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The Hulk is one of the most thematically rich characters in Marvel Comics’ superhero roster. He’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, or Dr. Frankenstein and his creature; a tormented man and a tragic monster all-in-one. The Hulk doesn’t fit neatly into the superhero box where most of his contemporaries lie, but his origin does share a key detail with theirs.
In Marvel’s 1960s comic books, radioactivity was Stan Lee‘s go-to superpower-bestowing plot device. The Fantastic Four were transformed by cosmic radiation, Peter Parker got spider powers when a radioactive arachnid bit him, early “X-Men” issues suggested that mutants emerged due to radiation,…