Good afternoon, folks,
Hope all's well with everyone. I'm taking some time on this rainy Saturday to write about the seventeenth issue of the Thing. The cover depicts Ben Grimm shielding his eyes from the light emitted by a mace waved at him by a mystery opponent. The seventh chapter of Rocky Grimm, Space Ranger, was called "Blind Ambition!"
It began with Grimm alone in a tunnel somewhere on Battleworld. He was standing in the midst of a cavern lined with skeletal bones spread across the ground, with Tarianna's sword lying at his feet. Ben was despondent over Tarianna's disappearance and blamed himself for her predicament.
Grimm also blamed himself for anything wrong that happened to his girlfriend back on Earth, Alicia Masters. He was shaken from his despair by an eerie laugh coming from one of the caverns. The sound started to reverberate around him until a ghostly vision appeared before Grimm.
It belonged to the one responsible for Tarianna's kidnapping. He assured the Earthling that she was safe and merely asked him to find the girl. Ben was tempted to use the device that Reed Richards (Mr. Fantastic) had left him to return to Earth, but he wasn't ready to do that just yet.
Ben lashed out at the apparition as it was starting to fade, only hurting his hands in the process. Grimm kept slugging away, transforming into the Thing as he did so. Ben had finally smashed through the wall after the change was complete. The mystery foe then asked Grimm if he was done. Ben turned to face his opponent's lackey, the Reckoner. The tall purple-skinned humanoid carried a mace in one hand and a set of scales in the other.
Grimm was itching for a fight, but didn't expect to be blinded during the battle. The loss of sight only made Ben more determined to triumph. He charged through rock before emerging on the surface. He changed back to his human form and found a stick that would guide him along the way from there.
Still sightless, Ben traversed a variety of environmental conditions before running across his foe. Not knowing the stranger was his enemy, Grimm asked for directions. He was then led toward a path that led to more dangers, including a rematch with the Reckoner.
The villain's underling loosed his dogs on Grimm. Ben turned back into the Thing as he renewed his assault. Hearing Tarianna's voice somewhere in the background gave Ben enough willpower to press on. However, after defeating the Reckoner once more, his cloaked rival returned Grimm's sight in time for him to see Tarianna lying unconscious at his feet. Apparently, she was the one Ben had been fighting.
This was an unexpected twist for those who have been following along. It deepens the mystery of who the unknown opponent was, but still lets us believe that Ben's psyche is being toyed with. The Reckoner came across to me initially as a combination of Thor's evil half-brother Loki and Kraven the Hunter, one of Spider-Man's longtime rivals. As far as I know, the Thing had yet to meet either of those villains by the time this story was published.
That's all I have for you today. I'll start Sunday with a summary of the eighteenth issue of the Thing. The halfway point for this series takes on a lighter side, as Ben and Tarianna work to save an abandoned child from more of the strange creatures that only Battleworld has brought forth. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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