Reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. Our heroes have faced Dr. Doom several times, but in issue #552, they face… future Dr. Doom!

Recap: All seemed well after the original Fantastic Four were reunited after the events of Civil War. But then older versions of Black Panther, Namor, and Dr. Doom showed up, saying that one of Reed’s plans for a better future will lead to destruction in the future. Then Reed pulled out a laser gun and shot Namor in the face (!).

Things are dark as this issue starts, with Black Panther attacking Reed, and Reed saying, “To be sure, I have to shoot this one too.” Sue helps with a force field, only for Reed to headshot Panther just like he did Namor. He hands the gun to Sue, saying he doesn’t need it more. Dr. Doom, who almost looks like he’s smiling, says the madness that will destroy the future has already taken hold of Reed.

Then Ben outsmarts everyone by revealing that Namor and Black Panther were robots. Reed admits he knew this too. He explains that Doom’s presence there is a “kinetic energy inversion field” which required two projectors. (This would seem to be a classic sci-fi “he’s a hologram” trope, but we’ll soon see this version of Doom can take damage and whatnot). Doom says that his ruse changes nothing, and that his warning about Reed’s idea #101 eventually destroying the universe.

Sue demands that Doom leave, but Doom reminds her of Reed’s questionable and possibly treacherous actions during Civil War. Doom claims that Civil War’s Negative Zone prison violates human rights, and that Reed’s arrogance puts him above “both man’s and god’s law.” He then rubs salt on the wound by reminding everyone of Bill Foster’s death during Civil War.

Doom continues, saying that Reed lied to his family under the auspices of it being “all for your own good.” He further confesses that he hates Reed not because Reed is his opposite, but because he now sees something of himself in Reed. Turn the page, and it’s a double-page spread of Ben punching Dr. Doom in the face, with Ben saying, “You just crossed the line!”

Ben punches Doom outside of the building and into the street outside, pummeling Doom into the street. Ben says he doesn’t care how it looks or what people say, Reed is a good man. Ben delivers a big speech about how Reed only cares about the truth, and about standing up for anyone who’s got a raw deal in life. Ben adds that Reed is especially loyal to his own family. Doom reveals he repaired his own armor during Ben’s speech. He fights back, electrocuting Ben while arguing that Reed is not Ben’s friend.

The entire FF fights Dr. Doom, and he had defenses for each of them. After fighting off Sue, Ben, and Johnny, Doom holds up a small sphere, which turns into metal rods that entangle Reed as he tries to stretch. Rather than plead for mercy, Reed demands that Doom tell him what happens in the future, and how Reed’s idea #101 really harms humanity.

Doom grabs Reed by the mouth (!) and says that Reed’s real question is that of his own soul, that Reed questions whether he himself is evil. Then a voice says “Hey Doomsie!” Turn the page and we see an older Fantastic Four time-traveling onto the scene.

To be continued!

Unstable molecule: As of this writing, there’s a hurricane of opinions happening on Twitter regarding the casting of Reed Richards in an upcoming Disney/MCU film. Some people believe Reed is a classic Marvel hero, while others believe Reed should be an irredeemable jerk. I recommend all these folks read this issue, where Reed’s goodness vs. he’s-a-jerk-ness is explored.

Fade out: I’m unclear how Sue’s force fields help Reed shoot the Black Panther android in the head, but the comic makes it clear that Sue is complicit in this act.

Clobberin’ time: There’s one panel of Ben using his flying cycle to travel to Doom after punching Doom out of the building. This reveals he must have sent Doom flying across the whole city.

Flame on: Of the four, Johnny has had the least one-on-one interaction with Dr. Doom over the years, which makes his two-page fight with Doom in this issue especially interesting. Johnny says he never understood why Reed doesn’t just do away with Doom and get it over with.

Trivia time: According to the Marvel Wiki, future Doom and the others come from universe #81551. That’s for anyone compiling a list of all the alternate realities. (Yeah, let’s see you try to find Marvel trivia from this issue.)

Fantastic or frightful? First, let’s talk about backgrounds. Most of this issue takes place out in the streets of NYC, but casual readers will likely miss that because most pages have no backgrounds and no sense of space at all. Maybe that’s intentional to keep the focus on the emotional conflict, but this issue could have been so much more with a physical space for the characters to inhabit. Beyond that, this issue raises a lot of questions as to where the characters are after all the Civil War hubbub, and whether Reed can still be considered a hero. That’s the good part.

Next: Even more time-twisting.

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