BRONZE AGE MINUTE: Fantastic Four #238

Marvel; January 1982
Cover by John Byrne and Terry Austin

Title: “The Lady Is for Burning!”
Synopsis: After discovering a costume permanently attached to her body, Frankie Raye makes an even greater discovery – she’s another Human Torch!

Writer: John Byrne
Penciler: Byrne
Inker: Byrne

Review: With two short stories, this issue isn’t exactly the epic this reviewer had been hoping for. But John Byrne certainly picks up the pace here, as both stories shake up the Fantastic Four status quo. Though short, the lead story’s introduction of a female Human Torch feels substantial.

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Title: “The More Things Change …”
Synopsis: Mr. Fantastic is absolutely certain he’s figured out how to cure the Thing. Yeah. That’ll end well.

Writer: John Byrne
Penciler: Byrne
Inker: Austin

Review: Byrne’s a good inker for Byrne. Readers probably didn’t realize how much they missed Terry Austin – until Austin showed up.

Grade (for the whole issue): A-

Cool factor: Byrne and Austin, together again (even if only for a backup story).

Notable: Origin of Frankie Raye.

Character quotable: “So back to the Baxter Building we go, and hope that my brother-in-law isn’t too engrossed in his latest framistat to take a look at you.” – The Human Torch (the boy one).

A word from the writer/artist: “He’s going to be a lot angrier. He’s going to be a lot stronger, in the Jack (Kirby) tradition. He’s going to be a lot uglier, too.” – John Byrne, talking about his plans for the Thing, in Amazing Heroes #1, June 1981.

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