The Fantastic Four Appreciation 2021

[danielsan52]

I'm just hoping it's a misleading cover.

I will take Lyja over Sky though. I would rather hate a character who has a personality rather than someone as pathetic and lowly as Sky. She's just Silk with a different coat of paint.

I prefer Lyja to Sky and would love to see her and Johnny show up at SWORD for an issue or two.

Sky should become an Avenger.

[Hypestyle]

So is there an alternate future where Johnny and Lyja have children? Might as well do that story someday.

[danielsan52]

So is there an alternate future where Johnny and Lyja have children? Might as well do that story someday.

Torus_Storm_(Earth-982)

[Jwyatt]

This Byrne piece must be a commission? I don't recall seeing this in print. Though ... that's a HUGE commission.

Here's a thread on Byrne's site about that commission:
http://www.byrnerobotics.com/forum/f...1&totPosts=110

[Shadowcat]

Yes, it looks like it's her

I hope so. It’d be so nice to see her and Johnny reconcile.

[Digifiend]

Torus_Storm_(Earth-982)

Makes sense it would've happened in MC2.

[Ravin' Ray]

Sky should become an Avenger.

Sky should discover the pathetic state of the Bird People Inhumans who were horribly mutated by the Terrigen Mist (as they had stabilized their genetics for generations), confront Medusa (who said she would aid them) and the others as to their condition, and help find a cure for them.

[CaptCleghorn]

My feelings about Lyja have been stated here many times. I think she's a reprehensible character and I find it tough to believe Ben and Johnny aren't angrier at her.

But, she's here and Slott has building up N'Kalla's knowledge of Alicia's confinement with the Skrulls. There are one or more stories coming out of this, I'm sure.

As for Sky vs Yera (I mean Lyja) as Johnny plus one, Sky really doesn't have a personality as has been stated here. But for Johnny's GF, she does check off boxes.

She's new so there's no previous story baggeage to deal with,
She might work out, or she might have permanent death. Existing regular characters don't die permanently in comics, but one-shots can.
I'm still thinking Sky could be a spy and the whole "soul-mate arm-band thing is a hoax. A pair that work on reed and Sue provide evidentce that they work, even if we all know Reed would be looking at the armbands carefully, out of curiosity, if not protection.

If I was writing this Sky and Lyja story, I'd paint both women in heavy shades of gray and leave their true intentions secret for a while. Are one or posibly both of them bad?

[CaptCleghorn]

Sky should discover the pathetic state of the Bird People Inhumans who were horribly mutated by the Terrigen Mist (as they had stabilized their genetics for generations), confront Medusa (who said she would aid them) and the others as to their condition, and help find a cure for them.

Sky, Lyja, Crystal, Medusa. The Human Torch Revenge Squad?

[Crimz]

My feelings about Lyja have been stated here many times. I think she's a reprehensible character and I find it tough to believe Ben and Johnny aren't angrier at her.

But, she's here and Slott has building up N'Kalla's knowledge of Alicia's confinement with the Skrulls. There are one or more stories coming out of this, I'm sure.

As for Sky vs Yera (I mean Lyja) as Johnny plus one, Sky really doesn't have a personality as has been stated here. But for Johnny's GF, she does check off boxes.

She's new so there's no previous story baggeage to deal with,
She might work out, or she might have permanent death. Existing regular characters don't die permanently in comics, but one-shots can.
I'm still thinking Sky could be a spy and the whole "soul-mate arm-band thing is a hoax. A pair that work on reed and Sue provide evidentce that they work, even if we all know Reed would be looking at the armbands carefully, out of curiosity, if not protection.

If I was writing this Sky and Lyja story, I'd paint both women in heavy shades of gray and leave their true intentions secret for a while. Are one or posibly both of them bad?

I've said it before, but I think the true potential with Lyja is fully committing to having her be a villain. No villain knows team as well or as intimately as she would and she would add to much need female villains for the team. The amount of female FF villains can easily be counted on one hand.
She'd also be a very personal villain for Johnny, which is needed as only Reed gets to have multiple villains target him specifically and others should have more villains go after them. Making her heroic will never work for me after all she's done, the most I can see is her helping when it benefits her or something like the times Doom helps out the team.

[CaptCleghorn]

I've said it before, but I think the true potential with Lyja is fully committing to having her be a villain. No villain knows team as well or as intimately as she would and she would add to much need female villains for the team. The amount of female FF villains can easily be counted on one hand.
She'd also be a very personal villain for Johnny, which is needed as only Reed gets to have multiple villains target him specifically and others should have more villains go after them. Making her heroic will never work for me after all she's done, the most I can see is her helping when it benefits her or something like the times Doom helps out the team.

