Fantastic Four: True Story (spoiler accepted)

[lefthanded]

Yes but never in a situation where both sides are treated as adults and presented sympathetically for the choices they made. It's either Reed is evil and so on and so forth.

More importantly the story works in the way Zdarsky's Spider-Man Life Story suggested i.e. this woulda been canon if realism entered the continuity. And it provides commentary on the way Susan Storm was written and treated in the classic Fantastic Four comics.

I didn't like it as it was happening (once I saw Namor's abs I knew where we were headed), but definitely done in a way that feels inevitable. It was great that it evaluated Invisibility in the figurative and literal sense, and also in relation to gender-norms.

I was amused by the shade thrown at Hank Pym, both as a throwaway line and as an actual discussion.

Although the focus on Galactus seems a bit too "big" for a Life Story (as what do all these little Earthbound conflicts matters when there is world destruction going to happen), I like how Life Story is not just going to turn into the Reed/Victor show. That dynamic has been done to death already.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

I didn't like it as it was happening (once I saw Namor's abs I knew where we were headed), but definitely done in a way that feels inevitable. It was great that it evaluated Invisibility in the figurative and literal sense, and also in relation to gender-norms.

I was amused by the shade thrown at Hank Pym, both as a throwaway line and as an actual discussion.

Although the focus on Galactus seems a bit too "big" for a Life Story (as what do all these little Earthbound conflicts matters when there is world destruction going to happen), I like how Life Story is not just going to turn into the Reed/Victor show. That dynamic has been done to death already.

spoilers:

I actually liked the spin on the Reed/Victor dynamic in this issue. It's obviously unique and not at all in keeping with how it's done in the comics, but the homoerotic sense of Victor as Reed's science-boyfriend keeping him away from the missus and telling him to conquer the world with him...was nicely done (though it's obviously problematic in presenting the queer-coded Victor as a bad guy or evil) but it was at least interesting and entertaining in itself.

end of spoilers

[Greta]

I'm a huge FF and Mark Russell fan and was so excited when I heard about this book, but it's been terribly disappointing. It's slow, bland, and rather unimaginative. It doesn't seem as if Russell is as passionate or knowledgeable about the FF as Zdarsky was with Spider-Man. In that series, every page of every issue was utilized to its full potential, with something big, relevant to the era in question, and an interesting extrapolation upon the mythos. With this, it just seems like Russell is writing yet another version of the FF's origin or some treatment for a possible movie.

As for the art, it's not bad, but it's rather uninspired. They couldn't get a more dynamic artist, like one of the many greats who've worked on the book previously?

And finally, I love Sue, she's one of my favourite characters in all of comics, but taking down Doom with a single hit to the back? Really?

[Greta]

I didn't like it as it was happening (once I saw Namor's abs I knew where we were headed), but definitely done in a way that feels inevitable. It was great that it evaluated Invisibility in the figurative and literal sense, and also in relation to gender-norms.

I was amused by the shade thrown at Hank Pym, both as a throwaway line and as an actual discussion.

Although the focus on Galactus seems a bit too "big" for a Life Story (as what do all these little Earthbound conflicts matters when there is world destruction going to happen), I like how Life Story is not just going to turn into the Reed/Victor show. That dynamic has been done to death already.

I freaking knew Sue was going to leave Reed for Namor. It happened in the Spider-Man version of this story and now its here. Poor Frankin though. Wonder if this separation will have negative effects on his upbringing, especially after he gets his powers. Not a great deal of Reed and Sues make it in the multiverse.

[Digifiend]

I'm a huge FF and Mark Russell fan and was so excited when I heard about this book, but it's been terribly disappointing. It's slow, bland, and rather unimaginative. It doesn't seem as if Russell is as passionate or knowledgeable about the FF as Zdarsky was with Spider-Man. In that series, every page of every issue was utilized to its full potential, with something big, relevant to the era in question, and an interesting extrapolation upon the mythos. With this, it just seems like Russell is writing yet another version of the FF's origin or some treatment for a possible movie.

As for the art, it's not bad, but it's rather uninspired. They couldn't get a more dynamic artist, like one of the many greats who've worked on the book previously?

And finally, I love Sue, she's one of my favourite characters in all of comics, but taking down Doom with a single hit to the back? Really?

To be fair, she did have Captain America's shield, it's not like she just punched him.

[markhyperion]

I freaking knew Sue was going to leave Reed for Namor. It happened in the Spider-Man version of this story and now its here. Poor Frankin though. Wonder if this separation will have negative effects on his upbringing, especially after he gets his powers. Not a great deal of Reed and Sues make it in the multiverse.

I dont like Namor and Sue dynamic. But at least this made it realistic. So I don't hate it. I liked how it was all framed.

That said, I'm pretty sure the council of Reed's said Reed 616 was specifically different because Sue didn't leave him and Reed still had a dad

[The Cheat]

Dysfunctional family dynamic? No thanks, the exact opposite of what I read FF for.

[CaptCleghorn]

Read the second issue and some stuff started to come together. I think I need to go with individual statements here.

