Real name: Ben Grimm
First appearance: Fantastic Four #1 (1961)
Affiliation: Founding member of the Fantastic Four
Powers: Superhuman strength and a highly durable, rocky body.
Review coverage: Through Fantastic Four #43, including the Torch-and-Thing feature through Strange Tales #134.

The cost of becoming the Thing

Ben Grimm has reason to be angry about the flight that changes his life. In Fantastic Four #1, he raises the danger of cosmic rays before going into space. Afterwards, his transformation gives the team’s origin a personal cost that cannot be put aside when the adventure ends.

His feelings about that body do change, though. Fantastic Four #25 finds him accepting life as the Thing and preferring control over his transformations to a permanent cure. The same issue puts him against the Hulk, with Ben determined to stand in the way of the destruction. His willingness to keep fighting matters as much as the strength that makes fighting possible.

Alicia and the person beneath the rocky skin

Alicia Masters belongs in any account of Ben at this stage. Their meeting in Fantastic Four #8 gives him a connection beyond the teammates he sometimes believes only value his usefulness. The review emphasizes her immediate affection for him, alongside his hurt and the team’s attempts to help.

By Fantastic Four #37, that bond has become a reason he hesitates to leave Earth. Alicia encourages him to go. Their scene gives the adventure a personal stake before the team even reaches space.

There is room for humor and companionship too. Fantastic Four #22 draws attention to Aunt Petunia and his clobbering catchphrase, while his adventures with Johnny continue through Strange Tales #134. Ben’s personality should not disappear behind a summary of his suffering.

When acceptance is put to the test

In Fantastic Four #40, becoming human again makes the next transformation especially painful. Reed turns him back into the Thing against his wishes to face Doom. Ben wins the fight and leaves the team. Earlier acceptance has not made that choice painless.

The Wizard then exploits his vulnerable state in Fantastic Four #41, altering his mind and turning him against his friends. My review leaves room to read this as a return to an old conflict or a deeper examination of his trauma. Either way, the villains are taking advantage of an injury the previous story has made worse.

By Fantastic Four #43, Ben helps defeat the Wizard and is welcomed back despite his guilt. The planned role of best man makes the reconciliation personal. This is the point the profile has reached: a badly tested friendship, with the team choosing to keep Ben within their family.