fantastic four #26: it's... asbestos!!! 24
Unforgettably Written In The Grand Manner by: Stan Lee
Powerfully Drawn In The Heroic Manner by: Jack Kirby
Inked by: George Roussos
Lettered by: Art Simek
The asbestos continues , as an injured Johnny races back into the action. He's in a rush, with no time to remove his asbestos bandages. I think we'll leave aside the incredible unlikelihood of a hospital having a stock of asbestos bandages just in case the Human Torch should happen to be admitted as a patient.
Instead, we'll as what would happen to Johnny's flight capabilities when his body is not fully flamed. When Johnny was shot by ZANTE during Strange Tales #106, his arm was unable to ignite. His flight was off-balance and he had to compensate for this, as well as flying slower. It's a little sad to see no acknowledgement of the struggles he would face with an arm not functioning properly, although an argument could be made that he has learned from his previous experience. As that would involve Johnny exhibiting signs of intelligence during the Strange Tales era, I would have to discount that argument.
Check out our coverage of Fantastic Four #26 on our twenty-seventh episode: Hulk Goes Home And Plays With His Trains with special guest-host Michael Bailey.