46: Broken Image (3.12)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written by Karen Harris & Jill Sherman

Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer & Jeff Freilich
Directed by John McPherson

Having to pay off his outstanding rent bill by cleaning an apartment block, David is mistaken for a gangster known as Mike Cassidy by Teddy, one of Mike's henchmen.  Teddy realises his error but on informing the real Mike they decide that David can be used in their plans.  David is of course in deep trouble now as he is also being mis-dentified as Mike by adversaries, as well as Mike's mistreated girlfriend.

Nicely written episode with Bixby playing dual roles.  I thought this would be another opportunity for Bixby and Ferrigno to be onscreen at the same time but was wrong on that count.  A big surprise did however materialise when McGee shows up and knocks on David's apartment door.  I expected this to be another close shave (a la a similar moment in the Married episode) but on this occasion McGee and Banner come literally face to face, with the former recognising the latter.  The initial confrontation is brilliantly subverted as David, in his attempt to put McGee off the trail, quickly takes on the persona of Cassidy, the very man he has been attempting to persuade everyone else that he is not!

I am also quite taken with McPherson's cinematographic style of this episode (adopted by others across the series) whereby minimalistic lighting produces a starkly contrasting effect.  McPherson of course himself (once again) adopted dual roles here, directing as well as lighting.

Number of Fists: ****½

45: Captive Night (3.11)

1979; 49 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written by Sam Egan; Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer & Jeff Freilich;
Directed by Frank Orsatti

A couple of crooks break into a department store at night with the intention of emptying the safe, unaware that there is a night shift operating on the premises - a security guard plus a couple of store assistants, one of whom is David Banner.  They also misjudge what's actually involved in cracking the safe and essentially keep the threesome held over night, hoping that the arrival of the manager in the morning will also get them into the safe.

Ultimately a bungled theft attempt, these pair of hopeless villains were never going to get too far.  They can't even keep David locked up for too long (natch).  An uneven episode, there are some strange ideas (very strange in one case) intermingled with nice ones.  The most bizarre sequence comes during Hulk's long stroll through the store, where he discovers some female mannequins, one of which is green and attracts his primordial attention!

This one does feature a great smash-out from an old lift shaft, and overall the pacing and intrigue makes for a moderatly entertaining story.  David's colleague , Helen (Anne Lockhart, who later also appeared in the season 5 episode The Phenom), is additionally of significant appeal.

Number of Fists: ***

44: Babalao (3.10)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written by Craig Buck; Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer & Jeff Freilich;
Directed by Richard Milton

A town is under the grip of perpetual belief in the power of Voodoo, on the one side driven by the malicious pair of ex-cons who masquerade as a mythical figure called Babalao - one with supposedly great command over the spirit world - and on the other side a legitimate doctor (whom David is assisting in a medical capacity) who has to operate under the pretense of being affiliated with Voodoo control in order to attract the trust of the locals.  The 'Babaloa' and his comrade are aware that support, and with it the financial benefits, is being drawn away from him and to the doctor and thus endeavour to re-orientate people's allegiance with the assistance of Voodoo spirits and magic...

An over-scored episode, the sometimes near constant carnival music is distracting, though this is in emphasis of the Mardi Gras backdrop.  Hulk's trousers were clearly covering up too much skin in previous episodes by the looks of this one (!) but his appearances here are destructive and consequently quite enjoyable.  The second arrival is particular is a good one, set inside the lavishly decorated, dimly lit abode of the Babaloa as a crowd of people are gathered to witness the man's apparent power.  David's dramatic attempts to bring a non-superstitious viewpoint to the people appear to be ultimately successful, however, it is ironic when one considers that the fact that they then witness the Hulk smashing the place following a Voodoo ceremony would more likely have embedded their belief in demonic forces than dispel it.

Number of Fists: ***

43: The Snare (3.09)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written by Thomas E Szollosi & Richard Christian Matheson

Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer
Directed by Frank Orsatti

Whilst awaiting a flight David meets a rich, retired game hunter who invites the traveller back to his island when the flight is cancelled.  Dropped in by private jet, which subsuquently departs, David soon finds himself drugged during a game of chess.  When he regains consciousness in the undergrowth outside he realises that he is the latest target in the hunter's ever increasingly obsessive bid to track and snare anything which might prove to be a challenge.  Of course, on this occasion he's really going to find that challenge! 

The irony in this fine episode, of course, is that David does actually become an animal that stimulates further excitement in the hunter.  The first act sets up a degree of intrigue that leads to a replay of the classic The Most Dangerous Game, this episode being unusual because there is only really one character other than David, as well the fact that the story leads to death.

It's a consistently interesting chase/battle of wits, although I could have done without the scene with Hulk delicately handling a couple of newly hatched birds.  Having said that I did like the way David, once returned to his normal self, returns the bird nest to a tree, effectively finishing something that Hulk started.  The conclusion is a particularly emphasised version of David's traditional isolated departure from the location. 

Number of Fists: ****

42: Homecoming (3.08)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written by Andrew Schneider; Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer;
Directed by John McPherson

David spots his sister, Dr Helen Banner, being interviewed on TV just prior to Thanksgiving.  With his heartstrings tugged he decides to head back home, probably unsure of what he's going to do when he gets there.  When they do meet he makes her promise not to reveal his presence to anyone, including the father with whom he'd shared significant conflict during younger years.  The Banner farm is also under threat from those ever-pesky corporate giants so David sticks around to help the family with some scientific work that could help them keep their treasured farm.

