As ‘FF’ #13 ended, the Future Foundation was battling to stop an invasion by the Celestials (god-like beings from another universe) into our universe. They were attempting to close the Bridge which was serving as a gateway between the universes. As the rest of the FF retreated back to Earth to find a way to shut the Bridge before the Celestials could make it through, Dr. Doom stayed in the other universe to hold them off as long as he is able.

On the Earth side of the gate, it’s up to Franklin, Dragon Man, Doom’s son, and the rest of the gang to fight off the fingers (yes… the fingers) of one of the Celestials that is trying to hold the gateway open. Meanwhile Nathaniel and Valeria teleport away to see if they can’t buy some more time.

Nathaniel (being from “all futures”) explains to Valeria again that, while some points in time are fixed and cannot be changed, that they can be moved apart, leaving more time for the FF to try and save the universe. In this case, the heroes need to find a way to save only 27 minutes. The catch… to do that, it means that Doom will have to sacrifice himself to save their universe!

Writer Jonathan Hickman continues to knock the ‘FF’ series out of the park! It’s one of those few books that I know I can pick up every month and have pure epic-level entertainment and adventure. And this issue is no exception! My only concern is that, after this first major arc is complete and the world is saved (I’m hopeful.), that anything that Hickman will do afterwards might be a step down in the action levels of ‘FF’.

In the art department, I have not been a fan of the art since Juan Bobillo took over a few issues ago. His style, while simply awesome on technology, space-suits, and robots, is very cartoony and strange on human facial expressions. That said, I tried to take this issue with an open mind. I mean… if I can read (and actually love) Sam Keith’s Batman, then was certain that I could learn to put aside my differences with Bobillo’s art and enjoy it for what it was. I think was just too hooked on Steve Epting’s hyper-realistic art style and the change to Bobillo was a bit of a shock to my system. With a fresh look, I can see how Bobillo’s style fits the controlled chaos that Hickman is trying to convey in ‘FF’. It’s actually pretty darn interesting!

It’s another great ‘FF’ issue. Of course, if you haven’t been reading this book already (and it’s sister volume over in ‘Fantastic Four’), you may be a bit lost as to what the heck is actually going on in this issue. If that’s the case, I’d recommend either buying back issues or waiting for the trades. But if you’re digging ‘FF’ so far, like I am, the verdict is…

Verdict: Buy

FF #14
Written by JONATHAN HICKMAN
Art by JUAN BOBILLO and MARCELO SOSA
Cover by MIKE CHOI, GURU-EFX, MICHAEL RYAN, and CHRIS SOTOMAYOR