Hulk Vs. doubles the animated mayhem

It’s a clash of the titans. Superhero publishers Marvel and DC Comics have had a pitched rivalry for decades, and in the battle for the big screen, Marvel has enjoyed more victories at getting its costumed characters like Spider-man into movie theaters (the huge success of DC’s The Dark Knight notwithstanding). DC takes the consolation prize for crafting much better shows for television and straight-to-DVD, from the longstanding live-action hit “Smallville” to last year’s intriguing cartoon feature Justice League: New Frontier.

Apart from such tolerable, kid-oriented series as “X-Men: Evolution” and “The Spectacular Spider-man,” Marvel’s animated output isn’t nearly as interesting. DVDs like The Invincible Iron Man and the two Ultimate Avengers films feel more like marketing trial balloons for future film products. Marvels newest animated movie, Hulk Vs. (released today) proves to be a notch above its predecessors, but its eyes still seem more focused on the cinema than its immediate audience.

Hulk Vs. contains two films of about 40 minutes apiece. “Hulk Vs. Wolverine” seems like a way to prime the pump for this May’s theatrical X-Men Origins: Wolverine prequel starring Hugh Jackman. The other, “Hulk vs. Thor,” provides an animated dry run for the characters tapped for 2010’s announced Thor film, reportedly to be directed by Kenneth Branagh. Essentially, the Hulk is a sort of guest star in his own films.

In a sense, the films succeed by aiming low. Hulk Vs. harks back to the pleasures of special double-length, giant-size issues of comic books that would contain two stores of monster mayhem for the price of one. Although the Hulk’s Jekyll-and-Hyde relationship to his alter ego Bruce Banner provides plenty of metaphors for the tension between emotion and intellect, Hulk vs. puts all the emphasis on the monstrous green protagonist’s ability to smash stuff. So which film is better? Who wins in “Hulk vs. Wolverine” vs. “Hulk vs. Thor?”