As much as I am so sick of Sue/Namor hookups, what is clear from this tale (and others) is that there was a powerful attraction between the two in the early days. And where this is a biographical piece, Reed's constant work on Galactus kept him from being a good husband or father.
There have been comments on this not being a series where Doom's the big baddie, but if we are going to do the FF's life, Doom needs a few pages.
The focus of the book isn't the superheroics, but the characters' outside lives. Ben's working his celebrity status and Johnny's a mechanic someplace. We see Sue carrying signs and judging by the Betty Friedan autograph, it seems Life Story Sue has less of a public view as 616 Sue. The UN speech looks to be the catalyst that upgrades her from activist follower to activist leader. I really hope this is a direction she takes here and that we see results of her work. We know Reed/Galactus is getting pages.
As for Ben and Johnny, T'Challa beat them both out for face time. A solo page each would have been nice. At least we see some example of a Reed/Ben friendship.
I haven't read the Spider-Man book so I have no idea if this is the pacing there or not with short vignettes being the norm, but it takes some getting used to as it is almost literally snapshots.

Overall, it's more standard than I would have expected from Russell. I was hoping for a far more activist Sue and much more than just a panel of Cap in Viet Nam. But we get obsessed Reed, maturing slowly Sue, a barely visible Ben, and the Chuck Cunninghammed Johnny. Right now, it's a padded six issue Galactus story and although the FF fanboy in me felt it was worth buying, it hasn't been anything to write home about. And I seriously hope a "yet" can be added to that last sentence.

[Iron Maiden]

I am going to stick this out to the end but I am not taken with the "Reed obsessed with Galactus" as the main thrust of the story.

[Crimz]

Tired of FF stories being about Reed, and this is another example of that. Even this issue that's meant to be about Sue, had more of a focus on Reeds thing with their seperation being a fallout of that. Not to mention how Johnny and Ben are barely in this book when the some of the most interesting changes could be done with them.

[CaptCleghorn]

Tired of FF stories being about Reed, and this is another example of that. Even this issue that's meant to be about Sue, had more of a focus on Reeds thing with their operation being a fallout of that. Not to mention how Johnny and Ben are barely in this book when the some of the most interesting changes could be done with them.

The more I think about this series, the more disappointed I am. The movements of the sixties and seventies written by Mark freakin' Russell could have been a fantastic look as to how Marvel's first modern heroes fit into that world. But it's just another obsessed Reed story. It's so mundane and by the numbers.with Reed and Sue. It needed the Moon landing anniversary to let us know it WAS the seventies. I'm going from a big meh to disappointed here. ANYBODY could have written this standard story.

[Crimz]

The more I think about this series, the more disappointed I am. The movements of the sixties and seventies written by Mark freakin' Russell could have been a fantastic look as to how Marvel's first modern heroes fit into that world. But it's just another obsessed Reed story. It's so mundane and by the numbers.with Reed and Sue. It needed the Moon landing anniversary to let us know it WAS the seventies. I'm going from a big meh to disappointed here. ANYBODY could have written this standard story.

I liked the take of a more feminist and political Sue, but it sadly turned out to be surface level. Coming up is the 80s which were a really interesting decade for Sue, but I sadly see her role being diminished significantly now that she's left Reed. The same thing happened in that awful Grand Design book. She left Reed and only reappeared at the end of the story.

Johnny and Ben have had it worst in this book. Ben's friendship with Reed is so important and removing it made no sense. It wasn't even replaced with anything interesting. Johnny might as well be wallpaper, he's a nothing character in this.

I'm tired of FF stories focused on the past, it's gotten to the point where that's what all of them do. The FF are meant to be about the now and the future so all these books are the antithesis of that. I was giving this book a pass in the hope it would do something new, but it's fallen into the same tropes as all the other AU's about the team.

[CaptCleghorn]

There are many points here, so I'll take them individually.

I liked the take of a more feminist and political Sue, but it sadly turned out to be surface level. Coming up is the 80s which were a really interesting decade for Sue, but I sadly see her role being diminished significantly now that she's left Reed. The same thing happened in that awful Grand Design book. She left Reed and only reappeared at the end of the story.

The whole activist Sue thing was basically her carrying signs with demonstrators. Outside of the speech, she did very little for this in the first two issues. Seeing newspaper headlines or TV coverage of Sue, being a famous person protesting would be something newsworthy and made a real statement as opposed to her basically inspiring a pseudo-Avengers group and KOing Doom. I was expecting much more from Russell here. Why even put him on the book if you don't let him loose with his political and social content? It's like Kirby doing nothing but talking heads.

Johnny and Ben have had it worst in this book. Ben's friendship with Reed is so important and removing it made no sense. It wasn't even replaced with anything interesting. Johnny might as well be wallpaper, he's a nothing character in this.

Exactly. A teenager and young adult male in the sixties in America had one thing on his mind. Viet Nam. Cap went, but this is am FF book. Was Johnny still eligible for the drafdt>? Did Reed pull strings for his B-I-L? I am assuming the idea was to bring everything into the sixty year timeframe, including developing friendships (Reed/Ben) and rivalries (Reed/Doom). We did see Ben crash with Reed after Sue left so that was a sign something was there.

