Incredible Hulk #284
Time-Lost!
The Leader has traveled back in time to expose early life on Earth to gamma rays in the hopes of conquering the present. To stop him, the Hulk and the Avengers traveled to his space station Omnivac. However, most of the Avengers vanished in the middle of their battle leaving only the Hulk and the She-Hulk left to try and stop the Leader's mad scheme. Learning that the Avengers have been sent to different points in time, they uncover the Leader's time platform. They then learn from Omnivac that the time machine is controlled by a mock organ that the Leader has constructed. The Hulk deciphers the notes that need to be played in order to activate the device. Soon, both the Hulk and She-Hulk jump into the time stream in order to recover the Avengers from different points of history so they can stop the Leader. As soon as they're gone, the remains of Omnivac's robot body begins inching toward the organ intent on destroying the device and trapping the two heroes in the past.
The two Hulks first appear in France, circa 1944, in the middle of World War II. In the heat of a battle between Allied and Axis forces, the pair spot Captain America and his wartime partner Bucky. Seeing the two legendary heroes in trouble, the Hulk suggests that they lend a hand. As they are fighting off the Nazis, they notice that Captain America finds them familiar but can't remember where he has seen them before. Banner learns that the time-displaced Avengers have had their memories altered to make them think they belong in the eras they are trapped in. The two Hulks then approach Captain America and they are spirited back into the time stream just moments before a Nazi bomb goes off. Bucky fears that Cap has been killed when suddenly he is joined by the Captain America of his era, who had actually been separated from Bucky when the battle first began.
The Hulks and Captain America find themselves in 12th Century England where Hawkeye is leading Robin Hood's Merry Men, thinking that he is the legendary archer. They are about to engage the forces of the Black Duke, led by Iron Man who believes himself to be the Duke. The three heroes get into the middle of the battle and pull Hawkeye and Iron Man from the frey. As they are sent into the timestream again, the real Robin Hood and Black Duke join the battle. The Avengers and the Hulk now find themselves in the Viking past off the coast of Greenland where Thor is leading warriors at sea. Once again, they subdue the errant Avenger, restoring his true memories as they are pulled through time once again.
They finally arrive in the prehistoric past, the Avengers and the Hulk witness as the Leader controls Captain Marvel, forcing her to spread gamma rays across the landscape. They are protected by the Wasp. As the She-Hulk subdues the Wasp, the Hulk blocks the gamma rays while the rest of the Avengers deal with the Leader. Captain America tosses his shield at the Leader, knocking him into an open lava flow behind him. Iron Man tries to grab their foe, but is too late and the Leader seemingly perishes in the lava. With their mission over, the Avengers and the Hulk are returned to the present. There they have found that Jackdaw managed to stop Omnivac before it could sabotage the time machine. In the aftermath of the battle, the Wasp asks if the Hulk would like to rejoin the Avengers.
Recurring Characters
Hulk, Avengers (Captain America, She-Hulk, Wasp, Captain Marvel, Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye), Leader, Jackdaw, Nazis, Bucky, Robin Hood
Continuity Notes
Bruce Banner now has control of the Hulk and its transformations since a series of bombardments of gamma radiation between Incredible Hulk #269-272. He retains this ability until Incredible Hulk #296.
The Hulk and She-Hulk mention how in the present Bucky is presumed dead. As per Avengers #4, for the longest time, everyone believed that Bucky died in 1945. However, it is revealed years later in Captain America (vol. 5) #8, Bucky survived and was recovered by the Russian, eventually conditioned into the assassin known as Winter Soldier.
The identity of Robin Hood here is hard to ascertain as there are refuting accounts as to if Robin Hood was a real person, a fictional character, or someone posing as him. Knights of Pendragon #1, states that Robin Hood was a real person. However, Thunderstrike #18 claims that the Asgardian known as Fandral posed as Robin Hood. Clarification is unavailable at this time.
Although the Leader seemingly perishes it is explained in Fall of the Hulks: Alpha #1 that the Leader and other members of the Intelligencia often worked together to pull each other out of near death scenarios.
The Wasp says that the Hulk has been away from the Avengers for "too long." She is referring to the fact that the Hulk was a founding member of the Avengers as seen in Avengers #1. He quit shortly thereafter in Avengers #2 because nobody on the team trusted him.
