Marvel Comics have announced the Fantastic Four’s Ben Grimm will star in a new six-issue comic starting in November. Simply titled “The Thing,” the book will be written by acclaimed novelist Walter Mosley, with art by Tom Reilly (“X-Men: Marvels Snapshots”), and see Ben embarking on a journey from the “alleys of Manhattan to the furthest reaches of the cosmos itself,” after “a chance encounter (or is it?),” that will pit him against “figures both old and new.”
Mosley, 69, is best known for creating the character of Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins, an African-American detective and World War II veteran who was played by Denzel Washington in the movie adaptation Devil in a Blue Dress. He previously wrote the introduction and afterword to the 2005 coffee table book Maximum Fantastic Four, a 224-page analysis of Jack Kirby’s art for the first issue of “Fantastic Four” by Mark Evanier.
The book marks the Thing’s first solo series since Dan Slott and co.’s 2005-06 comic, which famously saw Ben undertaking his Bar Mitzvah. The character’s first solo title ran for 36 issues from 1983 to 1986, with various other miniseries being published from 1992 to 2005. It will also mark Tom Reilly’s first monthly title at Marvel, after various one-shots and fill-in issues.
The 40-page “Thing” #1 will be released sometime in November, and retail for $4.99. Marvel have also released their November 2021 solicitations, and we’ll have more thoughts on their final announcements for the month in our Soliciting Multiversity column later this month.
