Thing (Vol. 2) #8
Last Hand
It's Saturday night and the Thing is throwing one of his regular poker games, but tonight is a special occasion and everyone is in attendance. During a high stakes game, the Constrictor loses a large sum of money from Hercules. Just then the Great Lakes X-Men crash the party. When Marvel Girl telepathically forces them to change their name, they change their name to the Great Lakes Defenders, but Doctor Strange uses his magic to force them to change their names. Luke Cage is about to throw them out when the Thing recognizes Squirrel Girl and tells her and her friends to come in. He recounts how he and Squirrel Girl recently teamed up and stopped the Bi-Beast. He recounts how the battle took place in Central Park, and Squirrel Girl exploited Bi-Beast's double senses by having her squirrels bring a bunch of trash to offend the Bi-Beast's sense of smell long enough for the Thing to knock him out.
At Ben's table, the Thing is winning the current round, soon it's down to him and the Impossible Man. The Thing gets the winning hand and the Impossible Man admits that he was trying to bluff, based on a tactic the Thing used a week earlier. The Impossible Man recounts how at that time he was stuck with a case of the hiccups, which cause his powers to go out of control. The Thing was sent to a Tibetan village to stop him. The Impossible Man makes a great deal of damage. It's only when the Thing pretends to be dead and uses the opportunity to scare the Impossible Man bad enough to stop the hiccups. When the Thing learned that the village was centuries old and uniquely constructed, the Thing comes up with an idea of how to help repair the village. He puts in a call to Alicia Master's boyfriend Arlo North and tells him about the opportunity. Arlo, finding this a unique opportunity and knowing that Alicia is still sorting out her feelings for Ben, decides to take off and rebuild this story. Alicia interrupts with recollection who congratulates him for his big day.
This cause Ben to think back to a few days ago when Hiram Scheckerberg finally told Ben that he has worked off his debt. When Ben admits he's going to miss his times down there, Hiram suggests that Ben get back in touch with his Jewish roots. Soon Ben is taken to the local rabbi who agrees to educate him on his faith and performing his Bar Mitzvah. When Ben points out that that is typically done when someone is 13, they explain that it can also be done to someone who lives to the age of 83. When Ben points out that he is not that old, they say that it's actually been 13 years since Ben first became the Thing and that they consider that rebirth. With that out the way, Ben begins the proper training. Soon he was ready for his Bar Mitzvah and invites all of his friends.
With this recollection over, the Thing thinks he's won his hand against the Great Lakes member Flatman, but loses. Proclaiming that they are the champions, the GLX decides to rename themselves the Great Lakes Champions. With the last hand over, Alicia tells Ben that it's time for everyone to leave, hinting that they are about to get romantic. The Thing quickly tells people it's time to go, abruptly ending the night for some alone time with the love of his life.
Recurring Characters
Thing, Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch), Impossible Man, Alicia Masters, Arlo North, Hiram Scheckerberg, Jacob Grimm, Petunia Grimm, New Avengers (Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man, “Spider-Woman”, Wolverine), X-Men (Cyclops, Beast, Phoenix, Colossus), Great Lakes Champions (Mister Immortal, Flatman, Squirrel Girl, Big Bertha, Doorman, Tippy-Toe), Inhumans (Black Bolt, Medusa, Lockjaw), Constrictor, Hercules, Wonder Man, “Yellowjacket”, Wasp, She-Hulk, Falcon, Sub-Mariner, Goliath, Tigra, Doctor Strange, Tigra, Nighthawk, Iron Fist, Ms. Marvel, Stingray, Willie Lumpkin, Dum Dum Dugan, Justice, Aquarian
Continuity Notes
The Yellowjacket and Spider-Woman seen here are not Henry Pym and Jessica Drew are actually Skrull spies as revealed in Secret Invasion #1.
Doctor Strange mentions Earth-A, he is referring to Earth-721 which the Fantastic Four first visited in Fantastic Four #118.
The Sub-Mariner inquires about Spider-Man's new costume. This is in reference to the Iron Spider Armor, which was designed in Amazing Spider-Man #529. The costume has the ability to change the appearance.
The Great Lakes X-Men were originally called the Great Lakes Avengers, formed by Hawkeye in West Coast Avengers Vol 2 #46. They had changed their names to Great Lakes X-Men after a cease and desist letter from the Maria Stark Foundation in G.L.A. #4.
Hiram states that it has been about 13 years since Ben became the Thing. However, per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616 it has actually been roughly 11 years.