You speak wisdom. But. as I do so often, will bring up the minor details where we disagree. Although Lyja is IMHO a villain, I'm not sure she has any real incentive to keep after Johnny. I can see Johnny (and Ben as well) wanting to see Lyja punished, but does Lyja really have any incentive other than "I was forced" or "It was business"? She fits a number of categories which could make her a good baddie. Her powers and history make her a good size threat. Visually she is a striking figure. But her incentive to select Johnny as her arch-foe seems a matter of convenience.

However, it could be possible to have Johnny do something to cause Lyja to swear eternal vengeance and take the arch-villain route. There will be those on this board who will claim "Lyja wants to be a good soul". That may very well be true. The appeal of Doom has much to do with his inner light and his occasional forays into good deeds. Silver-Age Superman saw a light in Luthor. Even with this, I still have a very tough time accepting Ben and Johnny being OK with her.

[Crimz]

You speak wisdom. But. as I do so often, will bring up the minor details where we disagree. Although Lyja is IMHO a villain, I'm not sure she has any real incentive to keep after Johnny. I can see Johnny (and Ben as well) wanting to see Lyja punished, but does Lyja really have any incentive other than "I was forced" or "It was business"? She fits a number of categories which could make her a good baddie. Her powers and history make her a good size threat. Visually she is a striking figure. But her incentive to select Johnny as her arch-foe seems a matter of convenience.

However, it could be possible to have Johnny do something to cause Lyja to swear eternal vengeance and take the arch-villain route. There will be those on this board who will claim "Lyja wants to be a good soul". That may very well be true. The appeal of Doom has much to do with his inner light and his occasional forays into good deeds. Silver-Age Superman saw a light in Luthor. Even with this, I still have a very tough time accepting Ben and Johnny being OK with her.

To me it's obsession. A lot of her actions are that of an obsessed stalker. From faking the baby to stalking Johnny as "Laura Green" just to stay in his life without his consent. Just show her actions for what they really are - obsessive and toxic.
Johnny was one of the only people who was kind to her, but she hasn't realized that it wasn't genuine as it was to who he thought was Alicia. Which is why we get the misplaced anger at him "forgetting her" and "moving on" as if the relationship was real. I think Lyja has the potential to be a sympathetic villain having her terrible past and current obsession be a tragic tale.

But sweeping the fact that she raped Johnny under the rug and put her in a romantic relationship with him is the wrong way to go and is frankly detestable in my opinion.

[Oberon]

There's already signs that Johnny X Sky won't last. She got annoyed when he made his armband disappear, the one that's supposed to symbolise their bond.

The only problem I can have with the FF is the high rate of 'one-off' type stories/characters or very short duration. Then never, ever seen or heard of again.
So despite whether Sky is any kind of great character, I would hate for her to vanish and never be brought up again.

After the initial run of Stan and Jack and maybe up towards the 200-somethings, we mostly had some characters or situations that had some impact. But I wouldn't mind seeing or hearing about Ben's friend/pilot who became Darkoth the Demon, for example.

Some of the characters, much later, during DeFalco run, should be seen again, especially because they were from different realities:

Reed's "sister" Huntara. I know Paibok/Power Skrull has been used a bit, and of course Lyja.

As much as I like new adventures I don't want redundancy with some concepts. I seem to remember there have been 2 or maybe more stories where some human inadvertanly 'evolves' and gains great powers, challenges the FF, or the World and then decides they need to find their destiny elsewhere. Where do all these freaks go? Shouldn't we know, LOL?

[Oberon]

Sky should discover the pathetic state of the Bird People Inhumans who were horribly mutated by the Terrigen Mist (as they had stabilized their genetics for generations), confront Medusa (who said she would aid them) and the others as to their condition, and help find a cure for them.

Can you give more information on this. What issues possibly show that and also your own opinion. Thanks.

[Oberon]

Sky, Lyja, Crystal, Medusa. The Human Torch Revenge Squad?

You're funny. I guess Dorrie Evans should be the secret master mind? I know that Johnny has occasionally been associated with some regular human types (Byrne era?)
Of course there are some powered types, Namornita, and someone during the Claremont run whose name I forget. Who else? Is Nova/Frankie dead or otherwise out of the running?