Fantastic Four Essay Example For Students

Fantastic Four Essay Fantastic Four  is a fictional  superhero  team appearing in  comic books  published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in  The Fantastic Four  #1 (November 1961), which helped to usher in a new level of verisimilitude in the  medium. The Fantastic Four was the first superhero team created by writer-editor  Stan Lee  and artist and co-plotter  Jack Kirby, who developed a collaborative approach to creating comics with this title that they would use from then on. As the first superhero team title produced by Marvel Comics, it formed a cornerstone of the companys 1960s rise from a small division of a publishing company to apop-culture  conglomerate. The title would go on to showcase the talents of comics creators such as  Roy Thomas,  John Byrne,  Steve Englehart,  Walt Simonson,  John Buscema,George Perez  and  Tom DeFalco, and is one of several Marvel titles still in publication since the  Silver Age of Comic Books. The four core individuals traditionally associated with the Fantastic Four, who gainedsuperpowers  after exposure to  cosmic rays  during a scientific mission to outer space, are:Mr. Fantastic  (Reed Richards), a scientific genius and the leader of the group, who can stretch his body into incredible lengths and shapes; the  Invisible Woman  (Susan Sue Storm), Reeds wife, who can render herself and others invisible and project powerful force fields; the  Human Torch  (Johnny Storm), Sues younger brother, who can generate flames, surround himself with them and fly; and the monstrous  Thing  (Ben Grimm), their grumpy but benevolent friend, who possesses superhuman strength and endurance due to the nature of his stone-like flesh. Since the original fours 1961 introduction, the Fantastic Four have been portrayed as a somewhat dysfunctional yet loving family. Breaking convention with other comic-book archetypes of the time, they would squabble and hold grudges both deep and petty, and eschew anonymity or secret identities in favor of celebrity status. The team is also well known for its recurring struggles with characters such as the villainous monarch  Doctor Doom, the planet-devouring  Galactus, the sea-dwelling prince  Namor, the spacefaring  Silver Surfer, and the shape-changing alien  Skrulls. The Fantastic Four have been adapted into other  media, including four  animated television series, an  aborted 1990s low-budget film, the major motion picture  Fantastic Four  (2005), and its sequel,  Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer  (2007). Apocryphal legend has it that in 1961, longtime magazine and comic book publisher Martin Goodman was playing golf with either Jack Liebowitz or Irwin Donenfeld of rival company DC Comics, then known as National Periodical Publications, and that the top executive bragged about DCs success with the new superhero team the Justice League of America. note 1] While film producer and comics historian Michael Uslan has debunked the particulars of that story, Goodman, a publishing trend-follower aware of the JLAs strong sales, did direct his comics editor, Stan Lee, to create a comic-book series about a team of superheroes. According to Lee in 1974, Martin mentioned that he had noticed one of the titles published by National Comic s seemed to be selling better than most. It was a book called The Justice League of America and it was composed of a team of superheroes. .. If the Justice League is selling, spoke he, why dont we put out a comic book that features a team of superheroes? :16 Stan Lee, who had served as editor-in-chief and art director of Marvel Comics and its predecessor companies, Timely Comics and Atlas Comics, for two decades, found that the medium had become creatively restrictive. Determined to carve a real career for myself in the nowhere world of comic books, Lee concluded that, For just this once, I would do the type of story I myself would enjoy reading. And the characters would be the kind of characters I could personally relate to: theyd be flesh and blood, theyd have their faults and foibles, theyd be fallible and feisty, and — most important of all — inside their colorful, costumed booties theyd still have feet of clay. :17 Lee said he created a synopsis for the first Fantastic Four story that he gave to penciller Jack Kirby, who then drew the entire story. Kirby turned in his penciled art pages to Lee, who added dialogue and captions. This approach to creating comics, which became known as the Marvel Method, worked so well for Lee and Kirby that they used it from then on; the Marvel Method became standard for the company within a year. :87 Kirby recalled events somewhat differently. Challenged with Lees version of events in a 1990 interview, Kirby responded: I would say thats an outright lie,:39 although the interviewer, Gary