Ben Grimm (Earth-616)

## Ben Grimm/The Thing

* The Thing
* Human Form (Adult)
* Human Form (Child)
* Human Form (Teen)

### Notable Features

His entire body is enveloped in an orange rock-like substance and is extremely large.

## Real World Information

### Creators

Stan Lee, Jack Kirby

**Benjamin "Ben" Grimm** was an American pilot, astronaut, and adventurer known as **The Thing**. Ben was part of the unauthorized test flight of the Marvel-1 along with his best friend Reed Richards, his fiance Sue Storm, and her little brother Johnny Storm. The ship was bombarded with cosmic rays that mutated the four and gave them powers, in Ben's case it gave him a large rocky body. The four then created the Fantastic Four.

## Biography

### Early Life

**Ben Grimm** was born in New York City.

Ben became a pilot and astronaut as well as being the best friend of Reed Richards.

### Flight of the Marvel-1 and Formation of the Fantastic Four

Reed had created a spaceship but did not have the ordinance to fly it. Wanting to travel to Mars, Reed attempted to convince Ben to pilot the ship but he refused due to the unknown danger of the cosmic rays. Reed's fiancé, Sue Storm, managed to get Ben to agree by calling him a coward. Reed, Ben, Susan, and Johnny (Sue's younger brother) then snuck into the spaceport, near Central City and took Reed's ship the Marvel-1. The flight was initially well, but the ship flew into a cosmic storm and the resulting rays began having affects on the crew. The Marvel-1 crashed in Ithaca, New York and the group discovered they had gained powers. Ben's body morphed into an orange golem-like monster. Unlike the other members of the Four, Ben was unable to switch back to his human form. Ben joined the rest of the crew in using his powers for good. Ben called himself **The Thing** because of his dislike of his form.

### The Four's First Mission

Later, Ben was attempting to buy clothes to fit his new physique but the store did not carry any clothes in his size. The store clerk saw a flare outside, which Ben recognized as the signal for the Fantastic Four to meet up. Ben ripped out of his clothes and burst through the door due to his massive size. Ben was then confronted by the police who began shooting at him. Ben escaped by busting through a manhole cover and traversing through the sewers. Ben then smashed through the ground and made his way to Reed's apartment whilst evading the police. Reed then explained that he called the Four together to investigate the source of cave-ins underneath atomic plants across the world. Reed triangulated the source to Monster Isle, which Ben claimed did not exist but the Four were forced to travel there anyway.

As the Four were hiking up the mountain, they were attacked by a three-headed monster. Sue distracted the monster by turning invisible and Reed turned his arms into a lasso to fling it into the ocean. Reed and Johnny then fell into a cavern when the ground underneath them. Sue and Ben began looking for them, but Sue was being stalked by another monster. Ben began fighting the monster and tossed it into the ocean. Sue and Ben began searching for Reed and Johnny. Sue and Ben found Reed and Johnny being confronted by the Mole Man. Ben and Johnny battled Giganto, a huge monster the Mole Man summoned, while Sue and Reed caught the Mole Man. The Four made their escape through their private jet, but Reed let the Mole Man go and he blew up Monster Isle.

### First Encounter with the Skrulls

One day the Fantastic Four was resting at a hunting lodge in the wilderness when they hear news of an imposter Fantastic Four causing mayhem. Ben began destroying the lodge in his rage and Reed and Johnny were forced to stop him. The army then arrived to arrest the Four and Reed surrendered, unwilling to fight a massive group over something they had never done.

The Fantastic Four were then transported to a federal prison where they had specialized cells made for all of them. Ben was put in a cell made of reinforced steel, but hit the wall enough to eventually bust out. Ben then met with the rest of the Four and commandeered a helicopter and escaped the prison.

The Four began hiding out in an apartment and Reed came up with a plan to trick the imposters by having one of the members to impersonate their imposter. Johnny volunteered for the role and while Ben objected, Reed supported Johnny and came up with a plan for Johnny to sabotage a rocket so the imposter Fantastic Four believe he is one of them.

