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Reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. We’ve reached the final issue for Mark Waid and Mike Wieringo, a run often considered one of the best in FF history. They take a bow in issue #524, getting to the heart of the friendship between Reed and Ben.

After a cosmic adventure which involved, among other things, switching Johnny and Sue’s powers, Reed attempted to swatch back their powers. Things went haywire, and four of the FF ended up powerless, with four random people gaining the powers. This issue begins with a man running to catch a bus, with his movements being tracked by Reed. The man uses Reed’s stretching powers to grab hold of the bus from down the street. It turns into Speed for a moment as the bus goes out of control, only for Reed, Johnny, and Sue to show up on cool flying motorcycles and save the day.

Reed zaps the guy with a high-tech glove, transferring the power back to him. He says the FF’s bodies are conditioned to hold the cosmic ray powers, but finding where the powers have gone is hard part. He adds that their powers are “hopscotching” from person to person around the city, so those four characters at the end of the last issue no longer have the powers (I was really looking forward to more of the nun from last issue who got Ben’s rocky strength, but alas).

Nearby, a cop shows up with Johnny’s powers, freaking out because he thinks he’s burning up, and a FedEx driver turns into a Thing. There’s some action as Ben, Johnny and Reed chase these two around the city. Ben hesitates on taking his power back from the FedEx driver, and the power moves on to someone else in the city. Johnny’s guy also loses his power to somewhere else.

Reed and Ben get into a bit of an argument. Ben says Reed has only made two mistakes in his life. First was the spaceflight that gave the FF their powers, and the second was this. Sue defends Reed, saying he has nothing to apologize for. Then they get a message from Johnny saying he’s found someone with Sue’s powers.

Cut to… a strip club?!? A dancer is on stage, invisible, in only a G-string and high heels. (This is a lot steamier than Fantastic Four comics usually get.) Sue tries to take the woman’s powers back, but the power moves on before she gets a chance. Outside, we follow Johnny as he chases his powers as they leap from person to person, including a horse (!), until he finally gets close enough to get his own power back.

Nearby, Sue and the team find an asthmatic woman who is having a panic attack. She needs her inhaler but can’t get it because of the invisible force field around herself. Sue convinces the woman to lower the force field, saying the control of it is all mental. She tells the woman that she’s not a freak or a lab experiment. She says she wants her power back, “So I can feel normal again.” We get a closeup of Reed as she says this, and he’s clearly moved by her words. Sue gets her powers back, and we’re told the woman gets proper medical attention.

Ben asks for a coffee break, and Reed calls him out for not actually trying to get his powers back. Ben takes off in a huff. Reed then admits to Johnny that he gave Ben a bogus gauntlet, adding that the powers can go back into the FF’s bodies, but he didn’t say which bodies. Then Reed looks down and realizes that Ben switched their gauntlets during the argument. Reed, Sue, and Johnny then chase Ben through the city and into the subway.

Ben says that Reed taking Ben’s powers and becoming the monster isn’t heroic, but selfish. Ben argues that Reed wouldn’t be able to work in the lab if he had the Thing’s bulk. He says he and the others are proud to be on the team, and proud to watch Reed’s back while his science makes the world a better place. He says, “You’re you ‘n I’m me and that’s th’ cosmic plan!”

They find a man in the subway with Ben’s Thing body punching a wall.  Ben touches him with the gauntlet and gets his Thing form back. When the others see him, all he says is, “I know.” He helps the man out, and then everyone returns to the new Baxter Building. Little Valeria is so happy to Ben back to normal she gives him a kiss on the cheek.

Then an alarm goes off, signaling trouble coming from the microverse. The heroes pile into the micro-craft, joking about there’s always some crisis to deal with. Reed says working alongside partners is what makes all the difference. He says, “As long as you’re with friends, there’s no limit to the adventure out there.”

Unstable molecule: Reed hands out business cards at the scene of the bus chase, saying the FF will pay for damages. This suggests that the FF’s finances are back on the upswing after the Latveria incident (long story) and everything that went down in the Marvel Knights 4 series (which I promise I will get to).

Fade out: Sue says the first time she ever used her force fields, she was frightened too, unable to touch or pick up anything. Except we’ve never seen this story. When her force fields debuted, it was in Reed’s lab as he was testing them out.

Clobberin’ time: Ben’s attitude these last couple of issues is that being the Thing only he can bear, so that no one else must deal with it instead.

Flame on: Johnny is having just a little too much fun at the strip club, and he’s a little too turned on by the idea of an invisible stripper. Like I said, this is naughtier than Fantastic Four usually gets.

Four and a half: Upon the team’s return to the new Baxter Building, Franklin asks, “What powers did you bring me?” Sue jokingly answers, “The power to be handsome.”

Our gal Val: It seems Valeria is talking more and more. When asked if babysitter Alicia is taking a nap Valeria replies, “Nap!”

Trivia time: In the bonus materials in the trade paperback, Mark Waid states that this arc was originally two separate story arcs. One was about Sue and Johnny switching powers, and one was about Ben becoming Galactus’ new herald and Galactus becoming human. When word came down from Marvel editorial that their time on the series was coming to an end, the two were combined into one storyline.

Oh, and what about Galactus? The trade also states that he was transformed from Galan back into Galactus in another comic almost immediately after this. At least he got to be human for a little while.

This issue remembers that the FF’s “4” symbols on their chests are also their communicators, as they use them while flying around New York.

Fantastic or frightful? This closes the book on Mark Waid and Mike Wieringo’s time on Fantastic Four. They really nailed it. Far-out sci-fi/fantasy with big action, but also a sense of family dynamics among our heroes. And then the key ingredient – they made it fun. I hope when (if?) the next movie is made, these comics are ones studied closely by the filmmakers.

Next: The real world.

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Reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. Issue #523 has it all. What does it mean to be human? What does it mean to wield cosmic power? Can there be perfection without imperfection? And so on.

Recap: Aliens obsessed with using invisibility to hide from Galactus came to Earth wanting to destroy Sue for her powers. Reed faked them out by switching Sue’s power with Johnny. Then Galactus himself showed up and made Johnny his new herald. While Johnny and Sue adjust to their new powers, Reed, Sue, Ben and special guest star Nova head off into space to confront Galactus and get Johnny back. Using Johnny’s newfound cosmic sight powers, Reed and Quasar concocted a machine to transform Galactus back into his original human form, Galan.

The first page of this issue establishes that Galactus’ cosmic importance still exists, as does his planet-devouring hunger. This is illustrated by Galan in a pool hall trying to eat the 8 ball. Ben has brought him here for a hot dog, and to explore what it means to be human. Reed shows up, putting an end the silliness, saying that Galan is only human temporarily. He says they’ve only got a limited amount of time to teach Galan human empathy before he turns back into Galactus. If they succeed, Galactus might spare inhabited planets from destruction in the future.

Back at the New Baxter Building, Quasar works the machines in Reed’s lab, saying it will take about 24 hours of recalibration to switch Sue and Johnny’s powers back to normal. Quasar adds that Galactus’ power cosmic is floating around the cosmos searching for Galan, and once it finds him, Galan will become Galactus again. Quasar flies off with Sue and Johnny’s thanks, bowing out of this story.

Sue and Johnny have a heart-to-heart chat, with Sue admitting she never realized just how hard it is to control the fire powers. She asks if he will miss the invisibility powers, or the power cosmic. He has a flashback of flying through space, but then says, “Nah. I’ll be fine.”

Later, at Central Park, Ben, Johnny, and Galan are taking the kids ice skating. Galan is unmoved, arguing that the family togetherness is all for show. He calls the kids “germ-ridden,” and Johnny says he’s been calling New York “the worst” ever since he arrived. Galan argues that his homeworld Taa was the pinnacle of technological and spiritual achievement, and NYC is a cesspool in comparison. He says devouring the Earth would be a mercy killing. Johnny and Ben argue that the Silver Surfer once thought the same way but came to appreciate humanity. Then they both realize that the one who taught the Surfer humanity was Alicia.

At the Guggenheim Museum, Alicia and Sue give Galan the tour, with Alicia showing off her smarts about art in all its forms. Galan calls the classic art unremarkable and pedestrian. When they come across one of Alicia’s own sculptures, Galan says he doesn’t understand why someone blind would attempt art and not just “surrender herself.” While Alicia continues to speak eloquently on other artwork, Sue says to Galan, “You wouldn’t understand.” Sue and Alicia continue Galan’s tour of NYC, but he can only focus on how broken society is, and none of its good points.

At Reed’s lab, he’s experimenting with opening portals to other dimensions, hoping there might something in one of them to satiate Galactus’ hunger. He says he’s not giving up, and Galan emerges from the shadows to ask, “Why not?” Reed argues that common trait of intelligent life throughout the universe is ambition, and a natural inclination for achievement and betterment. Even though his lab is on the cutting edge of knowledge, Reed admits there are hundreds of others on Earth just as smart as he is, who have insights he lacks, and future generations will have even more. Every time Galactus destroys a world, Reed said, all this achievement dies with it.

Upon hearing this, Galan locks himself in the portal room. Fearing that Galan is going to open a portal to energies that will destroy the Earth, the FF try to break inside, but Reed’s safeguards are too strong for them. Reed tries to reason with Galan, but Galan only says, “I’ve misjudged you.”

Galan gives a big speech, saying that he’s struck with humanity’s inability to surrender to hopelessness. He says he recognizes that feeling even among cosmic beings, and he says, “Who am I to extinguish in you that which lies within myself?” Instead of destroying the Earth, he is sparing it. He’s voluntarily going through the portal to exile himself in another dimension. Even if the power cosmic finds him there, he says even that will save the Earth. Or, he says, humanity might find a solution to the finality of Galactus. “I have every confidence they will eventually do,” he says. “After all… that is their nature.” With that, he disappears into the portal and it shuts behind him.

Reed says there’s a loose end to tie up, which is switching Sue and Johnny’s powers back. They step into the power-switching device, only for it to go haywire. Reed says there are still small traces of the power cosmic in Johnny’s system. The machine explodes. As our heroes crawl from the wreckage, Reed, Sue and Johnny discover their powers are gone, and Ben is human again. Reed asks where their powers might have gone.

On the next page, we see a boxer with Reed’s stretching power, a firefighter with Johnny’s fire powers, a man on a date with Sue’s invisibility powers, and a nun (!) turning into a big, rocky Thing.

To be continued!

Unstable molecule: Reed’s safeguards around the portal chamber are meant to keep cosmic energy from getting out, but those same safeguards lock the FF out, which seems like a design flaw. The chamber is made of an adamantium-vibranium alloy, which raises a lot of questions. Historically, the only known existence of this alloy in the Marvel Universe is Captain America’s shield, so where’d Reed get so much of it?

Fade out: Sue apologizes to Johnny, saying she’s shortchanged him over the years, and she has a better understanding of who is as a person now she’s experienced his powers.

Clobberin’ time: There’s a lengthy discussion about Johnny volunteering to switch his powers with Ben, so Ben can be human again. Reed says Ben refused, not wanting anyone else to become a Thing in his place. (And then that’s what happens at the end of the issue.)

Flame on: Johnny says he’s still adapting to not having his fire powers, saying he can’t remember the last time he worked up a sweat.

Four and a half: Franklin is apparently a talented ice skater, but not enough to impress Galan.

Our gal Val: It’s hard to tell, but it seems Valeria has gotten even taller. At the very least, she’s definitely grown from baby to little kid.

Trivia time: At the pool hall, Ben cavalierly blurts out, “Matt Murdock is Daredevil!” This is a reference to the Marvel Knights Daredevil series running at this time, when a tabloid revealed DD’s secret identity to the world. This left Murdock with the predicament of publicly denying he is Daredevil, while still secretly fighting evil in back alleys at night as Daredevil.

The pool hall is called Maisie’s, and Ben says it serves the best hot dogs on Yancy Street. You’d think this would be a Marvel mainstay, but according to the wiki, it’s never seen again after this. One customer at Maisie’s is named Lurleen, and is clearly based on Lurleen Lumpkin from The Simpsons.

Fantastic or frightful? Here we have Mark Waid, Mike Wieringo, and their co-conspirator Karl Kesel firing on all cylinders. This is far-out sci-fi with a lot of big ideas, but it’s still a very human story about a family of adventurers wresting with their own thoughts on what it means to be human. This is the type of story that would make a great Fantastic Four movie.

Next: Get thee to a nunnery.

• * * * *

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Reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. How do you do a Galactus story different from the original, classic Galactus story? There’s no right answer to that question, but Mark Waid and Mike Wieringo give it a try in issue #522.

Recap: Aliens obsessed with using invisibility to hide from Galactus came to Earth wanting to destroy Sue for her powers. Reed faked them out by switching Sue’s power with Johnny. Then Galactus himself showed up and made Johnny his new herald. While Johnny and Sue adjust to their new powers, Reed, Sue, Ben and special guest star Nova head off into space to confront Galactus and get Johnny back. Johnny, not wanting to lead Galactus to any inhabited planets, confronts Galactus as to why the guy even needs a herald. Galactus gave him a stern, “Go on.”

This issue begins with Johnny recounting Galactus’ origin story. Galactus was originally Galan, a scientist on the planet Taa. Fearing the planet was doomed, Galaen and three others flew into space in hopes of salvation. Something went wrong and they were bombarding with cosmic rays and were transformed. Johnny remarks how similar this is the FF’s origin, and he moves on. Galan’s ship is destroyed, and he’s contacted by the “sentience of the universe” who draws all matter into itself and collapsed the universe, creating the big bang, and naming Galan as its heir. Galan was transformed into Galactus, a being with great cosmic power, and hunger to devour entire worlds.

Cut back to the present, and Johnny says Galactus has forgotten what it means to be human, even though hunger is a basic human need. Galactus zaps Johnny with energy blasts to put him back in his place. The FF and Quasar show up to rescue Johnny, albeit temporarily. Using his newfound powers of cosmic sight, Johnny is able to see his teammates’ memories.

Galactus loses interest in Quasar and starts preparing his converter machine, which he uses to help him devour planets. Johnny comes up with a plan to wreck the converter. Ben, Sue, and Quasar go about trashing the inside of Galactus’ ship, while Reed and Johnny debate whether the cosmic power that transformed Galactus is the same as the cosmic rays that gave the FF their powers. Johnny says it’s the same in principle.

Using the knowledge given to him by Johnny, Reed has Quasar build a machine out of quantum energy. Galactus threatens to remove Johnny’s cosmic power, while Ben and Sue succeed in destroying the converter’s self-guidance system just as the converter heads down to a nearby planet. Galactus comes to the planet to repair the converter. Ben points out that Quasar’s machine is a variation on the one that switched Johnny and Sue’s powers. Johnny uses the power cosmic to fire up the machine, telling everyone to cross their fingers.

A beam shoots out of Quasar’s machine and strikes Galactus. It appears to have no effect at first, but then Galactus seems to disappear and his armor collapses to the ground. Johnny transforms back to normal, losing his cosmic awareness. Then a man emerges from Galactus’ armor. Galactus has transformed back into Galan – human again.

To be continued!

Unstable molecule: In Johnny’s vision of Reed, he sees Reed as a gifted scientist in college, exploring a jungle, and romancing Sue. This further establishes Reed as a Doc Savage-like adventurer, rather than a stuck-up guy never leaving his lab.

Fade out: Johnny’s vision of Sue is only her caring for Franklin and Valeria. It kind of sucks that we don’t see her have any other interests or experiences, but maybe Johnny is bringing his own preconceptions to the vision, as Sue was a surrogate mom to him growing up.

Clobberin’ time: Johnny’s vision of Ben shows Ben as a football star and as a heroic test pilot. It’s telling that Johnny only sees Ben as human and not as a rock monster.

Flame on: Johnny is upset with his teammates because he believes that not only did they replace him so quickly, they replaced him with Quasar of all people. I for one am not seeing any official “welcome to the team” scene for Quasar, so unlike Johnny I’m okay with Quasar being a guest and not an official FF fifth member.

SUE-per spy: The 2019 Invisible Woman miniseries established that Sue has had a double life as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent all this time. Johnny doesn’t see this in his vision of her, though. Either he’s only seeing her life before that, or maybe he somehow already knows about her spy gig.

Trivia time: Galactus’ origin story is sort of like Doctor Doom’s in that there have been so many retellings of it, there’s no way to be sure which version is the real one. Prior to this, the origin was told in Thor #169, and then a longer version in Super-Villain Classics #1. It’ll later be retold again in Ultimates vol 3 #2 and in Fantastic Four: Grand Design.

You might recall that Galactus transformed back into human Galan once before, in the Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Comics Magazine miniseries. But, that part of the story was wiped from everyone’s memories by the Cosmic Cube. This issue suggests that even Galactus himself had his memory wiped of that incident.

Who, exactly, is the “Sentience of the universe” who saved Galan from destruction while also causing the big bang? The Marvel Wiki reports that this was Eternity, the living embodiment of all things. It’s a rare moment of Eternity taking an active rather than passive role in matters regarding creation and existence.

