We all know that Bruce Banner becomes the Hulk when he feels angry emotions, but did you realize that his wife Betty undergoes the exact opposite transformation? The curse that comes with The Incredible Hulk’s abilities can be broken in the instance of his wife Betty Ross.
Since Bruce Banner’s first appearance as the Hulk, Betty Ross has played a significant role in his path. Being Bruce’s love, Betty has unavoidably become entangled in the chaos and devastation of his life. Betty, on the other hand, has been most impacted by Bruce, which has caused her to change into the Red She-Hulk and the Harpy or Red Harpy, two gamma monsters.
The Red She-Hulk originally appeared in The Incredible Hulk, issue #1, and was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee (1962). In 2019’s Immortal Hulk issue number 14, Betty was killed by Al Ewing and Kyle Hotz and later reemerged from the Below-Place as the Red Harpy. Betty is referred to as the Red Harpy, a variant of the Harpy.
The Red Harpy is less talkative than her previous incarnation, and her skin is red rather than green, which are the key differences between the Red Harpy and her original form. Betty has battled alongside the Hulk in battles with General Fortean and Roxxon, and she will soon team up with him as Red Harpy against the Avengers.
The Becoming of Red She-Hulk
Betty was changed into the Red She-Hulk before becoming the Red Harpy. This new Hulk originally appeared in 2009’s Hulk issue no. #15, written by Jeph Loeb and Ian Churchill, and then in the following issue. When Betty’s father, General Ross, transformed into the Red Hulk, he clashed with X-Force. During the ensuing conflict, Red She-Hulk appeared, ostensibly to aid the Red Hulk. Of course, the Red She-Hulk abandoned Ross as soon as she seemed to be on his side, prompting more concerns about her identity. The Red She-Hulk wasn’t identified as Betty Ross until the conclusion of Greg Pak and Paul Pelletier’s Incredible Hulk issue no. #609 in 2010.
Betty Ross, the only daughter of Air Force General Thaddeus Ross and his missis Karen Lee, was born in California. Betty’s mother died while she was just a teenager when Ross shunned her, stating that a military facility was not the place for a youthful lady. Betty was transferred to a boarding school. She came back to Thaddeus’ house after graduating from school, but she was still dominated by Thaddeus, as she had been for most of her entire life. Thaddeus was now in command of Desert Base’s prime secret, the Gamma Bomb Project in New Mexico. Betty greeted him when Dr. Robert Bruce Banner, the bomb’s inventor, reached the base.
Bruce and Betty developed a profound attraction. After being exposed to high levels of gamma radiation, Bruce began to change into the monstrous Hulk on a regular basis. On the other hand, Thaddeus resented the quiet, slim nuclear scientist, who he considered a physical and emotional wimp. When Thaddeus discovered Betty was falling for Bruce, his disdain for him grew even stronger.
When Ross saw his daughter was falling for Bruce Banner, he sought to persuade her not to pursue her affections, citing Banner’s evident secrets as a reason. Betty was later abducted by Tyrannus, an abiding Grecian tyrant who ruled over Subterranea’s underground dominion.
Tyrannus instructed Ross not to obstruct his upcoming raid of the surface world to ensure his daughter’s safety. Ross conceded, but the Hulk was able to save Betty in the end. Despite the fact that Bruce managed to protect his true identity hidden initially, his deeds because the Hulk encouraged Thaddeus and his safety head Major Glenn Talbot in order to accuse Bruce of being a renegade. Glenn had fallen head over heels for Betty. On the other hand, Betty stayed committed to Bruce throughout his ordeal, although it was revealed that he was indeed the Hulk.
Bruce’s health improved to the point that he would now manage his transformations into the Hulk while maintaining his usual demeanor and IQ. Thaddeus reluctantly agreed to Banner’s wedding to his child, which was conducted at the house where she was born. However, just as Betty and Bruce were about to be declared a couple, the Hulk’s arch-enemy, the Leader, striving for revenge, blasted radiation at Bruce, reverting him to his original state as the vicious Hulk. He ripped the home up, putting an end to any chances of the wedding taking place.
