I'm not one to cry at TV shows and movies. Though I haven't kept a tally, I doubt there are even 10 productions which made me cry. Heck, I watched Bambi as a kid without shedding a tear.
I give you this personal information because I think without it, it wouldn't be clear how significant it is that I cried during this episode when David's latest shot at curing himself of the Hulk is destroyed. Just a tear or two, but yes, I really cried. It seems illogical at first; of *course* David is going to lose the cure. That's not even a spoiler. It's a fact of serialized TV, and we've already seen it happen a dozen times in this series.
But this time is different, and not just because Bixby gives an exceptional performance even by his high standards. First, all of the previous potential cures were long shots. This time David genuinely comes close to a cure. In previous episodes, even if you forgot you were watching serialized TV, you'd never think David had a chance of being free of the Hulk. Second, the manner of the cure's loss is particularly tragic. It's not destroyed by contrivance, or failure, but by a wanton act of destruction by a creature who shouldn't even exist.
That creature is Dell Frye's Hulk. Frye is a perfect opposite number for the Hulk: Whereas Banner endlessly battles the destructive monster within himself and yearns to be rid of it, Frye embraces it and seeks to be infected with it again. In many ways, this episode parallels "Dark Side", but where evil Banner was a goofy cackling lunatic, Frye is genuinely menacing, purposeful, believable, and even sympathetic. I could do a five-page write-up on this episode, but rather than bore you with more of my comments I invite you to watch it yourself. It scores top marks in both superhero drama and human interest.
I give you this personal information because I think without it, it wouldn't be clear how significant it is that I cried during this episode when David's latest shot at curing himself of the Hulk is destroyed. Just a tear or two, but yes, I really cried. It seems illogical at first; of *course* David is going to lose the cure. That's not even a spoiler. It's a fact of serialized TV, and we've already seen it happen a dozen times in this series.
But this time is different, and not just because Bixby gives an exceptional performance even by his high standards. First, all of the previous potential cures were long shots. This time David genuinely comes close to a cure. In previous episodes, even if you forgot you were watching serialized TV, you'd never think David had a chance of being free of the Hulk. Second, the manner of the cure's loss is particularly tragic. It's not destroyed by contrivance, or failure, but by a wanton act of destruction by a creature who shouldn't even exist.
That creature is Dell Frye's Hulk. Frye is a perfect opposite number for the Hulk: Whereas Banner endlessly battles the destructive monster within himself and yearns to be rid of it, Frye embraces it and seeks to be infected with it again. In many ways, this episode parallels "Dark Side", but where evil Banner was a goofy cackling lunatic, Frye is genuinely menacing, purposeful, believable, and even sympathetic. I could do a five-page write-up on this episode, but rather than bore you with more of my comments I invite you to watch it yourself. It scores top marks in both superhero drama and human interest.