when you press a button!) Any other forgotten classics (or "classics") that I've forgotten? Leave your answer in the comments below and thanks for reading!