Reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. Writer Matt Fraction’s two-comics-at-once experiment continues on in FF vol. 2 #12, a tale of portals, boxing, and… anime?

Here’s the recap again. The Fantastic Four went on a journey throughout time and space, leaving behind a replacement Fantastic Four – Ant-Man, Medusa, She-Hulk, and newcomer Darla Deering – to run the Future Foundation in their place. They disappeared, leaving the new team on their own. An older Johnny Storm, now known as Old John Storm, arrived from the future with a tale of an all-powerful Dr. Doom, called the Conquering Doom, who killed the Fantastic Four in the distant future. But then, present-day Dr. Doom has made a deal with Alex Power to spy on the new FF, holding Alex’s parents hostage. Doom wants Alex to kill Old John. For help with this, Alex and some of the other kids consulted Maximus the Mad, only to set him free.

We begin with Ant-Man having a nightmare. First he’s overseeing a bunch of ants in the form of the Future Foundation kids, and then he dreams of confronting Dr. Doom about the death of his daughter Cassie. He wakes in a fit, and Darla comes into his room to comfort him. Elsewhere in the new Baxter Building, Maximus is having breakfast (!) with Charles Cotta, the alien who once impersonated Julius Caesar and who is now a successful businessman. They agree that their own plans for world domination cannot move forward until Dr. Doom is defeated. Cotta says Maximus can build a device to bring the Fantastic Four back home, but it’d need the help of Old John Storm, whom Maximus is there to kill. Maximus says, “Not a problem. Build first. Kill later.”

Elsewhere, Dr. Doom is spying on the Baxter Building alongside Kid Immortus and Ravonna. Kid Immortus says what’s happening is destiny, leading Doom to become Doom the Annihilating Conqueror of Old John’s warning. Doom insists that he makes his own destiny. Also note that Annihilus is with them, acting mindless and insect-like.

At HQ, the Future Foundation kids are trying to get to know their newest member, Adolph Impossible, son of the Impossible Man. He has no interest in toys, games, or scary stories. Then the Moloid Mik shows him a comic book about the Fantastic Four fighting his father. Adolph is mesmerized by the comic.

Ant-Man and Medusa learn Maximus is in the building, so they jump to action, ignoring Turg the Moloid trying to tell them something important. They find Maximus at work on a portal, with Cotta telling the heroes to think of this as a work release program. Alex Power secretly contacts Dr. Doom, who is displeased that Old John still lives, but then he says Maximus’ portal intrigues him. He tells Alex to steal the plans for the portal so Doom can build one himself.

Ant-Man and Darla meet for coffee on the roof. Darla asks if the portal will actually work, and Scott says he’s given it a look and he estimates that it will either bring the Fantastic Four home, or nothing will happen at all. He then admits there’s the slightest chance something else could go wrong. Darla says, “I believe in you.” They both lean in for a kiss, only for Darla to accidentally (or not?) spill her cup of hot coffee on Ant-Man’s leg. She calls him a jerk (why?) and storms off.

We then join the Foundation kids mid-debate about whether the Impossible Man can be considered a villain. Adoph says he isn’t, but the others ask him to observe the “rule of the costume.” They say primary colors like red, blue, and yellow are for heroes, while secondary colors like green and purple are for villains. Artie Maddicks uses his hologram powers to project images of classic Marvel heroes and villains that demonstrate this point.

Inside the Baxter Building’s gym, Dragon Man has set up a boxing ring for She-Hulk and Darla, wearing her Ms. Thing suit. Dragon Man has come up with a means of controlling the Thing suit by remote control in case Darla is knocked out while wearing it. Adolph, still angry from the heroes/villains debate, finds Luna, daughter of Medusa, watching shojo anime based on Marvel heroes. Adolph likes it, and he and Luna start holding hands.

The portal is almost finished being assembled on the Baxter Building’s rooftop, with Dr. Doom and the others watching in secret. With only minutes to go, Kid Immortus says Old John will open the portal and the Fantastic Four will return with the key to defeating Doom. The only way to prevent this weakness, he says, is for Doom to transform into Doom the Annihilating Conqueror. Alex and Maximus are both ready to move in once Old John throws the switch. The portal activates, and the heroes and all the Future Foundation kids all disappear, leaving the rooftop empty. Kid Immortus says “That wasn’t supposed to happen.” Doom responds, “Obviously.”

To be continued!

Fantastic fifth wheel: Ant-Man and Darla are definitely on their way towards romance. I just don’t understand how Darla is mad at him when she’s the one who ruined the moment by spilling coffee on him.

She-Hulk and Darla ask why they have to be there for testing the Thing suit’s remote control, and Dragon Man says it’s more fun this way.

The H.E.R.B.I.E. robots can be seen helping build the portal. Freakin’ H.E.R.B.I.E. the robot.

Foundational: Onome tries and fails to impress Adolph with her Major Matt Mason toy collection. This was a real toy, first released in 1966, about an astronaut character living on a moonbase. The toy line was discontinued sometime in the ‘70s, but it remains popular among collectors. In 2011, actor Tom Hanks and filmmaker Robert Zemekis announced a 3-D Major Matt Mason movie, but it never happened.  

Trivia time: Was there ever an actual Marvel shojo anime? The Marvel characters have been adapted into anime a number of times, with the most well-known ones being produced by Madhouse Studios in 2011. Can any of these be considered shojo? That’s up for debate, since shojo is defined as being popular among adolescent and teen girls, and not necessarily any specific visual styles or storytelling tropes.

Fantastic or frightful? There’s only a few issues left in Matt Fraction’s dual comic experiment, and we’re still spending all this time on hijinks with the Foundation kids. Nothing against Hijinks, but I remain impatient for the main plot to get rocking and rolling.

Next: I was there when it all began.

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Want more? Check out my novel MOM, I’M BULLETPROOF. It’s a comedic/romantic/dramatic superhero epic! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08XPXBK14.