1979: Act 4: the Information technology revolution ( = death of the FF)

Summary
1978-79 was when American universities began to use the Internet. Notice how the FF is often ahead of the curve, as with the rise of atheism (act 3 part 1), the rise of east Asia (act 3 part 2), and the importance of 1978. Here we have another example: the I.T. revolution. The longest arc in the whole 28 year story is about the quest for Xanadu (Xandar): immortality through computer networks. Issues 202 and 209 specifically reference the power of networked computers.

The "Übermensch", redux
This living computers story is essentially a repeat of the "Übermensch" parable from 100 issues earlier (which then held the record as longest arc). It is all about the greatest of Great American themes: all people are created equal. It is about the futility of trying to do the impossible all on your own, and the need to listen to your family. For details see the notes to FF 117. The period begins with Reed thinking he has finally won: so he wants to disband the team. They have nothing else to do! But he never fixed the underlying problem: he never put Franklin first. After this everything will unravel, and Franklin will pay the price.

201

Issue 201: the family is not safe after all

Sue is the only balanced character
Note that Sue shows the full range of healthy emotions: she is the only one to do so. Contrast Sue with the others who can only bottle up their feelings and suffer in frustration.

Even while showing her independence and skill, Sue acknowledges that "Reed was right" - this is a reminder that Sue is balanced. She does not have his fragile ego. She listens to Reed and benefits from it, and does not feel threatened by doing so. Contrast with Reed who can only listen to himself, except when he has no choice (e.g. in FF200 about kissing).

Note that at this stage Sue cannot use her forcefield to simulate flying (except for short distances, as shown on the cover to FF173). This is not because she lacks imagination, but because she has not yet got the power boost from reversing the skrull aging ray (FF214).

202

Issue 202: the Internet: a new beginning

The Great American Novel and the Internet

• Franklin
  In this issue we are also reminded that other heroes exist who can take some of the slack. This would be a good time for Reed to lighten the super hero load and pay more attention to Franklin, right?
• Technology
  The technology that lifts the building appears to be the same as that used by Doom (and delivered by Namor) in FF4. The original was lost in the ocean, but Namor has long since been a friend so may have brought it back for study, or perhaps it is part of standard alien space technology.
• Buscema's cover
  This cover illustrates why I respect Buscema as a superb comic artist, but he is not my favorite. He freely admits that he is not interested in superheroes. On this cover he wants to show the Baxter Building flying into the sky. Here are his pencils.
  
  It's not obvious at first that it's flying, but look for a while and you can tell. But unfortunately this building cannot possibly be the Baxter Building: it's far too small (and the windows are wrong, but those are easy to change). When you make the roof big enough then the image is ruined: it draws attention away from the most exciting part, that the building is soaring into space. Unless you focus on the bottom third it just looks like people fighting in a school playground.
  
  Which is a pity, as this is a pretty dramatic and important event.
  

A12

Annual 12: the beginning of the end

Do not be deceived by the light hearted start of the story,. The second half is the start of something big.

The splash page to this issue announces "The end of the Inhumans... and of the Fantastic Four; possibly the most powerful story you'll read in this, the Marvel renaissance of comics!"

Historic events in this issue:

• Luna is (probably) conceived: see the notes to FF 240 for details. Along with Franklin, she may be the while reason the FF got their powers, the whole reason fro the Kree engineering the human race in the first place.
  
• The beginning of the Sphinx saga, which leads to the end of the FF and the end of the Inhumans as know them
• The reawakening of Johnny's love for Crystal, which will eventually lead to a new Fantastic Four.
• Reed begins to show humility: he admits that the name "Mr Fantastic" reflects a certain immaturity.
• Sue begins to assert herself, and for the first time she treats the men like children. (This is only fair: when presented with an invisible force field they were idiots not to immediately call on Sue.)
• We learn that Black Bolt's power source is almost infinite. The sphinx considers him one of the most powerful beings in the universe. Clearly there is more to Black Bolt than we realize.
• We see Lockjaw's true abilities for the first time, saving the world and perhaps the galaxy. Usually Lockjaw is careful to pretend to be just a foolish dog, but for the first time his true intelligence and ability are plain to see. personally I consider him to be the world's greatest super hero.

The sphinx and the end of FF
The Sphinx plays the long game. He always reminds us that he's five thousand years old. He is named after a being famous for riddles, his power is of the mind, and his quest is for knowledge. He caused the end of the Roman empire:a process that took centuries. He is seeking a way to die, but we should not expect to understand the full scope of his plan.

In this issue the Sphinx is seeking ultimate answers from the brains of all humanity. Black Bolt defeats him and sends him away, so he simply looks in a different place: we next see him in FF206, looking for the brains of Xandar: it's all the same quest. That story involves the apparent death of the FF, and while they do survive, it affects Reed's self confidence so much that he finally retires (in act 5). The first team then ends and another begins, so yes, the sphinx caused the end of the FF.

The sphinx and the end of the Inhumans
This story continues in FF204-212. The Sphinx continues his search for the collected knowledge in billions of brains. At the same time, a secretive group kidnaps Medusa (at the end of FF207). What better way for the Sphinx to get back at Black Bolt? That group, the enclave (last seen in FF67) then attacks the Inhumans (in FF240). This attack causes the Inhumans to leave Earth, ending hundreds of thousands of years of earth-bound civilization (compared to the Inhumans, the six thousand years of human civilization is just a temporary blip). At the same time, Crystal is pregnant. This is the first mixing of Inhuman and human genes, and end to the Inhumans' genetic purity. genetic purity was central to the Inhumans' culture, so nothing would be the same again. These two events, leaving Earth and ending their genetic purity, constitutes the end of the Inhumans as we know them. It is also likely that the eventual union of Crystal and Johnny will lead to a merging of Inhuman and Human civilizations. FF annual 12 deals with both topics: the Sphinx's interest in defeating the vastly powerful Black Bolt, and the love of Crystal for both Quicksilver and Johnny. As such, FF annual 12 is the key to understanding the end of the Inhumans as a we know them.

Objections to the Sphinx being involved in FF240

1. Where is the evidence? On the surface the attack is caused by Maximus, just as in this annual the attack seems to be caused by Thraxon. But in FF240 the attack is just a distraction from the real problem: a plague. Who do we know who uses plagues to end empires? The Sphinx.
2. But the plague was blamed on pollution? Then why did it suddenly hit when the Enclave attacked? Somebody is influencing events.
   
3. But the Sphinx by FF240 was condemned to relive his past life endlessly (see FF212)? That just gave him plenty of time to plan for his revenge from "beyond the grave."
   

The war of Three Galaxies
The sphinx's plans are part of the war of three galaxies. This was the subject of the Inhumans own comic (12 issues, bi-monthly from 1975 to 1977). It built to a climax in issue 12, when we first saw Thraxon, indicating that the Sphinx was deeply involved. Though the Sphinx had his origins on earth, his knowledge and power means he will quickly become involved in the galactic battles that rage around us.

The war of three galaxies continued in Captain Marvel issue 53, but the ending was far too simple for such a major event.  "Using the Chair of Truth, Mar-Vell is able to expose Par-Bat as a Skrull, intent on forcing the Kree into a war they can't win. With his infiltration exposed, the war is successfully prevented." (source) Would any multi galaxy war end simply because a single spy was uncovered? It is far more likely that the war was simply driven underground. It is part of the Kree-Skrull wars that continue for decades across countless star systems. 

Why is the war of three galaxies not explained more clearly in the comics? Because only the Fantastic Four report directly to Marvel Comics, so all other comics are either made up or pieced together from imperfect clues. The war of three galaxies was largely a secret plan that only affected the Fantastic Four at the margins, so Marvel Comics would have very little knowledge of what was going on. We only see fragments of the much bigger whole, and Earth is just a tiny outpost, not the center of the action.

The end of the Skrull empire
I am not going to try to piece together the full scale of the war between three galaxies, that would take a better mind than mine. But I will note that the Sphinx arc in FF206-210 caused a power struggle in one corner of the Skrull empire, and power struggles like that eventually caused that empire to make piece with its rivals the Kree (see FF annuals 18 and 19). The other decisive feature in the Skrull-Kree peace was the destruction of the Skrull throne world by Galactus. This story with the Sphinx ends in a show-down with Galactus. Could it be that Galactus absorbed some of the Sphinx's purpose? Galactus is, after all, a force of nature (see FF262), and forces can be guided.

The war of the four cities
This cosmic epic must surely be also linked with the Jonathan Hickman's "war of four cities" (FF570-604 and beyond), a cosmic battle involving the Inhumans as key players. This is part of the Great Reboot that gradually ends and restarts everything. However, all of that takes place within the confusing complexity of the Franklinverse. It would take a better man than me to untangle all the details.

Why does Annual 12 come after annual 13?
The Marvel Chronology Project places this annual between FF200 and FF annual 13, but this is highly problematic. Annual 13 begins with Johnny being overjoyed that the team is back together in FF200. If FF annual 12 has to squeeze in between the two events then this makes no sense. So when is it set? Is it just a very old story?

• It cannot be set between FF173 and 200 because Reed has full stretching powers.
• It is unlikely to be set between FF166 and 173 because Reed's stretching was limited, plus Ben wore a mechanical suit, and neither is referenced.
• It cannot be set before FF159 because the Inhumans' city was normal then (and before F150 Crystal was not married).
• It might be set between FF160 and FF165, because Reed's concern with tax money would have been high before they incorporated in FF161, but that leaves an extremely narrow window for Thraxon to overthrow the Inhumans' land.
• An early date also cause problems for Johnny and sports cars. Though he tinkered in the early 1960s he barely touched them in the 1970s until the team broke up. He took up serious racing after FF190.
• The story leads directly to FF206 so it is natural to place it just before that arc began. The Sphinx may have needed a little time to prepare, so I opt for placing FF annual 13 between FF203 and FF204.
  

Criticisms
The Sphinx is sometimes extremely powerful, and other times struggles even to control four beings plus the ship? He is the sphinx, named after the creature who set riddles. His power is of the mind, and he is obsessed with data: he does not work in the same way as simple physical power, though that power can sometimes be harnessed. This foreshadows modern computers: in some ways a computer can harness great power (e.g. to run a machine), but if you attack a computer in the right way even a child can defeat it (e.g. by turning it off).

