The Other Fantastic Fours

[ctc]

So;

Here's an interesting article:

The Other Fantastic Fours | RobynPaterson.com

Agree? Disagree? I do think he's right about the FF not being superheroes in the common use of the idea.

Don C.

[samurainoir]

[johnmiic]

I think John Byrne said he considered the FF comic as Sci-fi not so much Superhero. One visual clue: the uniforms. Jack Kirby didn't draw skin-tight costumes with capes. In his style, and Byrne in copying him, the FF wear functional jumpsuits. Remove the #4, (as Byrne did in the What If... the Fantastic Four Had Not Gained Their Powers? issue), and that's what you have. They are explorers, astronauts, scientists & share adventures but are not really justice dealers.



You can see it in this Kirby image here. Reed isn't even stretching but there are lines all over his uniform indicating folds in the fabric. You can sometimes see this in Captain America's 1960's uniform too hinting that the current movie version is not too far off from what Kirby intended. These are not costumes as superheroes would wear:

[samurainoir]

[ctc]

>I think John Byrne said he considered the FF comic as Sci-fi not so much Superhero.

I think that was the original idea, considering the earliest stories were all about finding some weird element/alien/energy pattern, or testing a new device, or exploring the Neutral Zone.

>One visual clue: the uniforms.

Yeah. Funny thing; they were originally gonna have masks, but that got nixed right away.

Don C.

[thunderbolt]

Never really saw the Next Men as a FF knock off, it felt more like a XMen type book. You forgot Mystery Incorperated, Jonny Quest and Danger Unlimited.

[Figuremod73]

i always thought challengers of the unknown was were fantastic four came from. Kirby would always change around earlier concepts and put a new twist on them, not sure if thats exactly what he was thinking when he put together the team though.
i always thought John Byrnes Next Men was more like the DNagents....

[MIB41]

The Fantastic Four has been anything but fantastic for some time. Did the Torch already get resurrected?

[samurainoir]

FF has been my consistently favorite mainstream superhero book since Jonathan Hickman took over a few years back. The current FF title is actually quite a brilliant marketing move looking forward. When the current team goes back to Fantastic Four with issue #600... The current title becomes a spinoff book starring Franklin, Valeria, Artie, Leech, Alex Power and the rest of the Future Foundation kids.

Basically they will have what I predict to be a popular title branded as a junior Fantastic Four, that would normally flop under a name like Power Pck or X-terminators if foisted on the comic reading public today.

They have pretty much successfully milked this model with the Avengers franchis... Why call them the New Warriors when Young Avengers sells so much better? Thunderbolts? How about Dark Avengers! It really astonishes me that not many folks have noticed that the have sustained a ridiculously successful Defenders/heroes for hire ongoing series... They have just chosen to call it New Avengers.

[samurainoir]

If anyone is reading Fear Itself, Franklin and Valeria basically stole the "Heck Yeah!" moment out from Thor, Iron Man and Cap last issue when they went in and rescued their uncle Ben.

They are pretty much the best written characters in the Marvel U right now. They are the Marvel U's equivalent to Family Guy's Brian and Stewie. Valeria is as Smart as Reed, Franklin can take on Galactus, but both only have the emotional maturity of their young ages to inform them how they use those powers.

Which in the tradition of most plucky young heroes in fiction... Inevitably leads them into quite the adventures. We're now into Tom Swift, Danny Dunn and Encyclopedia Brown territory with the Future Foundation. ( see what I did there?)

[Cosmicman]

Lets not forget this one, my daughter watched it a lot when it aired. There was a lot of similaries. I believe it was called Danny Phantom. He had a father and mother with a Reed and Sue complex. He was some kid with ghost powers that were similar to Sues....