Groth notes that this statement needs to be viewed with caution. Kirby claims he came up with the idea for the Fantastic Four in Marvels offices, and that Lee had merely added the dialogue after the story had been encilled. :38 Kirby has also sought to establish, more credibly and on numerous occasions, that the visual elements of the strip were his conceptions. He regularly pointed to a team he had created for rival publisher DC Comics in the 1950s, Challengers of the Unknown. f you notice the uniforms, theyre the same I always give them a skintight uniform with a belt the Challengers and the FF have a minimum of decoration. And of course, the Things skin is a kind of decoration, breaking up the monotony of the blue uniform. 4]:4 The characters wear no uniforms in the first two issues. Given the conflicting statements, outside commentators have found it hard to identify with precise detail who created the Fantastic Four. Although Stan Lees typed synopsis for the Fantastic Four exists, Earl Wells, writing in The Comics Journal, points out that its existence doesnt assert its place in the creation; e have no way of knowing of whether Lee wrote the synopsis after a discussion with Kirby in which Kirby supplied most of the ideas. 5]:78 Comics historian R. C. Harvey believes that the Fantastic Four was a furtherance of the work Kirby had been doing previously, and so more likely Kirbys creations than Lees. :69 But Harvey notes that the Marvel Method of collaboration allowed each man to claim credit,:68 and that Lees dialogue added to the direction the team took. :69 Well s argues that it was Lees contributions which set the framework within which Kirby worked, and this made Lee more responsible. 5]:85 Comics historian Mark Evanier, a studio assistant to Jack Kirby in the 1970s, says that the considered opinion of Lee and Kirbys contemporaries was that Fantastic Four was created by Stan and Jack. No further division of credit seemed appropriate. :122 Early years The release of The Fantastic Four #1 (Nov. 1961) was an unexpected success. Lee had felt ready to leave the comics field at the time, but the positive response to Fantastic Four persuaded him to stay on. 8] The title began to receive fan mail, and Lee started printing the letters in a letter column with Issue #3. Also with the third issue, Lee created the hyperbolic slogan The Greatest Comic Magazine in the World!! With the following issue, the slogan was changed to The Worlds Greatest Comic Magazine! , and became a fixture on the issue covers into the 1990s,:87 and on numerous covers in the 2000s. Fantastic Four#48 (Sept. 1966): The Watcher warns, in part one of the landmark Galactus Trilogy. Cover art by Kirby Joe Sinnott. Issue #4 (May 1962) reintroduced Namor the Sub-Mariner, an aquatic antihero who was a star character of Marvels earliest iteration, Timely Comics, during the late 1930s and 1940s period historians and fans call the Golden Age of Comics. Issue #5 (July 1962) introduced the teams most frequent nemesis, Doctor Doom. With issue #16 (July 1963), the cover title dropped its The and became simply Fantastic Four. While the early stories were complete narratives, the frequent appearances of these two antagonists, Doom and Namor, in subsequent issues indicated the creation of a long narrative by Lee and Kirby that extended over months. Ultimately, according to comics historian Les Daniels, only narratives that ran to several issues would be able to contain their increasingly complex ideas. :88 During its creators lengthy run, the series produced many acclaimed storylines and characters that have become central to Marvel, including the hidden race of alien-human genetic experiments, the Inhumans; the Black Panther, an African king who would be mainstream comics first black superhero; the rival alien races the Kree and the Skrulls; Him, who would become Adam Warlock; the Negative Zone; and unstable molecules. The story frequently cited as Lee and Kirbys finest achievement is the three-part Galactus Trilogy that began in Fantastic Four #48 (March 1966), chronicling the arrival of Galactus, a cosmic giant who wanted to devour the planet, and his herald, the Silver Surfer. Daniels noted that he mystical and metaphysical elements that took over the saga were perfectly suited to the tastes of young readers in the 1960s, and Lee soon discovered that the story was a favorite on college campuses. 