Other points to note

• Johnny refers to racing driver A.J.Foyt: Foyt won the International Race of Champions all-star racing series in 1976 and 1977.
• The first half of the issue may appear to be played for laughs: it has silly jokes and a very corny villain. But the jokes reflect the appearance of the Gong Show, and the corniness of the villain is the whole point: the Sphinx chose the stupidest man he could find, to distract from his deeper purposes.
• This is the only issue (along with the recap of the same origin a few issue later) to feature an actual character from the Bible: Moses appears in the origin of the Sphinx.
• Contrast the original Sue's dislike of a revealing costume with the new, different Sue who wore even less.
• The original sphinx's most famous riddle was "what walks on four legs on the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three in the evening?" This riddle could apply to the FF:
• At first (act 1) they were all equal, so the team rested on four pillars, the four members.
• Then Reed marginalized the others, but despite that, Ben was often referred to as the strongest member, and he was the only one who was popular enough to support his own title (act 4, when the team rested on two members).
• Finally Reed's influence, declined so all the original members were equal. But Ben left the team and She-Hulk was was only a temporary fill-in, so the team rested on three members in the evening of its life.
  

203

Issue 203: "the then-classic, now a woefully underrated story"

This classic of the zeitgeist (see below) also completes the clues for Franklin' powers. It thus foreshadows the next 100 issues.

Foreshadowing the next 100 issues
We have had the false dawn, now we get a big reminder that this story is all about Franklin. Let's run through what Reed knows about his own son:

• He knows his son has vast cosmic power (FF241)
• He knows his son can save them when the combined force of Fantastic Four, Inhumans and Avengers cannot (FF250)
• He should know that his son can unconsciously control others (FF134).
• He knows that Sue thinks they should spend more time with Franklin, and her intuition is never wrong.
  
• Now he gets another big hint: here is another boy, about the same age, also affected by radiation before birth, and able to unconsciously bend reality to his will.

Reed is supposed to be highly intelligent. If only he paid some attention to his own son he might come to some interesting conclusions.

The Great American Mystery novel
Although Franklin's nature and power are not obvious until the end (Heroes reborn in 1996 shows his universe creating power, and FF600 reveals that Galactus is his herald), by this point we have sufficient clues: here the Great American Novel is a detective story where the reader can see what the detective cannot. Reed lacks the self awareness to see his weakness (his need to control), and he lacks the humility to see that Sue's intuition (to put Franklin first) is just as important as his own scientific skill.

Note the overarching theme of Franklin: he will dominate the story, directly or indirectly, from now until Byrne (FF322).

The Zeitgeist: against tokenism and unintentional racism
This issue marks a notable move away from "token black character":

Willie Evans was notable because it defied so many expectations and stereotypes regarding minority characters. As a black guy, I remember me and many of my black friends used to notice about how black heroes were all either stereotypes (Luke Cage’s jive talk), inferior sidekicks, copies of established white heroes (Rhodey, Jon Stewart), or underpowered (Black Panther, Falcon), or obvious cannon fodder to get beat up or killed or taken hostage in fights. Willie Evans was a pretty unique character for his time and defied a lot of stereotypes. If I remember correctly he was middle class rather than ghetto. He was ridiculously overpowered. He was not a copy of a white hero. He wasn’t inferior to the white heroes in the book. -("T" commenting on comic book legends)

Willie was intended to be part of the new X-Men (see below) but that idea was quashed. Instead he was brought back in Iron Man annual 8, revealed to have killed his mother, and died. For me, this illustrates again why the Fantastic Four was better than other comics. "T" speculated that the Iron Man story is probably why the Willie Evans story lost its importance over the years. He continues:

"There’s the possibility of unintentional racism at play[. ...] For him to then just be reduced to cannon fodder like many black characters in predominately white stories not only undoes all those groundbreaking aspects, but does it in one of the most stereotypical ways possible. So now, whenever you bring up the original groundbreaking story, one also has to bring up in the following breath the super-stereotypical way he ended up." (ibid)

This tension between awareness of tokenism, but the mainstream still treating black characters in stereotypical ways, is a reflection of the spirit of the times. People were now aware of the problem but not yet able to deal with it. The Iron Man story may explain why FF203 is no longer treated as a classic.

Symbolism

• Inner battles
  Reed is fighting against himself, just as Doom was in FF 199. Doppelgangers are a recurring motif throughout the 27 year story: All of his battles against Galactus and other dangers are really battles with himself: because they are a direct result of Reed not paying attention to his child (or before 1968, of not paying attention to his family). Franklin could solve all his problems if only Reed noticed his own son. The biggest danger of all, Galactus, is in fact his son's herald!
• Lady Liberty
  The Statue of Liberty often appears in the Great American Novel (see the notes by the cover to FF1). It appears again in the next issue, when Johnny breaks free and tries for independence. Liberty is the central theme of American existence: see the notes to FF200 for example. In both cases, liberty is an inner battle: we are never seriously threatened by outsiders, we are threatened by ourselves.
  
  
• The old flying bathtub
  This is an attempt to start again. Byrne will try this one last time, pushing it as far as it can go.

Other points to note

• "The then-classic (now a woefully-underrated story)"
  Brian Cronin (of Comic Book legends) refers to this as "the then-classic (now a woefully underrated story)". Years later when Byrne referred to “that black kid from FF 203" everybody knew the issue he meant. Cronin continues, "That issue of FF was a big deal. Everyone would know what Byrne meant. But for whatever reason, the issue has lost some of its acclaim over the years. I dunno why." For a possible reason see the discussion of the zeitgeist and racial sensitivity.

• Marvel Time and Franklin's age
  Willie Evans Junior is nine years old (this comic is on sale in 1978), and his father was affected by cosmic rays in 1968, and then is told to call Reed Richards. The parallel with Franklin should be obvious. As should the fact that Franklin was born first, yet appears younger. Something is slowing down time around Franklin, while time runs at the regular speed elsewhere. Occam's razor (use the minimum necessary explanations) suggests that the being who slows down Franklin's aging is Franklin himself. After all, Franklin gets part of his power from the cosmic control rod that gives Annihilus immortality.

• Willie in the X-Men
  Willie Evans was originally planned to be in a new X-Men team, along with Kittie Pride, and a character called Caliban (not the same Caliban who later appeared).
  "(Editor-in-Chief) Jim Shooter killed the concept of a second team of X-Men, the X-Men in training, because he said it sounded too much like the Legion of Substitute X-Men, so it died right there and Kitty became the only one who ever made it into the book,” Byrne revealed in The X-Men Companion. “Kitty, Caliban, and Willie Evans, Jr., that little black kid who was in Fantastic Four #203 (1979), who made the monstrous version of the FF, were the only ones we were sure were going to be in it.” (source)
  Despite squashing the idea, Shooter later revived the idea as the New Mutants. John Byrne, never a fan of Shooter (to put it mildly), was not impressed.
  "Willie Evans was killed in Iron Man Annual #8, which also featured an early guest appearance from X-Factor. So there’s some weird, likely unintentional symmetry in a character who at one point was going to feature in the first X-Men spinoff being killed off in an issue featuring the characters from the second X-Men spinoff." - (source: Teebore)
  

• Franklin's wife:
  Johnny observes that Sue can bake cookies in ten seconds. He asks what Franklin's future wife will do to impress him. Well, Rachel, daughter of Phoenix will do a lot more than bake cookies.
  
  
• About those eyebrows...
  

In FF232 John Byrne will take over, and the Thing will lose his distinctive eyebrows. We see in FF203 that the extreme eyebrows are a sign of evil. John Byrne's run coincides with a time when Ben has seen the others become just as depressed as he is, and he appears to mellow. The stress that twisted Ben's face softens and his eyebrow softens.

• Early in Byrne's run Reed tries again to "cure" Ben and Ben loses the eyebrow completely for a while.
• At the end of Byrne's run, Ben sees Alicia marry Johnny, his inner stress goes into overdrive, and Ben's entire body distorts.
• Being accepted by the Mole Man lets him relax enough to soften again.
• It is possible that his face is still changeable, and this would explain why he prefers to wear a mask for a few issues until it settles down.
• He then had a brief moment of extreme stress at the end of FF303 and his brow briefly became very pronounced again.
• The almost-final major change was in FF310, where the pressure of being leader led to a more extreme all-over eyebrow effect.
• But then the final change occurred: the change inside, when he realized that he had never been ugly. He is the idol of millions, and his appearance is great! No doubt had the series continued he would have gained the ability to his previous human form at will, just as he could on Battleworld.

The second half of act 4: Franklin

As we enter the second half of the fourth act Franklin begins to dominate:

• FF203: Another clue that Franklin is the key
• FF204-214: The longest arc, where Reed is the helpless child: it starts with Franklin, and ends with Franklin's herald, then a pointer to the next generation.
• FF215-218: more clues that Franklin is the key
• FF219-231: (the Doug Moench run) all about Franklin
• FF232-250: more clues, and disaster piles on disaster, until Reed finally learns humility.
• Act 5: Reed decides to put Franklin first.

The Great American Movie
The Great American Novel is like the classic Hollywood movie (think ET, Finding Nemo, Up, etc.). It's really about a father making time for his son. It's about Reed and Franklin.

204

Issue 204: the truth about Johnny's love life

1. Dorrie Evans in high school
2. Crystal
3. Frankie Rae
4. Lorrie Melton
   

That's it. Plus a few very short dates in his teenage years that didn't get anywhere. And every girl ended up dumping him.

In annual 19 Johnny tried to claim that Julie d'Angelo was once his girlfriend, but that just reveals Johnny's desperation. Follow the issues closely and you see that the only time she was with Johnny she had her girl friend along. He boyfriend was Gray landers, not Johnny.

Cars and the Great American Novel
Apart form highlighting his love life, this issue does something else: Ben reminds us that Johnny spends most of his time in the garage. Psychologically this is interesting: he feels powerless in the team and in his love life. Cars are the one area where he can always succeed. The idea of cars as compensation is so well known that it is a psychologically cliche.

Cars are a major part of American culture: other nations can easily look at America's need for big cars as a symbol of the nation's need to thump its chest: American stuff has to be bigger and better, and cars in particular are symbol of freedom.

Redheads
This issue is full of American symbolism: the cars, the statue of liberty, pinball machines, etc. Critics point out that more modest nations might be more free and have better quality of life: the usual example is Scandinavia, with its bicycles and social safety net, and northern Europe in general. Frankie Ray can be seen as a symbol of these outsiders: she is a red head (reminding us of northern Europe), and not impressed in the slightest by Johnny's all American offering. The name "Frankie" is etymologically from the Franks or French: the allies who are most critical of America. And of course the statue of liberty was a gift from France. Frankie's surname, Ray, is a counterpart to Johnny's flame and reminds us of the rays on the head of Lady Liberty.

