 The Thing joined his Fantastic Four partner and frequent rival the Human Torch in #124 (1964) of "Strange Tales", which previously featured solo adventures of the Human Torch and backup Doctor Strange stories.The change was intended to liven the comic through the always humorous chemistry between the Torch and the Thing.They were replaced in #135 (1965) with the "modern-day" version of Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., who had already been appearing in "Sgt.