Fantastic Four #189 - The Torch That Was

Probably thanks to some deadline issues, a couple of 1977 issues of FANTASTIC FOUR wound up carrying Kirby reprints, like this one from FF ANNUAL #4 (1966). This is the story that briefly returns the original Human Torch to life, thanks to the work of the Thinker, as Johnny and Wyatt briefly return from their quest for the Inhumans, thanks to Lockjaw. Love the Lockjaw.



The original Torch is a reluctant tool of the Thinker, trying to defeat the Johnny in the desert, until the rest of the FF find them and take the battle to the Thinker. Also of interest in this issue is the Thinker's other ally, the intelligent machine known as Quasimodo, which is one of those great throwaway Kirby creations who I assume returned at some point after his two brief FF ANNUAL bits, since the new (non-Kirby) cover makes a point of mentioning this was his introduction.

Joe Sinnott inks the 19-page story.

Published 1977