THING/Michael Chiklis DISCUSSION

Hunter Rider

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Ok,For any that wern't here last time we had charatcer threads for each of the Fantastic 4 that gave a look at the Character NOT the actor playing him
The purpose is for new fans not familiar with these great characters to get to know about them in the lead up to the film
Last tiem Frankie did a great Job on Ben and here is version 2:)

http://www.marveldirectory.com/individuals/t/thing.htm

Real Name: Benjamin Jacob Grimm
Occupation: Professional adventurer; former test pilot, adventurer and wrestler
Identity: Publicly known
Legal Status: Citizen of the United States with no criminal record
Other Aliases: None
Place of Birth: New York City
Marital Status: Single
Known Realatives: Daniel (father, deceased), Elsie (mother, deceased), Daniel Jr. (brother, deceased), Jacob ("Jake," uncle), Alyce (aunt, deceased), Pentunia ("Penny," aunt, Jacob's second wife)
Group Affiliation: Fantastic Four, formerly Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation
Base of Operations: Pier Four, New York City
First Appearance: FANTASTIC FOUR #1

History: Benjamin J. Grimm was born on Yancy Street on Manhattan's Lower East Side, where he grew up in poverty. His father, an alcoholic, was unable to hold a job. Much of the family's income came from Grimm's older brother, Daniel, who obtained funds illegally as leader of the Yancy Street Gang. Grimm, who idolized his brother, became embittered against the world when Daniel was killed in a battle between rival gangs. Grimm was only 8 years old at the time; within 10 years, he had succeeded his brother as leader of the Yancy Street Gang. After his parents died, Grimm was taken in by his Uncle Jake, who had risen from poverty to become a successful physician. At first, Grimm resisted his new guardians' kindness toward him. But eventually, he came to return their love. He left his life with the Yancy Street Gang behind, entered high school, and became a football star there. While he was a senior at Stuyvesant High School, Ben received a football scholarship to Empire State University.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Grimm's freshman year roommate was the brilliant science student Reed Richards, who became his closest friend. During their first meeting Richards confided in Grimm his intention someday to build a starship for interstellar travel. Grimm jokingly promised that he would pilot the starship for Richards if he ever built it.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Upon graduating Grimm went into the U.S. Air Force and became a highly skilled test pilot and astronaut. In the meantime Richards went ahead with his project to build a starship, using both his own fortune and funding from the Federal government. On the day that Grimm left the military, Richards came to Grimm to remind him of his promise to pilot the starship.