The first half or so is driven by soppy music as David reunites with his sister, but it does lead to a transformation that is momentarily exciting.  The other near saving grace is the drama that unfolds between David and his stubborn father, but the clumsily handled aeroplane finale is a let-down.

The weepy Hulk at the climax is also a bit hard to take although makes some sense in that the monster's emotions are linked to David and the creature is not just the embodiment of rage but rather anything really that can be associated with the primal base of a human.  Aside from filling in David's pre-accident back story to a certain degree, overall I felt somewhat unsatisfied with Homecoming.

Number of Fists: **

41: Behind The Wheel (3.07)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography Edward Rio Rotunno
Written by Rick Rosenthal; Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer;
Directed by Frank Orsatti

Acquiring a job as a taxi driver for the Majestic Cab Co, the struggling endeavour of a debt-ridden woman who appears to also have been the unfortunate recipient of a heart condition, David attracts the unwanted attention of the drug dealing gangsters who have loaned money to the company owner.

Aside from the aggravating comedy-slanted showings of Hulk, Behind The Wheel is an entertaining chapter in David's attempts to earn money whereby, on this occasion, he becomes embroiled in the problems of a small time business run by a charismatic woman.  The heart issue brings about a quirky little revelation and a neat little interlude includes David unexpectedly picking up McGee from the airport, having to quickly disguise himself before almost becoming identified when McGee stops off to interview some people who witnessed Hulk in action.

Number of Fists: ****

40: Jake (3.06)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written by Chuck Bowman; Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer;
Directed by Frank Orsatti

David becomes embroiled in the life of a patently old fashioned rodeo star who's nearly had his day, which involves a debt-ridden brother who is staggering onto a path towards crime and the problematic health of the rodeo man himself.

Set against the not entirely inspiring (from my perspective) world of buckaroo and rodeo this is a run-of-the-mill story with one stand-out moment of lovely timing as McGee and David are featured in the same scene, only to narrowly miss one another.  Ferrigno is in absolute peak condition here but the rather oddly meagre growls (something that plagues the previous episode My Favorite Magician also) let Hulk's appearance down.  The cruelty visible in rodeo/buckaroo, clearly accepted at the time and still no doubt with some backward audiences today, does the episode few favours.

Number of Fists: **

39: My Favorite Magician (3.05)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written by Sam Egan; Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer;
Directed by Reza S. Badiyi

After getting the sack from a restaurant, David hooks up with an aging magician who is not quite ready to face up to the fact that he is a) past it, and b) not quite the mythical figure he wishes to consider himself to be.  Simultaneously working on an intravenously applied serum that could cure him, David is momentarily tangled up in the complicated politics of the magician's life, which involves an old flame that is about to be married off to a money-seeking gangster, a long lost daughter that wants to put her father on the right path, and the old man's deteriorating health in light of heart and asthma problems.

Was this episode inspired by Bixby's thespian past (he starred in the short lived The Magician a few years prior to The Incredible Hulk), or perhaps by the title of the series that both Ray Walston and Bill Bixby starred in the mid sixties (My Favorite Martian), or perhaps a combination of both?  I'm not sure but the labyrinthine life of the initially very corny magician Jasper (played by Walston) makes for an entertaining net for David to become entangled in, as he innocently attempts to continue his business of finding a cure.  Also features the ever lovable Scatman Crothers (Dick Hallorann in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining).

Number of Fists: ****

38: The Slam (3.04)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written and Produced by Nicholas Corea;
Directed by Nicholas Corea

The story begins with David having been arrested for theft, vagrancy, and damage to property.  He is 'slammed' up in a prison run by a fascist despot, where the 't's are crossed but the regime is less than democratic.  He's locked up with a small group of men plotting an escape and dragged into it despite just wanting to stay out of potential trouble by carrying out his sixty-day sentence.

Tense episode and one that holds much potential for destruction locking 'Hulk' up inside an isolated desert prison, something that is partly realised though not to the extent I hoped.  The pinnacle scene - taking place in a minimally lit holding cabin - is when David is visciously beaten (for being suspected of snitching) by a group of prisoners - the Hulk's appearance sparks a moment of exhiliration as the prisoners fly backwards, and some small scale destruction occurs.

An enjoyable episode featuring the much loved and highly prolific Charles Napier, who also turned up in the later episode Triangle as well as the TV movie The Incredible Hulk Returns, both times as different characters (this was quite common for Napier, who had varied bit roles in a number of TV series at the time, often popping up later on as someone entirely different).

Number of Fists: ****

37: Brain Child (3.03)

1979; 48 minutes

Director of Photography John McPherson 
Written by Nicholas Corea; Produced by Robert Bennett Steinhauer;
Directed by Reza S Badiyi

Jolleen is a child prodigy who was 'abandoned' at a research institute as an infant by her disenchanted mother, an ordinary woman of ongoing misfortune who found herself unable to cope with the girl's rapidly advancing intellect.  Tricking the institute's security system, the 16 year old escapes and befriends David on the road, where he appears to have acquired a car.  After the super-smart helps to fix his car, he agrees (unaware at that point that she is technically a 'minor') to take her to LA to help her to search for her mother.

Jolleen is a person who struggles to fit into the world simply because she is too intelligent too early for her years, a factor that exists irrespective of her lack of maturity, and something that can get her into trouble in the world outside the cocoon of the institute without the guidance of an adult, intellectually inferior or not.

Her search later brings her into a dramatic confrontation with the mother who felt as though she would not be able to handle her.  There are one or two overly soppy moments along the way aside from some reasonably good drama, although Hulk's cutting off of a bus carrying away the girl's mother at one stage requires a greater-than-usual suspension of disbelief. 

Number of Fists: ***