Who is Skaar - the powers, enemies, and history of the Son of Hulk

Skaar, Son of Hulk in Marvel Comics
(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

She-Hulk season one has reached its finale, and while the offbeat conclusion leaves some questions about where and when we may see She-Hulk herself show up next, it gives some more concrete clues about what's coming for Bruce Banner - including the introduction of his son, Skaar of the planet Sakaar.

But who is Skaar, son of Hulk? Who is his mother? When was he born? What are his powers?

As many questions as the appearance of Skaar in the MCU raises, Marvel Comics has the answers - and we're going to explain everything you need to know about the son of Hulk right now.

Who is Skaar, Son of Hulk?

Skaar, Son of Hulk in Marvel Comics

(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Skaar is, as She-Hulk establishes, the son of the Hulk, who fathered him during the time he was on the planet Sakaar. We won't run down the entirety of the Planet Hulk saga here, but the TL:DR is that Hulk was sent away from Earth by the group known as the Illuminati, and he wound up on the planet Sakaar, where he became a gladiator known as the Green Scar. 

As the Green Scar, he led a revolution against the planet's sadistic rulers and married a woman named Caiera the Oldstrong, fathering several children. 

When Hulk was about to leave Sakaar, an attack from his political enemies killed most of his family, leading Hulk to return to Earth and declare war on the Illuminati in the story World War Hulk, nearly taking out all the most powerful heroes on Earth before finally being defeated. And that's where Skaar comes in.

Skaar first appeared in the 2007 hypothetical story What If? Planet Hulk #1, which explored the possibilities of what might have happened during the Planet Hulk story in other alternate timelines. He was then introduced in the mainstream Marvel Universe just a short time later in World War Hulk #5.

(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Skaar is the son of Hulk and Caiera the Oldstrong, but as with other Sakaaran children, he was incubated in a special cocoon, growing from infancy to a teenager in just one year. But in that year, Skaar's family was altered irrevocably when his mother was killed and his father returned to Earth without him, not knowing he was leaving behind a still-living son.

After awakening on Sakaar in the wake of Hulk's departure, Skaar finds himself all alone in a war-torn world - though he is contacted by the spirit of his dead mother, who offers him guidance in his brutal fight against the new dictator of Sakaar, Axeman Bone, in his own Skaar: Son of Hulk ongoing title. Along with the powers of a Hulk, Skaar's half-Sakaaran nature also grants him the 'Old Power,' the ability to channel the strength of the very planet Sakaar itself.

Though his adventures first take place exclusively on Sakaar, Skaar eventually makes his way to Earth after Sakaar is nearly devoured by Galactus. Once on Earth, Skaar vows to destroy the Hulk - a quest that would wind up taking Skaar far away from his original destination.

Skaar, Son of Hulk in the Marvel Universe

Skaar, Son of Hulk in Marvel Comics

(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Following Skaar's arrival on Earth, his search for the Hulk leads him to the jade giant himself - though in the guise of the rampaging Hulk rather than the Green Scar personality who was the hero of Sakaar and father of Skaar. 

After a brutal fight in which the rampaging Hulk almost causes serious destruction, Skaar vows not just to defeat the Hulk, but to defend the Earth from his destructive nature.

Skaar meets with Bruce Banner, who was physically separated from the Hulk at the time and promises to teach Skaar how to kill the Hulk - though this is partially a ruse designed to allow Banner to stay close to Hulk's son and try to teach him to be a hero. 

During the story 'Fall of the Hulks,' Skaar and Hulk finally fight - though they both realize that they're causing wanton destruction toward innocent people and cease their fight, finally seeing each others' humanity. 

In the final aftermath of the battle, Hulk and Banner are merged back into one being, with Skaar and Banner/Hulk mostly reconciling and promising to come to an understanding as father and son.

(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

After moving on from his vow to kill the Hulk, Skaar is recruited into a new incarnation of Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers to serve as his personal Hulk. 

But unbeknownst to Osborn and the rest of his Dark Avengers, Skaar is actually working as an infiltrator among the team, working to bring them down from the inside. Once that mission is complete, Skaar is recruited into yet another team of Dark Avengers, this time working as a replacement for the missing-in-action Thunderbolts team. 

However, rather than being a secret double agent, this time Skaar is recruited to track down his predecessors, becoming lost in an alternate world of the Multiverse in the process - eventually resulting in Skaar being depowered.

Most recently, Skaar was part of the Gamma Flight team working to track down the Hulk, getting his powers back after receiving a skin graft from the Abomination which reactivates his Gamma abilities and allows him to help defeat the Abomination by the end of the story.

Skaar, Son of Hulk in the MCU

Skaar, Son of Hulk in She-Hulk

(Image credit: Marvel Studios)

So far, all we know about Skaar in the MCU is, well, that he exists, and that he likely has an MCU origin that is somewhat similar to the one told in comics.

But Hulk has already come and gone from Sakaar in She-Hulk, bringing Skaar home with him. Though we don't know for sure who his mother is in the MCU, we're guessing Skaar was conceived during Hulk's time on the planet shown back in Thor: Ragnarok, which partially adapted the story Planet Hulk.

We're guessing the answers to these questions will be addressed in the Hulk's next MCU appearance, which is heavily hinted in the She-Hulk finale to be a long-awaited solo movie, perhaps adapting parts of Planet Hulk and World War Hulk.

Read the best Hulk stories of all time.

George Marston

I've been Newsarama's resident Marvel Comics expert and general comic book historian since 2011. I've also been the on-site reporter at most major comic conventions such as Comic-Con International: San Diego, New York Comic Con, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the artist of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many heavy riffs. (They/Them)