Richards' project was based in Central City, California. When the federal government threatened to withdraw its funding from Richards' project, Richards decided to take the starship on a test flight himself as soon as possible. Grimm was opposed to the idea, warning that the starship's shielding might prove to be inadequate protection from intense radiation storms. Nevertheless, Grimm was persuaded to serve as pilot, and Richards' future wife Susan Storm and her adolescent brother Johnny insisted on accompanying Richards' as passengers. The four friends stole onto the launch facility, entered the starship, and launched it. They intended to travel through hyperspace to another solar system and back. However, unknown to Richards, a solar flare caused Earth's Van Allen radiation belts to be filled temporarily with unprecedented (as far as is known), ultra-high levels of cosmic radiation. Since the ship was designed to shield against ordinary levels of radiation, the cabin interior was subject to intense cosmic ray bombardment which irradiated the four passengers and wrought havoc on the ship's controls. Pilot Grimm was forced to abort the flight and return to Earth.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Once back on Earth, the four passengers discovered that the cosmic radiation had triggered mutagenic changes in this bodies. Grimm was transformed into an orange colored, thick-skinned, heavily muscled, and superhumanly strong "thing." Richards convinced the three others that the four of them should use their new powers for the good of humanity as members of a team ha named the Fantastic Four. Richards called himself Mister Fantastic, Susan and Johnny Storm took the names of the Invisible Girl (later Woman) and the Human Torch, and Grimm, morose over his new grotesque appearance, named himself the Thing. Under Richards' leadership the Fantastic Four has become Earth's most honored team of superhuman adventurers, and has saved the world from conquest or destruction many times.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Over the years the mutations to the Things body have continued to progress slowly. The composition of his epidermis changed from an abnormally dense, somewhat lumpy but still comparatively smooth hide to a flexible, interlocking network of rock-like lumps. His superhuman strength increased considerably over time. Early in Grimm's life as the Thing, he would sometimes revert to his original human form unexpectedly. But neither these changes nor those induced by Richards in his efforts to turn Grimm back to human form ever proved to be permanent. Eventually Grimm always reverted to his monstrous, superhumanly powerful form. Appalled by his appearance, Grimm was at first filled with anger at his situation, but he eventually became resigned to his fate, although he continued to be disturbed by his appearance and to hope for a means of regaining his human form that would last. Instrumental in helping Grimm to adjust to his life as the Thing was the blind sculptress Alicia Masters, with whom Grimm fell in love. Reed Richards eventually discovered that Grimm had reached a state in which he could transform from his Thing form to human form and back at will. However, Grimm feared that Alicia Masters would only love him as the Thing, for she had not known him before his initial transformation. Hence, Grimm suffered from a subconscious mental block that prevented him from becoming human.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The relationship between Grimm and Masters was suffering from strains when Grimm was transported to the distant "Battleworld" by the alien Beyonder for the first of the so-called "secret wars." On that planet Grimm found himself able to change to human form and back. Concealing his discovery of Grimm's mental block for fear of hurting his feelings. Richards claimed that the nature of the planet itself was somehow responsible for Grimm's ability to transform back and forth. Once the "secret war" was over, Grimm remained on the planet for months. Eventually, however, he found himself trapped once again in his monstrous form, unable to change to human form, and he returned to Earth. There Grimm learned that his teammate Johnny Storm and Alicia Masters had become lovers, and that Reed Richards had concealed the information about his mental block from him. Furious and distraught, Grimm quit the Fanatic Four. He worked for a time as a superhumanly strong wrestler for the Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation, and also participated in missions with the West Coast Avengers.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Grimm was about to accept membership in the West Coast Avengers when he began to undergo further mutation, becoming, at least in his own mind, still more grotesque. Greatly disturbed, Grimm journeyed to Monster Island, where he had first encountered his foe, the Mole Man. Now, however, the Mole Man befriended the Thing and welcomed him into the society he had organized in his underground realm, composed of physically ugly people like himself who had believed themselves to be outcasts in the surface world. Grimm agreed to help the Mole Man in his attempt to use an earth shifting machine to raise a small continent in the Pacific Ocean to serve as a homeland for the Mole Man's society. While Grimm lived in the Mole Man's realm, his most recent mutations went into remission, leaving him looking little different than before these recent mutations had begun.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The three other original members of the Fantastic Four found the Thing in the Mole Man's realm, where Reed Richards realized that by raising a continent in the Pacific, the Mole Man would trigger earthquakes that would destroy California. The Thing joined Mister Fantastic, the Invisible Woman, and the Human Torch in destroying the Mole Man's earth-shifting machine, and rejoined the Fantastic Four
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Height: 6 ft.
Weight: 500 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: (in fluman form) Brown, (as the Thing) None
Unusual features: The Thing's body is covered with an orange, flexible, rock-like hide. The Thing has no apparent neck. He has only four fingers (including the thumb) on each hand and four toes on each foot. The increase in the volume of his fingers has not decreased his manual dexterity. His skin is apparently susceptible to "drying "or what in a normal human being would be called loss of skin oil, for his skin can be "chipped" under certain circumstances. The Thing has no outer ear structure.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Strength Level: The Thing possesses superhuman strength, enabling him to lift (press) 85 tons. The Thing's strength grew considerably over the initial years of his career. At one early point in his life as the Thing, for example, he could only lift (press) 5 tons.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Known Superhuman Powers: The Thing possesses superhuman strength, endurance, and durability. The mutagenic, specific-frequency cosmic ray bombardment caused his musculature, bone structure, internal organ composition, soft tissue structure, and skin to greatly increase in toughness and density. The Thing can exert himself at high levels for about an hour before the build-up of fatigue poisons in his blood impairs his strength. His reflexes have remained at their above average human levels despite his greater mass. The Thing's lungs are of greater volume and efficiency than a normal man's, enabling him to hold his breath underwater for up to nine minutes, The Thing's five senses can withstand greater amounts of sensory stimuli than he could when he was a normal human being, with no reduced sensitivity.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The Thing's body is able to withstand extremes of temperature from -75° to 800° Fahrenheit for up to an hour before exposure or heat prostration occurs. He can withstand the explosive effects of armor-piercing bazooka shells (15 pounds of high explosives) against his skin with no injury. He is still susceptible to colds, disease, and emotional stress.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Unlike in the case of the Hulk, the Thing has suffered no loss of intelligence or change in personality in his transformation into his monstrous form.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Abilities: The Thing is a brilliant pilot of aircraft. He has had a great deal of experience at hand-to-hand combat, and was a formidable opponent in physical combat even before becoming the Thing.
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http://imageshack.us/?x=my6&myref=http://imageshack.us/index.php
Some various Thing looks over the years








