NERDBOT
    Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Subscribe
    NERDBOT
    • News
      • Reviews
    • Movies & TV
    • Comics
    • Gaming
    • Collectibles
    • Science & Tech
    • Nerd Culture
    • About Us
      • Want to Write for Nerdbot?
    NERDBOT
    Home»Comics»The Death and Return of the Fantastic Four
    Comics

    The Death and Return of the Fantastic Four

    Kurt BrozBy Kurt BrozMarch 29, 2018Updated:March 29, 20184 Mins Read
    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest Reddit WhatsApp Email

    Once upon a time in the dark ages know as the 1950’s, superhero comics were dead. Despite what Marvel hopes you’ll believe, Captain America limped along until 1954. DC’s heroes fell until the big 3 remained. Wonder Woman was on her last leg. Batman was unrecognizable, fighting monsters and aliens. Really, only Superman survived unchanged into the mid to late 50’s.

    Marvel (Atlas at the time), DC, and others found success with monsters, romance, westerns, aliens… Really everything but superheroes. By the late 50’s, heroes were back but firmly in the sci-if genre. Then in the early 60’s, Marvel made history.

    Image: Doom and Namor, 2 of the best villains in literature.

    Combing the popular adventure genre with their successful monsters and sci-if comics, Marvel created the first real modern superhero comic: the Fantastic Four. Released in 1961, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby combined the quirky military genre’s flawed heroes with personalities AND the larger than life absurdity of superheroes, using much of their old sci-if and monster comic tropes.

    A scientist, his BFF, his love, and her little brother rocketed into space and came back as heroes and monsters.

    The Silver Age was turned into a time for higher art in comics. Flawed heroes and family dynamics grew into the Marvel Age, where a villain could be a hero and a hero a monster. This wasn’t new in literature, but Lee and Kirby did it better than anyone had in comics with their ground-breaking run on Fantastic Four from #1 to #102.

    Image: Cap’s REAL Silver Age return.

    The FF continued with the Thing as one of Marvel’s mascots – alongside Spider-Man and Hulk – until Wolverine’s surge in the 80’s/90’s. Dr. Doom became the best villain in comics. Characters first appearing in the pages of the FF are STILL some of he most important and interesting in the Marvel Universe: Black Panther, Ronan the Acuser, spy version Nick Fury, and Klaw. Hell, Captain America’s return wasn’t really Avengers 4. His 60’s return was really as an impostor battling the FF’s Human Torch in Strange Tales 114.

    Skipping a few years… by 1996, Marvel was bankrupt.

    To stay alive, they sold movie rights to Sony, Fox, and Universal. The most popular heroes – Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Hulk, and Wolverine – were quickly snatched up. But that meant that when Marvel started their own studio and then was bought by Disney, they had no choice but to make movies with also-ran Marvel heroes like Iron Man and Thor. The biggest ones were elsewhere.

    Possibly out of spite or foolishness or sales tactics, Wolverine died. Hulk died. The Fantastic Four died.

    The hero team that started Marvel in 1961 and literally saved the Marvel reality several times in comics became no more. Issue 645 in 2015 saw the final adventure of Mr. Fantastic, the Thing, the Human Torch, and the Invisible Woman.

    Image: Why I took a hiatus from reading comics.

    Thing was hanging out with the Guardians of the Galaxy. Johnny Storm was doing his own adventures with the Inhumans. Spider-Man bought the Baxter building. Reed Richards and Sue Richards were dead, along with their children (really lost and off saving the multi-verse).

    All good things must end… Except I’m comics.

    Rejoice! The Fantastic Four return! The original family of comics are back starting in August in a regular series from Dan Slott and Sara Pichelli. The first promo image mirrors their last cover, but walking back into our hearts. Not much is known about the direction of the series, but a happy family is a breath of fresh air from all the single moping in comics.

    Full disclosure: FF was the first comic I ever remember reading. It’s why I love comics, sci-if, and became a scientist  Marvel isn’t Marvel without the FF and the world of pop-culture is lesser when they weren’t part of Marvel. From the Skrulls to Galactus to Franklin Richards, I’ll always make mine Marvel…

    Just forget the awful movies and H.E.R.B.I.E.

    Will you give the original Marvel flawed heroes a chance? When will they show up in the movieverse? Let Nerdbot know in the comments!

    Author

    • Kurt Broz
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleI don’t understand how to start watching “Fate Stay Night” (A Comprehensive Guide)
    Next Article I Should Be Excited About Ready Player One… But I’m Not
    Kurt Broz
    • Instagram

    THE Kurt Broz is not just a personality for Nerdbot, but he's also the editor-in-chief and a real live scientist! Born on the snowy shores of Lake Erie in good ol' Cleveland, Ohio, Kurt Broz has been there and back again, now residing in sunny Southern California. You can find THE Kurt Broz in cosplay, buying comics, hiking, and even writing for Nerdbot and WLFK Productions. He may be a child of the 80's but he is certainly a man of the world.

    Related Posts

    New Hero Escapade Debuts Today in “Marvel Voices: Pride” #1

    June 22, 2022

    Alex Hirsch Highlights Disney’s “Gravity Falls” Censorship Concerns

    June 17, 2022

    “Shang-Chi” Director’s Mystery Disney+ Series is…”Wonder Man!”

    June 16, 2022

    Iconic Batman Artist Tim Sale has Passed Away

    June 16, 2022

    WEBTOON Issues Apology for Insulting Creators, Fans

    June 14, 2022

    “The Dark Knight Returns” #1 Cover Sells for $2.4 Million at Auction

    June 14, 2022
    Subscribe for the Latest News
    • Trending
    • Latest
    • Movies
    • TV

    Christian Activist Suing The NFL For $867 Trillion Over Half-Time Show

    February 5, 2020

    Marvel Eyeing GOT Star Nathalie Emmanuel To Play The MCU’s Storm

    June 27, 2019

    Rumor: Charlie Hunnam In Talks For New Wolverine Movie

    May 20, 2019

    Scientists Are Actually Trying to Open a Portal to a Mirror Universe(Yes Really)

    December 28, 2019

    Phil Tippett’s “Mad God” is Grotesque Mayhem [Review]

    June 24, 2022

    Amazon Alexa Can Successfully Deepfake Voices Now

    June 24, 2022

    Remastered Mega Hit “Titanic” Returns to Theaters

    June 24, 2022

    Top Video Editing Software For the Web in 2022

    June 24, 2022

    Phil Tippett’s “Mad God” is Grotesque Mayhem [Review]

    June 24, 2022

    Remastered Mega Hit “Titanic” Returns to Theaters

    June 24, 2022

    Watch: “Thor: Love and Thunder” Red Carpet Premiere

    June 23, 2022

    Did John Williams Announce Harrison Ford’s Retirement with His Own?

    June 23, 2022

    George RR Martin Confirms “SNOW,” Jon Snow Series

    June 23, 2022

    Emilia Clarke Confirms Kit Harrington’s Jon Snow Spinoff Series

    June 23, 2022

    “What We Do in the Shadows” Gets Parental in New Trailer

    June 22, 2022

    Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen Want More “Obi Wan Kenobi” Too

    June 22, 2022
    Related Posts

    None found

    San Diego Comic-Con
      • San Diego Comic-Con
    NERDBOT
    Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    © 2022 NERDBOT Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    Posting....