Comments on: How David Banner got angry. (The Incredible Hulk T.V. Show)

How David Banner got angry. (The Incredible Hulk T.V. Show)

filmgeek — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:34:52 -0800

Yup, every single way the David Banner lost his mind.

By: filmgeek

filmgeek — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:36:02 -0800

Google Cache in case we kill it.

By: Foci for Analysis

Foci for Analysis — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:40:21 -0800

115. Trying to help his friend for the episode, the midget wrestler known as "Half Nelson", by climbing into the ring for him, only to be clobbered by a large, beefy wrestler who practices numerous combination moves on David, in spite of David (and Jack McGee)'s numerous cries of "Stop! You don't know what you're doing! You're making me ANGRY!" Haha!

By: munchingzombie

munchingzombie — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:44:49 -0800

Television just isn't made as well these days.

By: Dipsomaniac

Dipsomaniac — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:45:46 -0800

They missed the one where the risotto burned and the napkins clashed with the tablecloth. Oh, that just made him so mad.

By: CitrusFreak12

CitrusFreak12 — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:47:48 -0800

Man, Banner had some pretty consistent bad luck, didn't he?

By: ZachsMind

ZachsMind — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:55:09 -0800

See this? This right here? This is why humanity needs the Internet. What? Yes, I'm dead serious.

By: Foaf

Foaf — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:58:17 -0800

108. Having several clay pots broken over his head in the middle of the now- burning room (why is the room always burning?), and then knocking an entire case of same clay pots onto same head, and then, while lying very still and struggling not to get angry, having his pants catch fire This list is awesome!

By: LiveLurker

LiveLurker — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:01:23 -0800

So this Banner guy. He did get an attorney, right?

By: Gary

Gary — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:02:55 -0800

20. Dealing with a pesky operator in a phone booth 47. Being stuck in a cab in New York rush hour traffic Drugged (I can't find it in the list?)

By: ninjew

ninjew — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:03:01 -0800

You thought the quicksand was bad? Just imagine what he'd do to you if you griefed his Second Life avatar.

By: tommasz

tommasz — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:13:34 -0800

Now they'd just send him to anger management classes.

By: regicide is good for you

regicide is good for you — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:33:08 -0800

Anger management classes are #118.

By: rks404

rks404 — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:42:07 -0800

sure, when you put it like this it's trite and formulaic. But when you're five years old and have a limited grasp of the english language, it was pretty damn awesome every damn time.

By: buzzman

buzzman — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:42:57 -0800

118. Hit by banhammer after self-linking on mefi.

By: octothorpe

octothorpe — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:47:50 -0800

#20: "I don't have twenty five cents!" That's just awesome.

By: AsYouKnow Bob

AsYouKnow Bob — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:51:26 -0800

I'm absolutely not a comic-book guy - I have only the vaguest familiarity with The Hulk. And I've never even seen the TV show. But I still think that this is why the internet was invented.

By: maryh

maryh — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:52:28 -0800

73. Being chained to a truck while his friend for the episode has been taken inside the trailer by the natives to be punished under the rites of La Culta de Cabeza Chocolata The Chocolate Head Cult?! Great post, filmgeek!

By: mrnutty

mrnutty — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:53:58 -0800

Now can someone make this list into the appropriate video clips?

By: never used baby shoes

never used baby shoes — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:05:49 -0800

Was anal bleaching on the list? 'Cuz I think that would make Hulk angry.

By: Tube

Tube — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:10:05 -0800

As my childhood wore on, I became more and more puzzled why David Banner never "Hulked Out" between his knees and his waist.

By: Astro Zombie

Astro Zombie — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:15:53 -0800

Yeah, this is the first time I've ever felt this really should be a string of YouTube links.

By: XQUZYPHYR

XQUZYPHYR — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:31:00 -0800

36. Somehow running into a bear trap This thread is useless without YouTubes.

By: Gary

Gary — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:35:28 -0800

But I still think that this is why the internet was invented. The Hulk first appeared in comics in May 1962. The very beginnings of ARPANET were in August 1962. You and Zachsmind may be on to something...

By: I Said, I've Got A Big Stick

I Said, I've Got A Big Stick — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:40:44 -0800

24. Being tied up and fed soup by an elderly Japanese woman who doesn't understand words like "You've GOT to cut me loose!" Huh. Guess he doesn't like soup.

By: The Deej

The Deej — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:48:25 -0800

I would often say "Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." Just to kid with with my friends. They must not have watched The Hulk, because they always gave me a weird look. Notice I said "used to." Oh, and I loved the David Banner.

