Thursday, September 20, 2012

Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman Volume 4

Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman Volume 4Fantastic Four by Jonathan Hickman Volume 4 by Jonathan Hickman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Thing becomes human for a week. The Silver Surfer discovers the corpse of the future version of Galactus and comes looking for answers. Valeria makes a deal with Doom. Susan Richards gets caught in a conflict between Namor and the other Atlanteans. The Anti-Priest hatches a scheme that will see one of the Fantastic Four dead...

Over the course of the past three volumes, I've mentioned that while I like Jonathan Hickman's ideas, everything seems like set up. Not so with this one. The foreplay is over and the penetration has begun!

All the seeds Hickman has sown thus far come to fruition. Annihilus, Galactus, the Council of Reeds, Nu-World, the Future Foundation, all of it. It feels like a summer blockbuster. Everything that can go wrong does, and while it all works out eventually, nothing is the same.

Super hero deaths are so frequent that they barely register with me any more. The Human Torch's death was different. The issue was largely silent, showing the reactions of Johnny Storm's death through the super hero world. Franklin Richards' chat with Spiderman and The Thing brawling with Hulk and Thor were by far the most touching parts. How often do you see Thor shed a tear and the Hulk trying to comfort the Thing?[Super hero deaths are so frequent that they barely register with me any more. The Human Torch's death was different. The issue was largely silent, showing the reactions of Johnny Storm's death through the super hero world. Franklin Richards' chat with Spiderman and The Thing brawling with Hulk and Thor were by far the most touching parts. How often do you see Thor shed a tear and the Hulk trying to comfort the Thing? (hide spoiler)]
I had my doubts about Hickman's run all the way up until this point but he has completely redeemed himself.

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