The longest arc in the entire 28 year story

FF204 begins the longest arc of all: the skrull aging storyline. This is where the last bricks of Reed's psychological support are removed:

1. Reed fails as a leader: it's a series of failures, disaster after disaster.
2. Reed fails as a scientist: he can't solve the problem, until he is almost dead and Johnny helps him. True, he does solve the technical problem at the end, but nobody ever doubted his technical skill. Reed only fails as a scientist when he tries to combine with leading the team: he could not fix the gun until he lay down and let Johnny do the fighting.
   
3. His health fails him. He grows old and dies (or as good as), with nothing to show for it.
4. It is a small step from there to literally losing his mind in FF255.

Before the end of the novel, Reed must lose everything.

...and it all starts with Franklin
It starts of course with Franklin. the significance of this arc is that all the suffering is not needed: Franklin could solve the problem! Or he could have, if Reed had paid attention to his own son.

Note the perfect symbolism of the splash page for this 11 issue arc:

• Franklin is at the center, in control.
• Johnny is at the top, waiting to one day take over, but held back.
• Ben is held down, frustrated (he is not physically hurt, so it must be his pride). This is not his son,yet he is the only man who pays Franklin any attention.
• Reed has his back to Franklin and to his family.
• Sue serves and is ignored.

There is the  whole 28 year story, right there. To drive home the point Reed's friendly witch takes Franklin away, Sue tries to persuade Reed to pay more attention to their boy, but Reed won't even look at her. Sue is in despair. Over the next 11 issues Reed will pay a high price for his neglect.

Note the irony that Reed won't listen because he is concerned that something is siphoning their power. On a larger scale it's Reed's inability to listen that's really siphoning the team's power.

The title "Andromeda attack"
Andromeda is a legend about hubris, and the origin of the "princess and the dragon" motif. In the original, Andromeda is the princess, chained up to be eaten by a monster.  "When [queen] Cassiopeia's hubris leads her to boast that Andromeda is more beautiful than the Nereids [sea nymphs], Poseidon [powerful god of the sea] sends a sea monster to ravage Aethiopia as divine punishment. Andromeda is chained to a rock as a sacrifice to sate the monster, but is saved from death by Perseus [the archetypal hero], her future husband." (source)  In the Fantastic Four version,

• Princess Adora plays the part of Andromeda
• The Skrulls are the dragon.
• She is there because of the hubris of her mother world: it claimed to have more advanced science than anybody else. If that was true then it would surely know about the skrulls and be able to repel them. But it must have been an empty boast: it was enough to attract the skrulls who destroyed the world.
• Who plays the role of Poseidon then? We don't know the whole story, but it may have been the Sphinx. See the discussion of the war of three galaxies, in the notes to FF annual 12. Xandar's boasting attracted his attention, so he may have prompted the skrulls to attack. This is just speculation.
• Who plays the role of Perseus? It is strongly hinted that it is the Watcher who saves the planet from complete annihilation. Like the Sphinx, the Watcher works in secret, so we have to piece it together from clues.

What does this have to do with the Fantastic Four? It is a story of hubris causing catastrophe. The real villain in the Andromeda story is not the dragon or Poseidon, but queen Cassiopeia who thinks she is praising her child but instead puts her in danger through her stupid boasting. Similarly, Reed causes his own problems by not caring enough for Franklin: he thinks he is saving everybody but just makes matters worse.

Is Sue queen Cassiopeia?
Here's a radical idea. Possibly Sue is actually most at fault. Reed may be autistic - he may have genuine difficulty in social interaction with his son. But Sue is balanced, sensitive, intuitive. She sees the big picture. She could take control if she wanted to. She could solve everything, But she is happy to play the submissive role, it's safer. By doing this she supports Reed's arrogance. Reed does not realize he's arrogant. Sue does: perhaps this means that really Sue is the arrogant one? That Sue is Cassiopeia, the one who causes everything, the power behind the throne, but like ancient queens she pretends to be submissive? In chess it's the queen who has the real power to move. Is Sue Cassiopeia? Just a thought.

• Reed loses everything except his pride (103-195)
• The false dawn (196-203)
• Reed's science and health fail him (204-214)
• the team despair (219-231: Doug Moench)
• back to basics (232-250: John Byrne)
• Reed is finally humbled (251-294: John Byrne)

1. Time must move forwards (see also FF288)
2. That characters do age,
3. And that the future belongs to Johnny.

• Sue's methods
  Note the central comparison in the 28 year story: unlike Reed, Sue puts the family before work.
  
  
• Nova
  Why will this arc feature so much Nova? Because at the time Marv Wolfman, writer of the FF, was also writing Nova, and planned to have half of the story in each book. Then suddenly Nova was canceled, so the entire epic took place in the Fantastic Four. See the notes to FF206 for more details
• Aging
  This skrull aging ray arc is also about the futility of resisting change. On the surface it might seem to say that aging is a bad thing. But if Reed had embraced aging earlier, and accepted his role as a father, he would have had Franklin to solve all his problems. Instead he just aged, failed at all his attempts to fix things, and ended up looking like a fool until the youngest member of the team saved him. Again, see the notes to FF206.
  

205

Issue 205: how to fight overwhelming odds

This issue is where Reed fails embarrassingly: only Franklin could fix this, and Reed refuses to pay him any attention.

The team is battling an entire Galactic empire.

They fight a few Skrulls at a time: banging heads together, rolling them up in a steel trap, etc. Hitting them and rolling them up is futile: these are shape changers! And there are probably billions of them: soldiers from countless worlds! Reed's method shows he has no idea what to do. The Watcher can see that it's hopeless. Yet back home, Reed has a son with almost unlimited power.

The last time that the combined forces of all super heroes failed (Fantastic Four, Avengers, Inhumans, etc.), Franklin stepped in and solved the problem.

The answer to this war was at the start, on pages one and two of this arc. Franklin is the answer. Reed just can't see it. He is too busy playing the hero to see the potential in his own son.

Other points to note

• Inequality:
  In the sub plot, note the celebrity culture and rise of high security luxury schools for the rich and famous. These were rising in visibility in 1979.
  
• Blindness:
  The Monocle preys on Johnny's insecurities: ironically the one eyed man, the man who makes others follow blindly, will trigger the self reflection that will cause Johnny to see clearly and finally lead the others.
• Reed's decline:
  Reed's mind is so confused that on Xandar that he doesn't even appreciate the power of computing: he doesn't agree that knowledge can be better than violence.
• Sue as strategist:
  Normally Sue is very cautious, but this is due to her wisdom, not cowardice. On age 26 Sue disagrees with fighting a *defensive* battle. she wants to take the battle to the throne world. A few months later her son, unconsciously acting through Galactus, will do exactly that by destroying the skrull throne world. Compare Sue's desire to take the battle to the skrulls with her similar plan when her father was killed. Sue has always been the bravest one: while she is the one most aware of the dangers, and the one who prefers to cooperate and leave alone most of the time, she is also the most willing to take the fight to the heart of the enemy when needed. In contrast, the boys have a one note modus operandi: they just fight what they see.
• Other superheroes are less important
  In this web site I argue that other Marvel characters are generally not as powerful as their own comics suggest. Here we are told that "soon, twin forces will be unleashed which shall bring the very universe to the brink of annihilation" yet other heroes are not considered relevant (apart from Nova, as he has links to Xandar). The Watcher says the universe depends on the other three, and on one youth "who must face his mortality before voyaging on the endless cosmic seas". No other superheroes are mentioned, they don't count in the bigger picture.
  
  

206

ISSUE 206: THE DEATH OF THE FANTASTIC FOUR

• 1960: Coronation Street
  This British soap opera showed that a prime time soap can last forever as long as it is based in everyday realism. there was also a strong theme of happy humor mixed into the grim and gritty: these were basically nice people. Later Australia discovered the same formula with Neighbors (1985-present). In contrast, American prime time soaps were about wealth and gloss, and only lasted a few years each: people could not relate.
• 1963: Dr Who
  By allowing regeneration this became the longest running sci-fi show of all time, and one of the most successful. Unlike most sci fi it is optimistic: the doctor never uses a gun, he solves problems through being good and being clever.
• 1966: Star Trek
  In the 1980s "the next generation" introduced the idea of new characters taking over. Although recent movies have tried rebooting, it is only to prevent the stories going too far from our own experience. According to fans, Star Trek's success is down to two things: people we can relate to (especially Kirk and Spock) and a message we can relate to: our near future can be better than our present! These people are in effect our children, discovering better and greater things.
• 1961: The Fantastic Four
  The FF began the same way, embracing change and realism, and sales soared, Then in 1868 Marvel Time began and sales began their long decline.

1. Remember the past: remember it in detail, care about those people and what they did! it matters!
2. Be ready to change. Pass on your spirit to the next generation.
   

