Marvel Crossover Hulk

Prelude: Okay, let's get the obvious question out of the way first: why does the Hulk transform into a tank? Because he's the Hulk, that's why! And when you have Marvel characters transforming into vehicles, what else should the Hulk become but a tank? Because if Bruce Banner ever needed to become even less subtle, this is probably the logical next step. So here we have the original green version of Transformers Crossover Hulk from 2008. Good? Weird? Hulkish enough? Let’s say HULK SMASH!

Many thanks to my buddy LimeWire who loaned me this figure ages ago for a review and also supplied these pictures. Also, I’m writing this review roughly fifteen years after I held the figure in hand, going of some notes I wrote down back then and the pictures. So I might be a tad inaccurate here and there.

Robot Mode: First impression: yep, that's the Hulk. Well, a robot pretending to be the Hulk, anyway. Hulk is appropriately massive, with huge shoulders, enormous forearms, thick legs, and a relatively small head sitting between all that mechanical muscle. There is certainly nothing subtle about this guy. He's basically built like someone took a normal Transformers design, grabbed it at the shoulders, and kept pulling it ever wider until it started shouting "HULK SMASH!"

The dominant color scheme is green, naturally, while dark grey and black mechanical sections break things up rather nicely with a few golden highlights. Most importantly, there is very little danger of mistaking this guy for anyone else. The head is unmistakably meant to be Hulk and the proportions really sell the character. I'm especially fond of the arms. Hulk absolutely needs oversized fists and forearms and this figure delivers. The tank parts add even more bulk to him, making him look less like a guy wearing Hulk-themed armor and more like an actual robotic version of the green goliath.

Naturally there is some vehicle kibble involved. The tank mode has to go somewhere, after all. But considering the basic concept, the designers did a pretty good job incorporating most of it into Hulk's already over-the-top physique. Articulation is decent for a figure of this time, though don't expect today's Studio Series or Legacy levels of poseability. Hulk is wide, chunky and somewhat restricted simply by having approximately seventeen tons of imaginary gamma-powered metal hanging off his shoulders. But really, do you need Hulk doing yoga poses? Stand there, look angry, raise fists. That’s all you need.

So bottom line: the job was to make a robot that looks like the Hulk. Mission accomplished, thumbs up!

Alternate Mode: Hulk transforms into a green tank. Because subtlety is for people who aren't the Hulk. The transformation isn't terribly complicated, but there is quite a bit of folding and rearranging involved in getting that very wide Hulk body compressed into a tank. Nothing revolutionary, but certainly more involved than merely lying Hulk face-down and calling him a tank. Which, let's face it, they probably could have gotten away with.

The tank mode works surprisingly well. It's a broad, squat vehicle with huge tracks and lots of armor, so even without knowing which Marvel character it is supposed to represent, "Hulk" would probably be a reasonable guess. The green coloring obviously carries over from the robot mode and works even better here, seeing as green isn't exactly an unusual color for a military vehicle.

The tank is not meant to represent a specific real-world tank as far as I can tell. Instead, we get the usual science-fiction armored assault vehicle approach. Big tracks, lots of armor, big turret, and an overall appearance suggesting that whatever is standing in front of it should seriously consider standing somewhere else. The Hulk elements mostly disappear reasonably well, too. You are never going to mistake it for a scale model tank, but considering there is a gigantic green Marvel superhero folded up inside, the result is pretty convincing.

One thing I really like about the vehicle choice is that it actually suits the character. Some Marvel Crossovers require a bit of imagination when connecting character and vehicle, but Hulk becoming a tank? Big. Heavy. Nearly unstoppable. Smashes through things. Yeah, that tracks. Pun entirely intended.

The only thing that slightly lowers my appreciation for this mode is the gun out front. It’s not a classical tank gun, which is okay, but the only way to raise it upwards is to raise up half the turret with it, which kind of makes it apparent that those are the robot’s feet. Not a big thing, but worth mentioning. So bottom line: Hulk is a tank! Good enough!

Remarks: The Marvel Transformers Crossovers remains one of those wonderfully strange corners of Transformers history. Back in 2008, the same year the MCU launched with the highly successful Ironman movie, Hasbro apparently looked at its two rather successful properties, Transformers and Marvel, and thought: why not combine them? The result was Marvel Transformers Crossovers, where famous Marvel superheroes were reimagined as transforming robots. Iron Man was the main star, unsurprisingly enough, but other heroes like Spider-Man and Captain America were present, too. And, of course, the Hulk.  

These aren't Transformers characters dressed up as Marvel superheroes. Hulk isn't Bulkhead having a particularly angry day. The concept is basically: what if the Marvel heroes themselves were transforming robots? And Hulk is probably one of the characters where that concept works best. Though one has to wonder: what were Bruce Banner, Reed Richards, Tony Stark, or whoever else designed this massive robot thinking? Hulk isn’t quite destructive enough yet? There was also a repaint in grey to capture Hulk’s grey period as Joe Fixit.

The toy does have some drawbacks, of course. The design is very much a product of 2008 and the Marvel Crossovers aesthetic is something of an acquired taste. He's chunky, a little awkward in places, and definitely not going to blend seamlessly into your Generations collection. But honestly? That's also a large part of the charm. This is a big green robot Hulk who transforms into a tank. If that sentence makes you smile, there's a pretty good chance you'll enjoy the figure. Recommended to Marvel fans, Crossover collectors, and everyone who always thought Hulk needed tank tracks.

Rating: B+

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