One of the problems of this show it was the same thing over and over, basic premise that never changes, and rooted in a cops and rubbers type formula. It was a very 70's type of show with them being the same thing every episode and nothing ever changing.
shareAnd there are way too many episodes which are devoted to doing nothing but recapping everything that has happened so far but don't advance the plot at all, like the season 2 premiere 'Married' a two-part episode in which at least 50% of the footage consists of clips from previous episodes.
shareThe serious approach and some of the stories were initially interesting but got nonsensical in later seasons. Think it's one of those shows that need somebody telling them "this really isn't going anywhere and really need to spice it up here", it's a problem with episodic television it's gets to the point of running dry, that's why now we got shows with story arcs.
Think having people think Banner is presumed dead would last for one season if were done now and some other stuff that would last a few episodes.
Sometimes "The Incredible Hulk" episodes felt like deja vu all over again. But many TV shows are formulaic. Have you ever seen the old TV show "Quincy" starring the late Jack Klugman? That show was as formulaic as you can get.
The Hulk writers did try to mix things up a little bit. David dealt with all different kinds of villains in different settings. He tried not to get involved with damsels in distress, but a few times he did. Occasionally he sought solutions for his condition.
I don't know if the writers considered serialization. But that can be risky because it turns off some casual viewers. I think many TV producers wanted each episode to be a self contained nugget.
"The Incredible Hulk" was an hour long show with only one main character. I wonder if that was a problem for the writers. And I wonder if the shooting schedule was demanding for Bill Bixby.
It was an episodic tv show that contained some serial elements. Not at all unusual for television of that era, and some legendary shows--such as The Fugitive--used it very effectively.
50 Is The New Cutoff Age.
TV shows in a serialized format wasn't commonplace until the 90's, if it was done now it would be more like that, they do that now because episodic television gets to the point of running dry and eventually being cancelled after five seasons. Building a show with just one character can be difficult, apart from McGee the show had no real supporting or recurring characters always different characters each episode.
shareSometimes "The Incredible Hulk" episodes felt like deja vu all over again. But many TV shows are formulaic.
There were things in the comic that they couldn't get away with in television at the time. It's difficult to translate a comic book into live action because comic books live in their sort of reality that is very different from ours.
Hulk not speaking and becoming the Hulk in a lab mishap was fine but there were changes like Bruce Banner to David Banner and chased by a reporter not by a military general.
It is true that they were restricted by the budget, however, the bigger problem was the attitude of creator Kenneth Johnson. His attitude was that adapting a comic book is something that was beneath him, that the Hulk is inherently stupid or ridiculous, and that if it was going to be brought to television, then he had a responsibility to 'fix' the Hulk by eliminating all the comic book stuff and making it 'real'. In short, he was motivated by a contempt for the source material, that was the bigger problem.
There are moments in the series that do come close to really representing what the Hulk is really about. I am thinking in particular of the second half of the 'Prometheus' episode when Hulk was being underground in the military base and he begins smashing his way out. That's the moment that comes closest to representing what the Hulk is: a powerful, unstoppable force of nature that simply cannot be contained. That episode is pretty awesome actually.
With Ken Johnson's contempt for comic books it feels like why do it if your gonna change everything? Why not create your own character?.
It's meant that subsequent Hulk adaptations have been overly influenced or overshadowed by nostalgia of the show.
The TV show has influenced the comics and later adaptations to an extent, and the influence hasn't been negative. Even in the MCU version of the Hulk, Bruce Banner has become a kind of wandering do-gooder, wandering around the world trying to help people. That definitely comes from the TV series. I'm not opposed to that kind of interpretation of Bruce Banner's character.
What I don't like is the lack of development in the TV series. McGee does get closer and closer to finding the identity of the Hulk, but only in a superficial way, and David never seems to make any improvement in his ability to control his transformations, nor does he ever come to think that maybe turning into the Hulk can be a blessing as well as a curse, because all the people that he helped, he never would have been able to do that if not for the Hulk. In almost every episode, David is nearly killed, and it is only the Hulk that can save him. You would think that maybe after the Hulk saves his life for about the 15th time, that he would come to appreciate that the Hulk can be a great force for good, but he never does.
