Type: Magical gateway to other dimensionsTHE CROSSROADS
Type: Magical gateway to other dimensions
Environment: Varies
Usual means of access:
Banishment, vibrational attunement or mystic travel, traveling through any of its portal
Dominant Life Form: Not Applicable (there are many life forms in the worlds connected to the Crossroads, but no known dominant life form exists in the Crossroads itself)
Visitors: Doctor Strange (Stephen Strange), Hulk (Bruce Banner), Puffball Collective, the Triad (Glow, Goblin, Guardian), U-Foes (Ironclad/Mike Steel, Vapor/Ann Darnell, Vector/Simon Utrecht, X-Ray/Jimmy Darnell)
Aliases: The Interdimensional Crossroads of Time (Alpha Flight I#101)
First Appearance: The Incredible Hulk#300 (October, 1984)
Features: The Crossroads is
just what its name implies. It is a mystical dimension whose
purpose is to lead its inhabitants to other dimensions. Endless
paths lead to a multitude of dimensional portals, each portal
being a reflection of the world beyond (i.e. the portal to an
ocean world may appear as a shimmering pool of water, or the
portal to a world of fire may be flanked with flames).
Certain scientific constants such as spacial relationships, time, and gravity hold no absolutes in the Crossroads. Beyond the paths and the portals is a seemingly infinite void, but if one should venture into this void, they will eventually find themselves right back amidst the myriad of paths and gateways.
In the center of the Crossroads is a signpost. Arms are sculpted into the post, each one presumably representing the different races of each world accessible via the Crossroads. The Signpost, if destroyed, will always regenerate itself.
The Crossroads is accessible from everywhere, if you know which door to open or what hole to crawl through.
History:
(Marvel
Tarot (fb) - BTS) - Before the founding of Atlantis, the four Elder
Gods (Chthon, Gaea, Oshtur, Set) worked together to create the
Crossroads
(Marvel Tarot (fb) - BTS) - Wizards spent decades wandering back and forth amongst the sign posts.
(Marvel
Tarot (fb) - BTS) - "May you meet yourself at the Crossroads" became a favorite magician's curse.
(Incredible Hulk II#300) - Believing that Earth could no longer afford the presence of the Hulk (who was more savage than ever, due to the self-imposed suppression of Bruce Banner’s persona), but also feeling bound by his friendship with the Hulk and Banner not to hurt the green goliath, Doctor Strange searched for a peaceful means of ending his threat. As other heroes of New York rallied to face the Hulk’s rampage, Strange used the Orb of the Agamotto to search through the various dimensions, and in some cases to commune with the creatures already dwelling there.
Later, Doctor Strange flew to the scene of Hulk’s battle with the Avengers. When the Hulk spotted Strange, he leapt to attack. Before the Hulk could reach the sorcerer, Strange caused an inter-dimensional portal to appear. Already in mind-leap, the Hulk could do nothing but fall through the portal. In the last page of the issue, we see the Hulk floating aimlessly between dimensions, the Signpost of the Crossroads behind him, along with the many portals and doorways.
(Incredible Hulk II#301) - Hulk finds himself in The Crossroads, before the signpost. Enraged over his banishment, the Hulk lashes out and snaps the signpost from its roots. Immediately afterwards he encounters the Puffball Collective, a strange telepathic creature who is exactly what his name says: a collection of puffy white balls. The Puffball Collective tries to initiate a dialogue with the Hulk, but is met only with the Hulk’s rage. Seeking an escape from his confusing surroundings, the Hulk first journeyed to the Underwater World where he was attacked by a giant sea creature, and then to Demolition City. In Demolition City, Doctor Strange’s "failsafe" took effect for the first time. While Doctor Strange wanted to find a home where he would not cause harm to others, at the same time he certainly didn’t want the Hulk to be hurt, either. As part of his banishment spell, Strange had included a failsafe. If the Hulk was completely dissatisfied with his experience in a certain world, the failsafe would be activated and he would be teleported back the Signpost. Confused and disappointed with the fake nature of Demolition City, the Hulk is teleported back to the Crossroads per Strange’s spell. Once there, he sees that the Signpost has already regenerated from his earlier attack.