2]:128 After Kirbys departure from Marvel in late 1969, having drawn the first 102 issues plus an unfinished issue later completed and published as Fantastic Four: The Lost Adventure (April 2008), Fantastic Four continued with Lee, Roy Thomas, Gerry Conway and Marv Wolfman as its consecutive regular writers, working with artists such as John Romita, Sr. , John Buscema, Rich Buckler and George Perez, with longtime inker Joe Sinnott adding some visual continuity. Jim Steranko also contributed several cover s during this time. The 1980s and early 1990s John Byrne joined the title with issue #209 (Aug. 1979), doing pencil breakdowns for Sinnott to finish. Byrne then wrote two tales as well (#220-221, July-Aug. 1980) before writer Doug Moench and penciller Bill Sienkiewicz took over for 10 issues. With issue #232 (July 1981), the aptly titled Back to the Basics, Byrne began his run as writer, penciller and (initially under the pseudonym Bjorn Heyn) inker. Byrne revitalized the slumping title with his run. :265 Originally, Byrne was slated to write with Sienkiewicz providing the art. Sienkiewicz left to do Moon Knight, and Byrne ended up as writer, artist, and inker. Various editors were assigned to the comic; eventually Bob Budiansky became the regular editor. Byrne told Jim Shooter that he could not work with Budiansky, although they ultimately continued to work together. In 2006, Byrne said thats my paranoia. I look back and I think that was Shooter trying to force me off the book. Byrne eventually in the middle of a story arc, explaining he could not recapture the fun he had previously had on the series. 12] One of Byrnes changes was making the Invisible Girl into the Invisible Woman: assertive and confident. During this period, fans came to recognize that she was quite powerful, whereas previously, she had been primarily seen as a superpowered mother and wife in the tradition of television moms like those played Donna Reed and Florence Henderson. Byrne also staked new directions in the characters personal lives, having the married Sue Storm and Reed Richard s suffer a miscarriage, and the Thing quitting the Fantastic Four, with She-Hulk being recruited as his long-term replacement. John Byrne gets Back to the Basics in #232 (July 1981), his debut as writer-artist. Cover art by Byrne and inker Terry Austin. Byrne was followed by a quick succession of writers: Roger Stern, Tom DeFalco, and Roy Thomas. Steve Englehart took over as writer for issues 304–332 (except #320). The title had been struggling, so Englehart decided to make radical changes. He felt the title had become stale with the normal makeup of Reed, Sue, Ben, and Johnny, so in issue #308 Reed and Sue retired and were replaced with the Things new girlfriend, Sharon Ventura, and Johnny Storms ormer lover, Crystal. The changes increased readership through issue #321. At this point, Marvel made decisions about another Englehart comic, West Coast Avengers, that he disagreed with, and in protest he changed his byline to S. F. X. Englehart (S. F. X. is the abbreviation for Simple Sound Effects). In issue #326, Englehart was told to bring Reed and Sue back and undo the other changes he had made. This c aused Englehart to take his name entirely off the book. Bruce Lee Biography EssayThis character was loosely based on a Human Torch character published by Marvels predecessor Timely Comics in the 1940s, an android that could ignite itself. Lee said that when he conceptualized the character, I thought it was a shame that we didnt have The Human Torch anymore, and this was a good chance to bring him back. :85 Unlike the teen sidekicks that preceded him, the Human Torch in the early stories was a typical adolescent – brash, rebellious, and affectionately obnoxious. :204 The Thing (Ben Grimm), Reed Richards college roommate and best friend, has been transformed into a monstrous, craggy humanoid with orange, rock-like skin and super-strength. The Thing is often filled with anger, self-loathing and self-pity over his new existence. He serves as an uncle figure, a long-term friend of the family with a gruff Brooklyn manner, short temper, and caustic sense of humor. :204 In the original synopsis Lee gave to Kirby, The Thing was intended as the heavy, but over the years the character has become the most lovable group member: honest, direct and free of pretension. 2]:86 The Fantastic Four has had several different headquarters, most notably the Baxter Building, located at 42nd Street and Madison Avenue in New York City. The Baxter Building was replaced by Four Freedoms Plaza at the same location after the Baxter Buildings destruction at the hands of Kristoff Vernard, adopted son of the teams seminal foe Doctor Doom (Prior to the completion of Four Freedoms Plaza, the team took up tem porary residence at Avengers Mansion. ). Pier 4, a waterfront warehouse, served as a temporary headquarters after Four Freedoms Plaza was destroyed by the ostensible superhero team the Thunderbolts shortly after the revelation that they were actually the supervillain team the Masters of Evil in disguise. Pier 4 was eventually destroyed during a battle with the longtime Fantastic Four supervillain Diablo, after which the team received a new Baxter Building, courtesy of one of