Between Civil War and Planet Hulk, Reed seems to be getting dumber and dumber lately: launching the Hulk into space when it's virtually certain he'll come back even more pissed off, building a loose cannon Clone Thor when it's virtually certain Thor will return super pissed off, pissing off Sue when it's a stone lock she'll go running to Namor; not good decisions.
At least, to our eyes. Comic fans are doubtless smarter than the general public (as even the worst of terrible comics today is better than Little Man or Unaccompanied Minors) but how many of us are certified, Wile E. Coyote style super geniuses? Any decision Reed makes that seems utterly retarded to our eyes, is part of a longer game than we can see. And obviously not the result of a writer struggling to put words in the mouth of a character many times smarter than themselves.
Case in point: in the panel above, after Ben is shocked down by the Mole Man, Reed gives the signal to the Invisible Girl for the next attack. All part of a carefully coordinated battle plan, made up on the fly by Mr. Fantastic; and made all the more impressive since the entire Fantastic Four was blinded by the Mole Man's ray, so how in the living hell could Sue see Reed's signal? Because he's that good, damnit. I'll never doubt you again, Reed. Maybe.
For good measure, here's Sue Storm Richards administering a beating to the Mole Man. Pretty sure she and Johnny both make Moley cry this issue, while Ben has to give Reed artificial respiration, which doesn't seem like a fair trade.
From Fantastic Four #89, "The Madness of the Mole Man!" Stan Lee words, Jack Kirby pictures, Joe Sinnott embellishment. Reprinted in Marvel's Greatest Comics #71. Some of this issue was seen in flashback in FF#126, but Johnny seems a lot less like a dick in the original. It's weird to think of Roy Thomas cranking up the dysfunction level of the FF, but there you are.
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