(Incredible Hulk Annual#13) - After a brief and unpleasant stay in
Saurian World, the Hulk returns to the Crossroads. Shortly
after his return, he found a portal—flanked with tropical
trees—which emitted a soft breeze. The Hulk instinctively
sensed that this world must have food for him, so he entered. He
found himself on the World of Symbionts, and nearly died after
partaking in some of the world’s food. After one of the
Symbionts (whom the Hulk referred to as "Sym") attached
itself to the Hulk, the Hulk found he was able to eat of the
world’s vegetation without fear of poisoning. Likewise, Sym was exhilarated by his relationship with the Hulk; the green
goliath being the most powerful creature he had ever merged with.
He was particularly impressed with the Hulk’s ability to
leap.
Soon their paradise was interrupted as the entire race of Symbionts is called to a gathering. The other Symbionts met Sym with scorn for merging with an alien creature. Unwilling to "give up the sky," Sym called for the Hulk to leap away as the other Symbionts tred to detach Sym from the Hulk’s back. The Hulk did as Sym wished, and also began to climb the tallest mountain on Sym’s world, also at Sym’s bidding. After many weeks, Hulk reached the summit of the mountain, and Sym detached himself from the Hulk’s back in his sleep (afraid that the Hulk will not survive if he does not). Sym soon died, assuring the Hulk that his death was worth it, because he had become the first of his race to see the stars. Saddened at the loss of a friend, the Hulk’s mourning triggered Doctor Strange’s failsafe spell, and he found himself back in the Crossroads.
(Incredible Hulk II#302) - Frustrated after his experiences in the worlds of the Crossroads, the Hulk attempts to escape by leaping into the void beyond. As he falls, his body begins to morph, and he re-lives past versions of himself. After landing, he sees that somehow he is right back at the center of the Crossroads; standing before the seemingly indestructible Signpost.
Still trying to gain the
Hulk’s trust, the Puffball Collective forms his body into
that of a stereotypical Earth tour guide, and produces a map of
the Crossroads. Each time the Hulk points at a different symbol
(each representing a particular portal), an image of the world
beyond appears in the Hulk’s mind. After the first few
tries, the Hulk’s finger rests his finger on the
portal-symbol for the City of Death. In his mind’s eye he
sees Nalee, a green woman whose tears magically transform into
flowers when they touch the ground, as a prisoner atop a tower
made of humanoid bones. Feeling some kind of connection with the
woman (her skin is green), the Hulk enters the City of Death’s portal,
which is shaped like a tall mirror. The Puffball Collective tries
to follow him, but as usual is re-buffed by the portal. Upon
entrance to the world, Hulk first meets Vartu, a young
wizard’s apprentice who believes the Hulk is a demon he has
summoned. The Hulk approaches the City of Death, spots Nalee, and
is attacked by the Iron Knights. 
Amazingly,
the Iron Knights easily defeat the Hulk. They are about to kill
him when Nalee appears, begging for his life. The Iron Knights
agree to let the Hulk live, enslaving him instead. While
imprisoned, Nalee comes to visit the Hulk and clean his wounds.
Though certainly not happy with his present situation, the
Hulk’s strong desire to help and protect Nalee stops
Strange’s failsafe spell from triggering.
(Incredible Hulk II#303) - Hulk is put to work grinding the bones that are used to build the walls of the City of Death. Once again, he tries to rebel against his new masters, but is quickly beaten badly by the Iron Knights. Eventually, filled with rage over the torment of the Greens—her people—Nalee uses her magical powers in a way never used before. Instead of transforming her tears into flowers, Nalee cries tears that turn into giant, groping vines and tall, moving trees. Soon, the Iron Knights are vanquished, and Nalee calls upon her people to repopulate the world. Seeing Nalee no longer needs any protection or help, the failsafe spell transports the Hulk back to the Crossroads.