Nova comic: A symbol of the need to move on FF206 continues from the just canceled Nova comic. Nova is the poster child for the death of continuity. the title was created as a homage to Spider-Man: Richard Ryder instead of Peter Parker, high school kid who's uncle is killed, etc.  Nova was fan fiction created by kids (the young Marv Wolfman and Len Wein in the fanzine Super Adventures in 1966). Steve Gerber described it like this in The Comics Journal (the original link is now dead): It amounts to a vain and futile attempt to recapture past glories. Nova is an example. Nova was supposed to be cast in the old mold of the early 1960s Marvel Comics, and it bears no resemblance whatsoever to those books. It's basically a fan's interpretation of what those books were like. To compare Nova with the early Ditko or Romita Spider-Man is fatuous. All the evocative elements are completely lost. It's an attempt, again, to formularize what was done in the early '60s. Every attempt at that has fallen just short of pathetic. What can I tell you? It could be argued that most of Marvel's later output was fan fiction, as fans dominated the second generation for writers and stories tried to recapture the glory days rather than letting the stories evolve naturally.  The Fantastic Four were the symbol of looking forward to the future. The death of the Fantastic Four is accompanied by the symbol of looking backward to the past. Issue by issue The whole 25 issues of Nova is about the the discovering the existence of Xandar, and the Sphinx's attempts to get there so his life can finally move on: 1: intro Nova gets his powers (and crashes into a junk yard: memories of Miracle Man and the Overmind) 2: hint of the Sphinx The bad guys search for a Mummy for their mystery boss (the Sphinx) 3: the Sphinx is powerful Introduces Diamondhead, a very strong and smart villain who only fears one being: the Sphinx (as yet unnamed) 4: -- A cross over with Thor, that has nothing to do with the ongoing story but is just there to increase sales. 5: -- Not about the Sphinx, but is interesting from a realism perspective. As in FF176 we visit the Marvel Bullpen. Like the Impossible Man in FF176, Nova tries to get his own comic but is rejected by Stan Lee in favor of a silly animal comic. Note that Marvel rejects a Nova comic, even though in the real world a Nova comic exists. This suggests at the very least that what we read cannot be what actually happens. But in the story Marvel writers do show an interest. It appears that in the story Marvel makes limited efforts to follow other heroes, but largely invents their stories (or at the very least changes details to protect secret identities). In contrast the FF report directly to Marvel, so FF comics are canon. 6: the Sphinx revealed "And So... the Sphinx!" We are introduced to the Sphinx and his desire to end his immortality. He detects that Nova's mind contains memories of Xandar, where he can find the answers he wants. 7: the journey begins They set off for Xandar, hoping Nova's ship will find it.  8: it's about memory Diamondhead plans how to attack the Sphinx by removing his memory. Note how this will later be part of the Sphinx's actual fate, to relive the past and be unable to realize what is going on. This is the theme of the Franklinverse in general. Remembering is the main theme of Nova and comes up again and again. 9: -- Is forgettable, 10: against the Sphinx They put the plan against the Sphinx into action but it fails. Note how slowly the action unfolds. This foreshadows modern Marvel comics where it takes six issues (the length of a trade paperback) for anything to happen. 11: again, memory is key The Sphinx strips Nova of his memories instead. Nova slowly remember who he is, and the Sphinx leaves in frustration. 12: -- Another guest star to get sales: this time it's Spider-Man so sales must be bad. 13-21: -- Various minor villains, as sales decline toward the point of cancellation. Then at the end we get back to the Sphinx: 22: Dr Sun Dr Sun again wants Nova as his ticket to Xandar. 23: the Sphinx returns The Sphinx returns, for the same purpose as Dr Sun. 24: memory returns We discover that Powerhouse, assumed to be a minor villain, is from Xandar, but lost his memory. Dr Sun and Sphinx need him for returning to Xandar. 25: they know where Xandar is! The Sphinx learned of Xandar from Quasimodo (who learned of it from the Xandarian communication beam that got him so excited). The whole 25 issues of Nova was about discovering the existence of Xandar. Now they know it's location the title can end and the real story takes place in the Fantastic Four. FF206 Nova 25 was the last issue and continues in the FF. Everything we need to know can be inferred from FF206, but Nova expands on it. This is the case with titles like Strange Tales, Marvel Two in One, etc: they are not needed to understand the story, but can be helpful. Nova's ship and crew: symbolism Nova's 25 issue story was all about remembering the past and moving on. It centers on characters who must remember who they really are, and embrace their past then move on, in order to make the journey to Xandar. Xandar is the eternal ancient paradise, the place where all our civilizations' memories are stored, the place of final answers. The symbolism is clear: to find paradise we must (a) remember, and (b) be ready to change. These are the true keys to immortality. This is symbolized by the seven occupants of the ship: Nova The hero on his classic "hero's journey" from being a child to a man. The Sphinx The one who has learned the wisdom of moving on: never changing is a curse, not a blessing. Dr Sun Dr. Sun continues the theme of the futility of trying to live forever. He comes from the story of the undead: a vampiric brain in a robot's body from" Tomb of Dracula" comic. Whereas the Sphinx wants the knowledge of Xandar in order to end his own life, Dr Sun wants to prolong his. Powerhouse The Xandarian who forgot his heritage. Diamondhead Representing our short sighted desires for superficial wealth and power. The Comet Nova's mentor from the past, showing how the older generation must make way for the younger, but they can still be around and be heroes. Crimebuster Son of The Comet. When he thought his father was killed he carried on the family name, showing how the spirit of the family survives death.

John Byrne is often credited with making Sue "stronger" - that is, more violent. Anyone who's read a few pages of this web site (especially the page on Sue) knows why I come to a different conclusion. The big difference was that in Byrne's run Sue was under more stress: she was at the end of her tether. This issue is where the Sweet Sue of the previous 18 years finally snaps. We then see her consider her options until FF231 where she sees no choice but to take desperate measures (see the notes to FF231 for details). But this issue is her turning point. This is where something inside breaks and she considers turning to extreme violence, which of course does not work (see the notes to Byrne's run for how Sue suffers and things get worse than ever). Sue was always stronger before, when she managed to regain control. But this is the breaking point. Breaking is called breaking for a reason: breaking does not make a thing stronger.

• Reed's trial is guilt for ignoring Franklin
  A few months later (Marvel Time) Reed will again stand trial before skrulls and others (FF262). Both times Reed is technically guilty (first of attacking Skrulls, and second of enabling genocide). Both times could have been avoided if Reed had spent more time with Franklin. This time Franklin could have defeated the skrulls, and next time Reed would have avoided the despair that drove him to such a bad decision. Both times Reed is saved by Galactus. ]
• The galactic war
  These issues are epic and historic in more than one way. They introduce the cosmic background to the 28 year epic: the ages old intergalactic Kree-Skrull war. They lay the foundation for the final end to the war in annuals 18 and 19. The insights into the political weakness of the Skrull empire provides the background to the the destruction of the Skrull throne world in FF244, completing the sub plot began in FF48. back then the throne world was united enough to hide from Galactus. Now it is in disarray and easy pickings for the world eater, whose purpose is to weed out he weak (see FF262).
  
• The Sphinx is of galactic importance
  Though technically the battle with Galactus in FF213 will be against the Sphinx, it is likely that the Sphinx helped to organize the skrull-Xandar war as part of his war of three galaxies. See notes to FF annual 12.
• Communist symbolism
  The Skrulls always represent communism, and their eventual reforms will represent the end of the cold war. Here we see a metaphor for communist show trials and behind the scenes leadership struggles that were most public in the early days of communism.
• The Great American Novel: the symbolism of foreign wars
  The splash page, under the banner "death of the FF", says the team have taken the battle to the Andromeda galaxy. This is the first time the FF have get involved in somebody else's war, and can perhaps be seen as a commentary on America. Some see America as like the Xandarians, the universal police force. Other see involvement in foreign wars as a sign of betraying the founding father's principles: America, they say, was to be a place of refuge, an example, as enshrined in the statue of Liberty: they say that once it gets involved in wars on foreign soil it betrays its heritage. it is an age old debate.
  
• The name Nova
  When Galactus defeated the Sphinx he called his new herald Nova, probably to honor the need to move on, and mourn his own inability to do so.
• The Sphinx came back?
  Later another comic tried to make it seem the Sphinx came back, explaining that Galactus did not understand time travel. That is highly unlikely.  Galactus is a being older than the universe who spends his time traveling faster than light. There are plenty of time traveling beings who are far inferior to him. The idea of bringing back the Sphinx from his endless loop is an irony: the comics cannot move forward, so they resurrect the character who symbolizes not moving forwards.
• True hyperbole
  This issue is called "The Death of the Fantastic Four". The Fantastic Four is notable for its use of wild hyperbole that almost always turns out to be true. E.g. "world's greatest comic magazine", "battle of the century", "collector's item", etc.

207

Issue 207: the prince in waiting

Summary: Johnny's character development
At this stage in the 28 year story, Johnny is waiting to take over. He should have taken his rightful place when Reed and Sue left to take care of Franklin in FF72, but Reed failed that test. Since then Johnny has been an adult treated like a child, and now it's affecting his self confidence. This issue shows how he is unable to control his life, and is symbolically (and literally) controlled by others. He will then gradually rise to his rightful place: see the timeline in the notes to FF192. Compare this issue with the more confident and mature Johnny in FF302. FF302 is another group like the enclave: scientists working in a hollowed out mountain, using mind control. But that time the Torch wins, without help.

Johnny and Spider-Man
This is the turning point in Johnny's adolescent relationships. His immaturity with other men is represented by his ongoing friendship with Spider-Man. Until now he was always showing off. But now he is finally humbled: he is the dupe and Spider-man solves the problem.

The zeitgeist
This issue is a commentary on two long term issues that kept America's attention in the 1970s:

• Middle management.
  Johnny's frustration with Reed is mirrored by the Monocle's frustration with his bosses.
• Schooling:
  Those school represents the worst fears of most American parents: only the super rich can afford good schooling, and schools just churn out zombies who cannot think for themselves. Education was a hot topic in 1979 when this issue was published: in October 1979 President Carter finally created the Department of Education.upgrading what was previously a non-cabinet level junior department.

Elitism
As the 1970s draws to a close we conclude the theme of the decade: inequality.

• 1970 began with the team's individual frustrations at Reed assuming he is always right.
• In the bicentennial, 1976, featured stories of equality (see 168, 170, etc.)
• American equality reached its peak in 1978: see the notes to the climax to the 28 year story, issue 200 about power and democracy.
• Now we see the hopes for equality crumble. The 1980s would see a return to elitism, and it's all prefigured here.
  

The story features a special school for the elites, and Johnny buys into it. Right from the start we see the problem with elitism: the elites can be wrong, just like anybody else. So Johnny, representing dreams of elitism, must fight Spider-man, who has always represented the downtrodden man.
   
The Monocle
The Monocle is a symbol of decline. Ask any knowledgeable fan to name a mediocre villain and it won't take long before the Monocle's name comes up. He first appeared at the end of act 3, when Jack Kirby began holding back his best work and Reed first showed signs of making mistakes. He now comes back in the issue after the team symbolically died, as they plunge into their wilderness period. He should be easy to defeat - his power is represented by the monocle, the symbol of poor eyesight! Yet Johnny is not suspicious because the foolish idea of elitism appeals to him. Peter Parker sees through it more quickly.
   
FF206 continued: sleep walking into the 1980s social decline
The decline is full is symbolism of not seeing what is happening: the villain has poor eyesight (he needs a Monocle), most of the action takes place at night, his bosses are hidden in shadow, his servants are sleepwalking, etc. Note the contrast with the apparent triumph of democracy in 200, with its bright sunshine and global publicity. Doom wanted to control people openly but the enclave are doing it secretly instead: and so they succeed, unnoticed, under the cover of helping the world's elites.
   
