Easter Egg Hunt: The Incredible Hulk (2008), Part Two

Part One can be viewed here.

DOC SAMSON

In Hulk stories, Doc Samson is a psychiatrist who was dosed with gamma radiation. He subsequently becomes a superhero with super strength and an ally of the Hulk. While he is nowhere near as strong as Hulk - his exposure was much less than Bruce Banner's - he makes up for the loss by retaining his intellect while "Hulked out."

Samson's first appearance in The Incredible Hulk is in the opening credits, where SAMSON, DR. L. is listed as a known associate. Here we are told that not only is he an associate of Dr. Betty Ross, but that he is in a relationship with her and that he is a psychiatrist. Bruce Banner's old friend Stanley later confirms that Betty is dating someone. In this scene, Samson is described as "a head shrink" and "a really nice guy."

We see Samson and Betty Ross together several times throughout the film, sometimes in heartbreaking scenes where Bruce Banner is looking upon the woman he loves and viewing her interact with another man in a seemingly loving relationship. That's gotta hurt.

But the Samson of The Incredible Hulk is more than just some interloper. He is clearly concerned for the safety of Dr. Betty Ross, which he displays by running after her when she goes running into her father's war zone. Even when it is revealed that it was through Samson's tip that the battle with the Hulk (on school grounds) was brought about, Samson confronts the General and accuses him of nearly killing his own daughter in the hunt for what might be called his green whale. After Samson calls General Ross out on lying about his intentions, Ross comments, "Where does she meet these guys?" This suggests that he feels like Bruce Banner and Leonard Samson are of the same material. They certainly are. Both are heroes, and both are given great power.

Will Doc Samson, powered by gamma radiation, be featured in the sequel to The Incredible Hulk? Will there even be a sequel to The Incredible Hulk now that Ed Norton has been pulled from the project? Only time will tell.

RICK JONES

According to The Incredible Hulk #1, Rick Jones is the reason that there is a Hulk in the world. Friend to Dr. Bruce Banner, Rick accepts a dare to drive out onto a bomb testing ground. It just so happens that Banner is testing a gamma bomb at this site. Seeing Rick on the testing ground, Banner risks life and limb to push the kid into a protective trench. As a result, Banner absorbs the gamma radiation and transforms into the Hulk. Rick Jones has been a loyal sidekick to the Hulk for some time, but also to Captain America, Rom the Spaceknight, and a couple Captain Marvels (neither of whom possessing the Power of Shazam, if you know what I mean).

It's said that Rick Jones was written into the original script for The Incredible Hulk, but that Edward Norton phased him out in order to have a more robust story. This was probably a good idea, considering many comic book movies introduce too many characters and properly develop far too few. But there is a vestige of the existence of Rick Jones in the film. Much like Doc Samson, Rick Jones is listed as one of Bruce Banner's known associates. He is listed as a student and all other information about him is summer up by the word "unknown." Maybe he's been taken in by SHIELD and we'll see him in The Avengers. Maybe we'll see him in a sequel. Maybe this will be all we ever see of him.

THE LEADER

While modern representations of Hulk present General Ross as Hulk's arch-nemesis, I remember a 90s cartoon called Incredible Hulk that cast the Leader in that role. The Leader is the brain to Hulk's brawn, created similarly with a blast of gamma radiation. While Ross has the gift of military training, it could be argued that the Leader is second-to-none when it comes to strategy. His mental ability to predict the outcome of peoples' actions borderlines on precognition.

Throughout the film, Bruce Banner (as "Mr. Green") converses with a mysterious "Mr. Blue" regarding the development of a cure for his gamma-induced transformation into the Hulk. When SHIELD traces Banner's e-mail, Mr. Blue is revealed to be Samuel Sterns from the Department of Cell Biology at Grayburn College. Finally, Ross and Banner confront Sterns outside a building and we see the face of Samuel Sterns, the man who will one day become the Leader.