(Incredible Hulk II#304) - The humiliating and depressing experiences Hulk has gone through on other worlds forces him into a state of inaction. Though safe from the dangers of these worlds, there is no food in the Crossroads itself, and he slowly begins to starve. Unwilling to let his only companion die, the Puffball Collective provokes him into action by forming its body into various (harmless but annoying) weapons with which to strike the Hulk. Irritated, the Hulk attacks. The Puffball Collective positions itself before the portal of Zgorian’s World (shaped like a simple yellow square) and when the Hulk leaps at the collective, he flies right through it and into the portal.
There is vegetation and animal life aplenty on this world, but the Hulk is afraid of eating any of it because of his experiences on the World of Symbionts. Soon he sees another creature, Zgorian, partaking in the vegetation, and so the Hulk risks it and finds the food to be delicious. Zgorian and the Hulk soon become friends, and together they travel through the world (they are presumably the only intelligent life-forms on the planet—in the case of the Mindless Hulk I use the word "intelligent" loosely), gathering each other food and taking shelter from the powerful storms that sometimes threaten the landscape. After some time, a group of aliens—looking much like Zgorian--appear in a spaceship. It turns out that Zgorian was exiled to this world for expressing peaceful and merciful thoughts and ideas (his race is a predominantly warlike race) and was awaiting sentencing. The sentence for his "crimes" is announced to be death, and the Hulk rushes to protect his friend. He is struck down by one of the aliens however, and the rest of the aliens execute Zgorian while the Hulk lies helpless. Once again, the loss of a friend triggers the Hulk’s return to the Crossroads.
While Hulk was on Zgorian’s World, other events were taking place on Earth. The Hulk’s enemies, the U-Foes, had escaped from a prison specifically designed from them. Vector had extended his power so much that he was actually repelling the fabric of reality of itself. In doing so, the U-Foes were transported to the Crossroads. When the Hulk returns from Zgorian’s World, the U-Foes are waiting for him.
(Incredible Hulk II#305) - It doesn’t take long for the U-Foes to attack. Ironclad leaps at the Hulk, and the impact from their collision causes shockwaves all across the worlds of The Crossroads. The slugfest between Hulk and Ironclad carries them to a part of the Crossroads where time is in constant disarray. They transform into two brawling children, then into de-powered young adults, and finally back to their full age and power levels. Vapor helps with the attack, but soon the Puffball Collective and the Hulk are able to fight them both off. Frustrated by his underlings’ ineffectiveness, Vector uses his power to repel matter, and wreaks havoc all throughout the Crossroads. The signpost is blown to pieces, and the various paths and gateways tremble and shake. With the Collective’s help, the Hulk finds his way through Vector’s onslaught and temporarily knocks out the U-Foe.
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When X-Ray attacks, the Puffball Collective aids the Hulk with a highly effective tactic. He continually instructs the Hulk to lure the different U-Foes through particular portals (the Collective somehow knows which portals lead where). X-Ray attacks the Hulk, turning himself invisible. The Collective counters this by surrounding X-Ray’s form, allowing the Hulk to see him. When X-Ray dives at the Hulk, the Collective instructs the Hulk to duck, which he does. X-Ray plummets through a portal to find himself on a world of monsters who eat radiation (X-Ray’s body is composed completely of radiation). They lead Vapor to a world with no atmosphere where her physical form dissipates, Ironclad to the World of Quicksand where his increased mass makes him sink that much faster into the muck, and Vector into Tornado World, where the flying debris threatens to kill Vector unless he uses his powers to repel it until the end of his days. |
After the battle, the Puffball Collective finds he has finally gained the Hulk’s trust.
