Incredible Hulk Instant Muscles

Are you a pipsqueak? Maybe full of rage because you are tired of getting pushed around. But lack the willpower to work towards a stronger you? Well then, do I have a product for you, Incredible Hulk Instant Muscles. Just put on this wonderful toy and prepare to be feared by all who behold you and hunted fearlessly by a reporter obsessed with uncovering your dark secret.

Incredible Hulk Instant Muscles first became available in the 1970s. From what I can tell by scanning my catalogs, they were not a long-lived toy. The only appeared in 3 catalogs. It is unclear to me why.

As you can see from the photo, they make for a pretty compelling toy. Especially after you spell out exactly how they work with the smaller photos. Now you probably wondering, “Is the shirt included?” I am sorry to say it was not. I found them in a late seventies JC Penney catalog and according to the description, you need to provide your own large shirt.

Me? I would wear an extra small shirt. Why would I put all this effort into wearing and pumping up my bulging Hulk muscles only to have them covered up by a bulky shirt? If you got the gamma-irradiated goods, you might as well flaunt them. Am I right?

To complete the Hulk look, you could also pick up these very convincing Hulk/Spider-Man makeup kits. Now I know what your thinking, how was THIS ever cool? Well, you got to remember that people could be more ignorant back in the day. The seventies were a very different time. It was not as frowned upon to walk around in “Hulk Face.”

Unfortnately Incredible Hulk Instant Muscles were not of the highest quality. Plus the playstyle they encouraged put a lot of stress on them. So finding sets of the muscles intact is pretty rare. Ones still in their boxes can go for well over $200.

Of course, the comic ad makes these muscles look even cooler. Here is one that was attached to an ad for Underoos. $9.99 plus S&H for instant Hulk-sized bulk? Sign me up!