Johnny did as he was told and was taken to the Imposter Fantastic Four's hideout where he learned the imposters were in fact a shapeshifting, alien race known as the Skrulls. Johnny fired a flare to alert the Fantastic Four to his location and the Four arrived to capture the Skrulls. Reed threatened the Skrulls with their own gun to tell them what their mission was, but the Skrulls refused. Ben became enraged and grabbed a desk and was about to beat them to death but was stopped by Reed. Reed then threatened to let Ben loose if the Skrulls didn't tell him what their mission was. The Skrulls relented and revealed that the four Skrulls were sent to Earth to get the Fantastic Four to be eliminated so a Skrull armada could invade and conquer Earth.

Reed then had a plan for the Four to impersonate their impersonators and convince the Skrull fleet to leave orbit and never return. The Four take the Skrulls space pod (which was designed to look like a normal water tower) and flew to the mother ship. Reed told the commander that an invasion of Earth would be impossible because of the immense danger. Reed then gave the commander pictures of monsters that appeared in the comic book Strange Tales and Journey into Mystery. The commander was convinced that an invasion was too dangerous and told the Four to revert to their original forms so they could leave. Reed then told the commander that he and his group planned to stay behind to erase the evidence of their existence, which touched the commander so much he gave them a medal of honor.

The Four returned to Earth and were once again hit by cosmic rays. Having landed back on Earth the Four were surrounded by the police and saw that the rays had turned Ben back into his human form, albeit only temporarily. Reed then convinced the police to come with the Four to see the Skrulls before they arrest them. The police relented and upon arrival were attacked by the Skrulls who morphed into monsters. The Four subdued the Skrulls and showed them to the Police who absolved them of their crimes. Reed then pondered what to do with the captured Skrulls which was a matter the police left in the hands of the Four. Reed decided to hypnotize the Skrulls into taking the forms of cows and dumping them on a farm in King's Crossing.

### The Miracle Man

One night the Fantastic Four was at a magical show and witnessed the a magician known as the Miracle Man. The Miracle Man recognized the Four and call them out to the audience. The Miracle Man then mocked the power of the Fantastic Four and displayed his magical prowess and challenged them to a display of power. Ben accepted and they had a contest of strength through seeing who could destroy a log faster and the Miracle Man bested Ben. Ben then attacked the Miracle Man but couldn't harm him and Reed was forced to hold Ben back.

The four then used their new Fantasticar to go home, and Reed expressed his thankfulness that the Miracle Man wasn't a criminal as he was unsure if the Four would be able to stand up to him. Having arrived home at the Baxter Building, Johnny turns on the TV and sees that the premier of *The Monster From Mars* is being televised. Sue then walked in and displayed new uniforms she designed and Reed tried his on. The footage of the premier then showed a glimpse of the Miracle Man in the crowd who used his magic to bring the giant statue of the titular monster to life and it goes on a rampage. The Four then took the Fantasticar which split into four separate vehicles and began scouring the city for the Miracle Man and the monster. Ben and Sue saw Johnny fighting the monster and moved to support him Sue and Ben arrived to support him. From below the Miracle Man, disguised as a soldier, blasts Johnny with foam which causes him to plummet to the ground. Ben attempted to attack to the Miracle Man but himself was defeated when the Miracle Man used his magic to open up the ground beneath Ben. Sue then radioed in and said that she would sneak on top of the atomic tank which the Miracle Man was stealing and signal the location the Miracle Man hid in.

Reed met with Ben and Johnny at the Baxter Building. Ben and Johnny then got in a small fight with each other, which caused Johnny to storm out and Reed to admonish Ben for not being able to control his temper. Johnny went to a diner to hang out with his friends, but saw Sue's signal and rushed out to her location. Johnny arrived and told Reed and Ben not use their helicopter as the Miracle Man had tampered with it. The three then grabbed an antique car and used it to chase the tank. The Miracle Man then shot out one of the tires, but Reed formed a new wheel out of his body. Johnny then flew in front of the tank and fires flare which blinded the Miracle Man which allowed for his capture. Ben attempted to punch the Miracle Man but Reed stopped him and forced the Miracle Man to let Sue out of his thrall. Reed then explained that he had determined that the Miracle Man was not a magician but rather a skilled hypnotist. Reed further explained that because Johnny had blinded the Miracle Man, he was no longer a threat. Ben insulted Johnny and didn't like the insinuation that Johnny had saved the day, but Johnny quit the team because he was tired of being put down. Reed and Sue tried to dissuade him, but were unable to.