(Incredible Hulk II#306) - As the Puffball Collective once again tries to communicate with the Hulk, Klaatu appears in the Crossroads. The Hulk does not remember Klaatu from their previous encounter, but attacks regardless, having come to regard the Crossroads as his territory and Klaatu as an invader. Klaatu swats the Hulk away like an annoying insect. The Hulk once again rips the Signpost free of its roots (presumably it had reformed since Vector destroyed it), and uses it as a spear to strike Klaatu. The "spear" does little harm to the giant creature, but upon examining the signpost and realizing its use, Klaatu realizes where he is. The titan uses his power to suck some of the life energy (on which he subsists) from each of the Crossroads’ countless worlds, and then vanishes. Just as Klaatu leaves, the Starship Andromeda appears; a spaceship resembling an ancient ocean-going vessel whose crew has hunted Klaatu for years. Recognizing the Hulk, the ship’s first mate—Xeron the Star-Slayer—lowers himself to the ground and tries to regain the Hulk as a member of his crew. The Hulk signals his refusal and attacks Xeron. He easily outmatches the first mate physically, but the energy from Xeron’s harpoon saps the Hulk of his strength. The Puffball Collective suggests they take him aboard as well to calm the Hulk, and Xeron and Captain Cybor agree. Unfortunately, as they pass through the portal of Ocean World (Captain Cybor tracks Klaatu to this location), once again the portal repels the Puffball Collective’s entrance.
(Incredible Hulk II#307) - Enraged at his friend’s departure, Hulk breaks loose of his chains just as Xeron begins to latch onto Klaatu with his harpoons. The crew tries to subdue the Hulk, but to no avail. Eventually, the Hulk smashes his fists into the ship itself, rocking the Andromeda and shaking Xeron’s harpoons loose from Klaatu’s hide. Frustrated with the Hulk but unwilling to lose his strength, Captain Cybor orders that the ship be turned back to the Crossroads, so they may use the Collective’s presence to calm the Hulk. This time, Xeron uses a force field to surround the Collective, hoping it will allow him to pass through the portals. The force field works, though the Collective endures great pain as they re-entered Ocean World.
The Andromeda finds its prey once more, and latches onto it with Xeron’s harpoons. Klaatu drags the Andromeda through many worlds, until finally they reach a cold, desert world. Weak and nearly dead, Klaatu stumbles to the ground. As the Andromeda moves in for the kill, Klaatu waits until the ship is close enough and strikes it with his hand. The ship crashes to the ground, killing all the crew (with the exception of Cybor and Xeron, who survive only a short while longer). The Hulk is able to grab the Collective and jump free of the crash just in time. The Hulk, feeling compassion for Klaatu, rips the energy harpoons free from its back. In repayment, Klaatu bestows a small fraction of his energy upon the Hulk (who had been weakened by then from the energy-leeching of the harpoons). The Collective touches the Hulk’s shoulder just as Strange’s failsafe spell is triggered, and both are transported back to the Crossroads.
(Incredible Hulk II#308) - The Puffball Collective told the Hulk that he was once a part of a much larger collective that lived on a planet connected to the Crossroads. According to the Collective, it came upon a strange magical artifact that, once accidentally broken, unleashed a horde of demons. He claims he was the only part of the Collective to survive the onslaught, but that once he escaped to the Crossroads, the demons sealed shut the portal back home. Pointing out the portal to the Hulk, the Hulk sees it appears to be barred and chained. Eager to help his friend, the Hulk breaks the portal open, and enters it with the Collective.
Unfortunately for the
Hulk, the Puffball Collective has been lying to him for the
entire span of their "friendship." In actuality, the
Collective Hulk knows is a flawed, degenerative part of the
original Collective which had purposely unleashed the Demons of
N’Garai on its own world. The rest of the Collective exiled
its evil part to the Crossroads, and barred the portal in order
to spare other worlds from the demons.
Unbeknownst to the Puffball Collective, its constant telepathic probing of the Hulk’s mind had not only caused his childlike intelligence to re-emerge by this time, but also spawned the creation of The Triad; three spirit beings representing parts of the Hulk’s suppressed psyche who made the Hulk aware of the danger.
