Fantastic Four, Vol. 1: Save Everyone

Fantastic Four (2025)

by Ryan North, Humberto Ramos (Pemciler), Victor Olazaba (Inker)

Out of the shocking events of ONE WORLD UNDER DOOM comes a new FANTASTIC FOUR volume filled with their adventures through time, space, science and the human condition! Courtesy of their world-conquering enemy, the FF are scattered through four different eras in Earth’s history! Alone and isolated in wildly different time periods, Reed, Johnny, Ben and Sue all must fight to survive. Their only hope is to reach the Forever Stone: a mass of dense granite that happens to be one of the longest-lasting rocks on the planet! Do you want to see Ben Grimm fight a dinosaur, as drawn by Humberto Ramos? Of course you do!

COLLECTING: Fantastic Four (2025) #1-5, Free Comic Book Day 2025

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, Superheroes, Science Fiction, Time Travel, Comic Book

136 pages, Paperback

Published March 10, 2026

About the author

Hi, I'm Ryan! I was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada in 1980 and since then have written several books. You can read my Wikipedia page for more, or check out my author site at RyanNorth.ca!

I'm the author of the webcomic Dinosaur Comics (that's the comic where the pictures don't change but the words do, it's better than it sounds and I've also done crazy things like turn Shakespeare into a choose-your-own-path adventure, write a comic for Marvel about a girl with all the powers of a squirrel, or mess up walking my dog so badly it made the news.

I'm working on more stuff as we speak, hopefully it's good

Reviews

[Ray]

It wasn't really necessary to restart the numbering of this comic, it's the same great writing from Ryan North and it even starts during the One World Under Doom crossover where the last volume ended. But there's the new FF movie so this had to be a new vol. 1, I get it comics these days.

The first three issues are the best of North, even though the big crossover (that he wrote) didn't work in my opinion. Each issue has a cool weird mind-boggling time travel concept that is pure Fantastic Four fun. These sorts of shorter story concepts are why I love his run so much.

The next two issues involve a disturbing space "doggy" that is actually something else, also with cool sci-fi ideas, and the final story is a mystery starring Sue Storm that resolves satisfactorily in one issue.

The art by Humberto Ramos is very stylistic, which contracts a lot with say One World Under Doom, but I'm used to it and makes for some unique takes when Ben is fighting dinosaurs or whatever. Overall, this continues the very high quality of Ryan North's writing making him among the top writers of the Richards family. That's a high bar, and I'll continue to love this series.

[Dan]

Best FF run in at least 20 years.

[♥Milica♥]

Clearly I'm biased (I mean, Felicia has literally been my profile pic ever since I started reviewing), so if I said my favourite issue is the one she's featured in...no surprise there.

I have to agree with everyone saying the renumbering was unnecessary, because the story continues right where we left off, and isn't the best jumping off point for someone who hasn't been following this run.

But if you have been following it, and liking it as much as me, then you'll be happy to see it continue. Also, I didn't cry in this one, but I was close. I'm sure Mr North will ramp up the emotional moments as we go along.

[Oscar]

This volume was ok. 2.7 🌟

[Khurram]

I wanted to give this book 3.5 stars, it just was not enough for a round up. I will admit the Fantastic Four are not my favourite superhero team/family. The quote comes to mind

"If you remove everything impossible, what remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth."

In this book most things I just had to accept that I was not going to get the answers until Reed or Sue gave the impossible answer.

The first three chapters of this book are along side the One World Under Doom event. The next are the FF family's new pet and finally the team up nobody thought they wanted Sue plays detective with the Black Cat. Finally the story from FCBD.

The book was okay bordering on good. In fairness my expectations were not super high to begin with. I like the artwork, except Johnny's mustache. Who's idea was that? The book finishes with a huge variant cover gallery.

[Blair Conrad]

Together we can take it to the end of the line!

[Robert]

Making Sue the undisputed leader of the team is great, and I enjoy the over-the-top science-y-ness of North's stories. It feels great having the First Family back front and centre.


Very cool layout that calls back to so many Manhattan street-level battles in the FF's past.