Betty kept loving Bruce, but as she discovered that he was also in love with Jarella, a princess from K’ai’s subatomic planet, Betty ultimately let herself fall for Glenn after believing she had lost Bruce to another woman. They married shortly after.
While Glenn and Betty were on their honeymoon, enjoying their time together, Thaddeus resumed his search for the Hulk, solely to be apprehended and imprisoned by the Soviet scientist, who was known as the Gremlin. Glenn took part in an operation to save Thaddeus, which was victorious, but Glenn was caught. Ross, along with the other Americans on the assignment, mistook Talbot’s death for his death. Betty had a mental breakdown after learning about her husband’s alleged death.
Betty’s illness was found by M.O.D.O.K., the leader of the provocative group A.I.M. at the time, and he chose to benefit from it. He pumped a colossal quantity of gamma radiation into her in an attempt to produce a creature strong enough to destroy the Hulk, transforming her into the grotesque and mad Harpy. The awful monster emerged from a unique shell and demanded to learn where the Hulk was so she could murder him.
Harpy flew out to find the Hulk when M.O.D.O.K advised her where to look. The Harpy quickly tracked down the Hulk, snaring him and fighting him. The two battled without reluctance, but the Harpy revealed herself to be Betty just before the Hulk could deliver the slaying blow. The Hulk, startled and baffled by her statement, is discharged senseless by the Harpy.
Glenn was eventually liberated, but Betty discovered her love and affections still persist for Bruce, and Betty and Glenn’s marriage terminated in divorce shortly after. Betty started living on her own for a while. She eventually came back to Bruce. On the other hand, Glenn blamed Bruce for his divorce and died attempting to kill the Hulk.
While in the shape of the Hulk, Bruce once again attained a condition in which he could restrain his changes while maintaining his usual intelligence and personality. Betty was furious this time as she needed Bruce to eliminate the Hulk, not control him. Betty accused Thaddeus of treason after learning that he collaborated with M.O.D.O.K in order to assassinate the Hulk. Knowing that Betty was correct, Thaddeus almost attempted to commit suicide and then vanished.
Thaddeus died in front of his daughter when he tried to stop an unknown mutant from killing both Bruce and Betty while looking for a vital host to attach parasitically.
Betty was devastated to learn that Bruce had previously purposefully activated his transformation and was now prepared to turn into the Hulk to cope with highly hazardous threats. She departed with Bruce and went back to Ramón, only to alter her mind and forsake both of them. After finding that she was expecting Bruce’s child, the Leader kidnapped her and set her free. She was finally united with Bruce, but the Hulk died in a massive blast at Gammatown not long after.
Betty fled to New York City, believing the Hulk was dead and began preparing to become a nun.
Betty learned that her lengthy association with the Hulk had resulted in her death from gamma radiation poisoning when Bruce came back from Counter Earth and resumed his existence as the one and only Hulk. The Hulk’s arch-enemy, the Abomination, discovered this and, in retaliation for the Hulk’s savage defeat, used transmission of his own gamma-irradiated blood to infuse venom in Betty, who perished.
However, she resurfaced with a reinvigorated visage and began providing intelligence to the Hulk under Mr. Blue’s moniker. Betty didn’t appear to want to be in a relationship, but she felt obligated to continue assisting Bruce.
When the Red Hulk organized a band of mercenaries to track down Domino, a reticent female version of the Hulk first emerged.
Domino was discovered by Red Hulk’s mercenary outfit Code Red in a pub in the middle of Hell’s Kitchen. On the other hand, Domino had been expecting them and had trapped Code Red along with X-Force. Each squad member was paired up and started their own combat, with Wolverine taking on Red Hulk. Meanwhile, Wolverine blinded Red Hulk by slashing his talons across his eyes till the time his healing factor mended his vision.
Red She-Hulk emerged, blindsiding Wolverine as he was ready to administer the death blow on Red Hulk. In order to challenge Wolverine, Betty had to shield Red Hulk for a long time.
