Ahead of his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in Captain America: Brave New World, Marvel announced that the Red Hulk will be getting his own new ongoing series from Marvel by Benjamin Percy and Geoff Shaw (Shaw will also draw the main cover for the first issue), hot off of their work together on the epic “Sabretooth War” storyline that ended Percy’s long run on Wolverine earlier this year.

The new series, which will launch two weeks after the theater release of Captain America: Brave New World, will tie directly in with Marvel’s new “One World Under Doom” overarching story arc, where Doctor Doom has used his new status quo as Earth’s Sorcerer Supreme to effectively take over the planet, and he is using Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, also known as the Red Hulk, to help him achieve his goals, and Ross, naturally, is not happy about the situation.

How does the Red Hulk come to serve Doctor Doom?

The setup for the Red Hulk’s new series will occur in this month’s Incredible Hulk #19, which also serves as the 800th issue of Incredible Hulk. Editor Mark Paniccia explained in a press release from Marvel, “In INCREDIBLE HULK #19, we’ll discover Ross has been operating dangerous covert missions across the globe in the name of national security. From this point on, Ben and Geoff bring intrigue and mystery paired with pulse-pounding action and shocking moments never letting their foot off the gas!”

Ross will be captured by Doctor Doom, and used as part of a military “think tank,” of sorts, in Doom’s home country of Latveria, where Doom will try to use the great military minds to help him in his conquering of the planet. As noted, the Red Hulk won’t stand for this for long, and he will eventually bring the fight to Doom himself.

The variant covers for Red Hulk #1 will be by Adam Kubert (a foil variant), Todd Nauck, and John Romita Jr.

When asked about the project for Marvel’s press release on the issue, Percy explained how he came up with this story idea, “When I learned about the One World Under Doom event, my mind immediately went to Thunderbolt Ross. A global takeover would not be tolerated by a man who bleeds red, white, and blue (but especially RED). And his experience — as a soldier in the field, as a military strategist in the war room, as a walking weapon of mass destruction — would make him someone Doom would target well before he made his move.”

He continued, ““So I proposed a story in which Ross would be kidnapped by Doom and forced into a ‘Think Tank’ prison in which he would test out various war-time scenarios. That’s where we begin — in a book that does not give you a second to breathe. It moves and moves and moves with constant action and tension. Geoff Shaw is a brilliant and brutal artist who I worked with on the Wolverine/Ghost Rider crossover: Weapons of Vengeance. We planned this not just as an action showpiece, but as a war book. Get ready for a Hulk-sized assault on the senses.”

Shaw, for his part, added, “Hulk has always been my favorite Marvel character, so to play in this gamma irradiated sand box has been a dream come true, Add Doctor Doom to the mix, arguably the Villain-of-all-villains, and artistically it’s an embarrassment of riches. We’re going to rock your red socks off!”

Red Hulk #1 is due out on February 26th

Source: Marvel