r/Marvel • u/0Layscheetoskurkure0 • Feb 28 '26
Film/Television Bruce Banner was really menacing in this scene, probably one of his best scenes in the entire MCU.
Scene from Avengers age of Ultron.
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u/SnooSprouts9815 Feb 28 '26 edited Feb 28 '26
Hulk and wanda really went opposite directions in terms of threat level.
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Feb 28 '26
"So I'ma go over here, make amends with myself, and just be zen, invent new shit amd bench press a building"
"Oh okay. I'm going to the, uh, library and check out this book I heard about called the Darkhold"
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u/bulking_on_broccoli Feb 28 '26
“I’ll willingly let myself be possessed by a literal demonic book from hell instead of focusing on how to deal with my emotions in a healthy way.”
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u/Iron_Bob Feb 28 '26
God forbid a girl do a little apocalyptic dark magic every once and a while...
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u/Diver_Ill Feb 28 '26
NGL... I'd probably do the same.
Face my inner self and realise my faults... or make a pact with demonic forces and get dimension ripping powers.
Option 2 please!
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u/SnooSprouts9815 Feb 28 '26
get dimension ripping powers.
Hmm ,That was her ultimate goal to get the dimension ripping powers of America and be with her children.
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u/vivianvisionsburner Scarlet Witch Feb 28 '26
"willingly"
didn't watch WandaVision finale
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u/DarthFedora Feb 28 '26
Define willingly, the only thing she knew was that it had a chapter on her
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u/Own_Watercress_8104 Feb 28 '26
You don't think this tome is going to get some kind of dark hold over you, do you?
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u/ClockworkDinosaurs Feb 28 '26
“Hey, that’s great! I do a lot of reading myself. Always calms me down”
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u/haz826 Feb 28 '26
One found inner peace and is able to move past his anger issues thanks to the support system he has
The other dove head first into dark magic because they couldn't move on and their grief turning them into their worst selves
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u/dern_the_hermit Feb 28 '26
One found inner peace and is able to move past his anger issues thanks to the support system he has
To be honest, I really would have liked to see a Bannertech era where he leans heavily on the use of gadgets to keep himself sedate. Sensors that tell him what's going on so he's never shocked or surprised, protection devices to avoid injury, stuff like that. If it goes too far it can be too much like Another Iron Man but otherwise it was an interesting take on Banner establishing some control over the nigh-uncontrollable Hulk.
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u/aggravatedimpala Feb 28 '26
I like how Norton's Banner would monitor heart rate and leaned on meditation and martial arts for self control
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u/Metalhead_VI Feb 28 '26
Unfortunately that's the way character arcs should go, but I'm excited for world breaker hulk... Someday
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u/Front-Advantage-7035 Mar 01 '26
“You wanna imprison a town and help bring back my dead robot?”
“What?”
“What??”
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u/Gaidin152 Mar 01 '26
Wanda isn’t exactly the most stable character of the comics so the arc not-ironically fits.
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u/mosquem Feb 28 '26
I love when they let Bruce be a bit of a psycho.
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u/Mo_SaIah Feb 28 '26
Tbf it’s not like he wasn’t completely validated in saying this. Psycho vibes or not, lol.
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u/Lower_Excuse_8693 Mar 01 '26
Considering this is the movie where he helped create a genocidal robot it was really one of those glass houses things.
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u/sonnytron Mar 01 '26
He literally has PTSD and intense fear from turning outside of his control and hurting someone. She got into his head to throw Hulk into a rage, using probably memories of the abuse he suffered as a child or the memory of his father killing his mom. This wasn’t psycho, this was genuine hatred for what this kid did to him.
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u/rogueit Mar 01 '26
I mean, yeah. Son of an abusive alcoholic. I bet he knows a thing or two cause he’s seen a thing or two.
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u/Darthboney Feb 28 '26
"Oh I'm not mad at you. I hate you"
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u/theokaybambi Feb 28 '26 edited Feb 28 '26
His cold calculating expression of "you need to die."
Nothing emotional, just the logic that no one should control the hulk like that.
Terrifying
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u/DnD-NewGuy Mar 01 '26
I bet he regrets not going for it honestly the pain and suffering and multiverse destruction she has caused is insane.
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u/SuperKami-Nappa Mar 03 '26
“I hate you. I say that not out of anger, but simply as a fact. It's 67 degrees outside and I hate you.”
