FANTASTIC FOUR #554 REVIEW

[Andrew Jastrzembski]

<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/4images/details.php?image_id=11677"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/covers/marvel/ffv3-554t.jpg" hspace=10 align=left alt="Fantastic Four #554"></a>Reviewer: Andrew Jastrzembski, adjastrzem@msn.com
Story Title: World’s Greatest: Part one of four

Can anyone save the Fantastic Four?

Writer: Mark Millar
Penciler: Bryan Hitch
Inker: Paul Neary
Colorist: Paul Mounts
Letters: VC’s Rus Wooton
Assistant Editors: Molly Lazer
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley
Published by: Marvel Comics (www.marvel.com)

I feel bad for the Fantastic Four. Over the past several years that I have been reading this title, Marvel has thrown a lot of heavy hitters, both writers and artists, at this book and this book just can’t capture its former glory of yesteryears. Somehow the stories just didn’t click. I thought with Storm and Black Panther joining up would create some spark, but they were out as fast as they in. The same went for Dwayne McDuffie as Marvel pushed him out to have the mighty Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch take their turn at the ol’ Fantastic Four.

But can this title be saved? As I mentioned, the stories haven’t really taken the hold and readers have been fleeing the book. If you check the Diamond Comics webpage and take a look at the past year, you can see that the number of units that were sold has been sliding all year. In January 2007 (the end of Civil War), Fantastic Four ranked 16 on the list selling 84.3 K units, and at the end of the year, 51.2 units were sold.

So Marvel is calling in the big guns to help sales out. I am sure that there will be a big bump in the sales, but can Millar and Hitch keep the numbers up? They had a great run on the Ultimates, and the magic they wove together seems to be working on in their debut issue of the Fantastic Four.<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/4images/details.php?image_id=11790"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/covers/marvel/ffv3-554vt.jpg" hspace=10 align=right alt="Fantastic Four #554 (variant)"></a>

This issue is your pretty standard ‘jumping on point’ story. If you only ever saw the movies or cartoons then you know enough to enjoy this book. There are a few nods to Civil War which fills in the past year worth of storylines. Millar covers all the bases. He first retreats to the stereotypical characterizations of each member of the Fantastic Four: Reed, the absent minded professor, Sue, the patient and understanding mom and wife, Ben, the ever loving Thing, and Johnny, the obnoxious and self centered pretty boy. Any changes the characters have gone through like Johnny growing up a bit has been pushed to the side in exchange for a clean slate.

The story itself is pretty generic. The Fantastic Four start off returning from their family vacation through time stream, where Reed didn’t see a temporal storm coming their way. We then get to see the Fantastic Four go back their everyday lives where Millar sowed future storylines for each character. Toward the end, the main storyline began to develop when Reed was pulled away from the Baxter Building by a hot female colleague, Alyssa Moy. A mysterious group called the Earth Trust is building the next Earth which is obviously going to come into play in the next few issues.

The story would fall flat if wasn’t for Millar’s sharp and often witty writing to bring it all together. There are plenty of ‘little’ moments where we get to see the Fantastic Four being human beings interacting with the general public without it being forced, and even though Millar has fallen back to the archetypes for member of the Fantastic Four, it isn’t hollow except Johnny who is supposed to be shallow. It is also an interesting choice to bring Alyssa Moy back who provides a nice balance to Reed. She brings a nice balance to Reed who is a little too smart for his own good. I am also digging the idea of Sue’s all female team of superheroes. It has a lot potential and the few pages with Sue and her girlfriends really made the book for me.<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/4images/details.php?image_id=11788"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/covers/marvel/ffv3-554v2t.jpg" hspace=10 align=right alt="Fantastic Four #554 (zombie variant)"></a>

Bryan Hitch also brings an added level of enjoyment of the book. It never fails on my first read of any book he draws that I under appreciate his work. From the locomotive in the opening scene to the way Alyssa Moy sticks her tongue out when she hugs Reed the level of detail and emotion he puts in astounding and amazingly consistent. He also is one of the few artists that draw the Fantastic Four age appropriately and resists the temptation to make everyone look like a supermodel.

It is a solid start for the Millar/Hitch run on the Fantastic Four. It is way too early to call it a triumph return back to its glory days but there definitely will be a nice bump in the sales. I am betting that at a minimum, readers will get a solid and entertaining run from this team. An unfortunate side effect, I am afraid, is that delays in this book are bound to happen considering their history together. Either way, it should be an entertaining run and maybe even a renaissance for the book.

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‘Buy this Fantastic Four online now from X-WORLD and save!’ ( http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=66&cat=FANTASTIC+FOUR)

[Jason Grasso]

I gotta admit...i was a little disappointed in this. For one, the story was fairly pedestrian to me, nothing that the last 10 writers were incapable of doing. And i actually found Hitch's art more disappointing in the context of the FF, despite loving his Ultimates. But let's see what Millar has in his bag of tricks moving forward!

