Reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. We’re in Marvel’s “never-ending crossover” mode as Dark Reign begins the second that Secret Invasion ends. But what does it mean for the FF?

What’s Dark Reign about? At the end of Secret Invasion, Norman Osbourne is the one who saved the day at the end, acting as leader of the Thunderbolts. This was seen on news cameras worldwide, making Osbourne a hero. What’s more, the US President made Osbourne the number one guy, putting him charge of the Avengers, the Thunderbolts, the Fifty States Initiative, and H.A.M.M.E.R., which is Osbourne’s new hardcore replacement for S.H.I.E.L.D. Oh, and he’s started his own version of the Illuminati, made up of villains.

Dark Reign: Fantastic Four #1 tells us it’s been one week since the Skrull invasion, long enough for Osbourne to take control of the superhero community. Reed works in his lab, musing about how these events have him feel like he’s crossed a threshold and had a moment of clarity.

Then we’re reminded that the new Baxter Building was rebuilt from scratch at the end of Secret Invasion (should I start calling it the new new Baxter Building?). Alicia joins Franklin and Valeria on a shopping spree, because the building was restored but the FF’s personal belongings were not. Sue, Ben, and Johnny have some playful bickering while Reed’s reprogrammed Doombots move all the new furniture in.

The others check on Reed in his lab, where he’s tinkering with science instead of putting all the new stuff away. He says he’s invented an observation device that can show them how problems like theirs were solved in other earths. He calls it the Bridge. Sue asks him why he had to build it on moving day, and Reed says he has to know everything has gone so terribly wrong.

Then a bunch of military vehicles pull up in front of the Baxter Building. Norman Osbourne is inside one, giving orders to H.A.M.M.E.R. troops. He says the Fantastic Four are suspended from the Initiative, and today they’re being shut down. “Resistance is expected,” he says.

Inside, Reed prepares for a journey. Apparently, he must enter the Bridge in order to glimpse the other worlds. He says he’ll only be gone for a moment from the others’ point of view. Reed says some of his choices led to the world being messed up and his family almost dying. Reed disappears into the Bridge just as the H.A.M.M.E.R. soldiers bust through the building’s lobby. Sue, Ben, and Johnny enter an elevator, with Sue saying she wants this over in two minutes.

The soldiers reach the building’s generator and cut the power, making Reed notice something is amiss while inside the Bridge. Alicia and the kids show up outside, seeing energy waves coming from the top of the building. The power outage stops the elevator, so Sue has Ben tear open the door. On the other side is another world, filled with dinosaurs and what look like superhumans. Inside the Bridge, Reed gets the energy fields stabilized. He says, “Okay… here we go. Let’s have a look at everything.”

Issue #2 begins with Franklin distracting the H.A.M.M.E.R. troops with toy guns while genius Valeria builds a real weapon out of Reed’s science gear. This scares off the soldiers, who now say they’re not there to attack the FF, but to serve notice that the FF’s operations are to be shut down. There’s a few shots of Sue, Ben, and Johnny fighting the dinosaurs and other characters, and then we’re back to the kids. The power is still out, so Valeria gets to work on fixing it.

Inside the Bridge, we see Reed mapping out other universes where recent Marvel events went differently. Valeria gets the power back on, after which the dinosaur world seems to fade away as the caption states, “Variable space-time compressing…” Reed determines that only 418 alternate versions of the superhero registration act resulted in a peaceful solution. He tells the Bridge computer to feed those directly into his brain (!). He deduces that every nonviolent solution to Civil War resulted when Iron Man’s involvement was little to none.

Inside the compressed space-time, we see an Elizabethan England type of setting, with Sue sitting on a throne, surrounded by old-timey versions of other Marvel heroes. She learns there’s a peasant rebellion in the works, led by “a man with an iron heart and a silver tongue.” Outside the castle, we see Elizabethan Tony Stark talk about fighting for fairness and equality. He initially brags about being nonviolent and enlightened, only to draw a sword and says he will fight if dialogue fails. He leads his team of old-timey superheroes in chanting, “Republic! Republic! Republic!”

Reed continues to study other what-ifs of how Civil War could have been prevented. He finally concludes that the deciding factor is him acting alone, without Tony Stark or Hank Pym. No one else was there to interpret his ideas except for him. Reed tells the computer to show him more, after which the Elizabethan reality disappears into collapsed space-time, and Reed, Sue, and Johnny end up in yet another reality, where Johnny is a pirate captain, leading pirate Sue and pirate Ben are attacking another ship. But wait, the Elizabethan timeline’s Ben is also here, demanding to know what’s going on.

To be continued!

Unstable molecule: We’re in Dark Reign and Secret Invasion just happened, but Civil War is what’s on Reed’s mind, showing just how massive of a shadow that event cast over the Marvel Universe.

Fade out: With Reed inside the Bridge, Sue immediately takes the leadership role when the Baxter Building is attacked. Reed and Johnny know to take her orders.

Clobberin’ time: The Elizabethan version of Ben is “Chamberlain Grimm,” who wears a monocle. When the peasants revolt, he says, “M’Lady, ‘tis the clobbering hour.”

Flame on: Johnny bemoans the fact that he lost his list of girls’ phone numbers in the old Baxter Building.

Fantastic fifth wheel: Reed has multiple H.E.R.B.I.E. robots assisting him in the lab, after we’d been told he dismantled H.E.R.B.I.E. to use his tech in the repurposed Doombots. I guess there’s no rule that Reed can’t build more H.E.R.B.I.E.s. Freaking H.E.R.B.I.E. the robot.

In the other universes, we see brief glimpses of FF alternate members Luke Cage, She-Hulk, and Storm.

Four and a half: Franklin spends these issues dressed in a cowboy costume he bought on the family’s shopping spree. My guess is he’s acting up in dealing with his little sister being revealed as a super-genius.

Our gal Val: Valeria reveals her “weapon” she invented on the spot to scare away the H.A.M.M.E.R. guys is really a communication device powerful enough to contact an orbiting space station.

Trivia time: The Marvel Wiki alleges that the dinosaur timeline is the same prehistoric Earth seen way back in Eternals #1. Sure, why not?

Fantastic or frightful? By this point in the characters’ histories, jumping from alt-universe to alt-universe is as much of a commonality as fighting Dr. Doom. Except this time, they’re doing it in the context of Civil War and Dark Reign. It’s an exciting start to the miniseries that really has you hungry for what’s next. But it’s getting close to midnight on Thursday, and I’ve got to get this posted.

Next: It can’t Reign all the time.

* * * *

Want more? Check out my ongoing serial, THE SUBTERKNIGHTS, on Kindle Vella. A man searches for his missing sister in a sprawling city full of far-out tech, strange creatures, and secret magic. It’s a sci-fi/fantasy hybrid full of action, romance, mystery, and laughs. The first ten episodes are FREE! Click here for a list of all my books and serials.