Fantastic 4 First Steps

I remember when the trailer for Marvel's introduction of the Fantastic Four dropped. I was, at first, super excited, and then when I looked a little closer, I could see it was set either in an alternate universe or just in the mid to late 1900s, which I was right about. For a second, I contemplated whether I was going to see it, but as a Marvel enthusiast since the age of 7, there was no way I was going to miss it, good or bad. I had to see it! I finally was able to go and see it and was even able to bring my little ones along to watch as well, so it was a perfect blend of family time and work time. Here are my thoughts 💭

It takes place on Earth-828 as Marvel continues its multiverse saga. They touch briefly on how they got their powers by going to space and how a cosmic incident happened. I love how that was written; it just gives a summary of how they got their powers, as opposed to the previous Fox Century version, which spent part of the actual movie explaining how they got their powers.

The family starts off with breaking news! Susan is pregnant, and apparently, she and Reed were trying forever. The big question was whether the baby was blessed with superpowers or not. The movie becomes very interesting when the Silver Surfer shows up, doing her servant's due diligence to the all-powerful Galactus. What is so cool about Marvel's version is they made the Surfer female! She was acquired by Galactus in turn to spare the planet she came from!

Just when the Fantastic Four thought they would be relaxing and getting ready for baby Franklin to arrive, the Surfer arrives and marks the Earth they love for death. Reed and the team jump into action and attempt to negotiate with Galactus, which goes horribly wrong. He wanted the baby that was growing in Susan’s stomach, and that was way too high a price for the Four to pay. Therefore, after nearly escaping Earth, they returned and prepped a new plan.

With baby Franklin in hand, Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben knew they were up against the clock; the Surfer and Galactus were coming!

What stood out to me a lot in this film were the characters. They mostly stayed true to the comic and the previous films, but Marvel, I can see, wanted to try something a little different, and I loved them! I really loved how this Ben Grimm (The Thing) was more loving and fun. He wasn’t always angry, and he didn’t give off bitter energy due to being transformed into The Thing. Marvel's The Thing was full of life, not so much to the extent where it didn’t make him who he is, but more as a way of just showing a different side. I loved that he was even loved by the people he protected and not so much feared.

Then there’s Johnny Storm (Human Torch). Now, this version of him stayed true to the slightly immature, impulsive member of the team, but the slight change that I won’t say I didn’t like or liked was that it was nice to see Johnny in a more empathetic, caring version compared to the previous versions who were cocky, arrogant, and selfish.

Reed Richards (Mister Fantastic) and Sue Storm (Invisible Woman) both stayed true to the characters we loved them as. Reed is the smartest man in the world, always in his head, and Susan is the responsible, loving glue that really holds the team together.

I love Marvel including baby Franklin into the universe, where his powers are literally beyond his parents' imagination. So strong, he was even able to bring his mother back to life after she laid it all on the line to protect her son. I’m so interested to see how they roll the Four into the new Avengers movie, which we know they will be a part of, due to fast-forwarding four years after defeating, or should I say relocating, Galactus. Four years later, Franklin meets Dr. Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr., who was Iron Man in another multiverse. I’m so happy the Four have arrived in the Marvel universe!

- Samuel

@samuelshouseofart