Bruce Banner (Earth-7642)

Bruce Banner's history is more or less the same as his Earth-616 counterpart.

Origins[]

As a physicist, Bruce would go to work under General Thunderbolt Ross at Los Diablos Missile Base. While there, he met the general's daughter, Betty, whom he developed romantic feeling for.

Bruce created the Gamma Bomb, but during testing Banner noticed that a civilian, Rick Jones, had snuck onto the testing area. He was able to throw Jones into a protective trench, but couldn't get himself to safety. The bomb detonated and Bruce was changed by the gamma radiation, which caused him to frequently transform into the vastly powerful, green-skinned, humanoid monster called Hulk in times of great stress.

Hulk was initially hunted by General Ross, who was unaware of his dual identity, until Hulk stopped Metal Master form conquering Earth. For this heroic act, Hulk was pardoned, stopping the armed forces from targeting him. Now considered a superhero, Hulk became a founding member of the Avengers.

Double Lives[]

During one of his outbursts, Hulk rampaged throughout Arizona. He was confronted by Superman and Hulk attacked him, becoming envious of the Arizonans' love of the Man of Steel. He flung him into Earth Orbit, giving Hulk time to escape.

Hulk was tricked to return home by Rick and forced to transform back into Banner. He dropped him off back at the base and was introduced to reporter Clark Kent and military contractor Lex Luthor. Both were interested in his gamma experiments, particularly the Gamma Ray Projector and his time helping Ross hunt the Hulk. During this time, Betty was kidnapped by what appeared to be the Hulk. Bruce transformed into Hulk and quickly found the other Hulk. He destroyed his robotic doppelganger.

When Superman arrived, he didn't notice the destroyed robot and attacked Hulk. By the time he noticed it, Hulk was to enraged to listen to Superman insist they were duped. Luthor used their fight to manipulate Ross into giving him access to the Gamma Ray Projector and use it on the superheroes. The projector didn't kill them, but they were afraid of it hurting bystanders. Superman threw Hulk back to the base and he crash landed on the projector, destroying it. Superman was able to clear him of the kidnapping, explaining that it was a robot built by LexCorp.^[2]

The Heroes and the Holocaust![]

Hulk was manipulated by Doctor Doom to go on a rampage through Metropolis. He encountered Spider-Man and Superman and fought them both until Superman destroyed the device influencing Hulk. Bruce was sent to S.T.A.R. Labs, but was captured by Doom's henchmen and transferred to Omega One. The stasis tube Hulk was being kept in was seemingly cracked and he escaped.^[3]

The Monster and the Madman[]

Seeking to cure himself from the "Hulk disease", Banner traveled to Gotham City and infiltrated Wayne Enterprises in order to start working on Wayne Research laboratories, where scientists were creating a Gamma-Gun that could cure him. Unfortunately, The Joker stole the gun, following Shaper of Worlds' instructions. The problems caused by The Joker and Shaper caused Banner to lose his temper and turn into the Hulk. Batman tried to stop him and a confrontation between the two ensued. Eventually, Batman earned Hulk's trust and they worked together to stop the villains' evil plans. Although they succeeded on their mission to stop Joker and the Shaper, the Gamma-Gun was destroyed and Banner lost hope of ever becoming normal again.^[1]

At some undetermined point, Bruce Banner married Betty Ross, despite the violent opposition from General Ross.^[2] Some time after that, Betty succumbed to radiation poisoning and died, causing Banner and the Hulk to suffer a severe emotional breakdown and began wandering again.^[2]

The Darkness[]

Bruce way on the New York City subway station when he was spotted by Jackie Estacado. He followed him for ten miles, but Bruce noticed he was being tailed. He confronted Estacado, who claimed he was a businessman looking for an autograph for the son of one of his employees was a Hulk fan. He figured out that he was actually a crimelord and the Hulk fan, but Bruce gave him an autograph anyway. The two were about to go their separate ways when Jackie's cosmic awareness told him that the incoming train had been hijacked by terrorists from Chechnya.

He pushed Banner onto the tracks, forcing him to turn into the Hulk to stop the train. During the battle, Hulk turned his rage to Jackie. The Darkness attempted to protect his host by having its darklings attack Hulk, but this only made Hulk angrier. He almost crushed the mobster until terrorists tried to retaliate. Meanwhile, the darklings blew up the terrorists' bomb, killing them. Hulk turned back to Banner, who was horrified by Estacado's actions. He tried to convince Banner that they weren't that different and he should embrace his darkness. Bruce disagreed and left him at the crime scene.^[4]

Unholy Union[]

Banner was having a drink at a Manhattan bar when Ghost Rider attacked one of the patrons. He transformed into the Hulk and recognized his fellow patron as The Darkness. He attacked him, resulting in Witchblade coming to his aide. Hulk teamed-up with Blaze, but Doctor Strange froze them and teleported them away, erasing their memories of the encounter.^[5]

Attack on Avengers[]

Hulk joined his fellow Avengers when they responded to Titans attacking New York City. He and Iron Man defeated the Female Titan.^[6]

• Bruce was asked to join LexCorp Incorporated, but never got the chance to reply.^[2]
• He was also asked to join the Franchetti Mafia, but declined as he hypothesized he would grow bored of being a criminal as he had before.^[4]
• Bruce was a fan of the New York Yankees.^[5]