Ben Grimm, always the best of the FF, had his ongoing in all but name for 100 issues with Marvel Two-in-One, but Marvel eventually canceled that and gave him a book his with name in big letters on the cover. The Thing ran for 36 issues in the mid-80s, so not nearly the lifespan of his team-up book, but better than any of his teammates have ever managed as solo stars.
John Byrne and Ron Wilson were the initial writer/artist team, although Mike Carlin ended up writing roughly half the issues, mostly in the back half. The first 10 issues revolve around various one or two-part adventures. Ben and Lockjaw trying to protect Crystal's daughter Luna, from her maniac of a dad. Ben trying to talk sense into some angry teens from Yancy Street. I don't know if the backstory Ben provides here, about his brother dying in a gang fight and Ben being a ne'er-do-well for years after was something Byrne created here, or if that was already established.
Then Secret Wars happened, and Ben found out that on Battleworld, he could shift between the Thing and Ben Grimm at will. When Reed and Johnny return home (with their new teammate She-Hulk), Ben stays behind. The next year of the book is Ben wandering a Battleworld that is both increasingly bizarre and troublingly familiar. What appears to be Dr. Doom shows up at one point, Ben spends an issue being harassed by some punk kids in some cross between Yancy Street and the cantina from Star Wars. Despite his stated wishes, Ben keeps finding himself in situations where he has to change back into the Thing.
Eventually, everything falls to pieces, including the planet, as the Thing returns to Earth. Only to find Alicia and Johnny are living together, and Reed Richards had certain knowledge of Ben's subconscious condition that sure woulda been helpful for Ben to know sooner. Which kicks off the final year of the book, where Carlin writes most of it, as Ben leaves the FF and New York entirely, and just wanders. It's a bit like the first year, except instead of people coming to the Thing with problems, he stumbles into them as he goes.
It's most notable for being the time period where he joins the Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation, something a number of wrestling-obsessed comic writers have returned to over the years. Carlin adds the teenage version of Vance Astro, who in one timeline becomes the 30th Century Guardians of the Galaxy's Major Victory, but here will become the New Warrior Marvel Boy. It's also when Sharon Ventura meets Ben. She'd eventually gain super-strength from the Power Broker and join the women's division of the UCWF as Ms. Marvel (Danvers I think being out in space as Binary at this time), and eventually joining the FF with Ben during the Englehart run.
Ron Wilson is the penciler until the final three issues, at which point Paul Neary takes over. Most of the first year's adventures on Earth are inked by Hilary Barta, while Joe Sinnott takes that responsibility for most of the Battleworld issues. Sinnott's shadows are heavier, but he seems to soften and round the Thing out more. The Thing is shorter, broader, smoother. Wilson and Barta's version is rougher, rocky plates not uniform in height, the eyes ringed by darkness, the brow ridge more prominent.
Could be that on Battleworld, with Ben reluctant to become the Thing, he's trying to retain some of the fleshy softness of Ben Grimm even when he transforms. During the Barta issues, Ben's clearly still struggling to accept himself as the Thing, and eventually pushes Alicia away. He's not at home in his skin, angry and frustrated and rough to the touch. That might not hold up, but it does get harder for Ben to make the switch the longer he stays on Battleworld. He's not finding any sort of balance or peace between the parts of himself. Instead, he's in a situation where the two sides can actively war against each other.
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