- The Fantastic Four 40th Wedding Anniversary Special: Why have Reed and Sue stuck together through all they have? What makes them work as a couple? This story looks at this as Reed and Sue from Earth-Real Time (who are in their late 70s or 80s) travel to more than a few Earths to invite themselves to their 45th wedding anniversary party. On Earth Real Time Reed and Sue are Great-Grandparents. This story has at least brief cameos by Earth 616 (the normal Marvel universe) and a half dozen more. The only major worlds they didn't show us were the Ultimate Fantastic Four, The Fantastick Four of 1602, the Furtastic Four from the pages of Spider-Ham and the Fantastic Four from the Franklin Richards comics. Still for an old school continuity buff like me, this was a treat. Not only that but it features a rip roaring reprint of Fantastic Four Annual #3 by Stan "The Man" Lee.
- Before the Storm: Reed Richards #1-3: For years we'd known Reed Richards had adventures before joining the Fantastic Four. Here we get to see one of them- as Reed tells the tale to Franklin. I'm sure any resemblance between Reed's adventure (which are at least partially a fabrication) and the adventures of Indiana Jones are completely coincidental. They certainly capture the spark and energy of Raiders of the Lost Ark with little hints of James Bond. It's delightfully energized enthusiasm with just enough character moments to keep it from being silly. In other words, just what people have come to expect from Peter David. Why Marvel hasn't given him Fantastic Four as a regular assignment, I'll never know.
- Marvel Knights 4 #23 and #24: Don't tell anyone but I am fan of The Impossible Man. He's great at wrecking havoc but he has such a childlike sense of innocence to him. That makes the idea of him being a father himself kind of frightening. What happens when his kids grow up and realize they are more mature than he and his wife are? They run away. The loss drives the Impossibles wilder than they have ever been. It's up to The Fantastic Four and their model family image to help the Impossible Family get back together. It's not a problem that can be solved with fists, fire, or sheer brain power. You need the real power behind the Fantastic Four - Sue.
- Fantastic Four: Isla de la Muerte!: This is the first of several issues of Fantastic Four done in both English and Spanish. Ben Grimm goes on vacation in Puerto Rico and ends up hunting El Chupacabra. It sounds silly but the story is played for laughs. That's what I love about the Fantastic Four. While they go through their fair share of hard times like all families, they aren't afraid to be wacky or down right silly every once in awhile. It is the first of many trips to Puerto Rico made by the Fantastic Four. It is also the funniest. Although they are all worth reading.
- Fantastic Four #275: Super heroines are always walking around in skimpy costumes. What happens when She-Hulk goes topless sunbathing and a sleazy publisher who is one half Stan Lee and one half Hugh Hefner gets his hands on the photos? The answer is publish them. The end results are a battle in court and ultimately a failure on She-Hulk's part. She's a lawyer. She knew that going in. The character interplay however is hilarious. The ending is perfect. I don't know who to feel more sorry for- Stan Hefner or Johnny Storm.
- Fantastic Four #503-513: Marvel flip flops on whether this is two storylines or one. The single issues claim it is two stories but the trades call it one. (The paperbacks muddy this further claiming it is one story across two trades.) No amount of summarizing can ever do this one justice. It's got everything. It's got a good explanation for why none of the attempted coups in Latveria ever lasted long. Why don't the heroes just get rid of Doom? Could anyone else really rule that country without resorting to his methods? What is the comic book afterlife really like and who runs it? It is the quintessential Doctor Doom story. It's is also a rather strong story for the entire team. Even Johnny, the member known for the least amount of depth has to make some really hard choices. As an added bonus it features the always amazing art of the great Mike Wieringo.
- The Trial of Galactus: I like super hero stories that deal with ethical or moral issues. This is one of those stories. In this case the question posed by many of the cosmic forces of the Marvel universe becomes "Is Galactus an evil that deserves to be punished?" It is an issue that can be debated until the cows come home. I don't think one can ever really find a truly satisfying answer to that question. While I personally think that since Galactus is aware that Earth (and many other planets he visits) are inhabited by sentient beings- eating said planets is nothing short of mass murder. However John Byrne makes an entertaining and gripping case that Galactus is a being that is beyond the normal human precepts of good and evil. All the wonders of thinking like Nietzsche without the hassle of having to die in an insane asylum.
