The Incredible Hulk (Pilot)

The police show up, accompanied by Jack McGee, to ask David why his car is overturned and burned on the side of a road. David says he thought a friend had taken it and McGee pulls out a plaster cast of the creature’s enormous footprint and asks David if his friend wore a shoe about that size. The cop tells McGee to drop the monster stories and tells David he’s got 24 hours to get the wrecked car moved.

After the police leave, McGee tells David that there’s a father and daughter down by the lake who saw the creature. McGee confirms that the creature didn’t actually harm anyone and tries unsuccessfully to talk Elaina and David into granting him an interview, obviously not believing that they no nothing about the creature.

McGee hides in the bushes and waits for Banner and Marks to leave – they’re going to try bombarding David with x-rays to reverse the effects of the gamma rays – and breaks into the lab. He finds the destroyed pressure chamber and is still snooping around when David and Elaina come back after the x-ray treatment doesn’t work, so he hides in a supply closet. He overhears David and Elaina talking about moving to another facility built for nuclear testing. David makes the comment, “If our friend does come back, he’ll never get out of there.” David finds McGee in the supply closet and, startled, McGee knocks a bottle of acid off a shelf.

David escorts McGee out of the building and while he’s telling McGee, “Don’t make me angry. You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry” the acid causes an explosion. David runs back to the building to save Elaina. Unable to get past the flames, he sees Elaina lying unconscious on the floor and transforms into the creature again. The creature rushes into the building, pulls a piece of cement off of Elaina, and rushes her out of the building. He runs into the woods with her where she dies in his arms after professing her love for David. The creature, grief-stricken, wanders off into the night.

It is assumed that David Banner died in the second explosion because no sign of him was found anywhere. McGee shows up at Elaina’s funeral^[1] with a copy of the National Register bearing the headline, “Incredible ‘Hulk’ Kills 2″. After the funeral party has left, David shows up carrying a duffel bag to say goodbye to Elaina. He says, “I loved you Elaina. I think you loved me, too, although you never said it.” He then walks away.

Guest Stars

• Bill Bixby … Dr. David Bruce Banner
• Susan Sullivan … Dr. Elaina Marks
• Jack Colvin … Jack McGee
• Lou Ferrigno … The Incredible Hulk
• Susan Batson … Mrs. Maier
• Mario Gallo … Mr. Bram
• Eric Server … Policeman
• Charles Siebert … Ben
• Terence Locke … Young Man (as Terrence Locke)
• June Whitley Taylor … Woman
• George Brenlin … Man at Lake
• Jake Mitchell … Jerry
• William Larsen … Minister
• Olivia Barash … Girl at Lake
• Eric Deon … B.J.
• Kenneth Johnson … Scotty (voice) (uncredited)
• Don Keefer … Mr. McIntire (uncredited)
• Richard Kiel … The Hulk (one scene only) (uncredited)
• Lara Parker … Laura Banner (uncredited)

Trivia

• The casting department sought Arnold Schwarzenegger for the role of the Hulk, but the producers felt that he wasn’t tall enough.
• Richard Kiel was initially cast as the Hulk, but shortly after filming began, it became apparent to the producers that he wasn’t “bulky” enough to play the role. There is, however, an intact but brief high-angle scene with Kiel as the Hulk (when he looks up at a tree).
• Released theatrically in the UK.
• The heavyhearted theme song played at the end of the show is “The Lonely Man”, and was composed by Joseph “Joe’ Harnell’.
• Dr. Banner was named Bruce in the comics, but is renamed David for this film. The tombstone at the end of the film reveals his full name to be David Bruce Banner. This is actually partially consistent with the comics, in which his full name is Robert Bruce Banner.
• Was theatrically released in France on June 13 1979, under the French title: “L’incroyable Hulk”.
• The haunting theme song played at the end of many episodes is ‘Superheros’ from The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and was written by Richard O’Brian.

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1. ^[1] Her grave is right next to David’s. Wouldn’t David’s family have preferred that he be buried near his own family or his deceased wife, Laura, rather than next to a co-worker? ↩