Real time
In F207 Medusa is captured by the Enclave. Presumably this is the same event described in Ff240 as "many weeks ago" - strange phrase, not "many months". Presumably this means less than six months, which agrees with the conclusion from other issues that the second half of act 4 happens relatively quickly. The great climax to the 28 year FF story is Ff200, and the remaining 95 issues of act 4, though almost 8 years in real time, takes little more than a year in Marvel Time. And what a year!

Other points to note

• Medusa
  For the significance of Medusa at the end, see the notes to FF 240.
  
• The interlude
  Why does this subplot appear in the middle of a cosmic epic? The key is that Medusa is kidnapped at the end. The enclave are probably working for the Sphinx, and this is part of the wider cosmic battle in which the Inhumans play a key role. See commentary to FF annual 12 for details.
• Art
  Why does this issue look so different from the space battles that surround it? As explained in the letters page to FF211, Marv Wolfman wanted to to get ahead of schedule by getting another artists to draw an issue of the FF: that would give Keith Pollard more time on the next issue. He didn't want to change artists half way through a story, so made the extra story on a different topic. Unexpectedly Pollard soon left anyway, but that was not the plan.
• Movies
  Note the reference to "Superman - The Movie" at the end. Many consider that the best superhero movie ever, and it kick-started the superhero movie crazy that continued with Batman and is currently benefiting Marvel.

208

Issue 208: the team utterly fails

In this issue we see that Reed, Sue and Ben have utterly failed. Reed swears that he will find the solution, but he fails at that as well. It is Johnny who works out the solution and provides the crucial tool in FF214 while Reed lies on his deathbed.

Parallels between the Sphinx and Galactus:

After FF200 the team tried to make a new start, as if they could regain past glories. Here they face a being like Galactus:

• His size, coloring and headgear
• How he blasts Nova with his eyes (just as Galactus blasted the surfer)
• His reference to using the power cosmic
• His reference to brushing the humans away like gnats
• His plan to destroy the Earth.
  

But this time the Watcher will not help. And this "Galactus" has no nobility, and can read their thoughts, so the Ultimate Nullifier won't work even if they could get it.

What should they have done? Ironically the clue is in the end:

Reed says only one person can help them, Ben jokes about Little Orphan Annie, and Reed says Ben supplied the idea of who to call. But there is a little boy who is treated like an orphan, sent way from his parents at every opportunity, yet has the power to control galaxies. The boy is Franklin. They had plenty of warning, Reed should have got to know Franklin back in FF72, but instead they sideline him, and now they pay the price. Instead of having Franklin's power they plan to call on Galactus, exchanging one world destroyer for another. There can be no permanent solution until they put Franklin first.

Other points to note

• The cover
  The cover (one of my favorites, by the way) seems to be a homage to issue 1. It's not as close as other homages, but I think that Reed's arm and head position (and the sidewalk angle) clinch it. The Sphinx is more important than most people realize (see notes to FF annual 12).
  
• The cover and continuity
  The sphinx is about the need for time to move on, But now he thinks he can finally move forwards. "Nothing that lives can stop the Sphinx" can be read as "Nothing can stop continuity." Despite his curse (comparable to Marvel's resistance to characters aging), some way he will find a way through. Compare the current Franklinverse: it will end eventually. Marvel does change even when it doesn't want to - e.g. the cinematic universe.
  
• Technology
  Johnny notes that the ion ray is transformed into a transporter beam: the same thing apparently happened before with the Super Skrull power beam (see the notes about star drives in the page on cosmic topics) and will again happen in annual 15. Super science follows rules. It may seem that whatever they need is instantly invented, but in fact there are surprisingly few basic discoveries, and their evolution and use can each be traced through the 28 year story.
• Artistic symbolism
  When Johnny meets the team the camera angle makes him tower over his friends, and in the first frame he shows confidence and maturity (choosing to ignore Ben's wisecrack). He continues to be at the top of the frame in the rest of the page, despite not flying. This emphasizes just how badly the team are doing, and also foreshadows Johnny's importance in the future when the team age for real: the future belongs to Johnny, not Reed.
  
  
  
• An educational issue
  I love how comics expand the vocabulary. I'm reasonably well read, but had never seen the word "lambent" before this issue. The Prime Thoran is describes as like a "lambent" flame, that is, flickering and dancing lightly.
• Aunt Petunia
  When brushed away, Ben refers to Aunt Petunia's girdle. This is one of many references indicating her appearance and age. See notes to FF239 for more details.
• Story telling
  Johnny is away so that Nova can take the place: their powers and personality are very similar, so from a story telling point of view it would be redundant to have them both at once.
  

209

Issue 209: prisoners of their own past, as the Internet evolves

Herbie foreshadowed the real world by many years. The first affordable general purpose industrial robot appeared in 2012, made by Rethink Robotics, and looks like HERBIE, with large eyes that reflect its inner state (but with a fixed base like Roberta). Its real world name? "Baxter". As in the Baxter Building.

• Dazzler: irony
  Note the irony of Herbie. The writers at Marvel disliked Herbie. He only existed for merchandising, and so had no place in a work of art, and they got great satisfaction from blowing him up in FF217. A triumph for artistic integrity! Except... at the end of the same issue, FF217 they introduce The Dazzler, a character produced by the marketing department to sell merchandising.
• Zeitgeist following
  Dazzler was invented to capitalize on the disco craze, and was supposed to feature in a live action show, but unfortunately Disco became suddenly unfashionable. When Marvel tries to consciously keep up with the zeitgeist the stories fails embarrassingly. But when Marvel focuses on the best stories possible then the zeitgeist comes naturally.
  
• Reed's mind
  Note Reed's lack of self awareness. He lectures Johnny at the end that he should not care what others think. Yet Reed calls himself Mr Fantastic and insists on taking charge under all circumstances. Even though he is plainly not the best man for the job: the whole aging arc has been a series of failures, and this is not the first time. Reed may be oblivious to others, but that is not a strength. In the very same frame that Reed tells Johnny to only answer to himself, he ignores Ben's observation that Herbie is broken. By ignoring Ben, Reed sets the team up for yet another disaster when Herbie later goes crazy and tries to kill them all.

210

Issue 210: the team has lost all direction

We now hit the bottom of the team's lost period. To recap:

• FF103-196: Reed declines
• FF196-203: a false dawn, everything seems to be back to normal
• FF204-214: no, it's just not working.
• FF204: Johnny is frustrated
• FF205: the team rushes into a battle they cannot win
• FF206: they're growing old and tired
• FF207: Johnny is maturing, and will one day be ready to take over
• FF208: the team fails because they ignored Franklin
• FF209: they are prisoners of their past, unable to move on
• FF210: they have lost all direction

To see how bad this problem is, consider the bonehead decisions they make. Some of them are listed in the letters page from FF214 (the writing errors can mostly be interpreted as the team making poor decisions). Issue 210 was "controversial" which usually means that most letters received by Marvel were negative. The editors made no attempt to defend the story. 

• March 28, 1979 The worst nuclear accident in the U.S. occurs at Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania, and causes serious apprehension of American pursuit of atomic energy.
• July 15, 1979 Carter delivers his “malaise” speech on national television, calling Americans out on their “crisis of confidence.” Though initially received positively, the public eventually attributes problems to Carter’s lack of leadership.
• July 17, 1979 Carter asks his cabinet to resign in an attempt to restructure his administration among growing criticism. Thirty-four officials submit resignations.

• The kiss of life:
  How does Ben give mouth to mouth resuscitation to Johnny? As we see in various issues, Ben's face is flexible between the rock (hence he can have different expressions). He can also blow harder than most people. Mouth to mouth does not require a seal between the lips, it simply requires air to be forced down the throat, and Ben is good at that. In fact, this was barely even needed. The human body can survive in a vacuum for a minute or so, so any damage was mainly shock.
• Ben's dialog:
  "The Thing has always had corny battle cries, but it seems he calls himself the 'ever-loving Thing' on every page of this book [the 204-214 arc], which quickly starts to grate on the nerves." In FF210 Ben explains why: he's trying to be cheerful, to prevent the team from giving up.
• The Celestials:
  Why is Reed is bothering with Galactus and the Sphinx, when according to the Eternals comic, the Celestials are standing in judgment over the Earth, and surely would not let the Sphinx destroy it first. The Eternals comic, the most notable creation of Jack Kirby after his brief return to Marvel, was not originally intended to be part of the Marvel Universe. This illustrates how the best comics need freedom. Yes, if they connect together then we get an even bigger story, but the story is big enough to allow different points of view. From the point of view of the Fantastic Four comic, Marvel gets its information from interviews with the FF, and all other comics are largely guesswork. Readers of other comics are free to have their own theories.
• Batting meteors:
  Why does the ship at the start not have its own protective force field? Does the regular crew swat away every meteor that arrives? Clearly the ship is already damaged.
• Detecting Galactus:
  How does Reed detect Galactus' presence when he could be anywhere in the universe? Reed uses alien technology. Then why don't other planets detect him and avoid him? As the only scientist to ever get close to Galactus and survive, Reed had a much better idea of what to look for. it is likely that Reed is unconsciously guided to this technology by Franklin, as unknown to Reed, Galactus is Franklin's herald (see FF600 and notes by FF74).

• Their ability to use their powers fluctuates. In one issue they say they feel weak, and in the next they can do a little more. This suggests a large element of despair and fatalism, not just physical decline.
• Throughout this arc Johnny is increasingly frustrated with his junior status. FF214 will be a major turning point.
• Aboard Galactus' ship Reed once again indicates that he wants to study every alien ship he finds. See *superhero technology*.
• We learn that Sue's family dies young. This is another reason she likes good hair and beauty so much: her family loses it so quickly. It also explains why Sue doesn't say as much as the others: she has a more serious outlook on life. She had no childhood (she had to raise her brother) and she will die before she retires. She has it tough.
• Note the use of the Kirby Triptych (three similar images at the end of the story) for extra drama. See the notes to FF3 for other examples.

211

Issue 211: Reed is weak and everyone humors him

This issue is Reed at his weakest. He thinks his genius secret plan will save the world, but everyone else can see he is like a child. Ben can see that Reed's plan is stupid, and that Reed is easily distracted from what matters. Johnny can see that Reed's plan is extremely unlikely to work. Even Reed himself despairs.

Galactus is toying with them too. He gives them an easy task: they simply need to hit Tyros once. We saw in FF210 that Galactus quite likes the FF. In FF211 we again see the extent of his Galactus' power. Next issue's "defeat" of Galactus must be seen in that context.