The demons eventually find Hulk, and though the green goliath is temporarily able to render one of the demons unconscious, he is soon beset upon by more. The Puffball Collective appears and uses its telepathy to brag to the Hulk about his treachery. The Hulk leapt away from the demons, desperately searching for the portal back to the Crossroads. Soon, he stops leaping, remembering the magic that has spirited him back to the Crossroads in the past. For the first time, he triggers it consciously. Once returned to the other side of the portal, the Hulk replaces the chains that once barred the portal, just as the demon hordes are about to barrel through. Finally free of the demons, the Hulk hears the Collective’s screams from the other side as the demons tear it to shreds.
(Incredible Hulk II#309) - Spurred on
by The Triad (revealing themselves as Goblin, Glow, and Guardian
respectively), the Hulk enters yet another portal in order to
find nourishment. Instead he finds a vast desert on this world. Though urged by
Goblin and Glow to return to the Crossroads, the Hulk travels on
until he is completely dehydrated. Finally the Hulk comes upon a
beautiful oasis, whereupon he feeds himself and restores the
Triad’s faith in him.
(Incredible Hulk II#310) - Still curious about this world, the Hulk marches on with the Triad by his side. They soon find a thick jungle, and through that a foreboding citadel. Robed figures march somberly to the fortress, with one figure in particular bound at the wrists and being pulled in a cart. As the Hulk watches, still unseen by the figures, the Triad bickers about what this means. Goblin insists the figure in the cart who—once disrobed—turns out to be a beautiful yellow-skinned woman, is going to be sacrificed. Guardian urges patience, while Glow simply makes observations. As one of the other robed figures raises a sword to the woman’s throat, the Hulk leaps to protect her and smashes the robed man’s sword.
The citadel gates open and a horde of living skeletons astride large horned beasts surges forward, crying out that the woman belongs to their "master," and slaughter the orange-skinned men for failing to surrender her. The Hulk defends himself well, fighting back many of the skeletal warriors, until one scratches him with a blade from behind. The poison of the blade makes the Hulk woozy, and ultimately causes the Hulk to change back to Bruce Banner (for the first in nearly a year—real time and Marvel time; when the Hulk returns from the Crossroads, Doc Samson claims he has been missing for a year). Banner quickly falls unconscious, and when he awakes he is tied to a stone slab and the yellow woman is standing above him, flanked by the skeletal warriors, about to strike him with a knife.
(Incredible Hulk II#311) - The "master" shows up just in time, before the knife can fall. Much to Banner’s surprise, the "master" appears to be a somewhat balding and aged man with a thick Scottish accent. He orders the woman to leave Banner be, frees Banner from his bonds, and introduces himself as Dr. Daniel Decyst, University of Edinburgh, 1759. He leads Banner up to his laboratory, and tells him of his life’s work. Decyst claims to be from the same world as Banner, and that he was an alchemist who searched for the secret of immortality. Spurned by both his colleagues and the clergy, Decyst searched for answers in the arcane arts. Indirectly, he found it. He accidentally transported himself to the world of the yellow-skinned aliens. They worshipped Decyst as a god, and built the citadel for him. Eventually, Decyst came to believe that the blood of these aliens was the secret he had been searching for. He demanded sacrifices from the aliens. Once given the aliens, he would keep them alive, suspended upside-down in a secret room above his laboratory, slowly draining their blood.
Disappointed by Banner’s natural repulsion to the tale, Decyst produces a pistol, and tells Banner he believes that while the aliens’ blood has only prolonged his aging process, he believes the Hulk’s blood will truly make him immortal. Banner makes a run for it, with Decyst firing from behind. As Decyst calls for the guards, the yellow-skinned woman, who had been meant as a sacrifice, sneaks into the "draining" room and sees Decyst’s handiwork. She uses the blade she was given to kill Banner to knife Decyst in the back, naming him a "false god" as he collapses and dies. Meanwhile, Banner has transformed into the Hulk once again with the Triad appearing along with him, and the green goliath fights his way through the hordes of skeletal guards. Not wanting to risk the Hulk being injured again, Guardian shoots him with one of his "reasoning" arrows. The Hulk halts, realizes that the girl he meant to save is gone, and triggers the spell back to the Crossroads.