If there was a Hulk show now there would more developments like Gray Hulk, Professor Hulk etc. The show was done at a time they set up a dynamic that never changes, fear was once McGee knows who the Hulk is or once Banner controls his transformations the show would take a nose dive.
Like the show the movies and Ultimate Marvel have Banner become the Hulk in a lab and have his eyes turn.
The changes he made had to do with the fears of the time that comic book and sci fi were considered too silly.
shareOne of the problems of this show it was the same thing over and over, basic premise that never changes
It was a very 70's type of show
Premise is great but as any show progresses through like 3, 4 or 5 seasons maybe you have to make changes to keep it going. Not so much the premise that doesn't change but the character arc, situations not so much as it was back then, had no turning points like a character you think is a good guy turns out to be a bad guy or a bad guy becoming a good guy or have the show built like a novel with all the seasons being like different chapters.
shareYou obviously haven't seen every episode. There were situations where Banner almost felt sorry for McGee, even though Banner KNEW McGee was after the hulk. There are also situations where McGee was GRATEFUL that the hulk saved his life.
shareIf the show had continued, rumor has it that the story was going to turn to McGee's discovery that David was the creature; however, instead of turning him in, circumstances were going to be such that McGee was going to become David's ally, going on the run with him to help him find that ever-elusive cure. The series' cancellation put and end to that (and Jack Colvin's failing health probably would have as well); and of course, the change in format would probably have still been played out episodically, which would have inevitably led once again to some repetitiveness--but if Ken Johnson had had his way and TIH had stayed on the air, there would have been a probable shift in direction ahead.
50 Is The New Cutoff Age.
Allegedly, the fifth season was going to be the final season and all the story lines were going to be resolved for good, with David either being cured or learning to control the transformation, and McGee finally figuring everything out. It was apparently designed to be like The Fugitive and come to a definitive end.
Then the TV movies in the 80's came along and so the only ending we ever got was the death of Banner, which really sucked. There was supposed to be another movie where Banner came back to life, but Bill Bixby got cancer and they weren't able to do it, he did tragically shortly after, at the comparatively young age 59.
I think Bixby must have known fans were pretty disappointed in the movie, particularly the nature of the Hulk's death and everything leading up to it, after all he'd been through in the series. Bixby himself was working on (a screenplay) bringing the Hulk back despite "The Death of TIH". Unfortunately, cancer took Bixby only 3 years after that final TV movie.
I liked the story of the professor that wanted to help him "rid" him "of this thing", but the way he died was pretty poor. And unfortunately, Jack Colvin aka Jack McGee was having health issues and couldn't appear either, as you said.
I always thought a good finale would be Banner actually does cure himself, and then makes peace with McGee and gives McGee his ultimate newspaper story, that Banner was the Hulk all along. Then, McGee goes on to be an editor at The NY Times or The LA Times or some other major newspaper...or maybe Editor-in-Chief of the National Register...kind of a sequel to "Stop the Presses", and maybe even more so, "Proof Positive", but this time, McGee actually finds out the truth about his biggest story.
Prior to the advent of message boards and on demand video people were content to accept what they saw on camera without reading much into it. Now with message boards and on demand services, Hulu Netflix and the like viewers aren't as willing to accept carbon copy programs. So a show like the Hulk could catch on and viewers would watch simply enjoy the program without reading much into it. Shows like "Little House on the Prairie" and "The Incredible Hulk" got away with goofs and discrepancies all the time.
shareBasically the shows consited of:
1) Banner gets a job somewhere
2) Some criminal types are leaning on the place he's working at
3) Some goons (who work for said criminals) attack banner, thus the first (of 2) transformations occurs.
4) Banner later tries to warn his new employers (to no avail)
5) The criminals (and goons) launch a bigger attack on the establishment
6) Banner is usually tied up or kidnapped
7) Banner turns into the hulk once more, but nails all the bad guys (usually in front of witnesses)
8) With the bad guys brought to justice....Banner leaves town (hitch-hiking to that sad piano tune)
They are exceptions, but (locations aside) the show rarely deviated from this formula.
And that's why I love it
If it was made today it wouldn't be the same episode over and over, it would like season long storylines and would have more supporting characters.
shareLike most SF shows before Babylon 5 they set up those are the good guys and and bad guys and they never budge or a character has a secret life and nobody ever finds out, stays the same throughout the entire run of the show.
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