[Alex Sarll]

Disappointing that they're renumbering the collections too; I know Marvel are addicted to spurious #1s on their singles, but sometimes they have more sense when it comes to the trades and the risk of alienating and confusing more casual readers. And this was a particularly spurious renumbering, picking up in the midst of the same event where the last volume ended. That's the bad news; the good is that it means Ryan North is still writing, still mostly giving us stories as problems to be solved, whether that's the team being strewn through time by Doctor Doom or the Bechdel-tastic issue where the boys go on a fishing trip (in the Negative Zone) and Sue has to prove that – for once – the Black Cat is innocent of a heist. Really, the only change is that Humberto Ramos has joined on art, and he's very welcome; the one thing which sometimes held North's run back was visuals which, though competent, could feel a little characterless. No longer.

[Jason]

3.5
I just don't like North's Fantastic Four. The stories always feel try hard to me. Like he is trying to write the characters. I never feel like they are real characters I'm enmeshed in.

[Keegan Schueler]

Just classic Ryan North fantastic four with a non necessary relaunch.

[Jason]

3.5
Mostly one off throw away stories that can be fun. But I want something more for the Fantastic Four. (That rhymed.)

[Christian]

Hey Marvel, can we talk? Actually, Comic Industry, you come here too. You all need to hear this. Changing a comic's numbering to #1 only makes it a good jumping on point if you make sure it's actually written to be. If you take an obvious event tie-in and then call it Fantastic Four #1, that just makes it confusing for all the people who buy it because they liked that movie that just came out. And then, and I really think this is the part you need to hear, they won't buy #2. You want them to buy #2, right? Otherwise you could just call all comics #1 and then they'd all be good jumping on points.

This comic is not a good jumping on point no matter what number is on it. It actually makes it more confusing to call it number 1. Issues #1-3 are tie-ins to One World Under Doom, and they're honestly more of a tie-in than the tie-in book was. Reed, Sue, Ben, and Johnny try to stop Doom and instead are scattered through time. This finally answers the question to how Doom has been winning every battle. It also raises some minor niggles since Doom was pretty consistent in not killing the Four for most of One World and now he's suddenly dropping them in inhospitable periods of Earth's history/future. But overall, it's a decent story. I just was hoping to see the aftermath of One World, which I guess I wasn't going to either way anyway.

So the numbering is all the fault of Marvel, but I assume the choice to do 3 tie-ins and then jump to after One World with no explanation was North's. If this is a jumping on point then we have 3 stories about fighting Emperor Doom and then suddenly one where that's not a concern and not mentioned. There's not even a mention that they won or an explanation for what the last will and testament of Doom means in practice for Reed. We're instead just back to stand-alone stories. Now, don't get me wrong, I prefer the stand-alone stories, but this was the worst way to switch back. The stories are good. They're fun little sci-fi episodes, basically continuing to argue that Fantastic Four could have made a great live action show in the 90s, but they come out of nowhere with no explanation.

This is basically as good as any other North FF book, but the numbering and the unexplained time jump both bugged me enough that I thought I about giving it 2 stars out of protest. I'm not going to, but I am mildly irritated, and I needed you to know that.

[Library 87]

Comix 4 All
The Graphic Library Book 09

From a Comics Librarian’s shelf:
Fantastic Four Vol. 1 by Ryan North blends science, heart, and smart storytelling. A perfect entry point for new readers and longtime fans. Discover why Marvel’s First Family still matters!

Ask your library to buy copies today!

Comix 4 All on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@comix4all?si=gm6...

[Carter]

I truly commend Ryan North for steering this series through some supreme Marvel BS going on around it.

[Evan Horad]

This is a great start for north's run.

[jasmine]

very interested to see where this era and issues of fantastic four go. starting off with 'the uncommon era' was fantastic getting to look at each character and where they are at different points in time in this first issue, we're normally  used to seeing them all fight together, but they still find a way to work together without being all with each other.

[Sean]

All Ryan North needed to find his groove with this book was a giant Marvel crossover. Doesn't make sense but the events of One World Under Doom have obviously have effected this book and its done really well. I love how the family and Doom match wits here as its familiar and new at the same time. The family, especially with the extended family, are the core of the book and its all heart. Then the Alicia-centric story was really fun despite its low stakes. The Black Cat/Sue team-up is something I never knew I needed. The art by Humberto Ramos is exactly what you expect from the legend, kinetic fun. Overall, another step in the right direction for North's FF run.

