Ben Grimm, better known as the Thing, is the original quintessential tough-guy of the Marvel Universe. But, because of his transformation, he's also the tragic member of the Fantastic Four. Ben was an ace test-pilot until exposure to intense cosmic radiation mutated him into a rock-skinned monster with immense superhuman strength. Ben's exterior is much harder than stone which gives him a rather gruff disposition; but deep down, he has a heart of gold.
@ComicMan24: he says that he still has the same powers as he did before
@Shrekpop: Valeria and the Future Foundation actually said that they have a way for Ben to turn his powers on and off...they said that he's always had the ability but Reed was always focused on only turning them off completely....the thing is that they told him this a few issues ago but haven't brought it up since
in a way we could be looking at the ultimate wonderman. Think about it, in ultimate human they used both pete wisdom and the leader as the same guy, and Jimmy Hudson is like his father and colossus.
Looks kinda cool but I think its been too long to just change mainstream Thing. A while back in 616 when they moved into the new Baxter Building could turn his powers on and off. Then they did a whole story where his skin was creating evil clones of himself and the only fix was that he not go back and forth between human and rocky forms. I hate that every few years they seem to do stuff like this completely ignoring the old stuff.
I think Ben should become Ultimate Wonder Man, with his new abilities it doesn't make sense for him to go back to "The Thing" as his character has obviously gone beyond that now not to mention it would be an interesting change compared to what we're use to in the mainstream universe.
Plus I wouldn't mind seeing Ben join the Ultimates, along with Sue, seeing as there isn't a Fantastic Four in this universe anymore and it would be interesting seeing them both on the team.
Why make the Thing so similar to Wonder Man? Does Marvel really think they need, and the readers want, another Wonder Man?
The Thing is one of the coolest and most unique super-heroes ever. He pioneered the heroic-monster character first and still does it best. He's Marvel's original tough-guy with speech patterns and a sense of humor that totally fit him and to which no other character can compare. I hope this is temporary.
The Thing without rocky-orange skin just isn't the Thing.
@Emperor Gonzo Noir: More unnecessary tampering with a character just for the sake of making that character different and edgier than the 616 version, which is fine to a point but sometimes makes no sense (Ben) and other times hurts the character fundamentally (Reed).
They should do something like this for 616 version Thing because it make sense for the rocky part to be a sort of cocoon. It makes for good development for the thing's power.
I'm just now reading up on this and I like it. The cocoon idea is/was brilliant.
I thought it was too similar to Wonder Man as well, however there are a lot of key differences. I'm assuming if Ben just had the same powers he's still just durable. strong, and maaaybe has a super leap or two in him when the need arises to travel Hulk style. Wonderman still has size altering abilities, ionic blasts, etc. Ben's power here is cosmic, not ionic. And if in the 616 Wonderman stopped going purple energy form again like he does often then they could pull this off with 616 Thing. And right now he's in space, what better chance to give him another dose of cosmic rays somewhere. There's got to be more than one cosmic storm in history!
This edit will also create new pages on Comic Vine for:
Beware, you are proposing to add brand new pages to the wiki along
with your edits. Make sure this is what you intended. This will likely
increase the time it takes for your changes to go live.
Comment and Save
Until you earn 1000 points all your submissions need to be vetted by other
Comic Vine users. This process takes no more than a few hours and we'll
send you an email once approved.
Log in to comment