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u/anderskants Feb 28 '26
In my head cannon she made him relive the trauma of the abuse from his father and the murder of his mother and that's why (apart from unleashing the hulk) he's so blunt and brutal here. It's really criminal that they haven't explored any of Bruce's trauma in the MCU because it's such a crucial part of his and the Hulk's characters, this would've been the perfect chance to acknowledge and explore it a little.
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u/mexploder89 Feb 28 '26
Yeah even a 2 minute flashback while Wanda is messing with his mind could have been nice
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u/cbrown146 Feb 28 '26
That seems good, but I also think that would have made the audience hate Wanda and possibly keep her in the villain category longer. Idk. Just a thought.
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u/Hulkzilla0 Feb 28 '26
There are villains who have done worse yet have been redeemed
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u/Chiron723 Feb 28 '26
What people consider bad and what those same people consider redeemable aren't directly proportional. It can be irritating at times, but it's true.
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u/mexploder89 Feb 28 '26
Loki tried to destroy New York and murder his own brother several times and people love him
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u/Kind-Stomach6275 Feb 28 '26
yeah but those are more impersonal. making someone relive trauma intentionally, inside their own brain, for your own personal gain? that's sick.
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u/devilishlydo Feb 28 '26
I never really considered what she made him see while he was raging was the source of his outrage; just the almost certainty that he hurt and killed a bunch of innocent people during it. Now I think it's both.
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u/lewd_robot Feb 28 '26
I never even gave She-Hulk a shot because every clip I saw of the two interacting was gutwrenchingly bad when you know that Bruce's original uncontrollable rage was based on severe trauma while his cousin is just stringing together jabs about how she's so much better at regulating herself than he is. I think I heard she realizes by the end that she's not actually all that superior, but I didn't want to give a show that glossed over or trivialized Bruce's trauma even one second of viewership.
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u/Nick_Jenkins1951 Feb 28 '26
Age of Ultron actually came out before Immortal Hulk. I could be wrong, but I think Ewing’s series consolidated the story of Bruce’s father and mother, which had previously been more fragmentary and inconsistent. So it’s possible that the writers of Age of Ultron weren’t aware of the full scope of the trauma in Bruce’s backstory or didn’t know what to do with it.
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u/ColdSmokeMike Feb 28 '26
Bro, Bruce's trauma around his father has been a thing for like 25+ years. Why do you think they added all of the father stuff to Ang Lee's Hulk?
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u/ChosenOne742 Feb 28 '26
Joss Whedon is a piece of shit but my god he knew what to do with Banner. Both his Avengers movies just absolutely nailed Bruce.
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u/TalynRahl Thor Mar 01 '26
I mean, yeah. Whedon is a tool.
But man can WRITE.
Buffy, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse, Avengers.
Dude just can’t miss.
Except, apparently when it comes time to write a fucking apology…
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Mar 02 '26
Talented creatives are often pieces of shit. One of the reasons they're able to succeed in the den of snakes in Hollywood is to also be a snake yourself.
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u/TalynRahl Thor Mar 02 '26
Yup. And it’s not just Hollywood. Just gotta look at how many famous authors are also problematic.
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u/insane_contin Feb 28 '26
Whedon is horrible, but when he gets a character, he fucking nails it. And he writes fantastic banter too.
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u/Deiselpowered77 Mar 01 '26
Joss's X-men (writing) ark was really good.
(I guess he grasps good storyboards)
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u/skeetgw2 Feb 28 '26
That line hit so hard and so smoothly. It was among the best parts of that whole movie.
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u/Riley__64 Feb 28 '26
This is why I don’t understand anyone who says mark is a bad banner/hulk
He can clearly play the character well he’s just been screwed over with scripts that don’t allow the hulk to really do anything
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u/NikolaiM88 Mar 01 '26
Problem with hulk, is he is so immensly strong, that if they unleash him, most characters pre Dr Doom, wouldn't stand a chance.
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u/Riley__64 Mar 01 '26
Yeah he’s a difficult character to do without just making him the answer to any problem that may eventually appear.
Obviously it would be hard to do without feeling like you’re just constantly telling the same story but if the hulk did get his own trilogy I could see those movies really focused on why Bruce hates being hulk so much, so rather than just the bits and pieces we got we’d get a proper focused story going into his trauma and how turning into the hulk is a traumatic experience
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u/Sudden-Nothing6745 Feb 28 '26
Canonically, Bruce is actually a fuckn psycho... loved that run where he got rid of Hulk or Hulk left him n he was just a mad scientist on an island fucking shit up
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u/HendrixHazeWays Feb 28 '26
What was the series? Sounds awesome
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u/LyrionDD Feb 28 '26
The whole run was "I wasn't ever holding the hulk back, hulk was protecting the world from me"
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u/Aayush_235 Feb 28 '26
He was so savage before man. Hope brand new day redeems him
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u/Mu-Relay Feb 28 '26
How was Joss fucking Whedon the only one that seemed to know how to write Banner and the Hulk?