Sterns really seems to know what he's doing when it comes to gamma radiation. As a matter of fact, he's been doing his own testing. Using Bruce's blood samples, he's tested on rats and mice, but they got fried right away so he had to test on something bigger. This immediately calls to mind the strange gamma creatures the Leader was always surrounded by in the 90s cartoon. When Emil Blonsky forces Sterns to administer the Hulk serum to him, the good doctor get his own dose of the serum as a result of The Abomination's destruction of Sterns' laboratory. We see the serum enlarge his head and presumably his brain; we are witness to the origin of the Leader.

I think the Leader would make an absolutely fantastic main villain in a subsequent Hulk film.

Part Three can be viewed here.

Easter Egg Hunt: The Incredible Hulk (2008), Part One

At the end of The Incredible Hulk, Tony Stark confronts General Ross in a bar and says to him, "Why if I told you we were putting a team together?" This is yet another reference to the existence of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a reality in which the Marvel films Iron Man (2008), The Incredible Hulk (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), and Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) now exist, and in which many future films will exist. As I've mentioned in the "Easter Egg Hunt: Iron Man (2008)" series (Part One, Part Two, Part Three), it is my intention to seek out all of the hints scattered throughout these films that point towards further films.

What I didn't mention in my first series of posts, because it wasn't necessary at the time, is that I will only comment on Easter Eggs that point forward, Easter Eggs that point, potentially, toward future Marvel projects. In Iron Man, there were only future projects, and this is because Iron Man is the first entry into the Marvel Cinematic universe. But already, months after Iron Man, we have our second entry: The Incredible Hulk, which points both forward (to projects such as The Avengers and potential The Incredible Hulk sequels) and backward (to Iron Man). I have chosen not to mention those Easter Eggs that point backward, so if you don't read anything about the fact that Stark Industries manufactured most of the Hulkbuster technology in this film, don't be surprised. There are plenty of references to Iron Man in this film, but if you want an in-depth coverage of them all, you're going to have to go somewhere else or do the work yourself.

The following is a discussion of characters and future films that have been hinted at in the 2008 film The Incredible Hulk.

THE AVENGERS

Though we don't get to see Agent Coulson and company in action in The Incredible Hulk, SHIELD is still a fairly important behind-the-scenes presence in the film. As a matter of fact, the movie does a good job getting us adjusted to how well SHIELD has become ingrained in all aspects of human life.

In the opening credits, we see a document with the SHIELD logo at the top and the words "STRATEGIC HOMELAND INTERVENTION ENFORCEMENT LOGISTICS DIVISION" underneath. It is from Nick Fury, Shield Command and details SHIELD's involvement in the Bruce Banner manhunt, describing Banner as "THREAT LEVEL RED." SHIELD enters into the plot of The Incredible Hulk long before the action of the film takes place.

It may seem normal that the same agency who courageously faced the Ironmonger armor suit would be involved in the hunt for the incredibly dangerous Bruce Banner, also known as the rage-driven Hulk. What might be surprising to you is that SHIELD is apparently a few degrees worse when it comes to Constitutional rights than even the Patriot Act. After Banner sends the e-mail to Mr. Blue, it is revealed that SHIELD has traced the e-mail and all prior correspondences to Samuel Sterns of the Department of Cell Biology at Grayburn College. Talk about an invasion of privacy.

It was strange to me that even though I had only seen one movie set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I was already used to the idea of lead-up to The Avengers by the time I saw The Incredible Hulk. Within three years of this film, I'd be saying, "We should stay to see if there's a preview for The Avengers" after every film I'd see, including DC's Green Lantern. After The Incredible Hulk concludes, we see General Ross getting drunk at a bar when a well-dressed man walks in the door. The person is revealed as Tony Stark. Regarding Ross's "unusual problem," Stark says, "What if I told you we were putting a team together?" Ross responds, "Who's 'we'?"

