Comics' Greatest Battles, Entry 1 - Fantastic Four, Vol 1, 25-26

If you've been a comics fan for a number of years, you have long since identified the epic battles within those four-color pages that had you all atwitter the first time you encountered them, and to which you are drawn again and again to re-experience. I know I have. And I'll be drawing attention to them here at Four Color Commentary on a regular basis. So, without further ado....,
























I first read the story contained in these two issues as an 11 or 12 year old, reprinted in 1974, in Marvel Treasury Special #1, Giant Superhero Holiday Grab Bag. Gotta tell ya, experiencing that amazing tale by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, in the oversized format no less, nearly spoiled me for "regular-sized" comics.

What appealed to me about that story is probably the same thing that appealed to many other readers; the fact that Ben Grimm/The Thing, though out-sized and out-matched by the Hulk, simply would not quit. The heart and determination of the character, so skillfully written and rendered by the afore-mentioned pros, was potentially life-altering to a young, impressionable mind and heart.

That helps make this one of Comics' Greatest Battles.

Mark