(Incredible Hulk II#312) - While Banner is overcome with despair at the knowledge he is not dead as he had wished, the Crossroads has an unseen visitor. The omnipotent Beyonder has been traveling, invisible, through various dimensions, and stops in the Crossroads to contemplate his confusion over Bruce Banner. He senses Banner’s wish to die, yet is puzzled by the fact that Banner chooses to live in agony rather than end his own life. While thinking on this, the Beyonder senses a stream of energy entering the Crossroads. Suddenly wanting to help Banner, the Beyonder uses his power to steer the stream in Banner’s direction.
(Incredible Hulk II#313/Alpha Flight#28) - Desperately to end his existence, Banner leaps from the Crossroads, presumably to his death. Instead of death, he falls for what seems like an eternity through a wild maelstrom where he eventually transforms into the Hulk. Once again, the Hulk finds himself at the Crossroads. Just as the Hulk shook his fist at the Signpost, declaring that he wanted to go home, the energy stream that the Beyonder redirected struck him in the back and latched onto him.
After the stream yanked him through one of the Crossroads’ many portals, the failsafe spell kept triggering, causing the Hulk to pop in and out of countless worlds, including a world of robots, .
(Alpha Flight I#44) - Walter Langkowski eventually winds up in the dimension inside of Shaman's medicine bag. Within, he finds the miniaturized, mindless body of Smart Alec (from Omega Flight) who had been left there by Shaman. Walter crawls out of the bag inside of Smart Alec's body.
(Avengers I#304) - The young mutant Charles Little Sky manifests his dimension-travelling powers, and accidentally returns the U-Foes to our dimension.
(Alpha Flight I#86) - Dr. Strange, Aurora and Northstar traveled to The Crossroads to open up the dimension of the Shining Realms and recruit warriors to fight Llan, the Sorcerer on Earth. Llan made it impossible to open up a gateway to the Shining Realms on Earth, so Strange used The Crossroads to circumvent this condition.
(Alpha Flight I#101) - In search of the missing Aurora, Dr. Strange brought Northstar, Sersi, and the Vision to the Crossroads. Dr. Strange opened a series of portals in the process of searching, which unwittingly allowed a horde of hostile beings from one of the dimensions to pour into the Crossroads and attack them. The Vision determined the origin of the beings, and he and Sersi forced them back into their own realm, after which Dr. Strange closed the portal. Ultimately, Strange was exhausted, and had to cut the search short, leaving Aurora still lost. Aurora turned up again in Alpha Flight I#104, but I don't remember the background info.
(Marvel
Tarot (fb) - BTS) - Ian McNee compiled notes on various dimensions,
including the Crossroads and its creation by the Elder Gods. In his
Tarot reading, the magician was represented by Dr. Strange, whom Ian
noted to be the Master of the Crossroads.
Comments: Created by Bill Mantlo and Sal Buscema
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, Prime Eternal and Flank McLargehuge for the important info from Alpha Flight and Avengers.
Many of the Crossroads’ worlds that have appeared are listed below. And many are not. Those which are not featured either appeared only very briefly and/or little or no information was given about them. For example, most of the worlds Hulk popped in and out of in Hulk #313 were shown for only one panel. The same goes for the worlds Klaatu dragged the Andromeda through in Incredible Hulk II#307 (these are listed at the bottom--Snood).
The names I have given these
worlds are not their "real" names. None of their true
names are given, and since many were seemingly uninhabited or
inhabited only by animal and/or plant life, there is a good
chance many of them were never named in the conventional sense.
--The OHotMU Deluxe Edition#8-9: Appendix: Other Dimensions
lists names for these realms, which are similarly arbitrary (or
even moreso), and are also almost certainly not their real names.
These names are listed in italics in parentheses--Snood.
In case you’re wondering, upon his return to Earth, the Hulk kicked the collective Canadian "boots" of Alpha Flight. As a Hulkophile, it was very refreshing to see this after over a year of the green guy getting his own butt handed to him by every inter-dimensional dweeb he came across.
