John Carpenter’s The Thing is nothing short of a legend when it comes to horror films. While it was a box office failure initially, the later days brought it the glory and worldwide appreciation for its horrific monster and themes like paranoia, suspicion, distrust and claustrophobia.
However, there were many unanswered questions left by it. We’ve already created a video in which we deep-dived into various aspects of The Thing; it’s titled The Thing Creature – Anatomy, Timeline, Real Form And Future Of The Franchise Explored In Detail. But don’t worry, we’ll leave the link in the description.
Coming back, in this video, we will explore the comics that went to great lengths to describe what happened to MacReady and Childs after the first film ended. Did they survive? Was one of them The Thing? Did they kill each other?
We will not only answer these questions but also talk about what happened to The Thing before the events of the 2011 Prequel. Basically, we’ll track The Thing’s history from 1121 AD to the events after 1982. So, our brothers and sisters from another world, get yourselves comfortable and grab your fire extinguishers because MacReady, here, is going to use a lot of flamethrowers on The Thing.
Let’s go for a small recap and learn about the Timeline of The Thing’s Presence On Earth
A few thousand a long time back, a spaceship slammed into the Antarctic; it was carrying an antiquated life shape that had the capability to contaminate others and take their correct shape. Within the 2011 prequel, we see that a gather of Norwegian and American analysts discover a solidified outsider underneath the ice.
They considered it the century’s disclosure and brought it to their Station. In any case, the outsider before long came lively and begun assaulting and duplicating its casualties. They all went into a state of panic and paranoia because it was difficult to figure out who was an assimilated monster and who was their real self.
Upon realizing that The Thing could only be killed by burning it to the ground, a crew member named Larsset ablazethe entire Outpost. However, The Thing had transformed into a dog and run away.
At this point, the 1982 film begins. Lars and a helicopter pilot were following the dog as it entered US Outpost 31. When the helicopter arrived at Outpost 31, it blew up, and the pilot began shooting at the dog. In self-defense, the Americans killed him. The crew of Outpost 31 suffered the same fate later.
Under these circumstances, MacReady, a helicopter pilot, took command of the Outpost and vowed to kill the Thing or die trying. Only MacReady and Childs survive in the end, but their fate is unknown and bleak.
The Thing From Another World (1991)
Issue #1
The comic is a direct sequel to John Carpenter’s The Thing, and it takes place only a few hours after the events of the film. We saw MacReady and Childs sipping on a bottle of Justerini & Brooks after Outpost 31 was destroyed. They were either waiting to be rescued or to perish in the sub-zero temperatures. However, a Japanese whaling vessel named MisakiMaru discovers MacReady and takes him on board for treatment.
When MacReady gains his senses, he panics and gets violent. Upon his inquiry, the Japanese doctor tells him that his friend Childs brought him to the coastline and went back to the Outpost to get the others. MacReady gets further agitated upon hearing that Childs has gone back, but the Japanese crew feared that he would hurt himself, and they sedated him.
Upon waking up, MacReady cuts through his restraints and immediately takes the blood test to ensure that The Thing didn’t infect him. The hissing sound of the evaporating blood gave him a sigh of relief and he started finding a way out of the ship.
To his surprise, he found himself a Hughes 500 helicopter. He stole it to fly to his destroyed Outpost with the intention of burning whatever remained of the Blair -Thing, Clark, Nauls, and Copper.
When he arrived at the base, he gathered whatever fuel he could and set fire to as many transformed bodies as he could find. Before he could destroy the last one, he was stopped and taken prisoner by a SEALteam led by Commander Erskine.
After smoke was detected coming from Outpost 31, they were dispatched on a rescue mission. They assumed MacReady was to blame when they saw what he was up to. Erskine doesn’t believe anything about the alien that MacReady tells him, but this was until he saw one of the SEALs named Pybus transform into The Thing and destroy the chopper that was supposed to be their getaway vehicle. Pybus-Thing killed all the marines before MacReady and Erskine could take it down with a grenade.
