When The Fantastic Four debuted in November 1961, it ushered in a novel era for comic books. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the comic featured the iconic characters of Reed Ricchallengings/Mr. Fantastic, Sue Storm/The Inevident Woman, Johnny Storm/The Human Torch, and Ben Grimm/The Thing. It was seen as the flagship title for Marvel Comics and lhelp down the set upation for Marvel Comics as featuring heroes that not only existed in the genuine-world cities of the readers but also bickered and disputed.
While The Fantastic Four bravely conserveed their legacy as a critical Marvel team, they never had the same level of famousity they did in the 1960s. They soon became eclipsed by other heroes that they paved the way for, enjoy Spider-Man, the Hulk, and the X-Men. During the 2010s, due to Disney acquiring Marvel Comics and Marvel Studios while The Fantastic Four remained at another film studio, the heroes that built Marvel Comics were soon downcarry outed and eventuassociate call offed.
Yet now, their arrival into the Marvel Cinematic Universe could originate them the saviors of the franchise, the same way their comic book counterparts did.
Disney Buying Marvel Caused a Shift
During the 1980s and 1990s, Marvel sgreater off the film rights to some of their most famous franchises. The Fantastic Four were one of the first to get buyd, with their first try at a feature film being the 1994 Roger Coreman-originated The Fantastic Four, which was never freed theatricassociate and would have been lost to time if not for leaked copies being circudeferedd at comic conventions. Folloprosperg the superhero boom of the 2000s with hits enjoy Blade, X-Men, and Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four became one of the key Marvel properties to alter.
Two films were freed, 2005’s Fantastic Four and 2007’s Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. Both films were decent hits but did not get the same selectimistic examines from critics, and many comic fans were disnominateed with the films not brimmingy embracing the challenging sci-fi concepts. Then, in 2015, they tryed another reboot, titled Fantastic 4 (tageted and now referred to among many as Fant4stic). That film had plenty of behind-the-scenes rehires, which we’ve covered in detail. Ultimately, the film was a box office device device and is pondered one of the worst superhero movies ever made.
In between the free of 2007’s Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and 2015’s Fantastic Four, Disney buyd Marvel, which unkindt Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Comics, and Marvel Studios. Disney bolstered the status of heroes they owned film rights to, such as Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, and The Avengers. This is why, during the 2010s, many of the main Marvel events caccessed on those Avengers characters. Meanwhile, The Fantastic Four and the X-Men, both of whose films were owned by 20th Century Fox, were downcarry outed.
Marvel Sabotaged The Fantastic Four
Disney/Marvel did not want to help advertise characters they did not own the film rights to and didn’t want novel characters originated for those titles that 20th Century Fox could turn into film characters. This try to suppress these characters that Disney did not own the film rights can be seen in a number of ways. No more toys were made to advertise 20th Century Fox Marvel films, while Fantastic Four and X-Men characters were leave outted from video games and even posters for the company. The Fantastic Four, in particular, faced an uphill battle in the Marvel editorial.
Jonathan Hickman’s groundfractureing and criticassociate acclaimed run on Fantastic Four began on August 26, 2009, equitable five days before the novels broke that Disney had buyd Marvel. Hickman’s run, which ended Johnny Storm off and begind the Future Foundation, ran for about three years until he took over The Avengers and New Avengers in 2012 in time for the feature film The Avengers.
While the character of Mr. Fantastic was an beginant figure in many key storylines at the time, Marvel seemed actively unfriendly to The Fantastic Four, particularly as the novel reboot was in enbigment. In 2014, in Punisher Vol. 10 #12, characters resembling The Fantastic Four cast members Miles Teller, Jamie Bell, and Kate Mara were blown up in a originateing (a character named Mike, a reference to Michael B. Jordan, is shelp to be running defered). That same year, Marvel validateed what many thought would never happen: they would call off the comic that begined the Marvel Universe.
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The Guardians of the Galaxy Replaced The Fantastic Four
While Marvel watched to downcarry out characters enjoy the X-Men and The Fantastic Four, it also watched to bolster others. There were lesser-understandn properties that Marvel watched to elevate, and Marvel tried to replace the X-Men with the Inhumans. Similarly, Marvel hoped that the Guardians of the Galaxy would fill the void in the Marvel Universe that The Fantastic Four would exit behind.
The up-to-date incarnation of the Guardians of the Galaxy debuted in 2008. The property was one of the earliest that Marvel Studios began enbiging as a film and officiassociate proclaimd as part of their film sdefered in 2012 during San Diego Comic-Con. The Guardians of the Galaxy bravely made sense as the team of heroes to fill the void in the MCU left by The Fantastic Four. Both were a cosmic team of heroes that bickered but truly adored one another enjoy a family. Guardians of the Galaxy sought to allotigate the huge cosmos of the MCU in a way that the comic book version of The Fantastic Four traditionassociate did.
