Fantastic Four #2 Review - Marvel Monday

What Would Belichick Do?
Writer: Dan SlottArtist: Sara PichelliPublisher: Marvel ComicsRelease Date: September 12, 2018Cover Price: $3.99


WISH YOU WERE HERE!
What have Reed, Sue and the kids been up to all this time? What adventures have they been on? What strange new friends have they found along the way? What deadly new enemies have they made? And what are Franklin and Valeria's new codenames? All these questions will be answered... just in time for ENTIRE UNIVERSES TO DIE!


If you were upset at the first issue for not having enough Reed, Sue and the kids, this issue will remedy that.  We start up right with them (and the Future Foundation) and see what they have been up to.  Exploring worlds!  However, these aren't just everyday worlds and universes, they are ones made by Franklin or should I say, Powerhouse.

It's a nice little start seeing our heroes and their friends actually living a good life.  Yep, they aren't desperately trying to get home, but instead are just kicking it through self-created universes that they create to match whatever fancy strikes them.  We even get to see Val almost have a boyfriend that looks a lot like Namor...good stuff.

Of course, something has to go wrong, right?  I mean, they do have Franklin playing god here and that's where things start to go wonky.  First, he loses his ability to create worlds.  It's very sudden and the way it is shrugged off felt a little bit off, but that gets left behind quick when the group is attacked by The Griever who demands that they pay for what they have done.

There is the age-old trope of villain monologuing that is played with over and over.  This is not one of those times.  Instead, Dan Slott plays with ego here and while we don't find out a lot about Griever, from the little panel space we get in this issue we know she kicks ass and she knows it.  That last part is what Reed uses to his advantage. 

When Griever catches up to Reed and the rest, it looks like all hope is lost.  Franklin is easily dismissed by Griever and when she has the entire Future Foundation defeated, she decides to play games with Reed because...well, because she thinks she is that badass!   She allows Reed to summon the rest of his family so she can defeat the famed Fantastic Four, but the issue ends with everyone finding out that Mr. Fantastic isn't just smart, but he also cheats.  It's the comic book version of Deflategate and I love it!

This issue was good until the cliffhanger...then it got great!  I can't just rate it on the ending so this won't get a 10/10, but boy was I pumped when I got to the last page.  Dan Slott knows readers want the team together and he gives us that...but in his own sly way.  Even before that, though, I liked seeing everyone having their happily ever after and my only complaint was once Griever showed up, things were forced a bit to get to the ending.  However, the story and art were really good and I can't wait for the next issue.

Bits and Pieces:

Dan Slott knows we all want the Fantastic Four back together, but he is going to do it his way.  I liked the story, loved the cliffhanger and enjoyed the art.  Yep, there wasn't much I didn't like in this issue and I can't wait for issue #3!

9.0/10