Fantastic Four 1: New Departure, New Arrivals

Comic Info

Fantastic Four (3) #1

Reprints Marvel Now! Point One #1, Fantastic Four (3) #1-3, and FF (2) #1-3 (December 2012-March 2013).  After a battle, Reed Richards makes a horrific discovery…the Fantastic Four’s powers are suddenly causing their death.  With a cancerous like growth on his arm, Reed decides to take his family and embark on a journey of discovery with the hopes of finding a cure…and not revealing their sickness.  Meanwhile back on Earth, Ant-Man, Medusa, She-Hulk, and Johnny Storm’s Darla Deering (aka Ms. Thing) learn that they will temporarily be the Fantastic Four on the Fantastic Four’s one year in four minutes journey.  When the Fantastic Four doesn’t return when scheduled, the new FF suddenly finds themselves as the leaders of one of Earth’s most powerful teams.

Written by Matt Fraction with Mark Bagley illustrating Fantastic Four and Michael Allred illustrating FF, this version of the Fantastic Four was a great creation.   This collection holds the first three issues of the series under the general Fantastic Four title.  Also included is the short introduction story in Marvel Now! Point One #1 (December 2012) which features the first appearance of Darla Deering.

FF and Fantastic Four were two different comics with the same themes…especially in this early collection.  Fantastic Four is the traditional team of Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Thing, and Human Torch with Reed and Sue’s children Val and Franklin.  FF was a relaunch of the Jonathan Hickman’s Future Foundation-centric series but still contained a core four of Medusa, She-Hulk, Ant-Man, and the amusing Ms. Thing…while FF went for more human, Fantastic Four went for more adventure.

FF (2) #1

FF is great and Fantastic Four is good.  I am swayed by the great Michael Allred’s art and that goes a long way.  The whole FF series is very tongue-in-cheek and has a nice balance of humor and adventure…but primarily is a book about a school.  It introduces the Darla character who is fun in itself (Johnny forgets to get a substitute and picks his girlfriend since the Fantastic Four is only supposed to be gone for minutes) and it also has “old” Johnny Storm which hints at a mysterious death for the Fantastic Four.

Fantastic Four has the more traditional art and is strong.  Unfortunately, despite having the same author, it feels like more of the same old Fantastic Four.  Fraction goes the route of a science team (along the lines of the Challengers of the Unknown) and sets up a series of space adventures…but I’d rather see the Fantastic Four battling more traditional villains instead of living planets (unless it is Ego).  It isn’t bad, but in comparison to FF, it is weaker.

Fantastic Four and FF are fun comics.  While both series tied together, I only read FF past this collection.  Fantastic Four still had a lot of humor to it, but I preferred the writing and characters of FF.  Fantastic Four 1:  New Departure, New Arrivals was followed by Fantastic Four 2:  Road Trip and the FF continued in FF 1:  Fantastic Faux.

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Related Links:

FF 1:  Fantastic Faux