The Fantastic Four discover Bruce Banner's secret the hard way when he comes to Reed for help and proceeds to Hulk out in the lab. Can the FF find a way to save Bruce from the ruthless agents tracking him?
This episode contains examples of the following tropes:
- Beleaguered College Friend: Bruce was one of the few people on Reed's IQ level in college. When he needs help with the Hulk, he turns up at the Baxter Building.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Bruce, as usual. When the mild-mannered scientist has a superpowered alter-ego powered by rage, a smart person tries not to make him angry.
- Borrowed Catchphrase: Ben at the end. "Thing smash!"
- Likewise, Johnny declares, "Human Torch angry! ...And HUNGRY!"
- Heart Is an Awesome Power: Reed manages to sneak attack and overpower some of the invading agents by posing as a piece of the floor.
- Hulking Out: this happens once off-screen and once on.
- Hulk Speak: From the Trope Namer, of course. Also, we have an example from Johnny when he's scaring the tar out of the agents.Johnny: Torch angry and hungry!
- Hypocritical Humor: at the beginning of the episode, Johnny is trying to convince Susan to use her powers so they can see what Reed is doing in the lab.Susan: We need to respect Reed's privacy. So it'll be a quick peek, just for a second.
- I Am a Monster: Ben comments to Bruce that "us monsters have to stick together." Bruce then retorts that the Thing is a hero; it's the Hulk that is a monster.
- I Shall Taunt You: When they're surrounded by agents, Ben tries to insult Bruce to make him mad enough to Hulk out. However, when Ben tries to go through with the plan, Bruce tells him that "Ben transparently saying insults" is not going to make him angry. A more practical reminder of the stakes does make him angry and help turn him into the Hulk. The Hulk, unfortunately, remembers and initially acts on, "Rock man made fun of Hulk's ma-ma!!"
- Lap Pillow: Susan kneels by the unconscious Reed, cradling his head in her lap.
- Leave Me Alone!: Naturally, Hulk just wants the agents to stop chasing and trying to capture him. Or as he says to Agent Pratt after collaring the man:"Hulk knows you! Stupid man in black coat should leave Hulk alone!"
- Living Legend: Upon seeing the Hulk in Reed's lab, Johnny immediately knows who he is, although he says that he thought that the Hulk was just a legend like Bigfoot.
- Living Weapon: The agents chasing Bruce Banner want to use the Hulk as a weapon. Once the Four intervene, they consider doing the same thing to them. They fail because the "weapons" have no interest in being controlled.
- Mistaken for Own Murderer: Susan, Johnny, and Ben initially assume the Hulk killed Bruce. Reed renders the Hulk unconscious, undoing the transformation and revealing the Hulk's Secret Identity.
- The Nicknamer: The Hulk refers to people by nicknames, perhaps because of his lower intelligence. He refers to Ben as "big orange rock man", to Johnny as "fire man" and to Reed as "rubber man."
- Pre Showdown One Liner:
- Before slugging the Hulk, Ben quips, "Say goodnight, Jolly Green!"
- Ben to Agent Pratt. "Hi. You're in so much trouble!" Subverted in that Hulk disrupted the fight.
- Reed precedes his sneak attack on the invading agents with a longer one-liner: "You know, normally, I'm very accommodating to guests, but I have to draw the line at walking on me."
- Shout-Out: Ben refers to the Hulk as "Jolly Green", presumably referencing the vegetable brand.
- Third-Person Person: Hulk tends to refer to himself as if he were another person.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Cory takes the military barging into her apartment in stride.Cory: They live upstairs.
- Your Mom: Ben throws calls Bruce's mother ugly to try and get him angry enough to Hulk out. When he finally does transform, it turns out that using that tactic was a mistake.
- You Talk Too Much!: The Hulk grabs Johnny and says he talks too much. Johnny acknowledges that that is not the first time someone has said that to him.
- You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry!: obviously.
