The Human Torch has died and the Fantastic Four is no more. Welcome to the future and the Future Foundation. They are going to change the world.
After the death of the Human Torch, the First Family of Marvel Comics has had to pick up the pieces and move on. In this case, it mean rebranding and, at Johnny’s behest from beyond the grave, adding Spider-Man to the team.
I can’t wait to see more from this book. This first issue was a very simple and very cool snippet of things to come. The Future Foundation, or FF as they will be known, is fighting the good fight and rebuilding. The team is armed with a glimpse into the future from Reed’s now “time found” father Nathaniel Richards. While he may have insight into what’s to come, Reed by no means will accept the future is set in stone.
The father/son dynamic added to Reed Richards is “fantastic”. To see a dissenting voice in the camp is refreshing and it will cause Mr. Fantastic to step outside of his “better safe than sorry” comfort zone. A notion challenged by not only Reed’s father, but also by his super intelligent daughter Valeria.
This issue isn’t all about Reed of course, we get a glimpse of a villain to come and another who may be switching to the side of good. It’s all good stuff, and sets up the FF story to be epic, dangerous and exciting for issues to come.
I really enjoyed the interactions between Spider-Man and the Invisible Woman, specifically when she gave the ‘ole web-head his new FF costume. Spidey also made a pretty big faux pas when trying to sit next to Franklin at the family dinner only to find the seat is still reserved for the late great Human Torch.
I can’t wait to see where this story goes and hopefully the FF will continue to add membership to the club with full and part-timers to call upon when a crisis calls. The new uni’s are pretty darn cool too. With their classic black and white material made of unstable molecules, the wearer is allowed to change to any template they can think of simply by concentrating. Who wouldn’t want that? Make sure to hit up your friendly neighborhood comic book store and pick up your copy of FF #1… if there are any left.