thingrs7vz.gif






 
hunter rider said:
Some various Thing looks over the years






How I knew him as a kid.For the comic, this version ^







For the movie, this version. ^ No need for cg. No need to make him look like the 1st picture. Leave him the way he is. The human looking, and acting Thing.
 
Those are really awesome except for that freaky rubber one in the last pic.
 
Wilhelm-Scream said:
Those are really awesome except for that freaky rubber one in the last pic.

I guess you would perfer a cg Thing, like the Hulk ? All muscle, and no brain, or emotion ? Leave the Thing alone. He was perfect the way he was. Or better yet, take some of your own money and make your own FF movie. Then it could all look like the Incredables.
 
The Thing 2005 said:
I guess you would perfer a cg Thing, like the Hulk ? All muscle, and no brain, or emotion ? Leave the Thing alone. He was perfect the way he was.

He wasn't perfect IMO,there were several times that the suit looked rubbery or like foam
I think facialy it worked really well but for the sequel i would like to see some more realistic Rock textures on the suit,if that means using some more CGI for full body action shots that is fine
 
hunter rider said:
He wasn't perfect IMO,there were several times that the suit looked rubbery or like foam
I think facialy it worked really well but for the sequel i would like to see some more realistic Rock textures on the suit,if that means using some more CGI for full body action shots that is fine

Everyone's taking about the head part of the suit, making it with the larger brow. No way, leave it the way it was. As for the body, I felt something could have been done post production, to give it more of a rockike texture. So on that we agree, but leave the head alone.
 
i know that i'm still glad they didn't do Thing CGI... my dad was also happy to see it was Michael in the suit instead of CGI. he was impressed that Michael walked around in all the heavy make-up and it made Thing more human ..you really got to see true emotion
 
surfergirl said:
i know that i'm still glad they didn't do Thing CGI... my dad was also happy to see it was Michael in the suit instead of CGI. he was impressed that Michael walked around in all the heavy make-up and it made Thing more human ..you really got to see true emotion

That's why you leave the head alone. Remember, what makes The Thing different from The Hulk, is the human side, and with a bigger brow, that would not come thru as perfectly as it did.
 
That's actually a really good point, Thing. Though a slightly bigger brow wouldn't KILL him. Maybe an inch or so?
 
I wonder if Mike looks around on these forums and sees fans griping about how he looked in the movie.
 
Buslady said:
I wonder if Mike looks around on these forums and sees fans griping about how he looked in the movie.

i think we had heard at one point, that people from Fox were indeed coming to the board...not sure of the actors...nothing ever confirmed on that.....honestly i just don't see the actors having time to spend time reading what we type...lol
 
Buslady said:
I wonder if Mike looks around on these forums and sees fans griping about how he looked in the movie.