- Fantastic Four: Unstable Molecules: This story portrays the Fantastic Four as real world figures with a less than squeaky clean past. They exist not in a world of Spider-Man and Thor but of Joe McCarthy and Fredric Wertham. They are dirty, broken human figures. They aren't heroic. They're just like us. It's not a pretty sight but it is wonderful. It's realistic without being truly depressing. In fact, there is only one dark ring to this world. It is a world without as much hope because it could probably never have a Franklin Richards in it.
- Fantastic Four #267 : This issue is one of the most painful Fantastic Four stories ever written. Again- the Fantastic Four struggle against all odds. Again, they lose. Unlike many other losses this one is personal. It shows Reed really going to extremes- doing things he wouldn't do under ordinary circumstances. A few very small cameos would have ordinarily put this around the Marvel universe. I let Dark Knight slide last month so I'll let this one get by as well. The end comes like a speeding train. You want it to end differently. You want there to be two or three pages where Reed pulls a rabbit out of his hat and they aren't there. Not for 15 years anyway. Even that doesn't dilute the impact of this story.
- Fantastic Four (Volume1 #48-#50): Here you see Ben Grimm fighting harder than he ever has. You see Reed Richards working and thinking like there is no tomorrow. (Because if he fails there probably won't be.) You see Johnny burning hotter, brighter and faster than ever. Sue pushes her force field to the absolute limit. In spite of all this- they don't even make a dent. They know they are going to lose and they still keep going. This- along with the actions of Alicia Masters- jumpstart the remaining sparks of humanity within The Silver Surfer who then convinces Galactus to leave. Sure the ending- when it comes- is a little rushed but is satisfying. Why? Because it comes with a price for all involved.
- The New Fantastic Four (Fantastic Four #347-#349): Sales are down. The Fantastic Four themselves are missing. Who are you going to call? If you answered Ghostbusters, guess again. You call the Fantastic Four. What's that you say? I just said they were missing? This is a new team- hence the name of the story "The New Fantastic Four." It consists of Wolverine, Spider-Man, Ghost Rider and The Hulk. It is one part mystery, one part action adventure and one part sales gimmick. Oh and all Hell breaks loose. It is a lot of fun. Unlike other attempts to reinvent the wheel this one didn't stick around long enough for the novelty to wear off.
- Untold Tales of Spider-Man Annual #96: A nineteen year old Sue Storm is tired of Reed ignoring her. During an adventure, a seventeen year old Spider-Man makes a pass at her. Sue agrees to go out with him. Johnny gets annoyed. Things go well with Sue and Spidey on their date until Sub-Marnier shows up. Together they fight the king of the seas. Then the date really goes well. Why if Reed hadn't stuck his head out of that lab... The Marvel Universe could have been very different.
- Power Pack #16 and #17: Okay, I admit for this two parter, I cheated. The Fantastic Four does not appear in either issue. However it is the issue where Franklin Richards joins Power Pack after being attacked by the Snarks. It is an event that had been foretold by Franklin's dreams a few months earlier in Fantastic Four. It's a fun little look at both of Marvel's real families of super heroes. It's got action. It's got excitement. It's got just plain weirdness. Like all those early issues of Power Pack- the ones written by Louise Simonson- it is an absolutely charming read. It's the type of story I'm not sure Marvel could tell in this day and age, which is a very sad thing.
- X-Factor: The Invisible Woman Has Vanished (X-Factor #200-203): Franklin and Valeria Richards notice their mother is missing. They try to find out from Reed where she is. He won't tell them. So they call the primary detectives of the super hero world- X-Factor. This of course leads to the inevitable fight. The battle between Guido and Ben is hilarious. It's a noir mystery that takes both teams from the middle of east side Manhattan to Castle Doom where they encounter the dark, twisted, corrupt evil that is- Layla Miller? Don't worry, Doctor Doom is there too- he just might not be as big a threat as he seems.
