Back at Gamma Base, tests confirm that Bruce Banner is still the Hulk. The identity of Rick Jones as the second Hulk is unknown to anyone except Bruce.
Rick goes to Bruce's old desert hideout, but when he arrives, he is ambushed by talking mutant animals. They claim to be outcasts—animals mutated by the same gamma radiation that created the Hulk and no longer welcome anywhere else.
When they discover that Rick is also a mutant, they welcome him. Rick enjoys life with his new friends until S.H.I.E.L.D. arrives to capture him. When several outcasts are wounded defending Rick, he must leave them to save their lives.
Elsewhere, a young nurse is drained of her youth and life force by an unseen person—a being who now intends to consume the life force of the Hulk.
> Incredible Hulk, The (1968 series) comic book info and issue index