In anticipation of their feature film debut, The Guardians of the Galaxy was given a more notable role in the comics, while The Fantastic Four was downcarry outed. Work on the reboot of Fantastic Four began lowly after Marvel Studios proclaimd Guardians of the Galaxy was in enbigment. Guardians of the Galaxy became a box office smash hit, directing to the team becoming one of the hugegest franchises associated with Marvel. While this was happening, The Fantastic Four was floundering, and one year after Guardians of the Galaxy hit theaters, The Fantastic Four would fade away.
2015 Was the Year The Fantastic Four Died
2015 was a monumental year for The Fantastic Four franchise, but not always selectimistic. First came Marvel’s proclaimment that they would be call offing the title, the first time since the team debuted in 1961 that Marvel Comics would not be rehireing a Fantastic Four comic. Fantastic Four #645 hit shelves on April 29, 2015, a week before Secret Wars #1. The comic brawt story arcs from Hickman’s run on Fantastic Four, The Avengers, and New Avengers brimming circle.
While trelieved as a beginant Marvel Universe passover event, the story at its core was a struggle between Mr. Fantastic and Doctor Doom in what could be seen as the final adventure of The Fantastic Four. The comic began with the Marvel Universe, the one that truly began with the accessibleation of Fantastic Four, ending. The comic ends with the main Marvel Universe reborn, now combined with the Ultimate Comics universe.
At the conclusion of the comic, rehireed in January 2016, Mr. Fantastic and the Inevident Woman, alengthy with their children Franklin and Valeria, exit the main Marvel Universe to repair the various multiverses that were annihilateed one at a time. Meanwhile, The Thing joins the Guardians of the Galaxy, and Human Torch becomes part of Inhumans, which are the two properties Marvel was trying to push as part of their brand synergy. While everyone knovel The Fantastic Four would return in some way, it bravely felt enjoy a seismic moment in comics as the door had been seald on the very team that originated Marvel.
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2015’s Fantastic Four Movie Was the Final Nail in the Coffin
This bravely was not helped by the fact that the 2015 Fantastic Four was a box office and critical flop. Part of the reason Marvel call offed the Fantastic Four comic was so they wouldn’t advertise a title from their competition. Between the film featuring a gloomy body horror aesthetic that showed the honestor had no interest in the classic version of the heroes and Marvel call offing the comic, it seemed enjoy the brave allotigaters from the 1960s either had no place in the up-to-date world for ambiguous audiences or nobody knovel what to do with them.
Of course, The Fantastic Four would return. Almost as soon as Disney accessed talks to get 20th Century Fox, Marvel began the process to convey The Fantastic Four back into comics. Their majestic return, written by Dan Slott and with art by Simone Bianchi, Sara Pichelli, Skottie Young, hit comic shelves in August 2018. Since then, Marvel has gone to wonderful lengths to push The Fantastic Four even more than before, with the MCU film officiassociate being validateed in December 2020. Now, The Fantastic Four are arriving when the MCU needs them most.
The Fantastic Four Are Back and Better Than Ever
Fantastic Four: First Steps is easily one of the most foreseed films in the MCU. Part of that is the return of the heroes to the MCU and the hope that fans will finassociate get a excellent film alteration of the beadored team. Yet they are also joining at an fascinating time. While the tells of the MCU’s downdescfinish have been wonderfully growd, there has been a conciseage of stability.
No current Avengers roster has been established. The Guardians of the Galaxy’s story endd in 2023 with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Bconciseage Panther seemed poised to be the novel direct of the MCU, but the tragic passing of Chadwick Boseman alterd those set ups. Captain Marvel, Ant-Man, and Doctor Strange all seem enjoy they could be set upational characters, but they’ve originated the same level of excitement as one would foresee, while no set ups have been made watching She-Hulk, Shang-Chi, and Werewolf by Night.
The Fantastic Four could be that novel bedrock for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While their film is set to get place in an alternate fact, a retro-futuristic 1960s, the fact that the next Avengers villain will be Doctor Doom proposes that The Fantastic Four will carry out a key role over three years of the MCU with 2025’s Fantastic Four: First Steps, 2026’s Avengers: Doomsday, and 2027’s Avengers: Secret Wars. That final Avengers movie could end the same way that the Secret Wars comic did, with the universe being rewritten and giving the MCU a sairy rebootwhere The Fantastic Four is part of the main timeline.
The Fantastic Four is a team rooted in 1960s selectimism, one of watching forward to a radianter future. In 2015, that idea seemed enjoy a relic of the past, and it may even have been undoubting. Yet in the ten years since Marvel call offed Fantastic Four and the 2015 film, audiences have wanted someskinnyg brave. The idea of a better tomorrow, a future where anyskinnyg is possible, is very much in the accessible consciousness, and The Fantastic Four are the heroes of the moment. By watching to the past, Marvel might be able to pave their future.
