The Thing: January 2009 Archives

Outside of the Ultimates, I don’t really care about the Ultimate Marvel versions of the classic characters.  However, I found this sequence from Ultimate Fantastic Four #8 (by Warren Ellis and Stuart Immonen), very amusing.

After 30 years of reading the FF, never stopped to think about how the Thing went to the bathroom.  Warren Ellis, always thinking out of the box! 

Another question: how personal does the Thing get with Alicia Masters?  I went to a con in the 1980s and saw John Byrne at a panel, during the time he was on Fantastic Four.  He said something to the effect of: “By the way, you don’t think Ben and Alicia really—oomph—“ (making a motion of Ben slamming himself on top of Alicia) “—do it, do you?  Because if they did, she’d be flatter than a pancake.”  We all laughed like mad.  Byrne was extremely funny during the appearance, almost like a stand-up comedian.

Aren’t some questions left better unanswered?  Nuff said.

In 1984, we were allowed to see just how much Barry Smith adores the Thing in Marvel Fanfare 15:

Smith wrote and drew a 20 page story, in which the Thing wakes up on April Fools Day, encountering one prank after another, like this one:

Fake Whiskers, planted by Ben’s teammate, Johnny Storm.  I love that line: “Maybe I’m reverteratin’!”  The story ends with the threat of an exploding cigar, which Al Milgrom kind of telegraphs in the upper left corner box.

Pick up Marvel Fanfare back issues at a con if you get a chance, they have some real gems!  Nuff said.

Think you are having a bad day?  If you’re Benjamin J. Grimm and you’ve just saved the world (in a team-up with the Hulk), what thanks do you get?  None!  Not even a ride out of the desert when Marvel Feature #12 begins…

Since it is a Marvel comic, you just know the Thing won’t be left alone for long.  Sure enough, Iron Man shows up and they fight a couple of Thanos’ goons, the Blood Brothers.  At the end of the tale…

…The Thing is stuck in the desert again!  What a blamed revoltin’ development!  Nuff said.

Desperate for a post today, feeling a bit hemmed in all sides, kind of like when Ben Grimm goes to Yancy Street and meets Stan Lee in this special from a while back.  Lee Weeks did an excellent job of drawing the Thing’s massive size against a normal human.  Nuff said.