212

213

Issues 212-213: the future of mankind: the greatest cosmic battle of all

I don't usually combine issues in one review: I figure that any comic that does not give a complete story is wasting my money. But in exceptional cases I make an exception. The build up in FF212 was so superb, so exciting, so page turning. and the pay-off in FF213 was so magnificent, that I don't mind that FF212 was just a build up and noting more. This two parter is worth the money.

At the end of FF211 the Watcher announces this to be the greatest cosmic battle of all. This is the climax of the story that began in FF annual 12, announced as a major event, and so it is: not just the greatest battle, but the climax of the longest arc in the entire 28 year story (FF204-214, plus annual 12). The significance to Reed is also huge: he becomes almost irrelevant. He thinks he is in control but he is not. 

The Internet and world history Quasimodo = machines set free Quasimodo represents machines set free. He arose in FF annual 4, the issue about the massive power of intellectual property: both stories were about the power of information as a separate entity. That was the mid 1960s when computers began to be used routinely by big companies. Then in FF202, Quasimodo discovers a whole network: a massive hub of data is able to broadcast across the galaxies. He became VERY excited. Note the symbolism in that issue: the home was no longer tied down, and ended up in a jungle. Ben preferred that location: the Internet can free us to live where we want, but also appeals to people who love a new untamed world. But in FF202 the machines attacked people, just as Herbie did later, so the jungle location could be a bad symbol: of being cut off from our fellow man, where machine stake over, and mankind is perhaps returning to a pre- industrial society. The whole Andromeda storyline takes place off earth, in what is effectively cyberspace (the family is beamed up to a world of computers). It is a world of great danger, where savage Skrulls try to destroy the wisdom of the ages. This whole cyberspace zeitgeist was reflected in the movie Tron, conceived in 1976 and released in 1982. The Sphinx = human history Wile Quasimodo and Xandar represents cyberspace, the Sphinx represents human history: he has been around for most of it. He also represents (at first) the cycle of life: as in the riddle of the sphinx, he recognized the need for each life to change and come to an end. But now he has far more knowledge and thinks he can do anything, and does not care if he destroys the world in the process. This is like modern man since the industrial revolution: we forget our ancient limitations and think we can do anything. In doing so we cause mass extinction and poison the planet. Will we learn cosmic balance? Can we enjoy technology without being intoxicated with power like the Sphinx? Galactus = force of nature Galactus is a force of nature (see FF262). He is as old as the universe and cannot change: he represents the unchanging reality that no matter how powerful we become, there is always something more powerful. So the battle between the Sphinx and Galactus is the battle between human arrogance and universal limits. Note that If the sphinx had cared for others he could have continued his growth. But because he does not care the force of karma will defeat him. A political-economic approach We can also see the Sphinx as the Democratic party and Galactus as the Republicans at the time: the Democrats stood for what they saw as progress, and the Republicans stood for what they saw as economic realities that did not change and could be harsh if not respected. Or we could see the opposite symbolism: the Sphinx's links to Moses remind us of Jimmy Carter, a prominent member of his local Baptist church, whereas Galactus feeding off planets reminds us of the power of the market place. Galactus, the force of nature, reminds the uncultured Terrax (who symbolizes Terra, the earth) that mortals must serve nature and not think they can be its master. The timing of the battle: 1978-79 Mankind had reached this point with the information revolution that began with the first network. We now have the potential for vastly expanded information, and so vastly accelerated change, either for good or evil. This also coincided with glottalization and a turning point in equality: after the upheavals of the generations following WWI, which upset the ancient class system, in 1978 the rich again began to take a larger share of the world's wealth (see the notes to FF200 for details), just as the Sphinx wishes to return to the absolute monarchy of ancient Egypt. These are events of cosmic significance: will mankind move forwards to the next stage, or destroy itself with its hubris, or stay in the past? All of this is symbolized in the battle between the new opportunities seen by the Sphinx and the eternal realities represented by Galactus. So that is why the Watcher was so interested in Xandar and the period 1978-1979, and why the battle between the Sphinx and Galactus was so symbolic.

Why does Galactus fall for the fake nullifier?
In FF210 we saw that Galactus likes Reed. He is not hungry, he is happy to be deceived, and is in no hurry to come back. Is Reed really smarter than Galactus? Is Galactus unable to see inside a toy? Even comic readers can see that a fake nullifier was a silly idea. Yes, the Watcher's mind probing helped, but it could only stop Galactus because he wanted to be stopped. Recall Galactus' statement to the Sphinx: he, Galactus, is all powerful, and yet he is not a God: he is not in control of his destiny. he comes to Earth to eat it because he must, but that does not mean he wants to.

The bottom line is that Galactus is Franklin's herald. The world is safe because Franklin wants it this way. But Reed of course does not know this, and the Watcher isn't telling. For more about why Galactus appears, see the discussion by FF74.

Reed's lesson
Reed is almost insignificant compared to the powers around him. He only has any influence at all because years ago he earned the respect of more powerful beings. Will he learn the lesson? Will he turn his great intellect to the challenge of becoming friends with more powerful beings? Will he be humble and make Franklin his top priority? Not yet. Reed has been humbled but he does not yet know it. He always had little self awareness. He must suffer more yet.

Reed lost
The greatest cosmic battles are not about energy, they are about ideas. This battle is the great cosmic battle of Reed Richards against Galactus. Reed has lost: he is just a mortal and as such will die, but instead of investing in his family (the only way to ensure immortality) his skill will die with him. As for his mighty brain, it was unable to stop the aging ray.  He has even lost against Galactus, who is only humoring him, but Reed's ego will not let him see it. When Reed finally admits his weaknesses in FF295 he will see things as they are, and will have won, and finally be able to move forward and get what he wants.

This whole arc is about time: time comes to us all. The Sphinx lived 5,000 years, wanted to die, and cannot. Now he must live the same events endlessly, like a comic character who can never grow up. Meanwhile Reed and Sue and Ben learn that they cannot cheat time.

Galactus and the end of the world

Galactus promises that when he returns, the world will die

Galactus' word is truth (see FF 50). Galactus did return, and the world did die, along with the entire universe, in The Great Reboot. This is how it happened:

In FF 240 the Inhumans left Earth. Rather like the dolphins leaving Earth in the Hitch-hiker's Guide series this should have been a warning: the last time they planned to leave Earth was when Galactus came to destroy it (see the notes to FF48, and how Maximus called Galactus). 

In FF241 they arrive on the moon, and settle on the exact spot where the Watcher kept his most advanced technology. The official story was that they were simply escaping Earth's air pollution, and landing in the Blue Area was just coincidence. But this is a highly advanced race with a great many secrets. If it was just air pollution they could have fixed it. Something far bigger was going on.

In FF242 Galactus arrived, hungry because the influence of humans had made him question his existence. He was chasing Terrax, the herald he created in this arc.

In FF243 his weakness and self doubt caused him to almost die. But FF 262 reveals that when Galactus dies the universe can no longer reach its destiny: it effectively grinds to a halt. It is the end of not just the Earth, as Galactus said, but the universe.

In FF244 Galactus is saved. He says that Earth no longer needs fear him, as Earth is now his friend. This is taken as a good thing, but is it? The role of Galactus is to destroy. By saving the world destroyer it appears that Earth has become his friend: like him.

Saving Galactus is a very bad idea, as discussed in FF 262. Reed was set free not because he was innocent, but because it suited Eternity. When it suits Eternity to support genocide you know that something very bad is on its way.

FF245 is about Franklin being unable to grow up. Franklin controls the Marvel universe. If Franklin cannot grow up then neither can the universe. This is a Very. Bad. Sign.

The next time we see Galactus (FF256-7) the story is about how he is still dying, because his inner doubts are the same. He destroys the Skrull throne world, but that does not change anything: he is still the changed Galactus because Reed is still his friend, as he makes clear in FF262. Galactus is not supposed to have friends! We are not supposed to befriend genocide! Galactus is a force of nature and no longer a man. He cannot and should not function as a human, he is supposed to be the final test, not a person's friend. Friends do favors, like killing Reed's enemies, the Skrulls! This is all wrong!

So next time we see Galactus after that, in FF338-341, his inner conflict is complete: he has grown mad, and is eating the entire universe. This is the end of the world, the end of the universe, the Great reboot, and the process began in FF 242, just as Galactus foretold.

For more details of how saving Galactus led to the end of everything, see FF340. it explains how in FF244 the weakened Galactus was infected by the dreams of the Black Celestial.

214

Issue 214: we see into Johnny's soul

This is Johnny's finest hour. He saves his family. Yet all the time he feels powerless and scared, and in the end he feels powerless. He's always lived in the shadow of Reed or Sue. He thought he was growing up to be a man when Crystal left, but his failure with girls and the break up of the team left him without any emotional foundation. Although he is now 26 years old, he's emotionally like a teenager: full of hope and confidence, but deep down insecure.

Johnny still has some way to go
In this issue Johnny proves what he can do, but also proves that this deep insecurity is still there. This insecurity will gnaw at him over the next year as Reed an Sue continue their decline. Johnny will not find inner security until FF213 (he knows that he is a hero), and especially FF300-307 (Alicia provides him the emotional stability he needs, and his big sister no longer looks over his shoulder.) Only then will he be emotionally and mentally a healthy, confident, independent adult.

Other points to note

• Irony
  In FF213, the Sphinx is condemned to forever repeat the past. In this, the next issue, the FF are condemned to the same fate; by returning to the status quo we are shown that they will have the same kinds of stories and fight the same kinds of people forever, and can never escape.
  
• Missed opportunity
  Here we finally see into Johnny's soul.In the real world this would have been a powerful beginning to the next generation. This does not mean Sue and Reed could not be cured, but it was the perfect "moving on" point. but the opportunity was missed.
  
