Fantastic Four 4

The Coming of... Sub-Mariner!
by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

"Nowadays, nothing is impossible!" -New York Mayor

The Fantastic Four search for Johnny. Making good on his vow last issue, the Human Torch has quit the team and has been in hiding ever since. In the FF headquarters Reed Richards berates the Thing for causing the Torch to quit after they beat the Miracle Man. The three members split in the Fantasticar to search for their teammate. Sue begins the search for her brother at a local Diner, but is quickly overcome with a great thirst and invisibly drinks a soda, scaring off a customer. Reed is as unsuccessful as his fiancée, he stalks a road and surprises a couple of motorcycling youths who haven't seen Johnny anywhere. The Thing, being more streetwise than his teammate, finds Johnny at a garage where he's working on a car with his friends. Thing is ready to confront the teen since Johnny can't use his powers around all the spilt gasoline. Stuck in a corner from a rampaging Thing, Johnny gets a reprieve when Thing's body suddenly reverts back to his normal human form of Ben Grimm. Johnny runs out of the garage and flames on to fly off, leaving Ben behind who quickly gets stuck back into the rocky, orange, Thing form.

After leaving Thing behind, Johnny finds himself in a poor district of the city called The Bowery. He hides himself among the derelicts and rents a cot in a rundown hotel. There he finds a comic book of the Sub-Mariner from the 40's. He recalls his sister talking about him, he lives underwater and has the strength of ten men. One of the bums notices Johnny and tells him there's another bum there who is as strong as that comic character. The bum tries to get the heavily bearded bum's attention, but he doesn't want to be disturbed. The bearded bum bats him and several others away. Johnny gets them all to stop so he can reveal who this bum really is. Igniting his finger, the Torch smolders his beard off to reveal Namor, the Sub-Mariner underneath.

Reed and Sue continue their search. Reed asks a helicopter pilot to no luck and Sue just misses her brother in the Bowery district. Johnny takes the confused Namor and flies him out over the ocean. Once there, he tosses Namor down into the ocean. With the ocean water filling his senses, Namor remembers who he is and sheds his old clothes down to his trunks. Namor quickly swims to his undersea kingdom of Atlantis only to find it completely in ruins. Noticing a faint glow over the area, Namor realizes it must be a result of the humans atomic testing. He returns to Johnny at the docks and vows revenge on all mankind.

As Johnny fires his flare to summon his teammates, Namor searches the ocean for his own ally. He uses a horn to awake a huge whale beast he calls Giganto. Namor guides the whale creature towards the coast of New York with his horn. The authorities quickly call for the evacuation of New York City and with no one else to be endangered the military and Fantastic Four are ready for battle. As the military fires missiles at Giganto, Reed flies up in his part of the Fantasticar to blast smoke around it's head to slow it down. Johnny flames on and attempts to confront it, but is quickly dowsed by the water from it's blow hole. After the Torch is rescued by Reed's stretchy arms, Thing comes up with a plan.

Rushing through military depots, the Thing gets them to strap a hydrogen bomb onto his back. He walks into the now beached Giganto's mouth and carefully strides deep into the cavern of it's body. As he searches for a place to set the bomb, a living creature the beast swallowed starts attacking the Thing. As he sets the bomb down to subdue the creature the bomb starts ticking down. With seconds to spare, the Thing quickly subdues the creature and runs for the exit. He makes it just in time as he leaps out of Giganto's mouth, the bomb detonates inside. Johnny and Reed rescue their teammate and Johnny seems to have some newfound respect for Thing.

Namor, having witnessed all of this, goes to summon more monsters with his horn when an invisible hand snatches it from his grasp. Sue races off with Namor quick at her heels. He grabs her up in his arms forcing her to become visible and is immediately taken aback by her beauty. Namor promises he will stop his attacks if she will join him and become his bride. The rest of the FF arrive to confront Namor before Sue can make a choice. Namor quickly snatches his horn back and angrily States he will now do both. Johnny gets his powers back and flames on. He flies up high over Namor's location in circles. Faster and faster until his heat and speed create a huge tornado. The vortex sucks up Namor, Giganto's large body and the horn, scattering them throughout the sea. The four are left wondering when they'll have to face Namor again.


Notes:

1st appearance of Namor the Sub-Mariner in the silver age, one of my particular favorites

Atlantis is established as a place that exists

Sue & Namor's infatuation with one another is established