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The Hulk just discovered another superhero team can reach the Below-Place with technology, and surprisingly, they can do so with relative ease.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Immortal Hulk #49 from Marvel Comics, on sale now.
While things never may be easy for the Hulk, they’ve certainly become even more difficult in recent months thanks to the Jade Giant’s confrontations with the One-Below-All — who otherwise has terrible plans for the Hulk and his potential. Now, the Hulk has the chance to strike back, thanks to an assist from a major Marvel team.
In Immortal Hulk#49 by Al Ewing, Joe Bennett, Belardino Brabo, Ruy José, Paul Mounts and VC’s Cory Petit, it’s revealed that one of the Fantastic Four’s most recent creations is so powerful, it can even breach a path towards the otherwise nigh-unreachable Below-Place.
Heading into the final issues of the series, Immortal Hulk has revealed its endgame. Thanks to the machinations of the Leader, the One-Below-All has been able to claim Bruce Banner and his potential, giving that malevolent force the chance to escape the hellish realm it resides in and — as teased in Immortal Hulk #25 — go on to become the only living being in existence as the World-Breaker. The last chance to stop it has fallen to the remnants of the Hulk that lingered on Earth, along with reporter Jackie McGee and She-Hulk. To that end, they need to find a way to the Below-Place.
Ultimately, the trio ends up approaching the Fantastic Four for assistance. When they arrive, the Avengers are waiting for them — quickly ganging up on the Hulk and trying to attack him despite the efforts of his cousin. But the fight is interrupted by the Fantastic Four, who quickly admonishes the rest of the heroes for attacking the Hulk without provocation. Notably, it’s the Thing — one of the most beloved heroes in the entire Marvel Universe — who ushers the Hulk further into the base and away from the others. It turns out that Fantastic Four are also the perfect people to turn to in this emergency, as they have access to something that can actually reach the Below-Place: the Forever Gate.
Introduced in Fantastic Four #25 by Dan Slott and R.B. Silva, the Forever Gate was a device designed by Valeria Richards and empowered by the Zero Force contained by Mister Fantastic. The Forever Gate is located within the Baxter Building and can serve as a dimensional gateway to any point across all of space and time. Only accessible a handful of times a month, the Thing’s earlier offer to help the Hulk if the need arises extends to the rest of the family who activate the Forever Gate for him. As the Thing explains, the portal will deposit the Hulk near the Leader as close as they could manage, but the Fantastic Four could not accompany him, due to the specific and unexplainable qualities of the Gate. However, Jackie is able to make the leap with him, and does just that.
Considering the true potential of the Forever Gate, it makes sense that it could be perhaps the best tool available to the heroes for reaching through time and space to find the Below-Place. But it’s also a fearsome reminder of just how far their potential could take them across anywhere in existence. Thanks to the Forever Gate, the Hulk — and theoretically others — could make their way through to the Below-Place, perhaps one of the darkest realms in the entire Marvel multiverse. There’s also always a chance that the door could swing both ways and allow something from that realm to breach into the core universe — although the limiting power of the Gate’s energy output might prevent that.
It also means that the Fantastic Four could have the chance to venture into that Below-Place if they were so inclined — or possibly into other radical realms, such as the White Hot Room. It’s a strong reminder of just how miraculous the Fantastic Four can easily become if they utilize all their tools to the best of their ability.
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