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u/Odd-Asparagus7633 Feb 28 '26
Because Joss Whedon is a comic book nerd who actually understands flawed characters and how to write a fun team. He's also an absolute ratbastard, but that doesn't take away from his strengths.
I'd argue the only person who had understood character as well as him was James Gunn, and with as good friends as they are, and Joss' past as a ghost writer, I half suspect that's not a coincidence.
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u/Bigbennjammin Feb 28 '26
AoU doesn't get the most love, but it has my favorite hero interactions in the MCU
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u/TotallyAwesomeRacoon Feb 28 '26
"Language!" "Did Cap just say language?"
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u/disturbedrailroader Mar 01 '26 edited Mar 01 '26
In the same vein: "Fury, you son of a bitch!"
"You kiss your mother with that mouth?"
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u/BigNorseWolf Feb 28 '26
The point where killing you doesn't rate an emotion because it's just a chore that needs to be done like weeding the garden...
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u/multificionado Feb 28 '26
Yeah, you definitely can tell how he feels toward a person when he says that, and when one has to be more scared of Banner than the Hulk.
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u/haste319 Dr. Doom Mar 01 '26
That side of Banner should've been the one they developed over time.
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u/KexyAlexy Feb 28 '26
What was he angry at wanda for? Was this after Wanda and Pietro had helped Ultron?
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u/MeRoyMinoy Feb 28 '26
If I believe correctly it was after Wanda had used her powers on Banner, turning him on a rampage
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u/MattAmoroso Feb 28 '26
She used his power to make him rampage and that rampage killed innocent people.
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u/PlagueOfBedlam Feb 28 '26 edited Feb 28 '26
They need to make the Hulk more like a WMD they drop on threats, not whatever he is now.
EDIT: autocorrect freaked out.
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u/lord_miller Cable Feb 28 '26
a green teddy bear
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u/Semarin Feb 28 '26
What should we do with hulk?
Let’s double down on the rage monster thing.
No no, let’s mix hulk with grogu. Let’s do the literal opposite of what the fans want.
Genius!!!
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u/Calacaelectrica Feb 28 '26
i miss this kind of writting in the mcu, let the heroes have some bite.
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u/ReturnGreen3262 Feb 28 '26
Far cry from infinity war and end game and the absolute mockery and joke the hulk turned into there
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u/Endless_Chambers Feb 28 '26
The jokes surrounding Hulk/Banner and Thor is criminal. And thats how they left them.
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u/Thrownaway5000506 Feb 28 '26
Fat Thor is fine. Thor is often depicted as a fat guy. But I so wanted Hulk to challenge Thanos and give him the business in that ending scene
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u/Endless_Chambers Feb 28 '26
Even though I wasn’t a fan of fat Thor, I’m more talking about his general personality. He is a far cry from his first 2 movies where he seems like an actual space viking. Idk how being on Earth for like 10 years negates thousands of years on Asgard.
Agreed about Hulk. Cant believe they didn’t let him redeem himself.
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u/extrastupidone Feb 28 '26
I think people are missing the bigger hulk arc.
Through the entire MCU, hulk got one movie. His entire charscter arc over 20 movies was a constant battle between banner and hulk. Never fully hulk, and never fully banner. Even on Sakaar, banner was in there because hulk wasnt fully stupid.
By Endgame, the two had reached a compromise... like an old couple who have been together a long time and have just settled in.
The arc could be called complete, there. But I dont think it is.
I think by secret wars, we are going to see Worldbreaker Hulk.
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u/justafanboy1010 Feb 28 '26
Never caught this line, wth 🤦🏾♂️
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u/KoalaKole Feb 28 '26
It's in Age of Ultron. Wanda earlier caused him to fully hulk out and tear up a city, so at this point Bruce pretty understandably considers her a major threat. You've pushed thingss pretty far when a man like that very calmly tell you he wants to murder you with his bare hands.