• How old are they?
  Reed, Ben and Sue say they feel younger and stronger at the end. Reed appears to have de-aged by seven years, taking him from age 46 to age 39. This de-aging makes his haggard look in FF232 all the more significant: the events of the next year will have a terrible effect on his health. Meanwhile, Byrne's original script for FF232 indicates that Sue was then 29 instead of the expected 32, indicating that the ray took just three years off her. She was already young and close to her prime.
• De-aging was the long term plan
  "“The age problem with the FF was apparent in the ’70s, so yes, the idea was to de-age them. I knew this ending before I started the aging storyline so we could make them young and didn’t have to deny previous stories.” (- Marv Wolfman in "Back Issue" 74)
  
• Who wrote this?
  "Byrne later stated that he did most of the plotting on #214 and Wolfman rewrote some scenes without his knowledge." (source: "Joe")

215

Issue 215: another warning to Reed

In FF204-214 we saw how Reed had failed. In FF215 we see a warning of what will happen next. Randolph is an obvious parallel for Reed:

• They were scientist friends,
• They study the same kinds of things,
• Randolph calls Reed "old friend" (Reed's favorite term for Ben, it's a term not used by anybody else, or at least not often).
• Randolph is under stress since his wife died, just as Reed is under stress since Sue left him. Although she came back she is now more independent: the golden era where she treated him as superior are long gone.
• Like Reed, Randolph is making dangerous mistakes.
• Like Reed, Randolph thinks he can do everything himself.
• Randolph goes too far and then destroys his equipment, foreshadowing what Reed will do to the Baxter Building in FF279.
• Randolph sees him above others, as Reed does. Randolph will not listen to others, just as Reed will not listen to Sue or his child if he can avoid it.
• Randolph is like a god, just as Reed thought eh could act like a god, single handedly solving a galactic war and then facing down Galactus.
  

The Great American Novel
This is like the warning in FF108 (where Janus is like Reed), but this time we see that the Reed stand-in has become more distant, and the only solution is to leave.

In each case we have a treat: a slice of America we rarely see in comics: a hoely street scene. This emphasises the contrast between Reed and the Reed-parallels, cut off from humanity, and the human world the are losing.

This is also a sign that John Byrne's art is consciously modeled on Jack Kirby's. But notice all the additional interesting details in Kirby's version: he is called the king for good reason.

216

Issue 216: Franklin is the answer, stupid!

Over the past few issues I've been very harsh about Reed. But what was he supposed to do, faced with the Sphinx and all those other dangers? The answer was under his nose since 1968. It;'s Franklin! Franklin can solve the problems, if you only let him!

In this issue we are reminded again of Franklin's awesome power, but still Reed ignores him and sidelines him. From now on until the start of Byrne's run, it's all about Franklin.

1. FF203 told is what Franklin can do.
2. FF204-214 shows us how the team fails without Franklin.
3. FF215 is a warning of worse to come as Reed ignores his son
4. Annual 14-FF231 focuses on Franklin.
5. FF232-295: John Byrne famously disliked using Franklin, and even asked if Franklin could be killed off (the editors said no). In doing so Byrne was just reflecting Reed's views. But Byrne's run shows the greatest changes of all: the climax to the Franklin saga. Despite the writer's intentions, the force of this epic writes itself.

From now on, Reed no longer has any excuse. And the next issue, annual 14, drives home the point.

Other points to note

• The splash page
  The splash page shows Times Square and various billboards. Two billboards are for then-current Marvel comics: Epic Magazine and ROM. The one on the right is supposed to say "Coke its the Real Thing". But Byrne - without saying anything, changed it to 'Cuba' instead of Coke. This reflects Byrne's views (see the discussion of Reaganism by FF247). The change is not obvious in the printed comic, due to the position of a large word balloon. But it became obvious years later in the second printing of "The Art of John Byrne". Thanks to Karl Disley for pointing that one out!
• Byrne's cameos
  The splash page also has a cameo of John Byrne in the lower right corner. In later issues look out for him on the cover to 327, as a cab driver when he starts writing, and of course his main role in FF262 and in The Thing issue 7, in "assistant editors month"; he is probably the bearded redhead who admires She-Hulk in FF321, given the reference in 328. Finally, it looks like his head as a trophy on the wall in DeFalco's run. :)

A14

Annual 14: Reed loses all credibility

As if FF216 was not clear enough, FF annual 14 immediately follows, and drives home the point: Two issue back to back featuring his power and Reed's utter neglect. This may seem like overkill, but the point must never be forgotten: Reed's neglect of Franklin is the heart of the 28 year family story.

What was Reed thinking?
This issue has been often criticized as too similar to FF186, but that's the point! Reed is blind where his son is concerned. They need to go on holiday, so he decides to go to New Salem! New Salem!!! What was he thinking??? Just a few months ago (their time) Franklin was kidnapped there and they were all nearly killed!  As Karen of Bronze Age Babies puts it, "Seriously, the FF decides to take a break and they go to a town of witches? Another reason I refuse to believe that Reed Richards is the smartest man on the planet."

True, Nicholas Scratch has been banished and/or killed, but these are ancient witches! His followers! Does anyone think a little thing like being banished/dead would stop the spirit of a powerful warlock? On the way there they acknowledge that there could be ghosts. That mean Scratch could still be a threat! Reed's appalling parenting amounts to criminal neglect. And sure enough, Franklin is traumatized, and again his power saves the day (twice).

A conspiracy theory
A conspiracy theorist might draw a connection with the Over mind debacle, where Reed's friend Agatha used her son to try to make Reed look good (apparently: it's speculation, but that is where the evidence points). Is that the reason why Reed, after so many disasters, wants to go to Nicholas Scratch's old stomping ground, to impress his family with an easy win? he presumably knows that Agatha can always defeat her son, so maybe he thinks this is safe? That's just a guess. But I think it's more likely that Reed is just being incredibly stupid.

Sue
I suggested in the Andromeda story that perhaps Sue is Cassiopeia: perhaps she is the one to blame. Reed, it could be argued, may have autism so cannot help missing the big picture while he focuses so much on the details. Meanwhile, we know that he will always obey Sue when pushed (he at least learned that lesson from the separation). So it could be argued that Sue is the one at fault: she genuinely loves Franklin, she could fix everything by pushing Reed in the right direction, but she doesn't. She is so keen to have a harmonious family (after her own lonely childhood) that she won't create waves. Ironically by being so supportive of Reed she creates the very disharmony that she fears.

Children are the answer. That is the four word summary of the entire 28 year story, and foreshadowing the happy ending in Act 5

217

Issue 217: Reed's barrier goes up

• children (Franklin and Herbie, the robot from the children's FF cartoon)
• younger adults (Johnny and the Dazzler)
• the older generation (Sue and Reed)
• and the very old (Dr Sun, who is effectively immortal, and the living computers of Xandar)

• the previous story arc about aging
• the large timing mechanism that Ben carries on the splash page and through most of the story

• numerous parallels with 100 issues earlier

The 100 issue cycle

• The aftermath
  Both come after the longest story arc so far: the Overmind saga (4 issues, joint longest with Latveria and Skrull planet stories at that point), and the Xandar saga (11 issues, the longest ever)
  
• About the Übermensch
  Both sagas were about the desire to be a superior mind: in 117 it is Reed as the "Übermensch" or Overmind, and here it is the living computers that are such a magnet for Quasimodo, Dr Sun, the Sphinx, etc. It raises the question: when some person or entity is more intelligent than any human, what becomes of the human race? Do they stay as slaves, or as food, or will they just be wiped out?
  
• Reed's failure
  Both were about Reed trying to too much, and failing disastrously
• Unleashing evil
  In Both, Reed almost caused catastrophe by unleashing beings he could not handle (Scratch -see notes to 115- and Galactus)
• Humiliated
  In Both, the situation was only saved by appealing to the deadliest enemy (Doom in FF116, Galactus in FF213)
• Whisper Hill
  Both feature Whisper Hill (in 117 Reed and Sue are there to mend their marriage; in 217 Sue is angry at Reed and plans to go there alone)
• Nicholas Scratch
  Both (probably) feature another failed parent: Agatha and her son Nicholas Scratch: for 117 see the notes to the Overmind Saga; for 217 see Reed's ironic reference to Franklin being safe with Agatha: they were only just kidnapped by Scratch, and soon Franklin will be kidnapped again, leading Sue and Reed to finally take their son back home.
• Prequel to Franklin
  Both are the beginning of a 24 issue build up to Franklin losing unleashing his power, only to have Reed shut most of his mind down. (in FF141, and later in FF241 CHECK THIS)
• Prequel to the downward spiral
  Both resulted in a rapid downward spiral for Reed (117 led to the near divorce; for the issues after 2176 see the notes on Moench's run, 219-231)

"In terms of the evolution of disco then 1974 is regarded as the seminal year, and 1977 its peak. By 1979 the backlash had already begun (including the infamous “Disco Sucks" protests and the Chicago Cubs smashing of records) and a new wave about to be phased in. It traditionally tapped into the gay scene, which makes it doubly amusing that the can-never-settle-down flash Johnny tries it out."   - 'Richard'

• We continue to see Johnny's insecurity around women. This will be his last weakness to fall, in act 5.
• For more about Herbie's life and death, see notes to FF209.

218

Issue 218, the Spider-Man issue: how well can we hide our identity?

This is about Spider-Man, not the FF
Continuing the theme of masquerade from the previous issue, this issue is about disguises. Specifically,  Paste Pot Pete and Spider-Man. Why focus on Spider-Man and not the FF? Because the writer of this issue was a Spider-Man expert who wrote the issue at short notice, filling a gap before Doug Moench took over.

"Archie Goodwin was originally announced as new FF writer beginning with this issue, but the firing of Rick Marschall by Jim Shooter caused Archie to grab the editor spot of Epic magazine instead." (source)  "Since Bill Mantlo is filling in on writing chores after Wolfman’s abrupt departure as both writer and editor, it makes sense that there’s a Spidey crossover.  This issue finished a story that started in Peter Parker the Spectacular Spider-Man #42, a series on which Mantlo was a regular writer." (source)

Once again I have to stress what I always say: none of this was intentional. But the stories are bigger than the writers and I am just trying to make sense of what finally appeared on the page.

This issue is a big deal
This is the final "Frightful Four" story, insofar as that title meant anything. The original Frightful Four was supposed to be a team of equals: Peter Petruski began it by rescuing the Wizard. Although the Wizard treats others as worthless, as long as Peter was there the team was in theory kind of equal. But being with the Wizard so long destroyed any possibility of a team. This is Petruski's final team issue. After this the Wizard will come back, with the Sandman (because he has his own reasons), but it's basically just the Wizard and whoever he can hire at the time. The Wizard is Reed's arrogance magnified until it makes a team impossible.

This issue had a big build up in the "Spectacular Spider-Man" comic. For several issues (39-42) the Wizard and Pete planned their final revenge on both Spidey and the FF. And this issue, FF 218, is where it happens: and it's a fiasco. This is where the Frightful; Four lose whatever credibility it may have had. From here it's all over. After this the Wizard returns one more time, for the final showdown in act 5, but it's all pathetic really, and it's really Aron the rogue Watcher who calls the shots.

