The Thing in the MC2

 

Marvel Studios’ has released The Fantastic Four: First Steps in cinema, and I’m inspired to keep delving into the MC2 Universe’s own founding members of the Fantastic Four …. or the Fantastic Five, as they are now known in this world. For today, let’s look at Aunt Petunia’s ever-lovin’ baby blue-eyed Ben Grimm aka The Thing in the MC2.

 

All four core members of Marvel’s First Family debuted in Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s 1961 title Fantastic Four #1, launching the very Marvel Universe itself as we know it today by depicting the fateful space launch which gave this famous four their powers.  Poor Ben got the rough end of the deal, being permanently rendered rocky in appearance.

 

Just like Johnny Storm, Benjamin Grimm made his first appearance within the MC2 in the story which launched a new universe in the pages of What If #105. While it’s only a cameo appearance, it does give us our first glimpse of the MC2’s Fantastic Five and we see that Ben’s left side is now metallic.

 

It’s not long until the Fantastic Five make their full debut in the pages of Spider-Girl #3 battling Spyral. We learn Johnny now leads this new team comprised of Reed Richards aka Big Brain, Franklin Richards aka Psi-Lord, Lyja Storm aka Ms. Fantastic and , of course Ben Grimm aka The Thing.

 

   

Here’s the MC2-specific events in The Thing’s past. While we don't know the exact point at which the history of the Main Marvel Universe Fantastic Four stops being the same as that of the MC2 Fantastic Four/Five, we do know a few things about the team’s history. While it's unclear exactly when, Ben Grimm and Sharon Ventura married and had twins named Alyce and Jacob Grimm (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #1, #3, #5).

 

During a battle with the villainous Terrax, Ben Grimm aka The Thing had the rock-like hide torn from much of the left side of his body by a miniature black hole. Reed Richards created bionic armour to cover the exposed tissue but explained it could take years to regenerate his missing hide. As a side effect of his bionics in situ, it would be impossible for Ben to revert to his human form (Fantastic Five Vol. 2 #1- #2).

*I think I should point out the slight continuity error in the flashback above: Other flashbacks depicting events occurring after the one above clearly show the team wearing F4 uniforms and operating under the name Fantastic Four. Likely, the F5 uniforms are a simple oversight or artistic error*

 

Approximately five or so years prior to the events of Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #1, the Fantastic Four prepared to battle Hyperstorm, a cosmically powered warlord from an alternate future who had built a doomsday weapon in the Negative Zone (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #4, Spider-Girl #87). Lyja was pregnant at this time and did not join the team on their mission, meanwhile Sharon and Ben argued about Ben remaining behind with their twins, though Ben insisted he had to go for everyone’s sake (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #4). Franklin engaged Hyperstorm in a 'mind-war' on every plane of existence which ultimately left Hyperstorm comatose and apparently stripped Franklin of much of his god-like power (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #4).

 Unfortunately, the doomsday device had already begun to tear a hole in the fabric of reality. When Reed Richards was forced to overload the device to stop it, Susan Richards attempted to shield him from the radiation with her force field. Caught in the blast radius, half of Reed's body was left in a melted and deformed state. With the reality rip still widening, Susan used her powers to hold the tear in place, with the strain leaving her in a coma and she was placed in suspended animation.

 

In the wake of the tragedy, The Fantastistation was built in the Negative Zone around the tear in reality. This allowed Reed to keep Sue company while she remained in suspended animation as he worked to slowly repair the hole in the fabric of reality (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #4, Spider-Girl #87). Over the next few months, while the Fantastic Four remained in seclusion, rumours and speculation spread about the fate of Susan Richards despite the team never releasing details to the public. Reed developed the Big Brain robot to allow him to remain on the team by remotely controlling it from the Negative Zone (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #1).

 

The team formally changed their charter, membership and name, finally re-branding themselves as the Fantastic Five, with John Storm aka The Human Torch leading the team of Ms. Fantastic aka his wife Lyja Storm; Ben Grimm aka The Thing; Reed Richards as Big Brain and Franklin Richards now known as Psi-Lord (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #1, Fantastic Five Vol. 2 #1).

 

It's not stated exactly when it occurred, but prior to the present day, Ben and Sharon divorced and Ben hadn’t seen the twins Alyce and Jacob for some months (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #2 - #3). It’s a difficult position in which Ben Grimm finds himself in but he takes it on and keeps going as always.

 

Until I find myself between a rock and hard place like Ben Grimm, I remain

 

frogoat