Hide in Plain Sight

by Bruce Jones

For years Crusher Creel has terrorized the world with his ability to absorb the properties of anything he touches. Now, after being locked away in a secret underground prison, the Absorbing Man has... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0785111514
• ISBN13: 9780785111511
• Release Date: January 2003
• Publisher: Marvel Comics Group
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 6.6" x 10.3"

Customer Reviews

A Far Deadlier Absorbing Man Rears His Head

The Absorbing Man - Crusher Creel - is back, and more dangerous than ever. Giving Bruce Banner exactly what he Doesn't need as he continues life as a fugitive in the mega-arc started in Incredible Hulk # 34 (see the "Return Of The Monster" Trade Paperback), Creel - complete with new powers he's acquired during his incarceration in a state-of-the-art secret facility - crosses Banner's path in this collection that reprints Incredible Hulk (2nd series) #s 55-59. As the volume begins, Creel is in his prison; while outside, something kills a woman who works at the facility. Inside, other workers begin acting extremely strangely. Everything's tied into the evolution of the Absorbing Man and his expanding abilities. In "Hide In Plain Sight", you realize that all along, the true extent of how dangerous Creel really is has been underestimated, partially because Creel has never been the brightest character and has lacked the imagination to really use his power. Now he's smarter, and has more power than ever to use. Here, the Absorbing Man is one of the greatest threats the Hulk has ever faced. The entrance of the Hulk into this chain of events at first seemed coincidental, but it's entirely possible Creel planned it. The only real flaw is that in this volume, for the first time in Bruce Jones's run on the title, a slight sense of repetition in the way the arcs unfold is beginning to creep in. This sense proves to be short-lived (the very next arc, "Split Decisions", shakes things up again, and it really isn't enough to deduct a star. Although I recommend starting with "Return Of The Monster" (Hulk 34-39) and working through in order, this volume differs from the rest of Bruce Jones's run in that it can be read without the rest of the extended arc first, if one wishes. It's still tied in to the whole Ricky Myers saga, but not as closely as the other volumes. This arc came out the summer the Hulk movie was released and I think Marvel wanted to give people a clean 'jumping-on' point, (# 55 was one of the 25-cent issues that gets brought out periodically to introduce new people to a title) but they accomplished it without abandoning the longer story they were in the middle of; they just let the focus shine off to the side for a couple days in the big green guy's life. Another very exciting, very rewarding chapter in a truly awesome run for the Hulk.

Another solid chapter in Bruce Jones' Hulk saga

Collecting the five part storyarc, Hide in Plain Sight finds Carl Creel AKA The Absorbing Man with a new ability that allows him to jump in and out of peoples minds. This little technique proves handy considering he's trapped in an underground prison, and who just so happens to be in the middle of this? That's right, good 'ol Bruce Banner. Hide in Plain Sight ie yet another more than solid chapter scripted by Bruce Jones, undoubtadly the best writer of the Hulk since Peter David. The story is a bit of a sidebar to Jones' continuing conspiracy storyarc, but this is a welcome distraction. Leo Fernandez's art seems a bit cartoony for me, he doesn't give Hulk the gritty look that is done so superbly by Mike Deodato, but the art isn't bad by any means. All in all, Hide in Plain Sight is yet another more than solid chapter in Bruce Jones' excellent Hulk saga.