Hulk and Thor will collide in 2022 for what writer Donny Cates calls "the $^@#&%! craziest fight that Marvel Comics has ever seen" for a title bout that will last at least five rounds across the ongoing Hulk and Thor titles, as well as a tie-in one-shot, all written by Cates with art from Martin Coccolo and covers by Gary Frank.
On March 25 Marvel Comics released a trailer for the event.
Titled Hulk Vs. Thor: Banner of War, the story will kick off on April 27 with Hulk vs. Thor: Banner of War Alpha #1. It continues in May with Thor #25 and Hulk #7, and then in June with Thor #26 and Hulk #8, the five-part story's conclusion.
"I was a little surprised that Marvel approached me to write this, if I'm being honest. I'm mostly known for writing very small, very quiet, intimate comics, so I had to ... ha!! Sorry. Couldn’t keep that up!" Cates jokes in Marvel's announcement. "Yeah, this is gonna be bonkers as hell, guys. We’re going to break everything! Happy birthday, Hulk and Thor! Hope you enjoy massive amounts of violence!"
Cates, the current ongoing writer of both Hulk and Thor, previously teased the battle, saying that as the first person to write both Hulk and Thor at the same time since Stan Lee penned their original adventures, he would be "remiss" not to take the opportunity for a crossover.
(Cates is actually the second person to write both titles simultaneously since Lee, as Len Wein did both in the late '70s.)
What's more, 2022 marks the 60th anniversary of the debuts of both Hulk and Thor - a fact Cates is all too aware of, having stated in that same interview that he plans to deliver "the $^@#&%! craziest fight that Marvel Comics has ever seen" to mark the occasion.
Check out a gallery of Titled Hulk Vs. Thor: Banner of War #1 variant covers by Martin Coccolo, Ron Lim, Trevor Von Eeden, Ryan Stegman, and Geoff Shaw.
Hulk and Thor are just two of the many iconic Marvel characters who debuted in 1962, and who will celebrate their 60th anniversaries in 2022.
