Hulk and Thing: Hard Knocks (2004 series) #2

Hulk and Thing trade a couple of punches with Thing insisting he once beat Hulk in a fight though Hulk denies it. They return to the café after Hulk repairs the damaged air conditioner. Thing is about to resume his account but becomes distracted, joking about selling the movie rights to the story, with novelization, comic book adaption, and merchandise to follow….

Meanwhile, we see the US Army getting into position with their heavy artillery….

Thing resumes his story of the Fantastic Four trapped by Doctor Doom. Ben, Mr. Fantastic, and Human Torch were locked in a dungeon and the air was being pumped out. Invisible Woman escaped from her own cell and freed her teammates who go after Doom. But Ben becomes trapped in a reverie, recalling how he contributed nothing to their victory and Doom branded him a monster. Hulk starts to leave so Thing mentions that he has the central role in a second story….

Ben now relates the time General Thunderbolt Ross hired the Fantastic Four to capture the Hulk—but Ben was again distracted by the memory of Doom’s accusation when he calls Hulk a monster. Here, Hulk mocks Ben for his identity crisis over being a monster and what he assumes is his attempt to get him to sympathize—but Hulk doesn’t care. More bickering leads to Thing resuming the story of how he beat the Hulk which, again, Hulk denies happened. General Ross’ meeting with the FF was interrupted by Bruce Banner, his assistant Karl Kort (the real villain), and his helper Rick Jones. Banner said that the evidence shows that the destruction on the base was caused by an internal menace, which he had dubbed “the Wrecker” and not the Hulk. The FF then hunted for the Hulk in the tunnels beneath the base where they did encounter him; Hulk easily beat three of them and then took on the Thing. Then Thing shows Hulk a photograph…of the Thing standing over a defeated Hulk….