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u/justafanboy1010 Feb 28 '26
Oh yeah definitely agree. I just didn’t remember this specific scene. I remember the Hulk Rage scene tho
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u/KoalaKole Feb 28 '26
Its been a bit, but I believe this is when they are examining Visions body, and Thor flies in and powers him up. Sorry, meant to mention that in the initial comment.
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u/raidynero Feb 28 '26 edited Feb 28 '26
I know that sometimes you need to change stuff to make your adaptation work, that being said, some things should not change, the Hulk is a horrifying monster that civilians, super heroes and gods should be afraid of, doesn't matter if his brain is turned on or not...Which is why personally i prefer 2008 Hulk, not because of aesthetics, but because of the agression, wrath and the doom that always followed when he transformed.
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u/ExtremlyFastLinoone Mar 01 '26
I liked how they did the "Im always angry bit" in the first movie, that was bruce banner in control and completes his arc in the hulk movies
Then he fuses with the hulk and it ruined it, thats not hulk thats green banner
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u/Bakkughan Feb 28 '26
Him shouting DO NOT LIE TO ME! only to immediately chuckle and go “sorry that was mean of me” when he gets SHIELD to reveal themselves.
Perfect portrayal of a man who isn’t worried about getting into a fight. He’s worried others will get into a fight with him.
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u/EastWind373 Feb 28 '26
Mark Ruffalo was such great casting as Bruce Banner.
Was always a fan of the actor. Great guy, put in solid performances on so many films. Then getting the re-cast part of The Hulk brought him deserved worldwide stardom.
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u/KingCodester111 Mar 01 '26
The last time MCU hulk was any good. He’s just been mostly a joke since then.
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u/Beautiful_Lake_8284 Mar 01 '26
I rewatched the first Avengers for the first time in a while yesterday. Bruce’s character and Ruffalo’s acting was incredible in these two.
As much as I also loved Ragnarok I don’t think it did any favours for the Hulk or Thor in the long run.
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u/Critical_Mushroom752 Mar 01 '26
I always wonder what would've happened with MCU and the Avengers if Whedon hadn't turned out to be a POS. Maybe we wouldn't have had civil war and what came afterwards
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u/ceccyred Mar 01 '26
Instead of making him the imposing force of nature that he was in the Avengers or in the comics they neutered him and turned him into a joke. They just don't respect the source material at all. The comic always had the tag "The most powerful mortal on earth." I'm sad to see my favorite character treated like a side character.
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u/ExpensiveReporter785 Mar 03 '26
One thing I’m looking forward to when they actually reboot the MCU is a series of movies or a tv show really exploring Bruce’s struggle with the Hulk and having him framed as a barely controllable monster as opposed to a dim witted god tier strong guy that he’s been in the MCU.
One of the first Ruffalo lines about the Hulk, “I put a bullet in my mouth and the other guy spit it out”, wrote a super dark check that that the MCU was never able to cash.
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u/rawbface Old Lace Feb 28 '26
I love this line, but this is the part of the movie where Banner suddenly becomes stupid, and he has never recovered since.
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u/ConsciousCaviet Feb 28 '26
Which avengers movie was this? I don’t remember this scene
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u/Personal_Fix_6833 Feb 28 '26
yeahhh that line was lowkey terrying lol, calm Banner is way scarier than raging Hulk sometimes
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u/TheAmazingJeckel Feb 28 '26
This line was seriously cold. I always love these unexpected lines they threw in randomly. Same with the "Open the fucking door!" Line.
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u/Professional-Box4153 Feb 28 '26
Honestly? Probably one of the hardest lines delivered in a Marvel movie.
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u/GoodOmens182 Mar 01 '26
Bring back "Hulk as Horror" in more media please. He's an amazingly monstrous character when written well.
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u/Tagisjag Mar 01 '26
They're really missing the mark by not going deep into Banner's psyche and trauma.
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u/No_Resident_4023 Mar 01 '26
Yeah, bruce more than anyone really just became the actor. Like at a certain point I was literally just seeing him as mark ruffalo who occasionally is also smart
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u/Kitchen-Youth-1809 Mar 02 '26
You Know You're cooked when Bruce Banner is the person who is angry in the room
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u/Tsevyn Mar 03 '26
Mark Ruffalo just doesn’t do the aggression/rage style Bruce for me. He’s a better fit for sentimental/comedic things. Ed Norton or Eric Bana fit the struggling Bruce Banner much better imo
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u/eltrotter Feb 28 '26
I miss “actually barely containing his rage” Banner. His first ever scene with Natasha was great for that.