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David Banner gets caught up in a feud between a young woman
and a group of hijackers who stole her father's truck...
The
first of three episodes on this DVD, Never Give a Trucker
an Even Break, contains some unusually light-hearted touches
for what tends to be a rather gloomy and tragic series. The
country and western style incidental music evokes trucking
caper movies such as Smokey and the Bandit. Accordingly
the villains, while representing a physical threat to the
heroine, are also comically incompetent at times. I also had
to smile when David (Bill Bixby) admitted to himself that
he really ought to buy shirts that stretch! But, of course,
he never got around to doing that, did he?
Part
of the fun of watching this series is wondering at exactly
which point David will make his transformation into the Hulk
(Lou Ferrigno). In this instance, the last straw comes when
a payphone eats his last quarter! This is an advert for stress
management if ever there was one - though in fairness, he
is trying to make an emergency call to save a woman's life.
Each
episode is preceded by its original teaser trailer, and the
teaser in this case contains a line of dialogue that was cut
from the final programme.
The
episode itself makes a pleasant change from the norm.
Offering
himself as a guinea pig for DNA research that could cure him
of his Hulk affliction, David stumbles upon a black market
in stolen babies...
In Life and Death David has more than enough reason
to get angry. In this episode, he is given a potentially lethal
injection by a corrupt doctor.
Andrew
Robinson (better known these days as Garak, the Cardassian
tailor in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) plays the medic
of dubious morals. Seeing this actor with big '70s hair is
the main reason for watching this rather run-of-the-mill instalment.
Working
at a racetrack, David befriends Ricky, the retarded brother
of one of the racing drivers. But soon Ricky's life is in
danger...
It's
impossible to watch an episode called Ricky without
thinking of ex-EastEnders star Patsy Palmer and her
trademark exclamation. Listen out for David calling out this
name in an uncannily similar fashion!
A
recurring motif in The Incredible Hulk is that of the
young innocent who is not afraid of the monstrous Hulk (a
homage to a similar scene in Universal's original Frankenstein
movie). In this episode the innocent in question is the eponymous
developmentally challenged young man. Mickey Jones puts in
an endearing performance as Ricky, who teaches the less than
jolly green giant how to open a can of pop!
A
common factor in each episode is of course Bill Bixby, who
never fails to portray David Banner with complete and utter
conviction, even in such fantastical circumstances.
Ricky
is a decent episode, although it's a shame about the rather
obvious stock footage of demolition derbies.
Richard
McGinlay
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