By: googly

googly — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:00:54 -0800

All of these could have been avoided if he had just flagged it and moved on. But NOOOOOOO.....

By: not_on_display

not_on_display — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:11:56 -0800

Metafilter: 65) Buried in cement by the mob

By: eye of newt

eye of newt — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:17:38 -0800

That's pretty much the same list of things that would make me angry.

By: zardoz

zardoz — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:26:12 -0800

Great find. This reminds me of Conan's playing "Walker: Texas Ranger" clips out of context. It's exposes the inherit ridiculousness of the shows.

By: raysmj

raysmj — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:27:10 -0800

How would he have reacted to the writer's strike, which could possibly have forced him to ad lib, or participate in a Hulk-oriented reality show?

By: raysmj

raysmj — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:33:28 -0800

Note: The novelist Walker Percy had something of a fixation with "The Incredible Hulk." Look for "Hulk" in this interview. "I remember, I think from the Samway biography, that a person attending a banquet saw WP deep in conversation with Eudora Welty. When asked later in the evening what topic had them so engrossed, Miss Welty responded that Walker was telling her about his favorite TV show, the Incredible Hulk."

By: junebug

junebug — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:50:06 -0800

The best thing about this is that the laundry-list of just ridiculous situations in which The Beast is unleashed really cements the character of Hulk into something of a Walter Mitty-esque wish-fulfillment of the repressed ego. Sort of a comment on the impotent rage lying within modern, banal, absurd existence. Simultaneously hilarious and also weirdly poignant and universal. Or at least, it is to me, minutes before I turn in for the night and pretty wrecked from the day.

By: 235w103

235w103 — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:50:35 -0800

Oh man, i love Walker Percy, and now I love you, raysmj.

By: junebug

junebug — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 22:00:09 -0800

...er, make that repressed id. But I just love this list, which will transform the future movie sequel for me, as I will now accept no less dramatic a reason for Norton/Banner losing control than problems with a flat tire, having a row of computers fall on him, or possibly receiving a speeding ticket. The list also makes Banner into something of a horrifyingly unlucky Wile E. Coyote stand-in, doomed to eternally repeat every manner of indignity, to completely lose himself to violence, but then repeat the samsara-like cycle ever again, never to be set free. Rather Buddhist, or Vedantic Hindu. So good.

By: Mr. President Dr. Steve Elvis America

Mr. President Dr. Steve Elvis America — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 22:15:25 -0800

By: pokeydonut

pokeydonut — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 22:20:47 -0800

Personally, my favorite part of this list is that it provides me with my next year's worth of away messages. "Being mauled by a bear" "Placed in a small room with a ravenous black panther" "Beaten up and locked in a car trunk"

By: RokkitNite

RokkitNite — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 22:30:04 -0800

Don't make me Ang Lee.

By: bwg

bwg — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:32:00 -0800

I really meant I was sorry For ever causing you pain You showed your appreciation By walking out anyway And that's a cold shot, baby Yeah that's a drag That's a cold shot, babe ... Grwaaaaarggghh!

By: stavrosthewonderchicken

stavrosthewonderchicken — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 01:08:16 -0800

Don't make me Ang Lee. Good lord, I can't believe I've never heard or thought of that (pretty poor and racial-stereotypy, but still) joke before.

By: snofoam

snofoam — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 02:44:16 -0800

imagine if andy rooney had been caught by the blast of the gamma bomb instead of bruce banner.

By: cgc373

cgc373 — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 02:56:16 -0800

Hey, stavros, did you watch the bit? It's a funny one, I thought. Never heard of the comic, but he's pretty good. Thanks, RokkitNite, for pulling it out of the 'Tube. Do you know who that guy is, or was this the product of a search, or what? Seems too good to be true for this thread, somehow. "You wouldn't like me when I'm Ang Lee." Man!

By: Kirth Gerson

Kirth Gerson — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 03:41:43 -0800

bwg, have you noticed that you never saw SRV and the Hulk together? Coincidence, or what? Also, was there a real Robert Bruce Banner, and is that why the TV show renamed the character David?

By: Kirth Gerson

Kirth Gerson — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 03:47:42 -0800

Oh, that second question is addressed here. (If they're right, it was a stupid reason.)

By: RokkitNite

RokkitNite — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 04:30:30 -0800

Hey cgc373, he's Stewart Lee. I think he's fantastic. I've seen him do that bit a couple of times live and it always kills me.

