Incredible Hulk, The (1968 series) #461

While a group of Trolls transports a weakened Maestro to a remote area of the Grand Canyon, General Thunderbolt Ross tracks down Bruce Banner at a nearby coffee shop. With a gun in hand, Ross demands that Bruce come with him. But before the confrontation can escalate, the Destroyer—Odin’s god-slaying construct—arrives alongside the Trolls, hunting for the Hulk.

As Ross and Banner step outside, the Destroyer launches a deadly attack. Bruce saves Ross by taking the brunt of the blast and transforms into the Hulk, igniting a fierce battle. The fight rages across the desert and into the canyon where the Maestro had been brought.

The clash between Hulk and the Destroyer is brutal, with no clear victor—until the Asgardian weapon unleashes a devastating final strike that leaves the Hulk bloodied and broken. In that moment, Hulk realizes the truth: the spirit animating the Destroyer is none other than the Maestro himself.

Summoning his inner strength, Hulk’s aura enters the Destroyer’s form, triggering an implosion that destroys the armor and causes a massive avalanche, burying the Trolls and the Maestro beneath tons of rock.

When Bruce is later discovered by Colonel Cary St. Lawrence and her troops, Ross orders them to lower their weapons. In a rare gesture of peace, he offers Bruce a cigar, acknowledging their long and complicated history.

Special appearances include Betty Ross, Rick Jones, and Marlo Chandler.

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