Episode #13 - Darkness And Light, Part Three
Original Airdate February 16th, 1997

Realising that Banner and Hulk can't survive without each other, Betty and Samson place them back into the nutrient bath. Will the insane General Ross let them continue thier plan?

Credits
Written By: Greg Johnson
Directed By: Ernesto Lopez, Dick Sebast
Music Composed By: Shuki Levy and Kussa Mahchi
Animation Services By: Sae Rom Productions
Guest Starring: Neal McDonough as Dr. Robert Bruce Banner, Lou Ferrigno as The Hulk, Genie Francis as Betty Ross, John Vernon as General 'Thunderbolt' Ross, Luke Perry as Rick Jones, Kevin Schon as Major Glenn Talbot, Matt Frewer as The Leader, Mark Hamill as Gargoyle and Shadoe Stevens as Doc Samson

Review: Here it is, the last great Hulk episode. When I say great, I don’t really do the episode justice. By all accounts, this was a fantastic finale, possibly the show’s finest episode. There’s some great stuff in here, and most of the characters are given a final chance to shine, as they’ll all be replaced next season.

The Hulk vs. Banner fight was very well done and Bruce’s plan actually made a lot of sense. Its execution was especially well crafted and General Ross’ role was gripping to watch. His appearance here is probably his finest. It’s often easy to agree with his intentions, despite Betty’s points to the contrary, The Hulk is a threat. For those of you who didn’t see the show, or simply can’t remember, Ross was voiced by the late great John Vernon, who ironically enough, also voiced the same character in the 1966 Marvel Superhero Show. Vernon did an outstanding job in the role, without a doubt. In this first season, besides The Leader, I can’t think of a single cast member who wasn’t awesome in their role. Truly a textbook example of a great cast can be found in this season.

Banner and Betty’s wedding was a little rushed, but it did present the urgency of the situation. I was actually pretty shocked to see Ross’ laser on Bruce’s face. This was a really dark cartoon in it’s day, I honestly don’t know if newer shows would be allowed to show a cartoon like this (which may be why we haven’t had a Hulk series in a while).

The final moments left us with a great cliffhanger, absolutely full of suspense. The revelation of Rick turning into a Hulk was pretty cool, but then they topped it by Bruce’s own transformation. The pacing of this sequence was perfect, built up at just the right speed until we finally see Banner’s skin turn grey, as it originally did before Hulk turned green.

Truly an outstanding finale that never got the props it deserved. The Incredible Hulk was a great show, without a doubt. Not flawless by any means, but a deep, dark tale of a complicated and likeable man and the misunderstood monster inside him. Had the rest of the show continued with the same quality as this season, it could’ve very well been Marvel’s greatest show.