This is Peter's big test
The rest of the Frightful Four watch the Trapster: this seems to be his big test. He has to enter the building, defeat the Torch and the Thing, and disable the alarms, on his own. We can infer that they had a lot of arguing behind the scenes (they argue plenty when we see them so this is not a big stretch). You can imagine great shouting matches where the Wizard says Pete is useless and Pete says he will prove himself once and for all. And he fails. Even his paste fails: both Spidey and Reed are able to break it. It's all over for Pete. He will make one last attempt (FF 265) but the result is predictable. Peter Petruski is not the man he thinks he is.

Why Peter Petruski is like Peter Parker
Spider-Man and Paste Pot Pete both appeared with a very similar material in 1963: a super-adhesive that expands forcefully on contact with air, can be formed into long strings or ropes, and dissolves after an hour. They both claimed to invent it, but neither seemed interested in selling it (see below), and in Spider-Man's case the first version was much better than later versions. This all suggests that they both discovered the same material. Peter Parker refined his into a very thin strand (though he sometimes used it just as glue), and Peter Peter preferred to use his as thick ropes. But both use them for the same general purposes: for ropes, for sticking to things, for tying things up, etc,

When we follow Peter Peter's career we see that he and Peter Parker are almost exactly the same. Except that when Parker's Uncle Ben died it made him less greedy: it made him think of others.

• Spider-man always hides his identity.
  
• The Trapster pretends to be Spider-Man.
  
• The Invisible Girl hides, but cannot hide her ordinary clothing (symbolizing how hiding cannot always work in the real world)
• The Trapster pretends to be brave when he is not.
• At the end the FF pretend to be cruel when they are not.
• Etc.
  

The Fantastic Four is about realism. When people have more power than others, how do they behave?

1. Sometimes, like Reed, they become self important, arrogant, without meaning to.
   
2. Other times, as with Ben, they can't handle it.
   
3. Sometimes, as with Sue, they don't want it.
   
4. And other times, as with Johnny, they embrace it but it never works out as they want (e.g. he has no power over his life and can't get a girlfriend who will stay). 

People with wealth and power often pretend it will not change them. But it has to: it cannot help but change them This is symbolized by the question of secret identities. A super powered secret identity can never fully work in the real world, because:

• The media would follow you.
• Enemies would follow you.
• The government would follow you.
• It's immoral. If you worked full time as a hero you could save more lives. People are dying because you want a secret identity.
• it causes you endless problems: how do you explain your sudden disappearances to your employer or boyfriend?
  
• Fighting crime (or whatever) is expensive: unless your parents are billionaires you can't do this part time.

Realistically, there are only two reasons for a secret identity:

1. Illegality: You want to commit crime
2. Inexperience: You are very new to the superhero game and haven't got it worked out yet. Steve Ditko got it right. Early Spider-Man stories are realistic, because he was just a kid, and hadn't got it all worked out. But when he became a man he would stop behaving like a kid and move on.
   

About Spider-Man

The original Steve Ditko Spider-Man was realistic: that is just how a kid would behave when coming to terms with great power. Ditko argued that a hero would then grow up (and in Ditko's opinion become like "The Question" or "Mr A"). In this web site I argue that Peter Parker remained as the mixed up kid, but we also see his other possible career path, as criminal.

The names "Peter Parker" and "Peter Peter"
In the FF comic, Peter Petruski (Paste Pot Pete, or the Trapster) is what could have happened to Spider-Man, had he followed the criminal route. Petruski is a variant form of the Polish name Petrowski, and means "from Peter". The Trapster is "the Peter from Peter". Meanwhile "Parker" means the person who looks after the park: Peter Parker cares for those around him, whereas Peter Peter only cares for Peter.

Both Peters began in 1963. Here I will argue that they are essentially the same character, but their paths diverged when Parker's uncle died. At first neither cared about crime (Peter let a criminal escape) and this led to the death of Ben Parker ("Ben" means "son of", so Bens tend to be "everyman" characters). This changed Peter Parker's outlook. But Peter Petruski had the opposite experience: he found that the more he ignored morality, the more money he made, so he chose that route.

Why didn't he sell the web formula?
Both Peters wanted money. Super adhesive or webbing are such useful inventions that they could become billionaires just by selling it. So why don't they? The clue is that Peter's early webbing could do far more than the later stuff (see the first time Peter met the FF for example). Obviously he would experiment with it, but it does seem that he could not duplicate its best properties. And note that vast quantities come from tiny web shooters: to some extent the material seems to expand to replenish itself, just like the unstable molecule Skrull milk and Skrull spray in FF annual 16. (According to Spidey's own book he does run out of webbing sometimes, but there could be other reasons for this, related to how he experiments with the material, plus Spidey's own book may not be reliable: see below). If both Peters want money yet do not sell their billion dollar "invention" it seems likely that they only have one source that replenishes itself, and they experiment with it but only have a vague idea of how it works.

The real Peter Parker
In his own comic, Peter Parker is shown as being super strong, having an amazing spider-sense, being super smart, and having invented amazing webbing. But the more realistic Fantastic Four shows the real story: Spider-man is a guy who discovered an alien substance he used as webbing, and that may be his only power. In the FF we really don't know much about Parker's private life, or even if that is his real name: if he has a secret identity then obviously it would not be published in a comic! Let's look at what we know about Spider-Man from his appearances in the FF. Remember that only the FF report directly to Marvel, so these are the reliable stories.

Spider-Man in his own comic
In his own comics Spider-Man is a mostly successful crime fighter. But this requires him to never learn from his mistakes (why does he have the same problems a teenager would have?), and he uses web shooters that are far in advance of anything human scientists could invent. This and other features make him unrealistic. Yet it could still be an example of "magical realism": where something impossible is used in a story, as a quick way to see how a person reacts. So the modern Spider-man can still be realistic in a way. I would love to se a web site that explores that realism.

Until a serious realism-based Spider-Man web site is made then we have to work with what we have. This web site will apply Occam's razor and just say "Spider-Man is unrealistic. We can enjoy his stories as fables, but not realistically." So what are we to do with the references to Spider-Man in the FF comic? If we examine those references realistically, a very different kind of Spider-Man emerges.

Spider-Man in the early Fantastic Four

• FF annual 1, story 2: we see that his webbing can do amazing things at first: far more amazing than anything that comes later. Also, unfeasibly large amounts of web fluid fit into tiny web cartridges. This and other evidence suggests that he did not invent it, but discovered an alien substance, and there were limited quantities. Its ability to last a long time reminds me of the Skrull milk in FF annual 16. And the black costume that finally took on a life of its own.
  At the end of this story Spidey leaves because he doesn't think he can make money from being in the Fantastic Four.
  
• FF35: we see Peter Parker at school, and his cockiness: he's not impressed by Johnny.
• FF36: Peter Parker steps aside so Peter Peter can appear for the first time (see below)
• Annual 3 - another appearance in the same comic as Peter Peter. Here Spider-Man's webbing supports a heavy object (a safe), but we don't see what is anchoring it at the top: so we cannot see this as evidence that Spider-Man has super-strength.
• FF61: Peter Parker is in a crowd with a camera.
• FF73: in one frame he appears to stick to a wall, otherwise Peter Parker's only obvious power is his webbing.
• FF111: Parker tries to sell photos to Jameson, but is ignored
• FF133: in the same story as Peter Peter again. He uses his web.
• FF204: Peter is fighting "Manwolf" and apparently losing,
• FF207: Peter sticks to a stone wall, but Johnny is asleep, so cannot have reported this incident to Marvel. We only have Peter's description, if any. He smashes open an ordinary door, but again there are no witnesses, and we don't know how strong the door is. He is seen lifting two men, which indicates he is at peak physical fitness.
  
• FF annual 14: he appears to use a "spider sense", but the rushing terrified crowds men he didn't need any special skills to notice there was danger nearby!
• This issue: we once see Peter apparently hold onto a wall with his hands, but the wall is covered with machinery so there is plenty to hold onto if needed.
• FF242: he uses his webbing again. Once again he appears to use a spider-sense, but the danger was obvious to anyone who glanced out of the nearby window, so there is no need for any special power.
• FF243: he is briefly seen on a wall, but not climbing, just sticking.
• FF250: he just swings and talks.
• FF299: he just swings then talks, and shows he knows more about relationships than Johnny does.

So applying Occam's razor (hat is, always taking the simplest possible explanation), this is what we know for sure about Spider-Man:

1. He discovered some kind of alien glue that could be used for shooting sticky ropes.
2. He might also use it for sticking to walls (presumably reformulated, so he only sticks as much as he needs to and it dissolves more quickly)
   
3. He trained himself to the peak of physical fitness
4. He is confident and wisecracking
5. He has bad luck.
   

Summary of similarities
We first meet Peter Peter in FF36, where we are reminded of his Strange Tales appearance, and his similarities with Spider-Man:

• He uses his glue as webbing, to swing through the sky
• His initial goal was to make money (see Peter's wrestling career and his reason for trying to join the FF)
  
• He sometimes uses it to climb walls. (The suction cups in FF208 needed help: they won't work on wet concrete. Peter is an expert on adhesives, so they almost certainly had some kind of quick dissolving glue assistance)
  
• It dissolves after an hour (as we saw in Strange Tales)
  
• He stashes his clothes away when in costume
• He's an inventor and smart guy, brimming with confidence
• He is a natural loner: becoming part of a team dos not work for him (the Wizard's team destroyed his confidence).
• His bad luck means he never gets what he wants.
  
• But his confidence will be knocked by his bad luck. inability to make things happen: nothing ever works out how he wanted (in this case, meeting the Wizard spelled the end of his confidence)
  

Later we see Peter Parker leave the Baxter Building window just as Peter Peter approaches it for the first time. Note the symbolism: this is a window on two very private Peters: one leaves so the other can enter

Goodbye Paste Pot Pete
This issue is the end of Peter's career with the Frightful Four. At the end he just goes to pieces. He will make one final attempt to function - his next appearance will be on his own - and that will end with his utter humiliation and fade into blackness. After that he will never to be seen again (in the 28 year story). Both this and his final story take place at night, reflecting the darkness of this final act in Peter's career.  For more about Peter as a person, click here. 

Other points to note
Younger readers may think that "husbandly duties" refers to sex. But Sue's concern at this point is that Reed spends time with her. The last thing she wants is to be treated like one of Reed's machines, just a  simple physical function to be discharged. Maybe she wants his body, but far more than that she she wants his attention.

Next: their lowest point