The Immortal Hulk #34 recontextualizes a weird '90s plot and ties up loose ends for a relatively forgotten character.

WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The Immortal Hulk #34 by Al Ewing, Butch Guice, Tom Palmer, Paul Mounts and Cory Petit, on sale now.

With only 16 issues left untilThe Immortal Hulkends, there are still plenty of deep corners in the Hulk mythos left for writer Al Ewing to explore. In The Immortal Hulk #34, Ewing masterfullypulls backthe curtains on last issue's reveal that the Leader has been secretly disguised as Rick Jones all along-- and ties up a strange '90s plot thread.

The bulk of the issue followsthe Leader's recounting of his various lives and deaths and how that lead to his quest for immortality.This recontextualizesThe Immortal Hulk's recent revelations that gamma power is intrinsically linked to the Hell dimension and immortality through the journalof Samuel Sterns. It addsa new layer to an already character-redefining series.

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Eventually, the Leader's journal entriesexplorea retelling of Tom DeFalco and Todd McFarlane'sIncredible Hulk #345, in which he drops a Gamma Bomb on Middleton, Ariz. This creates fivegamma mutants including Father Jason McCall, a.k.a. Soul Man, who can summon souls of the dead.

Throughout the '90s, Soul Man was sort of disciple to the Leader, though his powers were never fully explained and he was eventually killed by the Hulk. The Immortal Hulk#34 reveals he could summon souls through gamma radiation, which neatly ties up the plot and positions the character as a catalyst to the realization that gamma is somehow tied to hell. Therefore, it's also tied to immortality, which leads to Sterns' ultimate manipulation of the Hulk.

Related: Will Immortal Hulk Unleash [SPOILER] On the Marvel Universe?

Clearly, the links between gamma and immortality have been present for a long while. With Soul Man's ability intrinsically linked to gamma, as well as the Leader's journey throughout the Hell dimension, there's more evidence to the concept that a character's connection to gamma radiation is essentially a portal between life and death.

The scariest part is how the Leader is revealed to have figured this out before anyone else. This forces the realization that he has set in motion almost all of the events presented in The Immortal Hulk so far.It now seems thatThe Immortal Hulk has never truly been about Hulk figuring things out and working with Banner to create the ultimate alliance. Instead, this has all been an elaborate scheme by one of Hulk's most dangerous enemies.

While the recontextualization of Soul Man's existence in the Hulk mythos paves the way for the Leader's ultimate reveal, it remains unclear what Samuel Sterns has in plans for the Hulk and friends. However, one can be sure that no matter howthis plays out, it won't be good for Bruce Banner or the rest of the Marvel Universe.

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Marvel's Hulk Finally Fixed a WEIRD '90s Plot Thread - and It's PERFECT - CBR - Comic Book Resources