The Story
Ben Grimm debuted in Fantastic Four #1, cover-dated November 1961, from Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. A test pilot and Reed Richards' old college friend, he was flying the crew on the ill-fated spaceflight when a cosmic-ray storm hit all four of them. The others got powers they could switch off. Ben got a permanent, craggy orange hide and immense strength, and he could not turn it off. That was the point: the Thing is the founding example of a Marvel hero paying a heavy personal price for his abilities.
Under the "It's clobberin' time!" and the brick-wall build, Ben is the heart of the team, a working-class kid from the Yancy Street neighborhood who wrestles with his own monstrous reflection. He has traded blows with the strongest characters in the Marvel Universe, stood against Galactus, and served a stint as a Guardian of the Galaxy. He anchors the emotional core of the Fantastic Four in a way none of the others quite do.
The Marvel Mightys version is a chibi sculpt: blue trunks, exaggerated rocky texture, clenched fists, and the Fantastic Four belt logo, with an expression that says he is ready to swing. It is a stylized, bite-sized read on the character. Ben shares the blind box with Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, and the team's arch-rival Doctor Doom. All four founders originate in Fantastic Four #1.
The Drop
The Marvel Mightys Fantastic Four series was a single $13 blind box: one payment, one random character weighted by rarity. The Thing is a Common at 1 in 3.38 odds, tied with Mister Fantastic as the most likely pull. VeVe flags his page as a "First Appearance," confirming this is the first Ben Grimm collectible it issued. Editions started at serial #41, and low mint numbers within the run draw extra interest on the secondary market.
Edition Breakdown
| Character | Rarity | Editions | Pull Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mister Fantastic | Common | 28,999 | 1 in 3.38 |
| The Thing | Common | 28,999 | 1 in 3.38 |
| Invisible Woman | Uncommon | 19,999 | 1 in 4.90 |
| Human Torch | Rare | 14,999 | 1 in 6.54 |
| Doctor Doom | Ultra Rare | 4,999 | 1 in 19.79 |
The full blind box holds 97,995 editions across the five characters. At 28,999, The Thing matches Mister Fantastic for the largest run, which kept both easy for early collectors to reach. Around 465 of his editions have been burned over time, trimming the live count slightly below the mint figure.
Market Context
This was a Season 2 release, part of the early stretch when VeVe was laying its Marvel foundation, and the $13 blind box made the whole team approachable. The Fantastic Four are Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's 1961 creation, later immortalized on-chain as the first Fantastic Four #1 digital comic. Secondary sales carry an 8.5% market fee.
These editions launched on Ethereum and moved to VeVe's Collect blockchain in the January 2026 migration, which added self-custody for legacy pieces. With the Fantastic Four back on the big screen, the earliest official digital versions of the team read as a time capsule of VeVe's opening Marvel strategy.
Collector's Note
At 28,999 editions, secondary copies are more plentiful than the lower-count characters in the box, which usually means friendlier entry pricing, sometimes at or below the original $13. If you are building the complete Fantastic Four or just want a foundational slice of early VeVe history, Ben is one of the simplest to check off. Low serials and clean edition IDs are where a standout copy hides. Browse the VeVe secondary market, and new collectors can Grab $10 off your first purchase.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ben Grimm, the rock-skinned powerhouse of the Fantastic Four. A test pilot and Reed Richards' friend, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961) and gained super strength and a permanent stone hide from cosmic-ray exposure. His catchphrase is "It's clobberin' time!"
August 28, 2021, on VeVe, in the Marvel Mightys Fantastic Four blind box alongside Mister Fantastic, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, and Doctor Doom.
28,999 editions at the Common tier, with pull odds of 1 in 3.38, tied for the most common character in the box. A small number have since been burned.
Yes. The original blind box moved quickly, but copies are available from other collectors on the VeVe secondary market, sometimes at or below the original $13.
Yes. The Thing is one of five characters in the Marvel Mightys Fantastic Four blind box, alongside Mister Fantastic, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, and Doctor Doom.