I doubt it, and even if he did, I believe he would know, being a hug fan of the FF himself, that it's not really griping, but the fans want to see things the way they should be, because of there love and passion for the FF. I've heard of noone critizing his performance. And anyone who does, really hasn't got a clue. His performance was perfect, as was Chris Evens. And the 2 of them together, was pure magic, that couldn't be taught, it was just there. They both did their homework, they knew their charactors, and the rest was just chemestry.
 
Drakon said:
That's actually a really good point, Thing. Though a slightly bigger brow wouldn't KILL him. Maybe an inch or so?

I agree,im not a Brow guy myself but maybe just a tad more nod to the larger brow would be ok
 
hunter rider said:
I agree,im not a Brow guy myself but maybe just a tad more nod to the larger brow would be ok

I don't think a tad more would hurt, but you don't want his head looking like a mushroom.:eek: And one thing I noticed in that video with Chilkis, he had a smile on his face, when the interviewer said I've heard you can't wait to get back in that suit. I could see in his eyes, he can't wait to start the sequel.
 
The Thing 2005 said:
I don't think a tad more would hurt, but you don't want his head looking like a mushroom.:eek:

lol,agreed,the head that was posted the other day had more brow than face,just perhpas a bit more definition of the brow,like an inch as Drak suggested
 
hunter rider said:
lol,agreed,the head that was posted the other day had more brow than face,just perhpas a bit more definition of the brow,like an inch as Drak suggested
Me thinks you're refering to this picture.
 
The Thing 2005 said:
Me thinks you're refering to this picture.

well that's also a good example but i was actually referring to that bust that was posted by Willhelm
 
JMAfan said:
i think we had heard at one point, that people from Fox were indeed coming to the board...not sure of the actors...nothing ever confirmed on that.....honestly i just don't see the actors having time to spend time reading what we type...lol

Oh you'd be surprised. I know a handful of voice talent on forums, why not an actor or two...how do we know someone here isn't one from the movie? they arent gonna advertise themselves. hehe
 
Buslady said:
Oh you'd be surprised. I know a handful of voice talent on forums, why not an actor or two...how do we know someone here isn't one from the movie? they arent gonna advertise themselves. hehe

We knew Fox people were here...maybe some of the actors...but most are filming other things at the moment....
 
The Thing 2005 said:
I don't think a tad more would hurt, but you don't want his head looking like a mushroom.

I know what you mean. I'll toss up a manip of myself later to show what I mean, complete with extra brow and a bit more jaw.
 
i think bigger head would help...it seemed really small to me in relation to the rest of his body...and smaller hands not extremely smaller hands, but alittle smaller than what they had in the first movie would help in the look and size of his arms...i liked the color...i saw no problem there....maybe a bit more of a rockier look, and i don't think they have to cgi to make that....but i do think they need to do more cgi like they did on the bridge scene to take care of some of the wrinkles...the scene where he and Reed or fighting was kind of scary....the fact that i wasn't happy w/ the changes from the script in that scene....*just my opinion* they should have kept it the same, but they wanted to throw a panel from the comics in there so i guess it was ok...but some cgi to take care of the wrinkles would have helped....
 
JMAfan said:
We knew Fox people were here...maybe some of the actors...but most are filming other things at the moment....

If I were Fox, and Marvel, you bet I'd be keeping my finger on the pulse of the fans. Lots of good ideas here, and lots of true fans of the comic, who want to see a better sequel. Why not check in and see what the fans are saying. They don't have to pay anything to come to the boards and check out what the fans want. It's just good business. The fans are the ones who are going to put down their hard earned money to see the sequel. And 1 thing I'll say, and take this to the bank. If they don't come out with a better sequel, I won't go and see it 9 times. And if you're reading this Fox, be careful how you edit the sequel. The fans won't toerate another hatchet job like you did on the 1st one. At least this fan won't. That's a promise.
 
You will notice on some days there are an enormous amount of people that are simply reading, but do not show up as members....those are days that there is a possibility of some Fox people...maybe.....and then there are sometimes when we get a nudge from some of the mods that there may be some visitors as well....
 
Hate to break it to you, hun, but we mods don't know jack**** about who's on the other end of that IP number. Not even Mirko would know, unless he was expressly told, which I highly doubt would happen.
 

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