The fact that the question, "Who's 'we'?" is left unanswered means that we, the people of the audience, are meant to answer it for ourselves. The team that Tony Stark is talking about is called The Avengers, and we know that it is to be assembled by SHIELD agents and people like Tony Stark with special abilities/technologies.

Part Two can be viewed here.

Part Three can be viewed here.

Easter Egg Hunt: Iron Man (2008), Part Three

Part One can be viewed here.
Part Two can be viewed here.

THE AVENGERS

The Avengers were originally established in the 1960s as a response to DC's Justice League of America. In their first adventure, they assemble to battle Thor's mischievous arch-enemy Loki. While this is interesting, we might be better served by looking at the variation of the Avengers featured in Marvel's Ultimate Universe. Here they are known as the Ultimates, and they were assembled by Nick Fury of SHIELD.

It is through the government organization known as SHIELD that we first encounter hints of the Avengers in Iron Man. Prior to Tony Stark's press conference that he calls upon returning from Afghanistan, Pepper Potts is pulled aside by Agent Phil Coleson with the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement Logistics Division. Pepper says, "That's quite a mouth full." Coleson replies, "I know. We're working on it." This is the first of many references to this lengthy division title that is just dying for an acronym. It is not until Pepper Potts feels threatened by Obadiah Stane that we see some SHIELD agents in action. Agent Coleson and four other agents unflinchingly take on Stane in his Ironmonger armor despite the fact that this villain is so far out of their league.

During the credits, there is a full picture of the SHIELD logo.

Of course, the existence of SHIELD does not necessarily prove the future existence of the Avengers. Maybe SHIELD is just an organization in this universe, and maybe they will even have their own movie. The only way I could believe that is if I didn't watch the clip following the credits of Iron Man. After the credits, Tony Stark returns to his house only to find that the security alarm is going off and JARVIS is malfunctioning. A shadowy figure stands facing his picture windows. He says, "I am Iron Man. You think you're the only superhero in the world? Mr. Stark, you've become part of a bigger universe. You just don't know it yet." He comes into the light and reveals himself as Nick Fury, the Director of SHIELD. He finishes by saying, "I'm here to talk to you about the Avengers initiative."

FIN FANG FOOM

Fin Fang Foom is an ancient Chinese dragon and also an alien from Maklu IV. But most importantly, he is one of Iron Man's most powerful adversaries.

You're probably saying to yourself, "I didn't see any dragons in the film Iron Man and I most certainly didn't see any giant aliens." Honestly, I didn't see Fin Fang Foom in the film for the first couple of times I watched it. I owe IMDB for pointing it out to me. You see, after Tony Stark recovers from the Iron Man Mark II suit freezing at high altitude, he flies past a poster featuring Fin Fang Foom in the downtown area.

In case you can't see it there in the background, I was able to find a blown up version of this artwork on the internet.

WHIPLASH

Whiplash is yet another of the villains who make up Iron Man's gallery of rogues. (Are we only allowed to call Batman's villains the gallery of rogues or is that term applicable to all groups of villains?) Don't worry: It's not just a clever name. You see, Whiplash attached whips to his arms, and becomes an enforcer for Justin Hammer.

This easter egg was hard to find. In fact, if you blinked - or rather, if you did the ear equivalent of blinking - you might have missed it. When two jets engage Tony Stark under James Rhodes's command, their call names are Whiplash 1 and Whiplash 2. Yeah, that's it.

ROXXON

Die-hard Marvel fans will recognize Roxxon as a massive corporation in the Marvel Universe. I'll admit, I recognize it more from the Ultimate Universe than the regular Marvel Universe, but then again, I've read every Ultimate comic and I'm pretty far from reading every Marvel comic.

Well, die-hard Iron Man viewers will recognize the Roxxon Corporation building that can be seen in the background of the highway scene where Iron Man and Ironmonger do battle.