Per Degaton pointed out a Crossroads appearance in the Ultimate Hulk novel:
During his ventures through the Crossroads pace
Hulk I#300 et al., the Hulk landed on a world where he
experienced illusions of the Rhino, the Abomination,
the Leader, and possibly others. His Triad including
Goblin managed to pull him out of the hallucinations.
Continuity unknown, but it happened at some point
after Incredible Hulk II#308 (because before that the Triad didn't
exist)
--Markus Raymond
The Crossroads has a full entry in Marvel Legacy: The 1980s Handbook.
by Mick Martin, The Anti-Grimm
CLARIFICATIONS: The Crossroads may be connected to, but should be distinguished from:
Sym, the Symbiont, has no known connection to:
Underwater World (Water World): (Incredible Hulk II#301) A world seemingly existing completely underwater, its only known inhabitants are great squid-like creatures. |
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World of Symbionts (Poisoned World of Spine Creatures): (Incredible Hulk Annual#13) The dominate life-form of this world (which was said to resemble the plains of Africa) is a race of telepathic creatures which resemble human spinal chords. Many years before the Hulk’s visit there, the World of Symbionts had been struck with massive radiation, killing many other indigenous life-forms and poisoning all the water and vegetation. Eventually, the Symbionts realized that if they attached themselves to other life-forms of the planet, it created a symbiotic relationship in which the Symbiont could control the actions of the animal, and the animal could nourish itself on the world’s natural resources, somehow without being affected by the radiation poisoning.
City of Death (Paradise and the City of Death): (Incredible Hulk II#302-303) Until the Hulk’s visit to the City of Death, the so-called "Iron Knights"—a red-skinned people whose physical strength completely dwarfed the Hulk’s—were the dominant people on this world. They lived only for conquest and built their ever-expanding city from the bones of their enemies, the other intelligent race of the world, the "Greens." The Iron Knights’ wars had turned most of the world into a barren landscape.
The Greens are a much more peaceful race, protected from the Iron Knights by an impenetrable wall of Rose vines created by the magic of their leader; the Green Sorcerer. Before the Hulk left the City of Death, the Green Sorcerer’s daughter Nalee had used her magical powers to destroy the Iron Knights and to assume leadership of the Greens.
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Zgorian’s World (Purple World of Exile): (Incredible Hulk II#304) No intelligent life is known to live on Zgorian’s World. Zgorian himself was not native to the planet. In fact, other than plants and fish, no native life at all was shown to live there. Zgorian’s World has many moons (at least eight) and while the tall mountains and other rock formations make it sometimes look desolate and barren, this appearance is contrasted with the many water-holes and tropical-looking trees. Zgorian’s World also experiences incredibly powerful storms from time to time. It serves as a place of temporary exile for a war-like race (Zgorian’s race was never named), for those who are awaiting sentencing for their crimes. |
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Dead World (Vacuum World): (Incredible Hulk II#305) Almost nothing is known of this world, other than it is barren and bereft of any form of breathable atmosphere. |
World of Quicksand (Quicksand World): (Incredible Hulk II#305) As the name implies, a world whose surface is made up of quicksand.
| Tornado World (Wind World): (Incredible Hulk II#305) A world swept with never-ending and powerful winds which tear apart the planet itself. |  |
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Ocean World (...?): (Incredible Hulk II#306-307) Nothing is known of this world other than it is covered with a vast, raging ocean. |
| Andromeda’s Graveyard (Desert World): (Incredible Hulk II#307) A cold, desert world swept by powerful winds, where the crew of the Starship Andromeda met its bloody end. |  |
Collective’s World (Demon World of the N'Garai): (Incredible Hulk II#308) Once a world very much like Earth, this planet is now completely desolate due to the Puffball Collective’s release of the Demons of N’Garai upon it.