team leader Reed Richards former professors, Noah Baxter. This second Baxter Building was constructed in Earths orbit and teleported into the vacant lot formerly occupied by the original. Supporting characters Allies and supporting characters A number of characters are closely affiliated with the team, share complex personal histories with one or more of its members but have never actually held an official membership. Some of these characters include, but are not limited to: Namor the Sub-Mariner (previously an antagonist), Alicia Masters, Lyja the Lazerfist, H. E. R. B. I. E. , Kristoff Vernard (Doctor Dooms former protege), Wyatt Wingfoot, governess Agatha Harkness, and Reed and Sues children Franklin Richards and Valeria Richards. Several allies of the Fantastic Four have served as temporary members of the team, including Crystal, Medusa, Luke Cage, Nova (Frankie Raye) (as the Human Torch), She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel II, Ant-Man II, Namorita Prentiss, Storm, and the Black Panther; a temporary lineup from Fantastic Four #347-349 consisted of the Hulk, Spider-Man, Wolverine, and Ghost Rider (Daniel Ketch). Other notable characters who have been involved with the Fantastic Four include Alyssa Moy, Caledonia (Alysande Stuart of Earth-9809), Fantastic Force, the Inhumans (particularly Black Bolt, Crystal, Medusa, Gorgon, Karnak, Triton, and Lockjaw), Nathaniel Richards, Silver Surfer (previously an antagonist), Thundra, Willie Lumpkin the postal worker, and Uatu The Watcher. Author Christopher Knowles states that Kirbys work on creations such as the Inhumans and the Black Panther served as a showcase of some of the most radical concepts in the history of the medium. Antagonists Main article: List of Fantastic Four enemies Writers and artists over many years have created a variety of characters to challenge the Fantastic Four. Knowles states that Kirby helped to create an army of villains whose rage and destructive power had never been seen before, and whose primary impulse is to smash the world. Some of the teams oldest and most frequent emnities have involved such foes as the Mole Man, the Skrulls, Namor the Sub-Mariner, Doctor Doom, Puppet Master, Kang the Conqueror/Rama-Tut/Immortus, Blastaar, the Frightful Four, Annihilus, Galactus, and Klaw. Other prominent antagonists of the Fantastic Four have included the Wizard, Impossible Man, Red Ghost, Mad Thinker, Super-Skrull, Molecule Man, Diablo, Dragon Man, Psycho-Man, Ronan the Accuser, Salems Seven, Terrax, Terminus, Hyperstorm, and Lucia von Bardas. Cultural impact The Fantastic Fours characterization was initially different from all other superheroes at the time. One major difference is that they do not conceal their identities, leading the public to be both suspicious and in awe of them. Also, they frequently argued and disagreed with each other, hindering their work as a team. Described as heroes with hangups by Stan Lee, the Thing has a temper, and the Human Torch resents being a child among adults. Mr. Fantastic blames himself for the Things transformation. Social scientist Bradford W. Wright describes the team as a volatile mix of human emotions and personalities. In spite of their disagreements, they ultimately function well as a team. 29] The first issue of The Fantastic Four proved a success, igniting a new direction for superhero comics and soon influencing many other superhero comics. Stan Lee was surprised at the reaction to the first issue, leading him to stay in the comics field despite previous plans to leave. Readers liked Bens grumpiness, how Johnny annoyed everyone, and Reed and Sues spats. Comics historian Stephen Krensky said that Lees natural dialogue and flawed characters appealed to 1960s kids looking to get real'. As of 2005, 150 million comi cs featuring the Fantastic Four have been sold. 28] A Fantastic Four film was released in 2005, and a sequel in 2007. In other media There have been four The Fantastic Four animated TV series and three feature films (though one of the movies went unreleased, and is only available in a widely circulated bootleg). The Fantastic Four also guest-starred in the Secret Wars story arc of the 1990s Spider-Man animated series and the Thing guest-starred (with a small cameo from the other Fantastic Four members) in the Fantastic Fortitude episode of the 1996 Hulk series. There was also a very short-lived radio show in 1975 that adapted early Kirby/Lee stories, and is notable for casting a pre-Saturday Night Live Bill Murray as the Human Torch. Also in the cast were Bob Maxwell as Reed Richards, Cynthia Adler as Sue Storm, Jim Pappas as Ben Grimm and Jerry Terheyden as Doctor Doom. Other Marvel characters featured in the series included Ant-Man, Prince Namor, Nick Fury and the Hulk. Stan Lee narrated the series, and the scripts were taken almost