### Meeting Namor

Some time later at the Baxter Building, the remaining members of the Fantastic Four were thinking about Johnny's absence. Reed attempted to assuage Sue's fears of Johnny being on his own, while condemning Ben for being the reason that Johnny left in the first place. The trio take the Fantasticar and split up to scour the city to find Johnny. Ben investigated a garage that Johnny frequented and spotted him working on cars with his friends. Ben then burst through the wall and, knowing that Johnny couldn't use his powers because of the gasoline, decided he would teach Johnny a lesson for leaving the team. Ben came close to hurting Johnny, but he suddenly began turning into his human form which caused him to pause. Johnny took the chance to escape, knowing that Ben's sudden transformation would only be temporary. Just as soon as Ben regained his human form, he reverted to the form of the Thing.

Some time later, Ben and the rest of the Four see a signal that Johnny had fired into the sky. The Four arrive at Johnny's location and he explained that he had found Namor, who was long thought dead or missing, in the Bowery and helped him regain his memory. With his memory returned, Namor planned to destroy Earth in retribution for the crimes committed against Atlantis by humanity. Namor summoned a giant whale-like monster known as Giganto to attack New York City, The Four worked with the military in order to fight off the colossal creature. Ben then had a plan of strapping a nuclear bomb to his back and entering Giganto's mouth and detonating it inside him. Ben entered the mouth of Giganto and began venturing into the creature's body. Ben was then accosted by a sea monster that Giganto had swallowed but managed to defeat it, Ben then set the timer for the nuke and began rushing back to the mouth of the huge creature. Ben made it back to the mouth and the bomb went off, and Ben was blasted out the mouth. Ben was then recovered by Reed and Johnny and Ben woke up from his daze.

Namor attempted to summon more monsters, but Sue grabbed the Horn of Proteus. Namor then tackled Sue and wrestled it away from her, causing Sue to become visible again and Namor was enchanted by her beauty. Namor then told Sue that if she agreed to marry him then he would spare humanity. Reed and the rest of the Four confronted Namor who angrily stated that because of their intervention he will force Sue to be his bride and would exterminate humanity regardless. Sue attempted to convince Namor to spare humanity as she would marry him willingly, but Namor was insulted by the insinuation that Sue would be sacrificing herself by marrying him. The rest of the Four attempted to attack Namor, but he fought them off. Johnny then flew into the air and managed to create a tornado which sucked up Namor and the corpse of Giganto and flung them far into the ocean. In addition, Namor lost the Horn of Proteus to the depths of the sea. While the day was saved, the Four knew that they had not seen the last of Namor but resolved to be there to prevent his wrath.

### The Fantastic Four vs Dr. Doom

One day, as the Four were relaxing in the Baxter Building when Johnny and Ben got in a fight when Johnny compared Ben to a monster in a comic book (the Hulk). Reed subdued Ben while Sue subdued Johnny. As Reed was lecturing the two for their constant fighting, the lights suddenly went out and a net was draped over the Baxter Building. The Four were then confronted by Dr. Doom, and Reed explained that he knew Doom from his college years. Doom was a scientist and sorcerer who was creating a machine that would allow him to commune with the dead in Hell, however the machine malfunctioned and exploded in his face which scarred him horribly. Doom was expelled from the University and he traveled to Tibet in order to learn more about the Mystic Arts.

Doom took them as prisoners that would follow his commands if they wanted to live. Doom also demanded that Sue be delivered to him as a hostage so he could ensure the others follow his directions. Sue had no choice but to acquise to the demand, and while Reed wasn't happy with the deal he realized that it was the only option they had and that Doom may do something drastic if Sue didn't do as she was told.

The rest of the Four was then ordered to board Doom's helicopter and they did so. The Helicopter then flew to Doom's castle where Doom explained his plan for the Four. Doom wanted Reed, Ben, and Johnny to use the time machine he invented to go back into the past and steal Blackbeard's treasure for him and in exchange they will all be freed. Reed agreed to the terms and Doom activated his time machine sending Reed, Ben, and Johnny into the era of the Golden Age of Piracy in the West Indies. The trio stole some clothes to appear inconspicious. Hiding at a tavern, Reed attempted to formulate a plan to find Blackbeard and steal his treasure when the trio were knocked unconcious by drugged drinks.