MacReady, Erskine, and the pilot get into a reluctant partnership to reach an Argentinian base. On their way, the three of them get lost in the piercing emptiness of the Antarctic. However, in a fortunate turn of events, Childs and a crew from the Argentinian base find them.
Issue # 2
MacReady, Childs, Erskine, and the injured helicopter pilot accompany the crew to the Argentinian base, where MacReady updates Childs on the situation. When MacReady arrived at the Argentinian base, he was terrified because it was huge and densely populated, making it easy for The Thing to escape if any of them were infected.
Childs, on the other hand, had already informed the Argentinians about the blood test. The Americans were, of course, taken to a remote location to be tested. Childs and MacReady passed the test but as the doctor approached the wounded pilot, he transformed into The Thing and started assimilating with the doctor.
Erskine, MacReady and Childs tried to kill it, but it escaped. The three of them followed it but lost it in the huge ice fields. The sun was going down by now, and they were forced to call off the search when suddenly, Childs fell down a deep crack in the glacier. Interestingly, it was the hideout for a huge Thing. The search party quickly pulled Childs up and blew The Thing up with explosives.
On the way back, Childs and MacReady discover that Erskine was never given the blood test in the first place. Furthermore, the Pilot-Thing interrupted the blood test, which could have been a plot to keep Erskine from taking it. Erskine was also in a rush to get to the radio room so he could contact the mainland.
Erskine was “checking his watch more than a refereein overtime,” according to Child. These unusual activities prompted Childs and MacReady to rush to the radio room, only to discover the communication crew had been murdered and the equipment had been destroyed.
MacReady read the communication log and concluded that Erskine had called in an American submarine, apparently for rescue. Without wasting another moment, they gave Erskine a chase on snowmobiles. Upon finding him, MacReady shot a bullet from his rifle right into Erskine’s head, but it had no effect on him, proving that it was now ErskineThing that they were facing.
With its cover blown, Erskine Thing transformed into a grotesque monster, much on the same lines as the Dog Thing from the first film. It broke into the submarine to slaughter the crew. MacReady and Childs went after it inside the sub, which by now was diving deep only to collide against a rock, getting damaged and beyond repair.
The only way to kill Erskine, MacReady tells the survivors, is to burn it down. However, using fire within the submarine was not an option because it would deplete the oxygen supply or potentially cause the hull to explode. They decided to reach the escape pod in a last-ditch effort to survive, but Erskine Thing attacked and assimilate with the survivors.
Childs then decided to play hero and blew the hatch open on the submarine. MacReady was blasted out of the submarine and onto the surface by it. He took refuge on a small piece of ice block, but he was now wet, and the icy wind would probably kill him within minutes.
The Thing from Another World: Climate of Fear
Issue #1
When MacReady rocketed out of the submarine, he was left stranded on ice. He would have died from severe frostbite and hypothermia if it hadn’t been for the Argentinian personnel who trailed him and Childs when they set out to apprehend Erskine. They rescue MacReady and transport him to the base, but not before one of their own is assaulted by an Erskine Thing that is still integrating.
The Argentinians take MacReadyto a secluded research base in Argentina itself. After many days of unconsciousness, MacReady woke up under the care of Dr. SabiaandSergeant Agapito .
His experiences at Outpost 31 and then the Argentinian Outpost had left him violent and paranoid. He instantly attacked whoever was present in front of him and attempted to run away but was stopped by the personnel.
He was supposed to be watched over at all times, and when Agapito went to relieve a soldier, MacReady attacked him and took his gun. He massacred a nearby barn full of sheep with the automatic rifle and stopped only when he was tranquilized.
As the cookPablo was inspecting the sheep carcass to salvage meat, one of the surviving sheep transformed into The Thing and began assimilating with him, becoming large and grotesque when military personnel arrived.
