The final issue of ‘Secret Wars’ hit this stands this week, after repeated delays, and as expected, it spells the end (at least for now) of the Fantastic Four as a going concern in the Marvel Universe. On the one hand, it’s a shame that the cornerstone of the universe has been put on the shelf, as FF is really the well from which the shared universe concept at Marvel sprung. On the other hand, the Fantastic Four as an entity has been somewhat aimless and lacking a coherent center for about fifteen years, as even the best runs on the title (the recent runs by Hickman and by Fraction were quite good reads) have had to work hard to make the FF stick together, leading to today’s gone-but-not-forgotten query…
The MS-QOTD (pronounced, as always, “misquoted”) is only surprised that it took so long to fully implement these changes, given that the rumors have been floating for at least 2 years, asking: Will you miss the Fantastic Four as a team in the Marvel Universe?
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Absolutely. The Fantastic Four were the first hero team I remember seeing on TV via reruns of the terrible cartoon for the 60’s. When I started reading comics a few years ago, I knew that I wanted read them. I always liked that “family of heroes” dynamic, and I miss having them (and the FF) around.
No, cause they won’t be gone too long. Nobody ever is in the Marvel U.
Seriously, though, I do already miss the FF, the kind of thought provoking sci-fi family adventure, the well-written FF that I grew up with. I really don’t understand why it has been so problematic to find good writers for the team because it has all the potential there waiting to be tapped, and there have been some truly magnificent runs by writers that didn’t try to break the mold or reinvent the wheel, they just took what was there and made a great story. Someday I hope we get that again.
I’ve personally never been a fan of the FF. I like Ben and Johnny, and I love Sue, but I flat out hate Reed 90% of the time and he always drags the book down for me.
That said, while I personally won’t miss them, I do feel it’s a shame that they’re pulling one of their most iconic books for such a petty reason. And I really do feel sorry for the people out there who love the FF. This decision also makes me very nervous about the future of my absolute favorite comic book property: The X-Men. I know it’s unlikely that they’ll share the same fate, considering the comics still sell just fine and the movies have recently stopped sucking, not to mention the sheer size of the group. But if they’re willing to cut Marvel’s first family , I wouldn’t put anything else past them.
I kinda do. I admit its mostly because of nostalgia, but that’s what comics are to me anyways. I like being able to read and look pretty pictures instead of watching them on the TV screen or playing a video game, which I enjoy occasionally too. I like some change in my super hero comic books but not too much and getting rid of FF is too much.
Not really. I occasionally pick up the odd issue but it’s always fighty-fighty and very little, if any, family centered stories. Maybe I always end up getting the wrong ones though…
Look for the Volume One issues, numbering between about 25 and 105, see if those do anything for you. :)
No. The only FF that I ever truly missed were Byrne’s take.
At least since the early 1990s it has been painfully obvious that he FF were not allowed to grow and advance organically. Frankie Raye, Sharon Ventura and Lyja were not allowed to stick around,for instance. The Future Foundation was a nifty idea, but it is not even remembered even now as people discuss “the end of the FF”.
The concept had grown stale and it does in fact need a rest.
No. I’ve tried reading it over the years, but have never been interested in the characters.