- Fantastic Four/X-Men: Days of Future Present (Fantastic Four Annual #23, X-Factor Annual #5, New Mutants Annual #6, Uncanny X-Men Annual #14): What happens when you have at least one Simonson on Fantastic Four, X-Factor and New Mutants and their friend Chris Claremont on Uncanny X-Men? If you guessed one of those famed "Four Part Crossovers in the Annuals" that were popular in the early nineties you're right. This one is probably the king of them all as a thematic sequel to Days of Future Past. Here, the future version of Franklin Richards arrives in the present. The problem is- he was followed back by a mutant hunter named Ahab who is looking for his favorite hound- Rachel Summers. Though he wouldn't mind getting his hands on Franklin as well. Each group has their own encounters with Ahab and Franklin before combining their resources and trying to put a stop to the insanity.
- Incredible Hulk Annual #18: Mano A Mano: This one is it folks! The definitive brawl between Benjamin "The Thing" Grimm and Bruce "The Incredible Hulk" Banner. They've fought many times before and since- but this one is like you've never seen it before. Watch as these two titans get into a-- drunken arm wrestling match? Trust me- this is funnier than it seems because almost every villain in the Marvel Universe crashes the party in order to try to kill the two participants. It's by the true master of Hulk stories- Peter David, a man no stranger to either the Fantastic Four or super heroic comedy.
- The Fantastic Four Roast: Everyone who is anyone and a lot of people who are nobodies in the Marvel Universe of the 1980s show up to pay homage to The Fantastic Four. Only it's not in the way you think. Think less Kennedy Center Honors and a little more Friar's Club. It also has quite a few artists working on it but the book is notable for being a showcase for the spectacularly amazing writer/artist Fred Hembeck. He crafts a story that is both a loving tribute and a hysterical parody of the entire Marvel Universe. It has a surprising number of death traps, a weird rewrite of Doctor Doom's origin, an incredible mystery villain and a very special guest appearance by the one and only Brother Voodoo. Trust me, that's a selling point.
- The Pegasus Project (Marvel Two-In-One #53-58): Ben Grimm's adventures in Marvel Two- In-One often featured him teaming up with second stringers, Avengers castaways and no names. We're talking guys like Giant Man 2 (Bill Foster), Deathlok, Quasar and Wundarr. This mega-epic proves just why that does not have to suck. Y'see, good old Ben takes a part time job assisting with security detail for The Pegasus Project. Only things start suddenly going haywire. Research facilities get attacked. Super villains escape their containment. He can do everything from comic relief to the grizzled grouchy mentor type with enough ease that there are still plenty of pages left for clobberin' time.
- Amazing Spider-Man #1: This one is probably the most famous occurrence of the Fantastic Four in another title. It's hard to believe it but there was once a time when advertising a guest appearance by The Fantastic Four would increase sales on a Spider-Man story and not the other way around. It is your typical Stan Lee "let's have them fight each other" plot, however there is a twist. In spite of proving he can hold his own against the entire team, Spider-Man does not really win. He breaks in trying to join the team and still leaves the building unemployed.
- Fantastic Four vs. The X-Men: This story shows just how much love Chris Claremont has for the Fantastic Four. He gives them equal screen time with the X-Men. The real emotional crux is about a crisis of faith and the effect it has on the lives of Reed Richards and Kitty Pryde. This story has the most three dimensional take on Reed Richards that I have ever seen. You see him as the brilliant scientist, the wounded man, the emotionally distant husband, the loving father and as a very angry person. That's just in the span of a few pages. As for the X-Men, this isn't a big earth shattering knock down drag out epic brawl one would expect from the covers. It's a personal tragedy which is what makes both stories really work. It is, in my opinion, one of Chris Claremont's best stories. On top of this- I think Jon Bogdanove was born to draw Franklin Richards.
Elsewhere this issue: Look up "It's a Bird, It's a Plane. It's . . . " oh come on, you can figure it out.
