Fantastic Four (1961-1998) #17

Fantastic Four (1961)

by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby (Artist), Dick Ayers (Inker)

Dr. Doom has kidnapped Alicia Masters! Can the Fantastic Four defeat Doom in time to save their friend?

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Comic Book

23 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 31, 1963

About the author

Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber) was an American writer, editor, creator of comic book superheroes, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics.

With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.

Reviews

[Shane Stanis]

My marvelous year 2: 1963 pt 2

Read for a continuation of the Doom vs FF saga - this picks up right where #16 ends. He’s very much a sat morning cartoon villain at this point, with regular appearances, evil plans and angry fist shakes that the likes of Dr Claw will make famous in the 80s.

[Veljann]

Ben cracks me up with his one liners, best character in this. And that time he is in a capsule shaped like a sperm penetrating the ships defenses, real subtle lmao

We get some character motivation for Doom. I really hope they give us his full origin. But I die inside every time Thorch pulls a new power out of his ass...

[Aidan Pedroza]

johnny will find love soon, hopefully for him 💀

[Mars Fargo]

FANTASTIC FOUR #11-20, Annual #1 (The Fantastic Four’s Second Arc)
*Note: a nifty READING ORDER has been provided at the end of this review

This serves as more of a transition point than a single narrative arc, being a series of issues very loosely connected by the fact they wrap up old arcs and set up new ones; It gives a definitive ending to the already existing character arcs, so that the slate is clean for them to start building their new ones.

I like that Lee really took the time to wrap up the ongoing love triangle between Reed, Sue, and Namor. He builds it up as a subplot overarching throughout these issues, culminating in a massive 58-page epic in Fantastic Four Annual #1. It ends this story arc without it feeling inconsequential or ending for the sake of ending. (And in wrapping up this pre-existing arc, it leaves a blank slate to start building the next arc…)

I like that they brought back Doctor Doom, and set him up for further potential character development. I like that they brought back the Skrulls, introducing them as another ongoing threat that the Fantastic Four will face. In doing this, Marvel wisely begins moving away from inconsequential one-off villains and into ongoing antagonists who evolve and grow just as our heroes evolve and grow with them.

I think the most important single piece of setup established in this group of stories is Uatu the Watcher: he is introduced, then made an ongoing supporting character, in these issues. It allows him to already be an established presence in the universe; he serves a role in this story, and as a side-affect is already a variable in place for the eventual “Lo, there shall be an ending” and “Coming of Galactus” story arcs almost 20-30 issues from now.

I can’t even reveal what is setup in Fantastic Four #19, because Stan Lee sets it up so subtly you don’t even realize it until Avengers #8. I will just say that someone appears in this issue who will go on to have a major cosmic affect on the entire Marvel Universe… and Stan Lee clearly knew it when he wrote this.

In fact, that's what this whole second arc mainly feels like. It feels like they're just trying to tie up as many loose ends as possible BEFORE moving onto their next big storylines. It serves as an effective transitions, conclusively wrapping up the story arcs we’ve already been invested in while also laying the foundation for the future of the series.

READING ORDER
-Fantastic Four #11
-Fantastic Four #12
-Fantastic Four #13
-Fantastic Four #14
-Fantastic Four #15
-Fantastic Four #16
-Fantastic Four #17
-Fantastic Four #18
-Fantastic Four Annual #1
-Fantastic Four #19
-Fantastic Four #20

[Jon Nakapalau]

Dr. Doom (Dr.D) sets 'traps' that will neutralize the power of each member of the FF. But what he has never been able to understand is that it is the ability of the FF to work as a team that makes them unbeatable! Really enjoyed this issue; think it has been used as a template for lots of other books that have been written over the years.

[Max Solis]

Por segundo cómic consecutivo, el villano que aparece es Victor Von Doom. La villanía de este tipo no tiene precedentes, pero lo mismo sucede con la brillantez de Reed para solucionar las situaciones más difíciles.