[Bernard Murnane]

I don't know what happened this week, but the comics I read... I loved everything single one.

I've read a little bit of Fantasic Four in my comic book reading tenure. The Tsunami Wave Johnny Storm and the Marvel Knights 4, which I both thouroughly loved. (Johnny Storm wanned towards the end).

But everytime I tried to jump on the Fantastic Four bandwagon of the mainstream title I could do it. So color me a sell out, but Mark Millar made it click for me. He made the family dynamic the main drive and its perfect. Small character moments, with beautiful pencils from Hitchy making them even better, built a familarity with the characters that was perfect as pie.

Loved it. That is all.

[David Henry]

Nice review, Andrew, and I agree with your assessment.

I was kind of looking for a debut issue that punched me in the gut, so to speak, but Millar and Hitch certainly eased into the run more than expected.

The dialogue seemed odd. While Millar's "voice" immediately was found on Ultimates, it's a shade off for FF. Perhaps having to deal with the constraints of continuity, which he did not have with Ultimates, hinders him a bit. Or maybe he's creating a new voice for FF altogether?

On Hitch's end, the art certainly isn't as refined as were's used to seeing. Most artists seem to nail The Thing right from the start, and that wasn't the case with Hitch. I even found his costume designs unappealing. Leave the ultimate uniforms in the Ultimate universe and get these guys some new boots! On the flip side, I loved his Human Torch. Very cgi-like, ala the movie.

I see parallels between Millar's debut and JMS's debut. Reed is made the focal point of the group's pending adventure, and is introduced to technology and projects he had no idea were in the works.

Is he really that isolated to not know about major developments around him? Or is he simply that myopic due to his own endeavors? Is his ignorace to what's going on around him a good thing? Is it... smart? Isn't he better connected?

As for Reed being the focal point, is there another way to get the group's adventures going? After running it through my head, I guess not. Reed is the focal point, and everyone else basically is along for the ride.

We all know Millar can write and Hitch can draw, so I'll hold back a few more issues before being to critical or heaping too much praise. I'm sure the best is yet to come.

[Jordan T. Maxwell]

loved it. though i disagree with the fundamental argument at the beginning of the review. i thought JMS and Mark Waid's runs were spectacular personally. this one so far looks to match or even top those. :D

[emesem]

The art was sloppy. Hitch must be mailing it in or rushing to be on time. Storywise, these new runs usually start with a big status quo changing bang, which I was expecting here so I was disappointed a bit. But I have faith Millar can make this good though....whats up with Janet giving a fig about what Hank thinks? Aren't they broken up or am I thinking the wrong universe.

[Jack]

I picked this title up three times in the last week and just couldn't read it. In retrospect the reason I am unable to read the Fantastic Four is because of The Thing. Something about that character turns me off to the rest of the team and the book itself.

[JD Francesco]

I'm not a regular FF reader. I gave it a shot during Civil War but it did nothing for me. Ben Grimm flees to France? Rubbish. I like the general concept of the book though (super hero team / family) so I gave this issue a try since it was the start of a new creative team's run. It was decent enough but like most others I'm going to give it at least the end of one story arc before giving any serious praise.

[Robert Cammarata]

I really liked this issue.

I've read FF off and on for years. I think its very hard to tell a good FF story. Probably because Lee/Kirby and other writers have already done such a stellar job.

I loved the Waid/Wieringo run and midway through JMS' run I lost interest.

I think FF is the perfect vehicle for Millar/Hitch because of the sheer scope that FF stories can delve into.

I love the overarching plot here and all of the little nuggets: the school thing, vacationing in the old west, the women's charity society thing.

My only concern is again sometimes Millar's voice shines through too strongly. I really didn't like the line about the woman saying all american women would cheat on their husbands with superheroes That would have worked in the ultimate, cynical universe but not in the 616 proper. Also, the art looks a bit grainy at times but I don't believe this is Hitch's responsiblity but subsequent artists on the book.

So far I'm definitely interested enough to buy issue 2.

[AdamWarlock]

I was surprised... I enjoyed the issue... it wasn't that bad. Millar's been pretty hit or (mostly) miss with everything i've read by him. But this was alright. I wouldn't say it's surpassed any of the classic FF runs yet... or any of the recent ones either... but it definately wasn't bad.


My only concern is again sometimes Millar's voice shines through too strongly. I really didn't like the line about the woman saying all american women would cheat on their husbands with superheroes That would have worked in the ultimate, cynical universe but not in the 616 proper.

I agree with this sentiment... although cynicism is indeed alive and well in the proper MU (Howard the Duck, She-Hulk, Deadpool, ect.). But yeah, the place for it really isn't the FF.

[Phoenix_Force]

Yeah, at times I caught myself thinking it was the UU, actually. Might've just been the art and writing team that made it so.

LOVE the new costumes, though! And the characterizations of the main cast were spot on.

Continuity hounds: Who's ready to play guess Valeria's age this year? :razz: