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Reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. With issue #39, we’re in the middle of a run of issues that are serialized, so prepare for cliffhangers and recaps. At the end of the last issue, after their fight with the Frightful Four, our heroes were caught in a mysterious “Q-bomb” explosion, which seems to have had strange effects on them.

The issue begins out at sea, with a submarine crew rescuing a still-unconscious Fantastic Four, noting that the Thing has become an ordinary human. Aboard the sub, Reed stirs, flashing back to the end of last issue. As the four are revived, what the readers have already figured out becomes evident to our heroes – they’ve lost their powers.

Back at home, Reed dives into research, although finding a way to restore everyone’s powers seems fruitless. Days later, Reed has come up with an alternate solution. He’s invented suits for Sue and Johnny that mimic their powers. He then creates a Thing lookalike robot that Ben can operate with remote control. This leads to some slapstick, as the robot isn’t so easy to manage, and it knocks down a few walls. Reed says all this work is to prevent the FF’s enemies from learning they are powerless.

On cue, we cut to Latveria, where Dr. Doom is sitting on his throne being entertained by a hypnotist. Sure, why not? This guy is so good, he can tell that Doom’s mind has been messed with, and that he still believes he defeated the FF back in annual #2. The hypnotist undoes the mental block. Doom remembers what happens, and he is pissed off. He takes off in a goofy-looking “gyroscopic flying machine of his own design,” in search of revenge.

Back in New York, blind attorney Matt Murdock shows up at the Baxter Building, wondering why the FF called him there. Reed, who has built an exoskeleton to stimulate his stretching, says he wants Murdock to have power of attorney in case something happens to them. Murdock can sense something is wrong with the team, but he’s not sure what. Before he can ponder this further, the building is rocked with an explosion. The FF uses their faux powers to escape the wreckage, with mixed results. Murdock, meanwhile, ducks around a corner and dons his red costume, changing into Daredevil, the man without fear!

The lights are knocked out, but this is of course no problem for DD, who leads the Fantastic Four to safety through the dark. Sure enough, Dr. Doom is behind the attack. Daredevil quickly deduces that the FF has no powers, and he agrees to keep helping them. Things get worse as Doom takes over the Baxter Building, with our heroes on the outside. Doom hijacks the FantastiCar and sends it after our heroes by remote control. Daredevil helps them out with his sharp reflexes and quick thinking. Doom then pulls out a vortex machine, using it to destroy buildings all over the city. Daredevil and the FF are on the run, being pursued by the vortex. Reed and Daredevil use some convenient gas canisters to destroy the vortex.

Doom is next to figure out his enemies have no powers. He sends more high-tech weapons after them. Daredevil helps save everyone, but they’re separated, and spread out among the city. The issue ends with our four heroes on their own and under fire in the streets of New York, while Daredevil heads straight toward Doom to confront him. To be continued!

Unstable molecule: Even without his powers, Reed manages to help out with his brains, outsmarting Doom as best he can.

Fade out: Sue’s invisibility suit doesn’t work very well, as everyone can still sort-of see her, and trying to generate a force field shorts it out.

Clobberin’ time: Ben hardly reacts to being human again, desperately wanting his powers back. The issue tells us that this is because the FF are now vulnerable to attack, but this also speaks to how accustomed he has gotten to the new him.

Flame on: Johnny’s flame suit works best out of all the power replacements, but it doesn’t last long in the rubble after the big explosion.

Trivia time: This is actually not the first time the FF have met Daredevil. In Daredevil #2, Matt Murdock became the team’s personal attorney after Daredevil helped them in a fight against the evil Electro.

Fantastic or frightful: I’m a sucker for “superheroes temporarily lose their powers” stories, because they’re usually character-driven, as the heroes are forced to deal with change and think on their feet. Having Daredevil here cheapens that somewhat, as he does the team’s fighting for them, but this is still a great, suspenseful, “how will they get out of this one?” issue.

Next week: Slugfest!

****

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Re-reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. We just met the Frightful Four two issues ago, and now they’re back for more in #38.