Thundra was obliged to exemplify that a female doppelganger who looked precisely like Red Hulk had come to his help. She triumphantly claimed that she had robbed Elektra’s sai along with Domino’s automatic rifle and clothing after murdering them while Red She-Hulk and Wolverine battled. Wolverine became enraged and stabbed his claws into a control wire, electrocuting them both. Wolverine proceeded to look for Domino after chasing Red She-Hulk out, but she rose back on her feet and rushed at Wolverine one more time. When Wolverine jabbed Red She-Hulk with his talons, she spewed acid saliva in his face to distract him. Punisher kept Wolverine busy prolonged enough for the Red She-Hulk to take Red-Hulk out of the battle.
Red Hulk pursued Betty throughout the basement, but she dodged his questions. To get away, she pulled him down into the sewers. After he narrated the tale of a blind guy along with an elephant, there was a brief pause before she yelled that the final person who conveyed the story was as good as dead in her eyes.
Code Red had gathered in the sewers, waiting for Samson’s orders. On the other hand, Betty double-crossed Red Hulk by plunging Elektra’s robbed sai onto his neck, just as Red Hulk was beginning to trust her. She concluded their fight by booting Red Hulk off the Empire State Building. The Intelligencia catching Hank Pym spotted Betty the next. When Skaar stabbed her with a dagger, she returned to her mortal shape, revealing herself as Betty.
Betty was concerned about her father after Bruce took the dominance in the struggle against General Ross. Her increased anger after transforming into the Red She-Hulk led to a confrontation with the actual She-Hulk. She put up a valiant fight as the Red She-Hulk, but she was defeated in the end. When General Ross was defeated as the Red Hulk and imprisoned, Betty persuaded Bruce to offer her father the chance to finally redeem himself. Betty explained how she came back to life and requested that Bruce allow her to die, but when Doc Samson arrived, Betty’s rage at his betrayal changed her back into Red She-Hulk, curing her injuries; this time, Betty helped Bruce reconnect with his son Skaar.
Betty had trouble managing being resurrected, indoctrinated, and transformed into the Red She-Hulk all at one go after the Leader’s attempted takeover. While speaking to Bruce, she claimed that since she had been apprised of legally dead and all others knew Bruce wedded Caiera, even when he was the Green Scar Hulk, both of them ought to go their own ways. Although Bruce tried to reason with Betty, it only aided in stressing her out, and she reverted to the Red She-Hulk once more.
Nonetheless, by Greg Pak and Tom Raney’s Incredible Hulks, issue no. #612 in 2010, Bruce and Betty had established an uneasy alliance, with Betty joining the “Incredible Hulks.” Given how frequently Hulk and Red She-Hulk clashed, calling this union uncomfortable would be an understatement. Even yet, during “Chaos War” and “Fear Itself,” Betty aided Marvel’s other heroes, saving the Earth on many occasions.
Betty was de-powered by Doc Green, a brilliant version of the Hulk on the search for gamma mutates, in 2014’s Hulk, issue no. #8, written by Gerry Duggan and Mark Bagley. Betty’s crimson skin is preserved in her Red Harpy form, even if she is no longer the Red She-Hulk.
Facts About Red She-Hulk Every Marvel Should Know
Betty’s transformation into the Red She-Hulk was not the first time she’d done it. Betty is kidnapped by MODOK in Incredible Hulk #168, who experiments on her and fills her with a significant surge of gamma radiation. This changes her into the Harpy, who engages in combat with the Hulk and, owing to an energy rifle she possesses, manages to knock him out at first.
It came to the point where there were simply too many Hulk-like figures running around after a while. When the Extremis virus was employed to restore Hulk’s consciousness, converting him into “Doc Green,” he went to work eliminating gamma radiation from everyone he knew. Instead of battling Betty, he smuggled the remedy into her food, restoring her to normalcy.
The Red She-Hulk did not undertake much superhero work after that. She was engrossed in the Hulk’s narrative, and before anyone realized what was going on, she was converted back into a normal person. But, eventually, she forms an impromptu version of The Defenders alongside Dr. Strange, Iron Fist, Namor, and Silver Surfer. She gets to put her power and ability to operate as part of a team to the test as the muscle, rather than just another Hulk among a group of Hulks.
