While each Hulk
Born through exposure to extreme amounts of gamma radiation, not every Hulk ends up with the same powers.
In addition to their shared immortality, each of these One-Below-All avatars is granted unique gifts of destruction. While gamma mutants can possess many different hellish blessings, fortunately, these powers can be categorized into more specific classifications.
These power sets are certainly open to change depending on the story and the writer, but general consistency is kept in mind. Of course, every Hulk is prone to some stupid moves; Many gained the propensity after absorbing
Bruce Banner Flow Range
energy. But we are talking about what makes them different.
Emboldened by its user's gamma physiology, each power is designed to reap different types of destruction. Remember, on a cosmic scale, Hulks are not made accidentally, they are avatars of the destructive nature of the One-Below-All. These unholy gifts were designed to unify the world's would-be destroyers.
Power Gamma: Energy Conversion
Notable Bearers: Hulk (Bruce Banner) and Red Hulk (Thaddeus Ross)
Gamma mutations like Banner and Ross are subconscious energy conduits. In their Hulk forms, their bodies process the mutants' raw emotions and transform them into measurable units of energy. For Bruce Banner, his physical strength is proportional to his anger. Regardless of which change is being forwarded, each gamma infusion
version of Hulk
has this peculiarity. In future variants of the green giant, his size may rival that of Galactus. A version of this power taken to its maximum potential can be seen in Immortal Hulk #25 by Al Ewing and Joe Bennet - where Hulk evolved into the terminal annihilator.
Mutates like the Red Hulk
and to some extent the Red Harpy, process their anger differently. Bruce Banner and his Hulks are unmatched in strength, something Ross has learned the hard way many times. However, “Thunderbolt” Ross works more like a drum kit. Your body can absorb various energies (mostly gamma) which it then radiates as heat. The heat that Red Hulk releases is noticeable to everyone around him. Like the Hulk, The heat radiating from Ross is proportionate to his anger. However, your body cannot handle an infinite amount of energy; pushing too hard could turn him into a living gamma bomb.
Gamma Power: Transformation Augmentation
Notable bearers: Atomic Bomb (Rick Jones) and She-Hulk (Jennifer Walters) Most of the time, a gamma mutation has only one energized form. However, both Atomic Bomb and She-Hulk can take their transformations a step further.
This category is admittedly a little broader. The unique abilities these mutants possess are directly linked to its transformative capabilities. Most of the time, a gamma mutation has only one energized form. Obviously there are exceptions, especially the Hulk, but it's a consistent pattern. However, both Atomic Bomb and She-Hulk can take their transformations a step further. When Rick Jones was first powered by gamma energy, he possessed a second power to turn invisible. Unlike the other Hulks, the Atomic Bomb could rely on natural camouflage to gain a stealth advantage.
The true polymorphic gamma mutation that stands out has to be She-Hulk. From the beginning, Jennifer Walters displayed near-seamless transitions between her human and Hulk forms. While many of the other Hulks writhe in agony, explode into flesh, or exhaust themselves, She-Hulk treats her transformations like changing clothes. In
Sensational She-Hulk
#36 - by John Byrne - She-Hulk's body changes to take the form of a woman with whom she attempted to swap minds. It was a unique trick of hers that required some alien intervention, but it shows that his gamma powers possess the capacity for Skrull-style shapeshifting abilities.
Gamma Power: Animal Biology
Notable bearers: Abomination (Emil Blonsky), Betty Ross (Red Harpy), and Leonard Samson (Doc Sasquatch)
It has been theorized, both on and off the page, that the specific nature of a Hulk's powers is defined by his psyche. Banner and Ross' minds are filled with hate, so
their Hulk bodies manifest
that they hate physically. However, in the cases of these mutants, their traumas turned them into animals. Abomination is a semi-aquatic reptilian creature, capable of breathing underwater and entering a pseudo-death stasis. Betty Ross' desire to escape and destroy the Hulk manifested as avian attributes, granting her flight and sharp claws. However, if there is one mutant that proves this theory, it is Doc Samson.
Before Samson took Walter Langkowski's body, Walt's gamma exposure linked him to a mystical being called Tanaraq. When he transformed, Tanaraq's body would physically replace Walt's. However, after Samson takes Walt's body, the Sasquatch form becomes permanent and takes on a gamma green hue. Although it is not clear, it is assumed that
Samson's Sasquatch
form is now completely independent of Tanaraq. Due to the mystical properties of gamma energy, it is difficult to get a clear definition, but it appears that Samson's Sasquatch form is merely a manifestation of Langkowski's previous connection to Tanaraq.
Uncategorized gamma powers
Stock (Dionne Forteans), Abomination (Reginald Fortean), the Leader and Del Frye
After all, there are some gamma mutants that don't fit into any specific category. Reginald Fortean, vaguely similar to Doc Samson, gained his current powers from the body of a separate mutant. After willingly absorbing the Abomination's corpse, Fortean gained the power to generate acid, something
Abomination could never do
. Likewise, his daughter Dionne had pieces of the Abomination's corpse grafted onto her, resulting in an entirely different mutation. Unlike his father or Abomination, Dionne's Hulk form is that of a shambling sentient sludge. Its amorphous body can absorb any type of matter, turning the material into mud-like.
This is where the inhumane nature of the cosmic purpose of gamma mutations can be seen.
The Leader is another mutant with a completely unique power of his own. Forgoing a physical transformation, Samuel Sterns' brain developed rapidly, granting him supergenius intelligence, telepathy, and telekinesis. However, these are not the true gifts of One-Below-All. Sterns have the ability to devour a person's mind and absorb their knowledge. After abandoning his body in the Lower Place, this ability manifests itself in a definitive form, devoid of any human resemblance. This is where the inhumane nature of the cosmic purpose of gamma mutations can be seen. Puck of Gamma Flight theorized that these may be the mutants' true forms.
The most peculiar transformation, however, is Del Frye's. After Del's father injected his son with a gamma serum
Del's green door was opened
. However, instead of receiving a complete Hulk body, Del is stuck halfway in the bottom place. Unlike any other gamma mutant, he can open his Green Door to allow other people's spectral forms to pass through. At the cost of your visible humanity, Del is the closest link to One-Below-All alongside Bruce Banner. As children of Marvel's ultimate demon, all Hulk and its destructive powers ultimately serve the One-Below-All's terrible quest to destroy all existence.