They opened fire on the Sheep Thing, but the bullets just split it into additional monsters. Finally, one of the staff, Ramon, advised Agapito to set fire to the monster. Doctor Sabia pointed out that the sheep weren’t in Antarctica, therefore if they became infected, it had to be from someone else who was part of the rescue mission that transported MacReady to Argentina.
Issue #2
The night brought with it a sense of dread and anxiety. Sergeant Agapito and his squad were being consumed by the paranoia that had engulfed the staff of Outpost 31. Dr. Sabia attempted to test the employees, but they were wary, fearing that she would fraudulently register them as positive or falsify the results to save herself.
Meanwhile, Dr. Deseado, a misanthrope, got into a brawl with Agapito. Deseado attempted to shoot Agapito but was killed by Cruz, a soldier. Cruz was soothed by Agapito, who told him to bury Deseado’s body.
Two men were employed for the night watch while the others slept. They saw a figure rising from the darkness of the night and it turned out that it was the Deseado Thing. It wasted no time to attack and assimilate with the guards.
Upon waking up, they find that MacReady escaped after tying up the Sergeant and destroying the communications room. The soldiers begin searching an abandoned aircraft hangar for MacReady. However, upon reaching the place, they face a huge Deseado Thing who was trying to construct a plane for itself.
The soldiers attack it but to no avail. Fortunately, MacReady arrived with a flamethrower and attempted to scorch the Thing into smithereens. However, it managed to transmute a part of its body into an apethat broke free of the main body mass and attempted to escape into the jungle. In a strange turn of events, MacReady finds that an American team led by Childs killed the Ape Thing.
After fighting the beasts and winning, Childs and the Americans subject Argentinians and MacReady to the blood test. Interestingly, MacReady’s blood started jumping out of the petri dish when Childs tried to burn it.
Issue #3 and 4
The Thing was revealed to be Childs in the third issue of the series.
Dr. Sabia and MacReady are pursued by The Childs Thing across the jungles. A second American squad sent with Childs’ team, however, burned Childs Thing. Sergeant Agapito, meanwhile, discovers that The Thing has infected the entire base. Ramon-Thing, in reality, began integrating with Agapito.
To prevent the infection from spreading further, Agapito hacked off his own arm with a machete. He fled them and went into the forest, while The Things assumed that he wouldn’t be a threat to them because he was injured. One of The Things wrapped its body with dynamite and went for a suicide bombing, killing the entire second unit of Americans but not before the commander called in a napalm air-strike.
MacReady and Dr. Sabia narrowly escaped the mess and reached the hangar from Issue #2, where they discover that The Things were busy completing the construction of the aircraft that Deseado Thing was working on. MacReady had begun to lose all hope when the wounded Agapito arrived.
The three of them then covered the hangar’s perimeter with gasoline and torched it. However, a spider thing, almost of the size of the hangar, emerged from the shackles and pursued MacReady, Sabia, and Agapito.
The Sergeant was losing an immense amount of blood and was unable to run, so MacReady asked them to split up in the hope that the Spider Thing would chase him. It worked for a while, but The Spider Thing cornered MacReady. However, The airstrike that the commander had called arrived just in time to burn the hell out of the Spider Thing.
The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows (1993)
Issue # 1
SimonPowell and his crew are stuck in the little town of Wallace Harbour with the ship Gettysburg Following many murders in Wallace Harbour, the police docked the American ship and asked the crew to stay in town until the murderer was apprehended. Meanwhile, at the Wallace Harbour Hotel, a local named John accuses an American sailor named Holt of being the murderer, and the two of them get into a fight.
However, Detective Sergeant Rowan was quick enough to reach the spot and put an end to the fight. Nearby, Sergeant Rowan hears the wailing cries of an old fisherman and he rushes in the direction of the voice.
Unfortunately, he was late and found the mutilated body of the guy, who was attacked and killed by a monstrous beast that had several tentacles protruding out of its body. Strangely, Holt and Powell happen to be present near the crime spot.