Betty’s first encounter with X-Force was with Domino and Elektra, who were devising a strategy to end the fighting between X-Force and Ross’ crew. Betty intended to eliminate them both for good, but Domino was hit by an assault that burnt her entire suit. Enraged at being left naked, Betty stripped Domino of her clothes before Elektra stabbed her, allowing the two of them to go while Betty recovered. This explains why she wore Elektra’s sai and such a torn attire on her initial appearance.
Betty quickly revealed her real colors after first collaborating with Red Hulk. She turned on her father in the middle of the second confrontation between him and X-Force, frustrated with how he had acted in her life for so long. Red Hulk had the upper hand for a brief moment, but she persuaded him that she was on his side and then threw him over the Empire State Building while his guard was down.
The Red She-Hulk’s debut appearance had her fighting the X-Men’s black ops group, X-Force. Domino was on the search for Red Hulk after witnessing him kill someone, and he ran directly into her gang, which included X-Force. The fight between Red Hulk and his allies and Domino and X-Force didn’t go well for him, and it was Red She-Hulk who helped him get away.
What Makes Red She-Hulk So Deadly
Betty possesses the speed, strength, and persistence of an ordinary human being when she exercises regularly. Betty possessed incredible resilience as the Harpy, sufficient to take on the Hulk, yet she could not become much more powerful as she became more enraged. As the Harpy, she had no idea what her maximum strength was. She also had the ability to fly at tremendous speeds and utilize her large bird-like wings attached to her back to launch aerial strikes from above. Betty could absorb massive assaults from both the Bi-Beast and the Hulk while she was the Harpy, and she had the energy and perseverance to back it up with her superhuman durability.
Harpy’s muscular structure was advanced, resulting in less tiredness and poison during physiological exercise than an ordinary human’s muscular stature. This provided her with energy reserves that allowed her to stay alert, move around, and battle or fly while still holding her own. Because of her incredible muscular stability, combined with the evolution of her wing and leg muscles connected with her wing span, Harpy was competent in flying, running, and moving at speeds that were beyond the inherent physical boundaries of the best mortal athlete or jet-plane, which gave her the advantage during her fight with Hulk.
Harpy’s balance, agility, and body coordination were boosted to the point that even the world’s best non-powered people could not equal them. Betty’s inherent agility grew tenfold as Harpy, which came in handy when she used her aerial assaults from overhead on her opponents.
Harpy also had the ability to shoot tremendous trauma blasts from her hands, which were incredibly strong that they injured and overthrew the Hulk during a fight. Her hands and feet also possessed razor-sharp talons and claws that could easily slash through Hulk’s skin. Betty had a remarkable healing capacity after resuming her transformation into Harpy, permitting her to endure a head trauma that would typically be deadly. Betty could locate Bruce solely based on his scent.
Betty grew up around firearms as the daughter as well as the ex-wife of warriors. She retained her competence despite the perils of being the wife of Hulk. Betty is an expert at armed and unarmed warfare, espionage, and marksmanship, particularly with tiny weapons and sharp weaponry, like Mr. Blue. When she faced the Hulk and wrestled with the Bi-Beast, she had razor-sharp claws that ripped and tore through things like metal and rock and hauled large objects like the incredible Hulk himself when they fought; they were accommodating as weapons when battling in a close battle against her foes.
The Chaotic and the Charming Betty
Betty, unlike Bruce Banner, has no desire to revert to human form. This might be because she maintains control of her actions in the Red Hulk state. In contrast, Banner has spent years trying to rid himself of the “monster,” even when he manages to live in peace with the Hulk. The two are different creatures with different personalities, comparable to Moon Knight but not entirely.
Overall, both the Harpy and the Red She-Hulk were enraged and wrathful of those who had harmed Betty Ross. Furthermore, both animals had grudges toward Bruce Banner for their gamma mutation and the turmoil that had engulfed Betty’s existence. It’s also worth noting that MODOK played a minor influence in the development of the Harpy and the Red She-Hulk.
Betty Ross has had the opportunity to walk in Bruce Banner’s shoes as both Red She-Hulk and Harpy. Betty appears to be reliving her former incarnations as both Harpy and Red She-Hulk as the Red Harpy. Like the Red She-Hulk, Betty is acquiring the Harpy’s shape while simultaneously collaborating with the Hulk. In addition, Betty’s relationship with Bruce is still shaky, as it was before.