The trio awoke on a pirate ship with some of the crew having drugged their drinks to forcebly press them into their crew. Ben rampaged through the ship defeating any pirates that he came across, with Reed and Johnny doing much the same with their powers. The Pirates on the ship formally ceded control to the trio, when they were attacked by another pirate ship. Reed took command and told Johnny and Ben to rally the troops for battle. Johnny attacked the other pirate ship, Reed formed a gangplank for the pirates to board the attacking ship, and Ben led the pirates into battle. With the battle won, the pirates began singing the praises of Ben who they began calling Blackbeard after the fake beard he was wearing. Reed and Johnny stole the treasure from the rival ship and figured out that Ben was potentially Blackbeard (or at least was believed to be him at one point at time) and that the treasure they were to steal was the one they were in the process of stealing. Reed divided the treasure between the men and decided to trick Doom by delivering the treasure chest to him, using his exact words that they were to recover the chest.

Ben refused to return to the present as he believed he had no future in the modern day, but since he would be Blackbeard he would have a notable legacy and live a good life. Ben had Reed and Johnny captured and put in a boat that would be lost at sea, so that the pair had no choice but to return to the present without him. Before, Ben had the chance a hurricane came and demolished the ship. The trio washed up on shore and Ben decided to forgoe his plan and return to the present with Reed and Johnny (who had recovered the treasure chest once again).

Doom used his machine to bring the trio back to his castle in the present. The Trio presented the treasure chest to Doom who explained that the gems in the chest were enchanted by Merlin so that their owner would have invincibility. When Doom discovered he had been decieved, Ben rushed and attacked Doom, however they discovered that Doom was just a robot duplicate known as a Doombot. The real Doom appeared on a screen and revealed he anticpated the betrayal and had brought them back into a room that could have all the oxygen cut off.

Sue managed to save the trio before they died, The Four then broke out of their confinement and used their powers to escape and force Doom to fight them on their terms. Johnny attempted to burn down the castle to force Doom out, however Doom used a jetpack to escape Johnny who exauhsted his flames. The Four then pondered that they now had two dangerous enemies, Namor and Dr. Doom, free to inflict their malice on the world.

### Captives of the Deadly Duo

Reed and Ben were in the Baxter Building, when Johnny returned and reported he was unable to ascertain the whereabouts of Dr. Doom. The Four began reading the mail they had including that of an injured child who Reed then visited and explained his powers and equipment to. Johnny read a letter addressed for Ben from the Yancy Street Gang which challenged him to a fight. Ben responded by crushing some steel and asked Johnny and Sue to send it to the Yancy Street Gang's address as a message.

Johnny was looking through some books when he saw that Sue had hidden a photo of Namor. Johnny confronted Sue about this, and the two began fighting which alerted Reed and Ben. Johnny burned the picture and told the others about Sue's attraction to Namor, which caused the others to demand an explanation. Namor then entered the building causing Ben to charge him, however Reed held him back as he wanted to know why Namor was there. Johnny also attempted to fight Namor but Sue protected Namor. Johnny continued his assault, but run out of energy before he could do any meaningful attacks. Namor told the Four that he wanted to form an alliance with the Four but only Sue trusted him. Reed and Johnny searched the Baxter Building to see if Namor left any traps and found none, however Reed still did not trust Namor.

The Baxter Building then rose into the air, the Four blamed Namor who revealed that while he planted the device it was triggered by Dr. Doom. Namor told the Four about the device that Doom created and that it was operated from Doom's special plane and that he appeared to have betrayed him. The Four and Namor prepared to wage an assault on Doom's plane but their orbit plane was damaged. The Four and Namor then decided to use their powers to reach the plane, however Johnny was unable to use his powers and nearly fell to his death, but Reed saved him. Reed attempted to stretch to the plane but Doom stopped him with his jet boosters. Reed had to rest and recover, while Ben attempted to fight Namor. While the two were fighting, Doom announced that he was going to launch them into the sun.

Namor then asked if there was a pool of water, which he then used to amplify his powers and then to launch himself to the plane, however he was stuck to the plane because of magentism. Namor then broke his way into the plane, but was shocked with electrity. Namor reversed the electricity which caused Doom to abandon his plane and he then grabbed a meteor which carried him off into space.

