Of Crazy Coots and Headgear for Thing Suits: “FF #5”

When measured against a majority of the Marvel NOW! titles featuring prominent and heavy-hitting characters including the likes of Wolverine, Spider-Man and the Avengers, the humble comic series known as FF appears, superficially at least, to be batting more than a thousand. An ersatz Fantastic Four consisting of an assemblage of obscure heroes called to fill the daunting shoes of the iconic team proper, Ant-Man’s crew of unlikely heroes certainly had planted its roots in shaky ground, tasked with winning the hearts of the series’ dubious public and the real world readership that’s become more discerning due to the aftershocks of our past financial crisis. Now, to say that FF has succeeded in the latter regard is an understatement as the adventures (or rather incessant headaches) of Ant-Man and company have consistently put out quality stories that maintain the perfect trifecta of action, character development and comedic relief—and to think we’re only on the fifth issue! Though the superlative storytelling—and Mike and Laura Allred’s commensurate artwork—have remained a constant, the general tone of FF is beginning to shift, thankfully, all for the better.

FF #5 hits the ground running the moment one turns the recap page, with Sue Storm’s replacement Medusa introducing her mentally fragile son, Ahura, to the team’s young wards of the Future Foundation, albeit much to their chagrin. Still reeling from Alex Power’s leave of indignation over his grief-fueled proposal to violently depose Dr. Doom—as well as John Storm’s unexpected departure—Ant-Man works tirelessly to locate the two errant heroes, hindering his ability to self-actualize. While Darla Deering (a.k.a. Miss Thing) is gifted with some much needed headgear for the Thing suit by Dragon Man, and Medusa’s niece Luna senses “un-good” within her aunt, the Baxter Building alarms blare, altering the team to an addled John Storm’s fiery rampage through Manhattan.

FF has taken a departure from the tone seen in the series’ inception—the change becoming more readily apparent with each subsequent installment. From the first issue going into the second, there was a slight scientific slant (evident during Ant-Man and Mr. Fantastic’s morbid discussion and Dragon Man’s vigil over the chronostellar manifold) that betrayed FF’s intended lighthearted and nostalgic charm reminiscent of the Fantastic Four’s Jack Kirby era. After all, aside from Ant-Man’s experience as an engineer, the rest of the team are far from being savvy in the complexity of quantum physics and related scientific principles. The kind of scientific principles that make Reed Richards get absolutely giddy as a schoolgirl. But beginning midway through the second issue and continuing now, writer Matt Fraction harkens back to the golden days in earnest, when the first family of the fantastic went toe-to-toe with giant monsters and outrageous villains instead of threats to the fabric of reality that, at times, require a swift Google search to comprehend. It’s a deviation in tone from FF’s first volume during Jonathan Hickman’s tenure and the Fantastic Four sister title, but that is what gives the series its distinct voice and can be approached on its own merits as a standalone.

Fraction is also having plenty of fun building a world occupied by humorous supporting characters that make FF truly feel like his own. Once again the FF is accosted by everyone’s favorite anachronistic Daily Bugle journalist, not to mention encounters with the aforementioned giant—and Kirby-inspired—monsters that parody those seen in early issues of Tales to Astonish and Journey into Mystery. Granted, while the moments with the camera-happy reporter and newspaper headlines that sully the reputation of the FF make for nice comedic breaks in between the story at hand, I’m hoping that at some point Fraction reins them in lest they start to become tired and lose the comedic punch they once had. The last thing we’d want is our man with the nose for news to be pulled so soon.

Setting the stage for events to come, the fifth issue of FF ended with three denouements that would even make Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson give his seal of approval. Apprehensive souls worried that Fraction will run the idea well dry trying to keep pace with Fantastic Four will be sure to find their concerns unfounded. The team’s present troubles with recalcitrant children, an ornery Human Torch and PR woes will pale in comparison to what’s over the horizon (unless you’ve already seen the solicits for future issues then, well, you know in advance what the team will be going up against soon enough).

FF is a series that’s been gaining significant praise for delivering hit after hit, and issue #5 is a strong indicator that it will continue to do so and stay on the shelves for quite some time. Besides, what other comicbook is out there that gives us amorous Moloids, underrated heroes in the spotlight and the fan-favorite artistic style of the Allreds all in one convenient package? Here’s a hint: you can count it on one finger.