This concludes my exploration of Marvel Cinematic Universe Easter eggs in the 2008 film Iron Man. Will we see Mandarin, Fin Fang Foom, and Roxxon in the future of the Iron Man franchise? I don't know. But I do know that the Easter egg hunt will continue soon in Easter Egg Hunt: The Incredible Hulk. Stick around.

Easter Egg Hunt: Iron Man (2008), Part Two

Part One can be viewed here.

CAPTAIN AMERICA

Steve Rogers was a scrawny kid who was bothered by the rise of the Third Reich. When his size kept him from enlisting in the American war effort, he volunteered for a program called Operation: Rebirth in which he was transformed into the super-soldier Captain America. In most of the stories, Captain America is frozen in ice near the end of World War II. The world believes that he is dead until someone discovers his frozen body and brings him back to life in modern times.

The biggest reference to Captain America in Iron Man - the biggest reference to further Marvel films - is shown when Pepper catches Tony Stark removing the damaged Iron Man armor. In the background one can see a modernized version of Captain America's shield. It is still under construction, so we can assume that this is some sort of government contract that Tony has been working on. This may be the biggest reference, but it is certainly not the only reference.

You may have noticed that Tony's father Howard Stark was referenced quite often in Iron Man. His mention in this story doesn't necessarily point to anything beyond Tony's own back story, but it is worth noting that he is often mentioned in reference to World War II. When Howard Stark is featured in a montage regarding Tony's origin at the Apogee Award for Design & Engineering Excellence, he is described as a "legendary weapons developer" and shown in front of a diagram of a World War II era warplane. Tony tells the reporter that his father was a hero because of his work on the Manhattan project and defeating the Nazis, and this is confirmed by the treacherous Obadiah Stane, who talks about Howard's work on the atomic bomb while removing Tony's life support.

Howard is also memorialized by a World War II era propeller Tony keeps by the television in his laboratory, and the Howard Stark Memorial Parkway that is visible from the highway where Iron Man battled Ironmonger. Like I mentioned above, referencing Howard Stark during a film surrounding Tony Stark is not entirely weird, but when Tony Stark is contracted to build Captain America's shield it seems very likely that Howard Stark was the one who originally got the contract. Thus, when we learn more about Howard Stark it seems wise to ask, "Who exactly is Howard Stark and what is his relationship with Captain America?"

WAR MACHINE

Colonel James "Rhodey" Rhodes is the best friend of Tony Stark/Iron Man. In the comic books, he uses one of Tony's armor suits and becomes the hero known as War Machine. The mere presence of Terrence Howard as James Rhodes in Iron Man is, in itself, a hint that we are likely to see War Machine in future installations of the Iron Man movie franchise.

Of course, to say that James Rhodes' appearance in Iron Man assures the existence of War Machine in future Iron Man films is similar to saying that Thaddeus Ross's appearance in The Incredible Hulk assures the existence of Red Hulk in future Hulk films. In other words, the one does not guarantee the other. However, when James Rhodes espies a silver armored suit as he exits Tony Stark's house, shows obvious temptation to don the armor, and then proclaims, "Next time, baby," it seems pretty clear that there is a War Machine story coming soon.

Let's not forget that War Machine was also important enough to be featured in the end credits animation. I seem to remember an animated armor suit with a shoulder-mounted gatling gun appearing while the Black Sabbath song "Iron Man" played.

Part Three can be viewed here.

Easter Egg Hunt: Iron Man (2008), Part One

As many of you know, the 2008 film Iron Man was the first movie that Marvel Studios created independently. As Nick Fury would say after the credits, "You've become a part of a bigger universe." For all intents and purposes that universe is now called the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and as of the publication of this blog it ties together the films Iron Man (2008), The Incredible Hulk (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), and Captain America: The First Avenger (2011).