The Baxter Building landed safely back in New York. The Four then attempt to destroy the device, however it flys off into the ocean because of Namor.

### Kurrgo & Planet Xanth

The Four were due for an appearance in Washington D.C. at a diner in their honor, although Reed was the only one who was willing to go. Johnny was afraid of having to make a speech and activating his powers out of anxiety (although he was likely lying about that particular worry), Ben was worried about what people would think of his appearance and what would happen if his temper were to flare up, and Sue was worried about becoming so anxious that she would accidently become invisible. Reed dismissed all of their concerns as fanciful and forced them to get ready anyway. Although they were briefly waylaid by a prank that Ben played on Johnny.

The Four then flew to Washington with the Fantasti-Car, although they saw a strange flying object in the sky on the way there. At the Capitol building, the Four were accepting an award when the entire crowd became increasingly agressive against the Four. With everyone in DC fighting against them, the Four attempted to evade them before escaping the city with the Fantasti-Car. The Four arrived at the Baxter Building but were followed by a space ship. From the space ship, a robot appeared and offered them refuge on it's home planet of Xanth to which the Four agreed.

The Four arrived on Xanth and were met by the leader of the planet's leader Kurrgo. Kurrgo explained that Xanth would be destroyed by a meteor and that he brought them there to find a solution. Both Ben and Johnny attempted to fight Kurrgo's robot in order to force it to take them back to Earth, however Sue stopped them.

The Four worked together to create a solution, which was a reducing gas. The gas would allow the inhabitants of Xanth to shrink and all board a space ship to find a new planet with another enlarging gas to grow them back to normal. With their end of the bargain complete, the Four were allowed to take another space ship and return to Earth. On the way to the ship, they had to evade falling rocks but made it back to the ship and returned to Earth.

## Personality

Ben had a gruff personality but underneath this he had a kind heart as judged by the fact that he though about using his powers for good before Reed brought it up. Ben hated his powers since he could not turn them off.

## Appearance

### Human Form

As a human, Ben was a large but very handsome man. He was 6'0" and brown hair.

### The Thing

As the Thing, Ben was an orange rock monster much like a golem. He weighed 500 lbs but otherwise remained the same except for the fact he had four fingers.

### Outfits

**Green Pinstripe Suit**

Before the flight of the Marvel-1, Ben wore a green pinstripe suit with matching pants. Underneath the jacket was a white shirt and black tie.

**Blue Spacesuit**

During the flight of the Marvel-1 Ben wore a blue spacesuit with white gloves and presumably a white helmet, though it is difficult to tell. His suit was the lightest blue, appearing to be a sky blue compared to the darker blue the other members of the Four had.

**Trench coat #1**

Ben wore a yellow trench coat with white gloves, a green hat, and sunglasses. He also wore pants and shoes but their color was unable to be seen clearly. He wore the trench coat while clothes shopping, in Reed's apartment, and during the exploration of Monster Isle.

**Brown Underwear**

Ben wore brown underwear underneath his trench coat. He stripped down to this when trying to get to Reed's apartment and while fighting the monsters on the island.

**Hunting Lodge Outfit**

While staying out at the Hunting Lodge Ben wore a blue jacket with a large collar, violet pants with a matching violet hat, brown shoes, and large teashade sunglasses. During his outburst at the Lodge, he lost his hat and at some point before being put in his cell he lost his jacket and potential shirt. He apparently switched back to this outfit when attacking the Skrulls at the apartment.

**Trench Coat #2**

Ben wore a gray trenchcoat with a white shirt, green pants with matching green hat, brown shoes, and large teashade sunglasses.

**Green Coat**

While watching the Miracle Man's show, Ben wore a green coat, a gray scarf, brown gloves, gray/black pants and shoes, and large teashade sunglasses.

**Fantastic Four Uniform MK. I**

Sue made a uniform for the team. The suit was a blue jumpsuit with dark blue/black boots, gloves, belt, and collar. The chest of the suit had a white emblem with a blue 4 in it. Ben's version of the uniform also included a mask/helmet. While Ben initially wore the full uniform, when the first time he sprung into action he immediatly threw the helmet aside and ripped off his shirt. He miraciously had the shirt again while in the Baxter Building, and suddenly loses it when he fights the Miracle Man again. Ben later wore a variant of the uniform that was simply shorts and boots.