I'm tired of FF stories focused on the past, it's gotten to the point where that's what all of them do. The FF are meant to be about the now and the future so all these books are the antithesis of that. I was giving this book a pass in the hope it would do something new, but it's fallen into the same tropes as all the other AU's about the team.

It's a mediocre retelling, much like Grand Design (although not as bad). I expect Sue and Reed to get back together so I'm not too worried about the Namor thing (Is Franklin going to call him Uncle Namor?) But the Sue/Namor trope is pretty much an example that their attraction WAS fairly real and strong. I think even a hardcore Sue fan like yourself would admit there was something there in the early Silver Age. Still, seeing how this would play out in 70s media would be interesting as Sue and Namor are celebrities. Sue met Betty Friedan. Will she do the Donahue show? Let's use the timeframe for crying out loud!

But as for the first twenty years, the characters haven't aged beyond thier current ages in the book. As time progresses, I hope like hell something different is done because so far, it's hack cookie-cutter work.

[BAS]

There are many points here, so I'll take them individually.



The whole activist Sue thing was basically her carrying signs with demonstrators. Outside of the speech, she did very little for this in the first two issues. Seeing newspaper headlines or TV coverage of Sue, being a famous person protesting would be something newsworthy and made a real statement as opposed to her basically inspiring a pseudo-Avengers group and KOing Doom. I was expecting much more from Russell here. Why even put him on the book if you don't let him loose with his political and social content? It's like Kirby doing nothing but talking heads.



Exactly. A teenager and young adult male in the sixties in America had one thing on his mind. Viet Nam. Cap went, but this is am FF book. Was Johnny still eligible for the drafdt>? Did Reed pull strings for his B-I-L? I am assuming the idea was to bring everything into the sixty year timeframe, including developing friendships (Reed/Ben) and rivalries (Reed/Doom). We did see Ben crash with Reed after Sue left so that was a sign something was there.



It's a mediocre retelling, much like Grand Design (although not as bad). I expect Sue and Reed to get back together so I'm not too worried about the Namor thing (Is Franklin going to call him Uncle Namor?) But the Sue/Namor trope is pretty much an example that their attraction WAS fairly real and strong. I think even a hardcore Sue fan like yourself would admit there was something there in the early Silver Age. Still, seeing how this would play out in 70s media would be interesting as Sue and Namor are celebrities. Sue met Betty Friedan. Will she do the Donahue show? Let's use the timeframe for crying out loud!

But as for the first twenty years, the characters haven't aged beyond thier current ages in the book. As time progresses, I hope like hell something different is done because so far, it's hack cookie-cutter work.

I don't have a real problem with Sue leaving Reed in the 70s. As I recall that is the period when she did leave him after he shut down Franklin's mind. That was the time that Medusa replaced Sue in the FF. And seeing that this issue was taken from her perspective, it shows just how marginalized her character was during that era.

I would expect that Sue will grow into a more independent character in the third issue is that represents the 80s, when John Byrne started to give her a greater role in the direction of the storylines. I hope that Sue doesn't become a mother second time with Namor's child. My whole issue with Namor is that Sue has left the side of one dominant male to shack up with an even more dominant and possessive male. The 70's was the Era of Women's Lib - and that seems the furthest thing from Liberation.

The real question would be what happens to Johnny and Ben over the course of these next few issues. I think one of the issues in comparing this series to the Spider-man series is that you have to account for four concurrent narratives instead of one. That has always been the issue for telling quality Fantastic Four stories.

[Iron Maiden]

I liked the take of a more feminist and political Sue, but it sadly turned out to be surface level. Coming up is the 80s which were a really interesting decade for Sue, but I sadly see her role being diminished significantly now that she's left Reed. The same thing happened in that awful Grand Design book. She left Reed and only reappeared at the end of the story.

Johnny and Ben have had it worst in this book. Ben's friendship with Reed is so important and removing it made no sense. It wasn't even replaced with anything interesting. Johnny might as well be wallpaper, he's a nothing character in this.

I'm tired of FF stories focused on the past, it's gotten to the point where that's what all of them do. The FF are meant to be about the now and the future so all these books are the antithesis of that. I was giving this book a pass in the hope it would do something new, but it's fallen into the same tropes as all the other AU's about the team.

I agree with you about the disappointing handling of Sue. Her only answer to Reed's neglect is just to take up with Namor? I need to see more of how she would see Namor in a better light than Reed. This is the guy that in the early days would kidnap her to force her to leave Reed. Like CaptCleghorn, I hoped to see more of her activism than just attending protests.

Johnny, Ben and Victor appear but we have very little background on them. We never saw much of Johnny in college beyond his enrollment way back in Stan in Jack's run. How about showing some of that? Why was Victor in the U.S? Eastern Europe would not experience the Balkan breakup for another decade two but there would probably be unrest there.