By: Student of Man

Student of Man — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 04:36:12 -0800

31. Being caught taking photos of toughs committing monkey business in the restaurant, and then being beaten up and thrown under a table That pretty much described my last bartending gig. Needless to say I hulked out and terrorized them for 2 days before they cut me loose.

By: chococat

chococat — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 06:24:09 -0800

That phone booth one was on TV here the other day and I started watching it. It was about this woman (who, incidentally, was Callahan/fembot on Bionic Man/Woman) trying to get her truck back from these dudes who stole it. But the truck was all beat up and dirty and the bad guy had a moustache and was in a little red Plymouth and I was like, this is really familiar, this is Duel. Sure enough, the plot (?) advanced and the bad guys were in the truck chasing her and David Banner in the Plymouth and exact scenes and shots were lifted from Duel. I googled it and it turns out that since the show was made by Universal they just used a whole bunch of shots from Duel to make about 50% of the episode. Speilberg has had a clause in all his deals ever since, saying they can't be used for stock footage on anything.

By: kittens for breakfast

kittens for breakfast — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 06:58:29 -0800

Gah. I remember that the rumor about why they changed Banner's name was debunked someplace recently, but hell if I can remember what the official story is (or where I saw that article). But I'm pretty sure that's just Hollywood urban legend.

By: LordSludge

LordSludge — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 07:04:11 -0800

My favorite part was always the sad walking away song at the end. He's so lonely. He'll always be lonely. It's so unfair, so tragic... Will he ever find love and acceptance? Will he ever find a place to call "home"? Tune in next week and find out!!

By: Dantien

Dantien — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 09:06:38 -0800

Truly the Best of the Web. Thanks filmgeek!!!

By: filmgeek

filmgeek — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 09:58:59 -0800

More hulk clips here (if I had only found this too when I posted!)

By: omegar

omegar — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 10:48:08 -0800

This is the most hilarious thing I've read in months. Thanks!

By: hilker

hilker — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:14:47 -0800

Regarding the name change, comment #3 here says the TV show's creator thought the alliteration was corny.

By: Vindaloo

Vindaloo — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 13:17:10 -0800

Wow, you couldn't make this stuff up.

By: HerOdyssey

HerOdyssey — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 13:25:50 -0800

38. Placed in a small room with a ravenous black panther I hate it when that happens. Great post.

By: kirkaracha

kirkaracha — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 16:09:59 -0800

95. Falling out of a plane without a parachute, then being given a parachute (which causes the person who pushed him to be told "That guy has nine lives", to which the mean person responds by pulling out a rifle and saying "Yeah, but I got ten rounds"), and then having the straps to his parachute shot off when he is still 30 feet above an empty house so that he falls through the roof and hurts himself

By: Huplescat

Huplescat — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 16:11:28 -0800

668. Forced to vote on Diebold machines for either Hillary Clinton or Mitt Romney then hit in the mouth with a cinderblock.

By: bwg

bwg — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 18:11:20 -0800

... have you noticed that you never saw SRV and the Hulk together? It's hard to play those hot licks with fingers the size of an average man's arms.

By: ZachsMind

ZachsMind — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 21:56:47 -0800

Vindaloo: "Wow, you couldn't make this stuff up." Uhm... actually... You CAN. People DID. They were called WRITERS. Although some can look at the Hulk tv series as some of the worst television ever in the history of anything, you gotta admit that was brilliant how they managed week after week after week to come up with that many new and different ways to get David to Hulk out like that, usually before the first and last commercial breaks in a given hour. From the perspective of an aspiring writer, The Incredible Hulk is like ballet or ice skating. That's just formulaic you may say, but I say they made TV writing look a lot easier than it is.

By: ericost

ericost — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 22:57:32 -0800

Yeah, The incredible Hulk is why humanity needs TV.

By: damn dirty ape

damn dirty ape — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 13:09:48 -0800

This list is why the tv writers guild will lose this strike.

By: cgc373

cgc373 — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 19:45:24 -0800

Cool, thanks, RokkitNite. I'll look at the linked clips of Lee's stuff.

By: cgc373

cgc373 — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 03:36:40 -0800

Spent a couple of hours with Stewart Lee. His takedown of Joe Pasquale was a wonder. And his presumably early appearance in Montreal has a solid bit about the British reaction to the death of Princess Diana, very funny stuff. Off-topic, but funny.

By: mrgrimm

mrgrimm — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 16:27:30 -0800

Bob: "BUT I HAVE TO BE THERE BY FOUR!!!" Charlotte: "Oh. I just gave you a lethal injection. Sorry, Bob."