## Attributes

**Rock Form**: Because of the bombardment of cosmic rays, Ben's body morphed into a golem like form. This form is super durable and strong due to things like his skin, bone, tissues, organs, and muscles becoming super dense.

* **Superhuman Strength**: Ben has gained immense strength through his mutation and has been shown to rip through concrete, smash cars easily, and can lift and throw giant monsters.
* **Superhuman Durability**: Ben has become far more durable owing to his rocky hide. Ben can take speeding cars head-on with no damage whatsoever.
* **Superhuman Stamina**: Ben has much higher stamina than the average person. In his own words, Ben "never tires" and was able to ram a steel wall for several minutes without tire
* **Immortality**: Ben is unable to age in his rock form. This level of immortality is exclusive to the effects of aging, and as such Ben could still be killed by outside forces or disease.

### Skills

**Experienced Pilot**: Ben is a skilled pilot.

**Experienced Astronaut**: Ben is a skilled astronaut and was recruited by Reed for his space mission.

**Skilled Combatant**: Ben is skilled at fighting. While Ben typically doesn't use a particular fighting style he is knowledgable in boxing, wrestling, and a few martial arts.

### Abilities

**Indomitable Will**: Ben has an extreme willpower that manifested in ways such as refusing to quit a fight even if he was hopelessly outmatched. Even if his body were to break, his spirit would never waver.

## Paraphernalia

### Equipment

**Fantastic Four Uniforms**

* **MK I**: Sue created the suit to act as a uniform for the team. The suit was comprised of unstable molecules which caused the suit to be attuned to the wearer's powers, was insulated, The suit also acted as a moblie, wearable computer. Ben's uniform also consisted of a helmet which would have offered facial protection, however he didn't wear it.

### Transport

**Marvel-1**: Reed created the Marvel-1 to achieve space travel. It was destroyed when it crashed back on Earth.

**Fantastic Four's Private Jet**: The Fantastic Four apparently had a private jet with a four on it.

**Fantasti-Car MK I**: The Fantasti-Car was a flying car the Four used. The car could seperate into four different sections that could be independently piloted by each member.

**Fantasti-Copter**: The Fantasti-Copter was a helicopter the Fantastic Four used.

**Pogo Plane MK I**: The Fantastic Four had a special plane that could be used for long-range transport.

**Intercontinental Passenger Missile**: The Fantastic Four had a modified missile that the Four used for fast transportation or for space travel.

## Relationships

### Fantastic Four

**Reed Richards**

Reed and Ben were best friends since college. While the two were great friends, the two were not always on the best terms. Notably Ben was angry that Sue was engaged to Reed and Ben blamed Reed for his transformation into the Thing. Despite this the two still worked together.

**Sue Storm**

Ben was in love with Sue and was jealous of her love toward Reed. This did not seem to impact their teamwork too much.

**Johnny Storm**

Ben seemed not to care for Johnny's more kiddy side but the two worked together regardless.

### Enemies

**Mole Man**

Ben fought against the Mole Man with the rest of the Fantastic Four.

## Miscellaneous Information

### Trivia & Notes

* The powers of Fantastic Four's powers are all based on the four classical elements. Ben's are based on Earth.

### Discrepancies, Retcons, and Mistakes

* The origin of the Fantastic Four is retconned several times.
	+ The original origin was that the Four were attempting to beat the Soviets in the Space Race.
	+ The second origin was that the Four were attempting to get to Mars.
* While the Fantastic Four uniforms allow the Four to use their powers unimpeeded (like not affecting their clothing), even though that was already the case.

### Crimes

* The flight of the Marvel-1 was unauthorized so I'm counting it as trespassing. (It's probably also breaking some other laws, but I am not familiar enough with California legal code.)
* Destruction of Property in Fantastic Four Vol 1 1
* Escaping a federal prison in Fantastic Four Vol 1 2
* Attempted Aggravated Assault in Fantastic Four Vol 1 3

### Appearances

* Fantastic Four Vol 1 #1 (First Appearance)
* Fantastic Four Vol 1 2
* Fantastic Four Vol 1 3
* Fantastic Four Vol 1 4
* Fantastic Four Vol 1 5