Published Oct 24, 2026, 12:00 PM EDT
Mark has been a comic book journalist for over 15 years and has interviewed comic book creators like Gail Simone and Caspar Wijngaard. And when he's not writing, he's working on beating his record of 1,200 comics read in a year.
When Phillip Kennedy Johnson began his run on Marvel Comics' The Incredible Hulk, it was clear that the series would be terrifying. Gruesome monsters killed people in the Infernal Hulk's first issue, and things kept escalating from there. More horrific monstrosities kept appearing, but none of them were as terrible as the firstborn of the Mother of Horrors, called the Eldest.
The Eldest set out on a path to resurrect their mother, but she was gone forever. Rather than sulk, the Eldest consumed the Mother of Horrors. This, on top of beating the Hulk and taking his body, led to it becoming an unstoppable force on Earth. Iron Man and Wolverine found that out the hard way, and now it was The Fantastic Four’s turn.
Marvel’s First Family Become Something Monstrous
Infernal Hulk Vs Fantastic Four No.1: Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson; Art by Cian Tormey; Colors by Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Surprising to no one, Reed Richards took the initiative to find a way to get rid of the monsters created by the Eldest. While Mr. Fantastic has a complicated relationship with magic, he knows that some things are beyond his understanding. Despite that, Reed created an invention called the Immaculate Engine. At the center of it is a tree created by the blood of the One Above All.
While Mr. Fantastic works on the machine, the rest of The Fantastic Four fight off the Eldest’s beasts in Manhattan. They bring one of them back to see if the Immaculate Engine can cure it, but the experiment is cut short. The Infernal Hulk was in the building, and it turned off the power to the Baxter Building. Marvel’s First Family attempts to fight back, but they are easily defeated.
Ben Grimm’s punches were countered by the Eldest, who then turned him from orange to grey and made him too heavy to move. Johnny Storm (who was already terrified) was consumed by a wall of the dead who died building things in Manhattan. Sue Storm’s arm was ripped from her body and was turned into an invisible snake, which later wrapped around the Baxter Building. Reed tried to escape, but was turned into a watery goo in the street.
The Fantastic Four are clearly not dead. Beyond knowing that Marvel Comics wouldn’t kill them outside their own title, the Eldest has something else planned. It’s been taking the heroes of Earth and using them to create an army. Unfortunately, next up in the fight against the Infernal Hulk is Marvel’s most popular character.
The Eldest Next Soldier Could Be Spider-Man
When it’s time to make someone look tough, the best course of action is for them to defeat a major player. The Infernal Hulk has defeated Iron Man, Wolverine, and Cyclops' X-Men. To up the ante, the Eldest displayed more of its powers to recreate The Fantastic Four into something in its blood-curdling image. Judging by the pattern, Spider-Man may be the next hero to be transformed into a demon-like creature.
There has always been a part of Spider-Man that’s more spider than man, and Eldest has the ability to bring that part out of someone. As strong as Spidey’s will is, it may not be enough to fight back against something that’s older than humanity. However, there is another option that doesn’t involve Peter Parker directly.
Peter has a lot of people in his life with superpowers, and most of them have animal totems. If the Eldest decides that Spider-Man isn’t worth the trouble, then they may move on to someone more susceptible to becoming evil, like Scorpion, Rhino, or Vulture. If the Infernal Hulk wants to really play dirty, maybe it will go after Mary Jane Watson or Black Cat.
Transforming someone Peter loves could be enough to anger him into becoming the monster that the Eldest can control. If that happens, it will take more than the Avengers and every hero on Earth to defeat the Infernal Hulk's growing Hellish army.
English (US) ·