Fantastic or frightful? This is another issue where everything moves a fast pace, setting all the pieces in place so that we get all the good stuff in the next issue. That seems to be intentional on Mark Waid’s part, with one issue being plot followed by one focused on character, then one on plot, and so on. Nonetheless, there’s a lot of fun cosmic Marvel action in this one.

Next: So this is Earth.

• * * * *

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• Reading the Fantastic Four comcis from the start. Issue #521 gets deep into just what it’s like to be a herald of Galactus – something we’ve all thought about from time to time, I’m sure.

Recap: Aliens obsessed with using invisibility to hide from Galactus came to Earth wanting to destroy Sue for her powers. Reed faked them out by switching Sue’s power with Johnny. Then Galactus himself showed up and made Johnny his new herald. While Johnny and Sue adjust to their new powers, Reed, Sue, Ben and special guest star Nova head off into space to confront Galactus and get Johnny back.

While flying through space, Sue worries that becoming a herald has made Johnny cold and inhuman, like the Silver Surfer was when we first met him. Turn the page, and we see Johnny enjoying the perks of being a herald as he flies around in an outer space hot rod. Later, Galactus’ ship appears above an alien planet. The aliens believe their planet is undetectable, and they have seen no sign of a herald. Then Johnny appears before them. They aliens attack him, only for him to easily defend himself. He talks to the planet’s leader, saying he has no intention of delivering their planet to Galactus, but he might have no choice unless he finds an uninhabited planet that can satisfy Galactus’ hunger. The aliens try to convince Johnny to sic Galactus on their enemies, and Johnny won’t have it, saying “People really are alike all over.”

Johnny tries another planet, only for the inhabitants there to fire nukes at him. He uses his invisibility powers to find the missiles’ detonators and then he uses force fields to separate the detonators from the missiles. He remarks that the Galactus’ power cosmic gives him senses and knowledge he didn’t have before. He tries a few more planets until he finds one that seems suitable. But then he’s attacked by the planet’s intelligent larvae.

Galactus teleports Johnny back to his ship, and Johnny realizes that the power cosmic has given the invisibility powers a “cosmic sight” where he can automatically sense anything hidden. He asks Galactus for more time. Galactus zaps him while he pleads for just another day. Johnny says through the pain, “Please, I’m begging you, don’t make me a murderer.” After the pain subsides, Johnny questions why a godlike being like Galactus would even need a herald at all.

It then dawns on Johnny that Galactus needs Johnny for Johnny’s humanity. Galactus only appears humanoid to other humans because that’s how human brains process his appearance. In reality, Galactus is a being so cosmic that human senses are beneath him. Johnny then calls Galactus by his original name, Galen. This gets Galactus’ attention. He turns to Johnny and says, “Go on.” And with that, the story is…

To be continued!

Unstable molecule: While the team flies through space, Reed is so lost in thought that he doesn’t realize Quasar is speaking to him.

Fade out: Although the cover shows Sue possibly losing control of her new fire powers, she doesn’t use them in her one scene in this issue.

Clobberin’ time: Ben and Quasar mention that the heroes had already stopped to get something to eat while traveling through space. I wonder what that scene was like.

Flame on: Johnny uses his cool hot rod only once, using the rest of the issue to fly around on invisible force fields.

Trivia time: The alien planets seen in this issue are Rohnyn III, Silocus, Aquion, Sqaav, and Brum. The Marvel Wiki states that this is the only appearance of the first four, while poor Brum doesn’t get an entry at all.  

Somebody behind the scenes at the Marvel Wiki thinks they’re being cute by listing Sue as “The Human Torch” and Johnny as “The Invisible Man” for this issue.

Fantastic or frightful? A fun solo story for Johnny, that shows him not just learning his new powers, but learning his new powers on a cosmic level. It also shows his heart, in his refusal to kill others. I’m reminded of all the guilt Johnny experienced after he accidentally destroyed part of Empire State University back in issue #371. Marvel editorial no doubt wants to sweep those issues under the rug, but I like that to think that experience helped inform Johnny’s actions in this issue.

Next: Taa-an again.

• * * * *

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Reading the Fantastic Four comics from the start. In issue #520, Johnny becomes the new herald of Galactus. We’ve got space battles, a special guest star, and even a kissing scene.

