The Fantastic Four are reunited, and they’re out to rescue their family. However, that doesn’t mean their road trip across the globe is going to go smoothly, as Salem’s Seven is about to show them!
Ryan North, Ivan Fiorelli, Jesus Aburtov, and Joe Caramagna get a little twisty in this story.
It’s just another day for the Fantastic Four, including a traffic jam created by a group of magical supervillains, Salem’s Seven! But it’s not just a brawl they’re after, as the Four starts to feel… strange after the villains’ retreat. What did Nicholas Scratch do to them, and can the Four figure out how undo their curse?
The saying goes that magic is just science we don’t understand. North dives right into that idea with this issue. The actual conflict with Salem’s Seven is only a few pages, but that’s not the point of the story. The point is offering the Four with a problem they can’t solve through conventional means, so they have to figure out how to be unconventional. It’s fun and twisty, but North also centers it in the characters, making sure it’s more than just a high concept meeting of science fiction and fantasy.
Fiorelli jumps in with the guest spot here and does a fantastic job. He maintains visual continuity with the opening arc (yes, Johnny still has that terrible mustache), and uses the same tech designs. He opens with fairly house style Marvel action, but then stretches that into weird and surreal as the issue goes on, culminating in Reed getting completely trippy. Aburtov’s colors are bright, which grounds the strangeness a little. When it gets really weird, the colors aren’t the best fit, but generally it works.
Caramagna’s lettering work is as strong as usual. He makes sure the dialogue enhances the storytelling, without getting in the way of the art. This is also an SFX heavy issue, and he has fun with them throughout.
This is a fun single issue story that shows what this new status quo can live up to. It’s well worth checking out, and a great indication of what could be to come.
Fantastic Four #5 is available now from Marvel Comics.
The Fantastic Four are reunited, and they’re out to rescue their family. However, that doesn’t mean their road trip acrossCOMICONRead More