Powell’s girlfriend Jennifer awoke the next day with a bad hangover but went to work nevertheless. Sergeant Rowan approached Jennifer and inquired about Powell, particularly what he had done with her the night before. Following his interrogation, he informed her that Powell’s body had been discovered near the docks.
Jennifer collapsed and returned home after hearing this catastrophicnews. Her health was deterioratingby this point, and the news of Powell’s death was just making things worse. Her cat was observant enough to notice how inhuman Jennifer was becoming and attacked its master, only to be killed by a Jennifer who had now mutated into a tentacled beast.
Suddenly, she hears Powell in her head, who told her that she was dead, but she’s become something entirely different and that she must kill and consume to survive. This issue ended with Jennifer saying that she remembered everything.
Issue #2
Jenny-Thing went out for her first kill, following Powell’s directions, and waited in a dark alley for someone to pass. Holt, who had left the bar some time ago and ran across Jenny-Thing, was the unfortunate victim. She tried to kill him with her tentacles, but Holt turned out to be Powell-Thing, who had killed Holt and assimilated with him back at the pier.
Powell combines his body with Jenny’s at Jenny’s apartment, allowing her to witness and feel all Powell Thing had felt. He was a part of Erskine Thing that had assimilated with a fish, it was disclosed.
The fish was caught by the fishing vessel Gettysburg where it incorporated with Powell. After this ride down memory lane, Powell told her that she should only kill to consume and replace her dead cells with living cells. He forbids her from assimilation because that would mean competition.
Meanwhile, MacReadyarrives at Wallace Harbour on a chopper and comes across the corpse of Powell-Thing’s final victim. Sergeant Rowan accuses him of murder, however MacReady tells the detective sergeant everything about The Thing and the events that took place at Outpost 31 and the Norwegian station. They agree to work together and subject everyone to the blood test.
Powell Thing had resurfaced as Holt by this point. He was The Thing, according to his test. It morphed into a massive tentacled beast with multiple maws and faces strewn throughout its hide. It was burned to the ground by MacReady, who used his flamethrower on it. Powell Thing, though, disclosed that Jenny is also a Thing before dying.
Issue #3
Rowan and MacReady race to Jenny’s residence with the intention of murdering her. She, on the other hand, leaped out the window and fled. Jenny was all alone now that Powell Thing had vanished.
She converted her coworker Sharon to make a buddy. Sharon, on the other hand, was overly pushy and assaulted and converted a new customer who had just walked in. Powell Thing’s advise to attack exclusively for the purpose of eating was proving wise.
Jennifer Thing realized that the entire town would soon get infected, and when there would be no one else alive, the Things would start consuming each other. Therefore, she burned down all the boats and ferries and even destroyed MacReady’s chopper.
This would ensure that the Things would remain on the island and ultimately devour each other and starve. And, she could leave the town and live forever by hunting only to eat.
MacReady and Rowan soon found themselves surrounded by the converted townsfolk, and they figured that their only way out was going aboard the Gettysburg. To their horror, they not only find a pack of Things chasing them, but also that the Gettysburg has already left the dock.
The duo figures that it’s either swim or die, but Rowan reveals that he can not swim. Therefore, he convinces MacReady to leave without him, and he would hold off the Things for as long as possible. Unexpectedly, Rowan turned out to be the hero.
Issue #4
MacReady discovers Jenny-bloodied Thing’s body after boarding the Gettysburg. It appeared to be a plan, though, because no weapon other than fire was powerful enough to kill a Thing. Naturally, MacReady enlisted the assistance of the ship’s Captain Banks to put the crew members to the test.
They all came back negative, so Macready took the test himself. The finger of suspicion had now been pointed at Captain Banks. He evolved into a full-fledgedThing and began attacking the crew members when MacReady ordered him to take the test. Banks was, in reality,
Jenny Thing and it began to assimilate itself with the crew as they kept begging Macready for help. However, he couldn’t be of any aid, and in a state of helplessness, began pouring gasoline all over the vessel with the intention of annihilating it.
