I know, I know.  The 2003 Ang Lee Hulk was not what we all expected.  However, I think Ang Lee made an excellent film that is under rated by many comic fans.  Lee’s version demanded patience of its audience favoring character development instead of special effects.  Establishing character seems almost silly to fans that have followed the character in its various incarnation for years.  Lee’s retelling of the origins not only laid the groundwork for the Leterrier version, but it also provided a detailed multi dimensional accounting of Banner’s father.  The depth this part of the story gave us reasoning only an Eastern director could.  The intersection of science and fate between father and son was excellent in terms of story telling, yet seemed to let down fans that wanted “HULK SMASH” from start to finish.  To fans of the Hulk comic, the ending was upsetting to say the least.  I have even heard comparisons to Joel Schumacher’s systematic destruction of the Batman franchise.  If there was a flaw in Lee’s adaptation, it was the battle at the films climax.  Its abstraction sucked the life from what we were all expecting… the Hulk going toe to toe with super villain.  If anything Norton’s writing of the new Hulk learned from the mistakes (if you can call them that) of Lee’s version.  From the cameos of Lou Ferrigno and Bill Bixby to the overlap of Robert Downy Jr. as Tony Stark and a mention of S.H.I.E.L.D, we can definitely see a new direction for the Marvel franchise.  I thought the gritty effects of the Hulk were better than the 2003 film and this was probably the point.  As comic fans (and movie audiences in general) we don’t want to see a comic book on the big screen.  We want our entertainment to make the leap from imagination to reality.  Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk did just that.  Both of these movies are science fiction enough for us to suspend disbelief, yet realistic enough for us to realize that if either hero (or antihero) were in action, we could only run away … very quickly.  I was somewhat disappointed by the distance Marvel created between the Lee and Letterier films when the latter so obviously picked up where the first left off even down to Bruce’s location in South America.  All in all I am impressed with the new film but would remind fans not to dismiss the original so quickly.  As usual I am curious to know…what do you think?