This one begins on an odd note, in which our heroes are standing atop a bunch of giant photographs Reed took during their trip to the Skrull homeworld last issue. This is quickly forgotten about in favor of some wacky slapstick in the customary “the characters show off their powers for a few pages at the beginning” thing, including a weird bit where Ben catches Sue and threatens to spank her! He’s just kidding, right?

The fun and games end as we’re reunited with the Frightful Four. There’s the Wizard with his gravity-manipulation powers, Medusa with her super hair, and Spider-Man’s old foe the Sandman. The fourth member, Paste Pot Pete, announces that he’s officially changed his codename to the Trapster. “It’s a name with dignity!” he says. He’s also gotten rid of his glue gun in favor of a bunch of high-tech gadgets he calls his traps. The Frightful Four fight among themselves for a bit, including an eye-popping full-page spread in which the Wizard knocks his teammates around. It’s a fun contrast – the FF’s bickering is playful, while their enemies bickering is more mean-spirited.

The Frightful Four’s first move is (sigh) to kidnap Sue while Sue is out shopping. (Sigh, again) Reed, Johnny and Ben learn of this and investigate, but with no luck. The villains are hiding out on a pacific atoll that was recently the site of nuclear testing. There, the Wizard explains that the plan is merely to destroy the FF. To do this, he has constructed a deadly “Q-bomb.”

The Wizard’s ship, a little sphere-shaped thing, appears in the sky over New York, and we get several pages of Reed, Ben and Johnny chasing it around. It eventually captures Johnny and cutting off his powers by wrapping him up in “asbestos tape.” Sure, why not? Reed and Ben pursue. At the atoll, the Frightful Four emerge from hiding, Johnny and Sue both escape, and everybody fights. The frightful four escape while the FF are momentarily distracted as they locate Sue underground. There, Ben recognizes the Q-bomb (how is it that he’s the one who recognizes it? From his days as a test pilot?) and he knows it’s about to go off.

From a distance, the Frightful Four watch (and gloat) as the Q-bomb explodes, with our heroes still on the island. Unbeknownst to the bad guys, Sue managed to save everyone in a force field, only to have the blast knock all four of them unconscious. As they’re knocked out, Ben turns back into a human and… cliffhanger!

Unstable molecule: Reed at one point stretches into a giant spring to launch Ben into the air, which is good. Later, he lets himself get punched in the face by the Trapster, which isn’t as good.

Fade out: Sue gets taken captive again, but does manage to rescue everyone at the end.

Clobberin’ time: The Wizard’s spherical ship is almost like a fifth member of the Frightful Four, so it’s gratifying when Ben finally gets ahold of it and smashes it real good.

Flame on: The Trapster tries to take out Johnny with some “suction blasts.” It doesn’t work, though, as Johnny later chases him off with his flame.

Trivia time: This is the issue that attempts to make Paste Pot Pete cooler by renaming him “the Trapster,” but it never really sticks, and he’s gone on to become something of a joke character.

Fantastic or frightful: I never like it when the villain’s only motivation is to destroy the hero, and that’s the case here, making the Frightful Four somewhat uninteresting. Nonetheless, here’s a rare case of the bad guys flat-out winning at the end of the story. The cliffhanger promises to stir up big things in the next issue.

Next week: Meet Mr. Billy Club!

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app.

Re-reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. Time to blast off into outer space, for issue #37. With a title like “Behold a Distant Star,” you know we’re in for some serious Silver Age goodness.

The fun begins as Ben and Johnny are trying on their outfits for Reed and Sue’s wedding rehearsal, when Johnny’s powers go haywire and burn up the clothes. This is due to Reed’s latest doo-hickey, a “power ray.” He explains it increases the FF’s powers by drawing energy from, “an unknown source from somewhere beyond the confines of our solar system.”

Reed turns off the device and has a chat with Sue, who’s feeling down. She’s upset because the alien Skrulls responsible for her father’s death have gone unpunished. Reed says there’s nothing he can do, since the Skrull homeworld is countless lightyears away. That nicely segues into the next scene, aboard a Skrull cruiser in a distant galaxy, where we meet Lord Morrat and Princess Anelle. Morrat is apparently the one who planted the bomb on Sue’s father back in issue #34, killing him. (I went back to that issue, and the Skrull leader in that one isn’t named and has his back the reader the whole time, so, sure, why not this guy?) Morrat fancies himself a hunter, and is full of bravado over all of his conquests. Anelle frets, saying, “Why do I love you so?”

Back on Earth, Reed has caved to Sue, and announces that the FF will go into space, all the way to the Skrull homeworld, so the Skrulls can face justice for the murder. The next couple of pages are sci-fi technobabble as Reed’s spaceship is able to travel vast distances thanks to a space-time warp. They head to a planet (how they decide on this planet, I’m not clear) where they are ambushed and captured by Skrull soldiers. The soldiers have devices that sap our heroes of their powers. The baddies take the Fantastic Four to Morrat. Morrat frets over what to do with the FF. Anelle says he must turn them over to her father, the Skrull king. He agrees, although Anelle says she has trouble believing him. Turns out she was right, because once she’s gone, Morrat announces he plans to kill the FF, which will set him up as the biggest hero in the galaxy.

The FF, still powerless, are brought before a Skrull firing squad. Reed pleads for his teammates’ lives, offering all his scientific knowledge in exchange for their lives. With Reed’s smarts, Morrat believes the Earth is his. Elsewhere, Anelle goes to see the Skrull King, who, oddly, is watching a bunch of acrobats perform. He doesn’t trust Morrat, either, fearing Morrat wants nothing but the crown. Anelle mentions the Fantastic Four, only to learn that Morrat didn’t give the FF to the king as promised. The king calls Morrat a traitor and rallies his troops.

Back with Morrat, Reed has built another power ray. He turns it on his teammates, acting as if he’s betraying them to the Srkulls. But, no. Remember the start of the issue? The ray boosts the FF’s powers so they’re back to full strength. Time for fighting! Although outnumbered and outgunned, our four heroes plow through the troops.

The king shows up, surrounding Morrat. He demands Morrat be arrested, but Morrat calls for the king’s death. The king’s men prepare to fire, as Anelle jumps between them and Morrat. Sue protects Anelle with an invisible force field, but not Morrat, who gets gunned down. Rescuing Anelle softens the heart of the king. Without the power-hungry Morrat, the king says the Skrulls are no longer enemies of Earth, and will leave Earth alone. The FF head back home, just in time for the wedding rehearsal.

Unstable molecule: During the space flight, Reed takes a moment to draw out a diagram on a chalkboard to explain the time warp. Sheesh, scientists…

Fade out: In addition to rescuing the princess, Sue kicks (kicks!) a gun out of a Skrull soldier’s hand during the fight.

Clobberin’ time: Once Ben gets his strength back, he benefits from some brilliant Jack Kirby action, ripping apart a giant missile and tossing a whole bunch of Skrulls into the air at once. His past as a test pilot also comes in handy in space.

Flame on: Johnny doesn’t do much in this one, but he does cause one Skrull to cry, “Flee! Nothing can withstand the fury of his flames!”

Trivia time: This is the first Skrull story that doesn’t use, or even mention, their shape-changing powers.

Fantastic or frightful? What a fun issue. The space setting brings out the best in Jack Kirby’s art, and the story is just plain fun from beginning to end. Loved it.

Next week: Ban the bomb!

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app.

Re-reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. When you have a superhero or group of superheroes who’ve had a lot of successes, it becomes a challenge to come up with new threats for them to face. Hence this issue, which attempts to have the FF meet their match once and for all.

It begins with a press conference, as Reed and Sue announce their engagement to a bunch of reporters. It’s all very lovey-dovey, but there’s some laughs to be had as the Yancy Street Gang sends a flower-bomb (!) to surprise our heroes.