The Jenny Thing was now an enormous monster that attempted to kill MacReady but he managed to ignite the gasoline with his flare gun. The resulting explosion destroyed most of Jenny Thing. In the last bid to survive, it transformed into Jenny’s human body and begged MacReady to show mercy, but he had had enough and he poured more petrol before jumping off. The ship’s boiler blasted off, obliterating the entire vessel.
When MacReady arrives at the beach, a Spider Head Thing of Jenny approaches him, but he quickly kicks it away. A large wave swept MacReady back onto the shore and knocked him out against a rock before he could summon the resolve to get up and destroy it. Jenny Thing had become too feeble and was sinking to the water floor.
Powell thing’s voice, on the other hand, advised her that she might be able to survive by transforming into a different species, but that she would lose all of her human memories, including Powell’s. She relived the moments she had shared with Powell for the last time in her mind’s eye. Ultimately, she transformed into a fish, the same organism that had morphed Powell.
The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows is not just a story about aliens from another world, but it also speaks volumes about the love that two people shared. Their love didn’t die even after their death and departure from the human form.
It lived on. Of course, MacReady is the true hero of the comic, but due credit must be given to the courage of Rowan, without whom MacReady wouldn’t have survived or found Jenny in the first place.
The Thing – The Northman Nightmare (Prequel)
A troop of Vikings arrives in the harsh and chilly portions of Greenland in 1121 AD. They had conquered many sections of the world and fought many peoples in their quest, but Greenland was unique; not because of the people who lived there, but because of the terrain itself.
The Vikings decided to walk the final stage of their expedition since ice prevented their longships from approaching. However, one of them was pulled beneath the surface by a tentacled creature as they got began. The second-in-command named Hord attempted to rescue the fallen fighter but his entire palm literally froze because of the icy cold water. Ultimately, the palm had to be cut down.
After tending to Hord, they resumed their journey and came across the strangest of sights. First, they saw that a huge part of a hill was grazed off as if a giant battle-ax had cleaved it. Walking further, they found the charred remains of various animals and humans; furthermore, one burnt carcass resembled both an ox and a Homo Sapien .
Finally, the men reach their destination, the village that was led by Bjorn Grimshaw. Initially, they found the settlement desolate and full of the same burned bodies when five ladies appeared out of nowhere. They told the guys that Bjorn and his men had turned on their own people and massacred the entire hamlet, particularly the ladies.
However, a local named Finn emerged from a house at this point and declared that the massacre was, in fact, carried out by these five ladies. The clan leader decided to lock the women and Finn up in a hut, but Finn tried to flee and was killed by Hord.
At night one of the women enticed one of the guards. When the others woke up the following day, he was nowhere to be found. The clan leader ordered his men to burn the bodies, including Finn’s. However, as soon as they attempted to do that, Finn transformed into a huge tentacled monster.
Hord flung his ax, however it only managed to slice off some hair. They realized that the hair could live on its own. Therefore, in order to save other settlements, they decided to find the women and burn them all. The pursuit began and the Vikings discovered that they were jumping into a deep pit in an attempt to fly away in their ship. However, they forced a herd of yaks to run into the pit, destroying the veseel in the process.
A fierce battle ensued and the men were able to take down the women and burn them one by one. In the end, we see the clan leader and Hord waiting for help, but Hord might have been infected. The ending is exactly similar to John Carpenter’s The Thing.
So, you loyal friends from another world, these were the four major The Thing Comics that came out following the release of the 1982 film and its 2011 prequel. However, the comic named The Thing from Another World: Questionable Research serves as a sequel to the 1982 film and completely disagrees with the other comics. We skipped diving deep into Questionable Research for the purpose of the video, but if you wish that we made another production on it, do let us know in the comments.