For those of you who don't know, the Fantastic Four comic follows a group of four people who decided to steal a rocket, got bathed with cosmic space radiation, and gained special powers. The group decided to use their powers to fight crime and make the world a better place.
Reed Richards, a.k.a Mr. Fantastic, can stretch his body in an infinite number of ways. His hottie wife Susan Storm Richards gained the power to turn invisible and make invisible force fields, which led her to take on the name Invisible Woman (ok, originally she was the Invisible Girl, but this is the condensed version!). Sue's "hot headed" brother Johnny Storm gained the ability to turn his body into a type of living flame, and he was dubbed the Human Torch. Finally, rounding out the four is Jewish jokester Benjamin Grimm. Ben's transformation due to the cosmic radiation turned his skin rocky and orange all over, while at the same time making it nigh invulnerable. As his physical appearance being changed into what some would describe as "monstrous", Benjamin J. Grimm became known as "The Thing." The 4 members balance each other in power and personality, and act together first as a family, and secondly as a group of heroes. And a collective "awwwwww" comes over the crowd because of the power of family unity.
Thankfully the 4 decided to use their powers for good, resulting in a ton of hit-or-miss superhero comics, a plethora of toys, a bevy of ridiculous video games, some cliched but faithfully translated cartoons, and at least 2 awfully disappointing feature films.
A Personal Aside
I feel as if I should mention that the true impetus for me starting this blog is not my enjoyment of the Fantastic Four, but the fact that I just came into possession of 163 issues of the series in one lump sum. I figured as I've made this type of commitment to the series, it might be interesting to chronicle how the storylines and characters change over the course of time. Given that the issues are not in perfect sequential order, and they stretch from 1980 to the present, a unique opportunity for me as a comic book blogger has presented itself.
That's not to say I don't like the Fantastic Four. Throughout my life as a comic collector (on and off for about 15 years), the Fantastic Four has been a book I've both cherished and reviled. It is one of the few titles that I will come back for time and time again, with periods of intense interest soon to be followed periods of "drought" where I'll deny any connection the book. As for now, I'm deeply interested in the book. Hopefully it will be that way for a while.
I also think I should mention that my favorite member of the FF is Reed Richards, but The Thing is close to taking over this spot.
Finally, I think I should mention that Four Freedoms Plaza was once the team's base of operations. So consider yourself informed. Thanks for reading!
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