Time to meet our villains. First is Paste Pot Pete, who commits crimes with his high-tech glue gun (I swear I’m not making this up). He’s joined by Spider-Man villain Sandman, who can turn into powerful waves of sand, and the Wizard, who can manipulate gravity. A flashback ties together continuity, showing how the Wizard survived his apparent death after his last appearance in Strange Tales #118. Basically, Sandman and Pete were in the midst of a jail escape when the rescued the Wizard, and the three decided to team up. The Wizard then reveals there’s a fourth member of their team, Madame Medusa. She’s an amnesiac he rescued from a plane crash on a small Mediterranean island. He power, the Wizard says, is her “unconquerable hair!”

There’s more comedy antics at headquarters as Sue has a crowd of followers fussing over her hair, dress, and engagement gifts, while Johnny prepares fireworks for the wedding. Elsewhere, the newly-formed Frightful Four meets, as the Wizard proudly proclaims he’s renaming himself the “Wingless Wizard.” (He’s been hanging out with Paste Pot Pete too long.)

At the engagement party, it’s a Marvel continuity-a-thon, as the X-Men and Avengers are all present. A gloved hand is seen swiping a piece of cake – this is supposed to be Spidey, right? Later that night, the Frightful Four lands their flying saucer (where’d they get that?) on the Baxter Building roof and they sneak inside surprisingly easy. They take out the Thing first, gluing his hands together and knocking him out with the Wizard’s “sleep spray.” Reed and Sue fight back, but Reed ends up glued to the floor, and Sue gets tied up in Medusa’s hair. Elsewhere, Alicia is hiding out inside the FF’s kitchen (wait, isn’t the middle of the night? What’s she doing there?). She gets a hold of one of FF’s flare guns and fires it into the sky.

Across the city, Johnny is working on a sweet hot rod when his buddies tell him about the flare. As he flies into action, the Wizard attaches anti-grav discs to Reed, Sue, Ben, and Alicia, so they’ll float upward into space, killing them. (Dang!) Johnny forces the Wizard into the flying saucer and threatens to burn the Wizard if he doesn’t rescue Johnny’s teammates. (Harsh, Johnny.) They’re saved, but the other three Frightful-ers pursue, having stolen the FF’s pogo plane. The two ships chase each other around, and Sandman jumps outside the plane to attack the saucer… in space. With him out of the picture, the two ships crash in a forested area.

While invisible, Sue steals Paste Pot Pete’s gun, and without it, he’s defeated. (Pete you’re pathetic.) She then uses the glue gun to incapacitate Medusa’s hair. While this is happening, the Wizard rigs his ship to explode, and he and Sandman escape in the blast. Our heroes are left to wonder if they’ll ever encounter their four counterparts again.

Unstable molecule: In space, Reed is able to stretch into a balloon-like shape around his teammates, trapping air inside himself so they can breathe. Nice trick.

Fade out: Sue uses her force fields offensively during the fight, basically creating two invisible cannonballs to knock out Pete and Sandman.

Clobberin’ time: Ben sleeps through most of the issue, but has a great line after the FF has captured the Wizard, “Step lively there, cuddles, this is the end of the line!”

Flame on: This issue is a showcase for Johnny, as he fights the entire Frightful Four on his own, and then rescues his teammates from certain death.

Trivia time: The Wizard, the Sandman, and Paste Pot Pete had previously fought the Human Torch in his solo adventures in Strange Tales, which explains why they hate the FF so much in this issue. Pete will get a cooler name the next time we see him, but it won’t help. His status as “lame joke hero” will last forever.

More notably, this is the first appearance of Medusa, who’ll go on to have all kinds of adventures in the Marvel Universe, becoming a queen of the Inhumans, and even a member of… the Fantastic Four.

Fantastic or Frightful: I love the idea of an alternate foursome to square off with our heroes, but these four goofballs just don’t cut it. The Frightful Four is often thought of as joke villains, and won’t really become an equal/alternate to the FF until their reimagined during Mark Waid and Mike Wieringo’s landmark run on the title years later.

Next week: The final frontier…

****

Want more? Check out my book, CINE HIGH, now available for the Kindle and the free Kindle app.