[Justin Soderberg]

It's been a minute since the last time I dove into a Fantastic Four series at Marvel Comics. I had been hearing rumblings about Ryan North's run on Marvel's First Family and thought it was time to give it a try. I am torn with this first five issues. On one had I was happy the opening plot of each member lost in time wasn't the whole volume, but what we get in the end is something a bit more disjointed. Luckily, Humberto Ramos saves the day with some fantastic (yes, pun intended) artwork.

Courtesy of their world-conquering enemy, the Fantastic Four are scattered through four different eras in Earth’s history! Alone and isolated in wildly different time periods, Reed, Johnny, Ben and Sue all must fight to survive. Their only hope is to reach the Forever Stone: a mass of dense granite that happens to be one of the longest-lasting rocks on the planet!

As of late I have been mostly lukewarm on Marvel comics as a whole, but for a few shining spots. However, I haven't really been fully invested either, so I came into the Fantastic Four Vol. 1: Save Everyone with an open mind. The opening chapter was interesting and connects the series into the One World Under Doom storyline seamlessly. Seeing each of our main cast of heroes spread across time, searching for the Forever Stone and a way back to present time was something I could get behind. However, after the second chapter I was already done with the plot and was wondering how North would intertwine the next few chapters. Not how I expected.

We get about three issues of time traveling escapades that head into two more chapters of basically stand-alone tales. While reading each month may have been less jarring, it was a bit hard to wrap my head around reading the volume as one cohesive story.

What kept me gripped to each and every panel of Fantastic Four Vol. 1 was the outstanding artwork from Ramos. After falling in love with the artwork in Strange Academy , Ramos has been one of my favorite superhero artists of all-time. He has this playful style that works so well with big-two comics, especially one such as Fantastic Four.

Fantastic Four Vol. 1: Save Everyone had me torn between a solid plot with not-so-great execution. The artwork from Humberto Ramos stole the show and kept this first volume featuring Marvel's First Family afloat.

The collected edition of Fantastic Four Vol. 1 hits local comic shops and bookstores everywhere on March 10, 2026 from Marvel Comics.

[MARTYN J]

Not a terrific storyline.

[Duncan]

I read all the comics and dutifully do I buy all the Fantastic Four nonsense but I have no memory of it whatsoever just a few months after reading it. It's alright, but clearly not terribly memorable. I guess Goodreads have been given a decree by the Marvel PTB not to give a rating to a book that hasn't been published even though all the comics have long been issued. Only members of the inner circle w/"advanced copies" can give a rating. I only bought every single issue when it came out but I'm but a pawn in the mighty comic book game. My opinion is worth nothing to these fatuous bums who rule the superhero comic empire. Ha, ha. JK, I love you overpaid hacks! Anyway I was going to give it a solid THREE STAR rating since I didn't hate it but I didn't love it either or ever like it a lot, but I'm unable because I'm not one of the chose few. I'm not bitter, just rambling along at 5 am on a Saturday all likkered up on a 12 oz coffee. I'm still buying the issues as they come out for now because I want to get a taste of that Sue Storm as the Goblin Queen imagery which has been dangled before us for the last couple of months. (Its 2/7/26 as I write this.) Um, I think I'm done. Take care, everybody!

[Jeff]

A great mini-reboot for Ryan North's 2022 run on Marvel's first family. It starts off with a more action packed 'get to know the cast' than the last stretch did with some tie-ins to the big Doom-centric crossover event. Despite that, this book neatly stands apart as a great jumping on point for readers excited from the recent film to see the comic book counterparts to the big screen superheroes.
Humberto Ramos does an excellent job showing off each character's unique charms and keeping the panels exciting no matter where the story goes.

[j_ay]

Well, congrats to North for not taking a really, really stupid time travel story with The Biggest Cliché in Science Fiction Ever and not stretching it to a 6 issue arc. 3 issues was more than enough. Also congrats for telling single issue stories, though they are really bad.
Ramos is the only good/great thing here. One of the best artists in the industry, though Johnny’s Porn Stash is a bit weird and Reed now using his powers as if he’s Impossible Man are highly questionable, but this is modern comics; nothing really matters.