Since all of these films exist within the same universe, the various creators have included Easter Eggs, sometimes small, sometimes significant, that point from one film to another. It is my goal to seek out each and every one of these little clues. As of right now, the blog column titled "Easter Egg Hunt" is only dedicated to films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but I imagine there might be a time in the future when this is expanded. For example, there were rumors that the 2011 film Green Lantern was to be the first film in a similar DC Cinematic Universe, one that would later give rise to a Justice League film in much the same way that the Marvel films have been leading toward a Avengers film. Until I get some pretty good confirmation, however, I'm going to stick to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The following is a discussion of characters and future films that have been hinted at in the 2008 film Iron Man.

MANDARIN

Mandarin is usually understood as the quintessential arch-enemy to Iron Man. Professor Xavier has Magneto. The Fantastic Four have Doctor Doom. Iron Man has Mandarin. Sure, Crimson Dynamo, The Titanium Man and Ultimo pack one heck of a punch, but Mandarin is the most common enemy you're likely to find at the top of any Top Iron Man villains list. For the CG animated television series Iron Man: Armored Adventures, Mandarin is the puppet master behind all of young Tony Stark's problems in the first season.

The classic understanding of Iron Man comics sees Mandarin as a wealthy man in pre-revolutionary China. While exploring a no-man's-land called "The Valley of Spirits," he discovers a downed starship once piloted by a dragon-like alien from Maklu IV named Axonn-Karr (now deceased) with a payload of ten rings of power. In a lot of ways, Mandarin's origin in Marvel comics relates to Hal Jordan's induction into the Green Lantern Corps after the death of Abin Sur in DC comics. In various stories and media appearances, Mandarin has been adapted and modernized, but this is the generic mold of Mandarin that originated in the Tales of Suspense days of Marvel in the 1960s.

In interviews, Jon Favreau explained that he wanted Mandarin to be the main villain in his first Iron Man film, but felt like it wouldn't work. He explained this fact by comparison to the original Star Wars trilogy. The main villain of that trilogy is Emperor Palpatine, but you can't introduce him as the main villain in Episode IV, "A New Hope." That's what Darth Vader is for. You make him the enemy for a couple of installations before revealing that Emperor Palpatine was behind it all in Return of the Jedi. According to this understanding, Raza, the leader of the terrorist cell is the Darth Vader of the first Iron Man film, but Mandarin is behind it all.

There are quite a few clues that point to Mandarin's appearance behind the scenes of Iron Man and tease his possible appearance in future Iron Man films, potentially even in the 2013 film Iron Man 3 if new director Shane Black carries out Favreau's dream. The name of the terrorist organization that Raza represents is Ten Rings, which is a clear shout-out to the ten rings Mandarin found in the alien spacecraft in the original comics. Their banner is shown after Tony Stark is captured, while the terrorists are attempting to reverse engineer Tony's Iron Man suit, when Obadiah Stane appears in the terrorist camp, on the communication Pepper discovers between Raza and Stane, and finally in the closing credits.

Raza, the Darth Vader of this film, is seen wearing a ring. Some people on the internet have pointed to the fact that Obadiah Stane is wearing a ring as reason to believe that he has one of the ten. But everyone in power in this film, Raza and Stane, but also Tony Stark and James Rhodes, wear rings. It is hard to believe that they are all members of the Ten Rings terrorist sect. Furthermore, in a speech to Tony Stark he references the success of Genghis Khan in conquering Asia. This is significant because Mandarin is understood to be a descendent of Genghis Khan. (Of course, I've heard that some insane percentage of the entire population of East Asia is descended from Genghis Khan, so that might not be as much of a distinction as we believed in the 60s.) Raza is killed by Obadiah Stane before the conclusion of the film. Is this the end of the Ten Rings terrorist sect, or have we yet to meet the true leader? Considering Yinsen's testimony that the members of this cult speak Arabic, Urdu, Parshto, Mongolian, Farsi, Russian, and Hungarian, and yet the members we see are Afghani, I think there might be more to this whole Ten Rings group. I think a Mandarin story may just be in the works.

Part Two can be viewed here.
Part Three can be viewed here.