verbatim from the comic books. The team made only one other audio appearance, on the Power Records album The Amazing Spider-Man and Friends. The Way It Began featured Stan Lee himself in the role of Johnny Storm and saw Ben Grimm reliving the origin of the FF, before leaving the Baxter Building to find their original nemesis the Mole Man, and a possible cure for Alicias blindness. The story was never followed up on any further Power Records albums. In 1979, the Thing was featured as half of the Saturday morning cartoon Fred and Barney Meet the Thing. The character of the Thing was given a radical make-over for he series. The title character for this program was Benji Grimm, a teenage boy who possessed a pair of magic rings which could transform him into the Thing. The other members of the Fantastic Four do not appear in the series, nor do the animated The Flintstones stars Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble, despite the title of the program. Animated series The Fantastic Four have been the subject of four different cartoon television series. The first Fantastic Four series, produced by Hanna-Barbera, ran for 20 episodes from September 9, 1967–March 15, 1970. The second Fantastic Four series, produced by DePatie-Freleng, lasted only 13 episodes and ran from September 9, 1978–December 16, 1978; this series features a H. E. R. B. I. E. Unit in place of the Human Torch. The third Fantastic Four was broadcast under the Marvel Action Hour umbrella, with introductions by Stan Lee; this series ran for 26 episodes from September 24, 1994–February 24, 1996. The fourth series, Fantastic Four: Worlds Greatest Heroes, debuted on September 2, 2006 on Cartoon Network and has thus far run for 26 episodes. The Fantastic Four make a few major roles and cameos in The Super Hero Squad Show. edit]Video games In 1997, a side-scrolling Fantastic Four video game was released for the Sony PlayStation home video game system / platform, based on the Fantastic Four characters. In the game you and a friend could pick among the Fantastic Four characters (along with the She-Hulk), and battle your way through various levels until you faced Doctor Doom. Th e game was widely panned by critics for having weak storyline and handling of the characters powers. The Fantastic Four appeared in the Spider-Man: The Animated Series video game, based on the 1990s Spider-Man animated series, for the Super NES and Sega Genesis. The Thing and the Human Torch appeared in the 2005 game Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects. All of the Fantastic Four appear as playable characters in the game Marvel: Ultimate Alliance with Doctor Doom being the main enemy. The team is also featured in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2. Promotional poster for Fantastic Four (2005), featuring Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis, Jessica Alba, and Ioan Gruffudd The Human Torch has an appearance in a mini-game where the player races against him in all versions of Ultimate Spider-Man, except on the Game Boy Advance platform. The Fantastic Four star in games based on the 2005 movie Fantastic Four and its 2007 sequel. The Fantastic Four will have a cameo appearance in Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds. However they will not be playable characters due to their exclusion of being in the game and because of Super-Skrull being in the game, who has all of the powers of the Fantastic Four. Doctor Doom also appears in the game as a playable character. Film Main article: Fantastic Four (film series) A movie adaptation of The Fantastic Four was completed in 1994 by B movie producer Roger Corman. While this movie was never released to theaters or video, it has been made available from various bootleg video distributors. Another feature film adaptation of Fantastic Four was released July 8, 2005 by Fox, and directed by Tim Story. Fantastic Four opened in approximately 3,600 theaters and despite predominantly poor reviews grossed US$156 million in North America and US$329 million worldwide, weighed against a production budget of $100 million and an undisclosed marketing budget. It stars Ioan Gruffudd as Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Jessica Alba as Susan Storm/Invisible Woman, Chris Evans as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, Michael Chiklis as Ben Grimm/The Thing and Julian McMahon as Victor Von Doom/Dr. Doom, with Stan Lee making a cameo appearance as Willie Lumpkin, the mailman. A sequel, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, directed by Story and written by Don Payne, was released June 15, 2007. Despite another round of mostly poor reviews, the sequel brought in US$132 million in North America a total of US$288 million worldwide. On 31 August 2009 Fox announced a reboot of the Fantastic Four franchise.