[Carmen García]

Espectacular. Sólo he leído el primer número y ya promete muchísimo 👏

[Tyler]

Read as individual comics, ratings below:

#1= 3.5 stars
#2= 3 stars
#3= 4 stars
#4= 5 stars
#5= 3 stars

Overall rating of 3.5 stars

[Andres Pasten]

historias unitarias que entretienen y cumplen

[Elliot]

Nobody writes the FF like North

[PebbleInTheBrook1794]

3.5 stars. Very clever writing by Ryan North, and I would love to see how he plots and structures his comic-book issues. Each story/issue has similar complexity to how I imagine a Sherlock Holmes book is written: there's an intricate mystery that can only be picked/unpacked ingeniously, and is perhaps written in reverse with that plot device in mind. That's the best way I can explain what North miraculously achieves, month in, month out (and, he writes DC's The Flash too, similarly). Impressive!

The first story in this FF volume is a time travel story where Doom scatters each member of the FF throughout Earth's long history. The puzzle to be solved is how to get back and defeat Doom, but once they do, it's not over! I have to congratulate Ryan North for not allowing the story to fall on the easiest and the most obvious conclusion. The problem deepens before resolution, and it's well done (and I'm left enjoying North's writing).

There is a healthy mix of focus for each member of the FF team and wider family (Alicia and the kids are there too). In this way, North at times utilises caption boxes with each of the FF's inner thoughts to progress the narratives when they are each lost in time. In issues #4 and #5 though, the narrative focus is given to one character, namely Alicia first (4), and then Sue (5). There are technical problems/mysteries for Alicia and Sue each to solve, in the way that I have already mentioned that North is remarkable for writing in.

Nice done-in-ones, that employs Science cleverly and FF tropes and characters well. Stories to wonder at slightly, for their intricate complexity, also, with done-in-ones being North's preferred format. North's (with Ramos, here) run is one of the better FF runs - maybe not as good as Byrne, Hickman, Lee and Kirby, but is up there with Waid, for me. In the Top 10, perhaps?

[Logan B.]

To get the obvious out the way first, this should be Vol. 7 of Fantastic Four (2022) and not a new #1. Not only did Ryan North stay on as writer but this new number 1 starts in the middle of the “One World Under Doom” event that started in Vol. 6. It’s a cynical cash grab by Marvel to tie in with the new Fantastic Four movie that released last year and lure new readers who will undoubtedly be confused unless they kept up with the event and previous FF run.

With that out of the way, this is another solid volume by North who is a consistently great writer for the Fantastic Four. The first 3 issues of this volume were my favorite as it involved a fun time travel plot with Doctor Doom with the subsequent issues being one-shots focused on Alicia Masters and Sue Storm respectively. These issues while fun weren’t particularly memorable.

After getting caught up on the “One World Under Doom” event now, I’ll likely put aside North’s Fantastic Four until there’s more to catch up on, but it can’t be understated how consistently good of a comic writer he is and how much runway he’s been given to keep writing Fantastic Four without interruption for four years now, something almost unheard of in the modern comics industry where writers are lucky to get two years on a book. Keep up the great work!

[Chris Lemmerman]

New relaunch, same writer, as has been the Marvel way for quite a while. Ryan North's run on Fantastic Four continues as it has previously, with the science, and the family, and the fun.

The opening three issues are yet another One World Under Doom tie-in that sends the F4 back in time, which, while it feels like a tried and true method of telling a decent story, also feels like something we've already had before in this run. It's clever, but it doesn't do much new for anyone.

The following two issues are much better - a one and done about Alicia uncovering an alien plot, and then another about Sue Storm proving the Black Cat's innocence in a bank heist. There's also a short FCBD story that takes the 'let's summon a demon at a sleepover' trope and makes it aliens, which is even funnier.

Humberto Ramos joins the title as artist, which is always going to be divisive. He's very consistent in his art, so if you're a fan, you know what you're getting, and if not, then there's nothing here that'll change your mind.

More of the same, for better or worse, relaunch or otherwise.

[Nevin]

More fine stories from Ryan North, mostly spinning out of One World Under Doom. (You don't need to know anything about that event. As long as you can accept that the FF is fighting Doom, you can follow it.) Humberto Ramos takes over on art, and I know he's loved, but his mix of cartoony and realistic never worked for me. The main story was pretty good. The final two one-shots were less interesting. Alicia is the FIRST being who can perceive alien species that has infested countless worlds? Then Sue realizes she should give the Black Cat a chance, because even though she's a criminal it's good that she "never gives up"? (Yes, I know Felicia has more nuance than that. But the story doesn't have it.) They were ok, but felt a little lazy.