Decyst’s World (Daniel DeCyst's World): (Incredible Hulk II#309-311) Most of this world is covered by either vast desert or thick jungle. The dominant intelligent species seems to be a race of primitive yellow-skinned humanoids. The Scottish alchemist, Dr. Daniel Decyst, once traveled to this world and caused the yellow people to believe he was a god. He used this belief to force sacrificial victims from them, from whom he drained blood that he believed to be the key to eternal life. After the Hulk’s visit however, Decyst was killed by one of his intended sacrificial lambs. This world was also inhabited by skeleton warriors, but while it was never confirmed to be the case, the presumption is that the warriors were not native to the planet but were magically created by Decyst.
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World of Robots (Robot World): (Incredible Hulk II#313) The First world the Hulk was dragged into by Alpha Flight’s energy stream, this is a mechanically-run world inhabited by sentient robots. |
Shaman’s Pouch: (Alpha Flight I#44) Presumably, the interiors of Shaman’s pouch are accessible through the Crossroads.
--All those below from 307 were seen when Klaatu drug them through these worlds, those from 313 were seen while trying to escape the energy harpoon
Barren World--Incredible Hulk II#307 |
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Burning World-briefly glimpsed through the Puffball's map-Incredible Hulk II#302 |
Devil World-home of a giant, blue, horned creature--Incredible Hulk II#313
Furry Blue People World--Incredible Hulk II#307 |
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Glob World of Floating Things--Incredible Hulk II#313 |
Idolworld--Incredible Hulk II#313 |
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Mist World--Incredible Hulk II#307 |
Octopod World--Incredible Hulk II#313 |
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Skyshark World--Incredible Hulk II#313 --note: The OHotMU suggests that this world may or may not be the same as Quarl, @ Ka-Zar, Lord of the Hidden Jungle#16 |
Swamp World--Incredible Hulk II#313 |
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Toad World--Incredible Hulk II#313 |
War World--Incredible Hulk II#313 |
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Yellow Dwarf World--Incredible Hulk II#313 |
Appearances:
Incredible Hulk II#301 (November, 1984) - Bill Manto (writer), Sal Buscema (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Carl Potts (editor)
Incredible
Hulk Annual#13 (November, 1984) - Bill Mantlo (writer), Alan Kupperberg
(pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Carl Potts (editor)
Incredible Hulk II#302-309 (December, 1984 - July, 1985) - Bill Manto
(writer), Sal Buscema (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Carl Potts
(editor)
Incredible Hulk II#310 (August, 1985) - Bill Mantlo (writer), Bret Blevins (pencils), Al Williamson (inks), Carl Potts (editor)
Incredible Hulk II#311-313 (September-November, 1985) - Bill Mantlo
(writer), Mike Mignola (pencils), Gerry Talaoc (inks), Carl Potts
(editor)
Alpha Flight I#28 (November, 1985) - John Byrne (writer/pencils), Keith Williams (inks), Denny O'Neil (editor)
Alpha Flight I#44 (March, 1987) - Bill Mantlo (writer), Dave Ross (pencils), Whilce Portacio (inks), Carl Potts (editor)
Avengers I#304 (June, 1989) - Danny Fingeroth (writer), Rich Buckler (pencils), Tom Palmer (inks), Howard Mackie (editor)
Alpha Flight I#86 (July, 1990) - James Hudnall (writer), Mark Bagley (pencils), Mike Manley (inks), Danny Fingeroth (editor)
Alpha Flight I#101 (October, 1991) - Fabian Nicieza (writer), Tom Morgan (pencils), Chris Ivy (inks), Bobbie Chase (editor)
Ultimate Hulk novel (October, 1998) - Steve Lyons (writer), Stan Lee & Peter David (editors)
Marvel
Tarot (2007) - David Sexton (writer/designer), Doug Sexton (technical
consultant), Jeff Christiansen (continuity consultant), Michael Short
& Cory Levine (assistant editors), Mark D. Beazley & Jennifer
Grunwald (associate editors), Jeff Youngquist (editor)
First Posted 03/06/2002
Last Updated: 11/27/2019
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and
© 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you
like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com
Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!
