Fantastic Four #79
A Monster Forever?
Weighing a decision between being Ben Grimm or the Thing for the rest of his life, Ben decides to leave that decision to Alicia once she has a chance to be with him as ordinary Ben Grimm. Meanwhile, Reed Richards looks over Susan's medical charts with the doctors, becoming aware of the potential threat the cosmic rays in Sue's body could affect the baby; however, he chooses not to tell Sue.
Meanwhile, police officers emptying out the Mad Thinker's old hideout accidentally revive the Android Man who tracks down an energy signature that it detects. The Android Man is taken to the very place where Ben is out on a date with Alicia, drawn there by the energy given off by the Wizard's Wonder Gloves (which are in Ben's possession). In order to battle the Android Man, Ben puts on the Wonder Gloves; however, instead of acting normally and boosting his strength, the radiation emitted turns him back into the Thing.
The Thing defeats the Android Man with ease. When Johnny arrives and tells Alicia that Ben cannot change back into Ben Grimm ever again, Ben claims it is what he had planned all along, and sadly says "Why should I be a nowhere nobody like plain Ben Grimm? When I can be the Thing forever....!"
Recurring Characters
Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Girl, Human Torch, Thing), Crystal, Alicia Master, Android Man, Sergius O’Hoolihan, Doctor Molinari
Continuity Notes
Ben Grimm was restored to human form by Mister Fantastic last issue.
The mysterious "electro-flashes" in Sue's blood work were a side effect of her being exposed to cosmic rays in Fantastic Four #1. As revealed in Fantastic Four Annual #6, Fantastic Four #267 and Fantastic Four (vol. 3) #54, any time Sue has been pregnant going into labor has potentially fatal consequences for both her and her child as a result of the cosmic radiation in her system.
The Mad Thinker's laboratory was commandeered by the police in Fantastic Four #69.
The Fantastic Four's doorman's full name is identified as Sergius O'Houlahan in Thing #21.
Although apparently destroyed here, the Android Man was later repaired by Doctor Doom and used to infiltrate the Baxter Building in Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Comics Magazine #1.