Recap: Aliens attacked the Earth in hopes of killing Sue, so they could invisibly hide from Galactus forever without Sue’s power to make them visible again. Reed tricked the aliens by switching Sue and Johnny’s powers. Then Galactus arrived on Earth in person, transforming Johnny with a powerful energy blast.

We begin with Reed, Sue, and Johnny falling from the new Baxter Building, with Ben commenting, “That was a short fight.” Sue tries to fly Ben to safety, but she’s still getting used to controlling the flame powers. Reed instead saves Ben by stretching around him and using his body to bungee-jump Ben to the sidewalk below.

Reed deduces that Galactus has recruited Johnny to become his new herald. Reed blames himself, but a furious Sue says, “It should be me.” The three of them rally, planning to venture into space, in pursuit of Galactus and Johnny. Reed hopes to find them before Johnny unknowingly leads Galactus to an inhabited world.

On board Galactus’ ship, Johnny is pestering Galactus, asking him where the bathroom is. Using his newfound invisible force field powers, he flies around the ship making wisecracks, until Galactus ejects him into space. Johnny says it’s like letting a dog out into the yard. An alien with a flaming sword approaches. He is Karragan the Unforgiving, and he’s come seeking revenge against Galactus after Galactus destroyed his planet.

At the new Baxter Building, Sue is in the shower while flamed on, causing steam to go everywhere. She’s finding it hard to keep the fire in check. She has a flashback to her and Johnny when they were younger and living on their own. He was driving her crazy while bouncing a basketball around inside the house, only for her to find a Mother’s Day gift for her, with a note saying, “For the best sister in the whole world.”

Reed affixes Ben with a “combination deep-space survival suit and flight unit.” Reed adds that he’s called an old friend for help to reach Galactus’ ship. Ben talks with Alicia on the phone. He assures her that the alien invasion was just a “drop-in,” and he asks her to look after the kids while the team in away. Ben has a flashback to his and Alicia’s first date, which is awkward until Johnny flies by outside with a message, “Now kiss her, you lummox.” And he does. Back in the present, Ben says, “I hate ta admit it, but I honestly care about th’ kid.”

On the roof of the HQ, Reed, Sue, and Ben meet up with Quasar. He says he hoped to stop Zius and Galactus on his own, what with him being the official protector of the universe and all, but his “personal priorities” got in the way. With the power his quantum bands, they take off.

In space, Johnny tries to talk Karragan down, but all the alien wants to do is fight. Johnny exclaims “Back off!” as he draws upon the Power Cosmic, which is given to all heralds of Galactus. Johnny then vivisects Karragan in a gory way, only to them put him back together again. Johnny returns Karragan to the wilderness planet where he currently lives, and says he can sense the alien healing already. Overwhelmed, Johnny remarked that he only blinked and unleashed power that Sue never dreamed of. He asks, “What am I becoming?”

Unstable molecule: Reed at one point tells Sue to stop the “hysterics.” I think the idea is to illustrate that the fire powers are affecting Sue’s personality, but this is still not a good look for Reed.

Fade out: Sue’s flashback recalls that she was left to raise Johnny on her own after their criminal father hit rock bottom.

Clobberin’ time: Not counting those times when he turned human, this is the first time we’ve seen Ben and Alicia kiss. It’s also a different side of the normally rough and tumble Ben as he speaks eloquently about her sculptures and about the perfume she’s wearing.

Flame on: Johnny assumed Reed and the others are already on their way to rescue him. He adds that it will be difficult to pull Reed away from all the far-out tech inside Galactus’ ship.

Trivia time: There’s a reference to Quasar being the FF’s former tenant. For most of Quasar’s solo series, he operated from an office in one of the lower floors of Four Freedoms Plaza, the team’s former HQ. This was established in Quasar #3, and it remained that way until his final issue in #60.

What is the personal business that kept Quasar busy during the invasion? Unknown. His last appearance before this was when the Avengers split up in the recent Avengers: Disassembled event.

The Marvel Wiki states that this is the first and only known appearance of Karragan the Unforgiving. I’m curious about the “only known” phrasing. Does someone updating the Wiki think that Karragan might be drawn into a background of some other comic?

Fantastic or frightful? After the last issue with checking a bunch of boxes to get the story set up, the plot properly gets under way this time. There are a lot of great character moments as Waid, Wieringo and Kesel take some time to explore this new premise. Great stuff.

Next: Hot rod.

• * * * *

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