Ultimate Fantastic Four, Volume 2: Doom

Ultimate Fantastic Four (Collected Editions)

by Warren Ellis (Writer), Stuart Immonen (Illustrator)

After a bizarre experiment unexpectedly imbued them with extraordinary powers, high-school genius Reed Richards and his fellow adventurers must learn to adapt to their amazing new situation. But before they can even begin to get accustomed, former classmate Victor Van Damme - who was caught in the same experiment that gave the Fantastic Four their superhuman powers - returns to exact his revenge.

Collecting: Ultimate Fantastic Four 7-12

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Comic Book, Superheroes, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

144 pages, Paperback

First published December 22, 2004

About the author

Warren Ellis is the award-winning writer of graphic novels like TRANSMETROPOLITAN, FELL, MINISTRY OF SPACE and PLANETARY, and the author of the NYT-bestselling GUN MACHINE and the “underground classic” novel CROOKED LITTLE VEIN, as well as the digital short-story single DEAD PIG COLLECTOR. His newest book is the novella NORMAL, from FSG Originals, listed as one of Amazon’s Best 100 Books Of 2016.

The movie RED is based on his graphic novel of the same name, its sequel having been released in summer 2013. IRON MAN 3 is based on his Marvel Comics graphic novel IRON MAN: EXTREMIS. He is currently developing his graphic novel sequence with Jason Howard, TREES, for television, in concert with HardySonBaker and NBCU, and continues to work as a screenwriter and producer in film and television, represented by Angela Cheng Caplan and Cheng Caplan Company. He is the creator, writer and co-producer of the Netflix series CASTLEVANIA, recently renewed for its third season, and of the recently-announced Netflix series HEAVEN’S FOREST.

He’s written extensively for VICE, WIRED UK and Reuters on technological and cultural matters, and given keynote speeches and lectures at events like dConstruct, ThingsCon, Improving Reality, SxSW, How The Light Gets In, Haunted Machines and Cognitive Cities.

Warren Ellis has recently developed and curated the revival of the Wildstorm creative library for DC Entertainment with the series THE WILD STORM, and is currently working on the serialising of new graphic novel works TREES: THREE FATES and INJECTION at Image Comics, and the serialised graphic novel THE BATMAN’S GRAVE for DC Comics, while working as a Consulting Producer on another television series.

A documentary about his work, CAPTURED GHOSTS, was released in 2012.

Recognitions include the NUIG Literary and Debating Society’s President’s Medal for service to freedom of speech, the EAGLE AWARDS Roll Of Honour for lifetime achievement in the field of comics & graphic novels, the Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire 2010, the Sidewise Award for Alternate History and the International Horror Guild Award for illustrated narrative. He is a Patron of Humanists UK. He holds an honorary doctorate from the University of Essex.

Warren Ellis lives outside London, on the south-east coast of England, in case he needs to make a quick getaway.

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The last volume saw our brand new group battling the creepy Mole Man. And this volume is dedicated to their first go-round with their favorite nemesis, Doctor Doom. <--he's now Van Damme instead of Von Doom.
Very cool.



His name isn't the only change they've made to Victor's storyline. He's supposedly a descendant of Dracula (Vlad Tepes) and unhinged enough to have purposely caused the accident that changed them all. I'm not sure what all his abilities are, but he looks like a hot mess. His body is made of metal, his face looks like it has been riveted together, and for some unknown reason, he's got goat feet.



He's off in Denmark creating his own squatter's kingdom, complete with mind-controlled subjects, and launching mechanical stabbing bugs at his old classmates back at the Baxter Building.



Meanwhile, Johnny, Sue, Reed, & Ben are all learning how to use their new powers and trying to decide the best ways to move forward with their lives.
Also, The Fantasticar makes an appearance.



Not too shabby.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Ellis and Immonen’s take on this concept much more than Bendis, Millar and Kubert’s; the artwork was more to my tastes and the whole thing just felt smarter, if you know what I mean.

Boy, did they ever drop the ball on Doom, though! Sheeesh! This is more proof, if any more was needed, that you simply cannot improve on Lee and Kirby’s original Dr. Doom. Jim Lee tried, two movies tried and now these guys tried... and all we got was a bunch of crappy imitations with a bunch of pointless changes that ended up pushing the character into the absurd. This one is particularly bad. How anybody could have thought giving Doom silly little faun legs would be an improvement is completely beyond me... I mean, seriously; were they on crack when they came up with that?

[Bookwraiths · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this was a bit of a step up from volume one. Warren Ellis penning a better adventure than Bendis’ updated origin story, and the art is still really cool. The only complaint I have is Dr. Doom is a bit of letdown. I guess it just comes down to the kind of villain you prefer, and I like the ominous, powerful Doom of the old FF comics over this pathetic, whiny loser Victor.

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume seemed to be largely concerned with character development, both of the FF and van Damme (the Doom analog). And not just character development, but defining their abilities and the changes to their bodies. Like that Reed doesn't really have internal organs anymore, just a vaguely lung-like, heart-like structure. Weird, and weirdly fascinating. Not so sure about this take on Doom, though. He seems much more unstable and delusional than 616 Doom, and I'm not sure if that's a terribly interesting place to take the character. It kind of wears down the aspects of Doom that makes him so compelling in the first place.

[Gavin · Rating 4 out of 5]

More tardy Foursome Shallow Buddyreads!

Volume 2 picks up on the hunt for Victor Van Damme, and we discover that he's had to construct himself a suit of armour to cover his decaying body. He's based in a squatters area in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Before we get the first showdown before him and the Four, there's some other stuff to take care of...first off: Warren Ellis is writing!
He's got a different style than Bendis and Millar, less for the masses, a little more intelligent, but still highly enjoyable. (That isn't a knock on Bendis or Millar either, I very much enjoy both men's work).

But here we get explanations of scientific questions about the four that many of us would ask if we ever had the chance: Does Ben still use the potty? (Yes, but it's not pretty) How strong is he? (7 Tons of psi per hand!) What happens to Reed's organs when he shifts shapes? (Turns out he doesn't HAVE any anymore, just some lung-like remnants that oxygenates the blood!)

Very cool stuff. I really liked it.
Victor builds a bunch of robot insects to attack the Baxter Building, which lets Reed know he's still alive, and he's got the codes that he changed before the test that changed them all. Reed wants it at all costs, but first, they need to survive the attack. We get to see Reed as the helpless one here, with Johnny and Ben fighting and strong, Sue strong in the use of her powers (and mind, she's an internal biologist!) and pushes herself to the edge many times.

We also see some jokes about names, like the Human Matchbox, and the Asbestos Thing (Ben isn't affected by heat in this version, and is also bulletproof (last volume)). We also get introduced to the Fantasti-car, which Reed built at 13, using info Tony Stark put on the internet and his own brain.
Ben and Johnny mock the everloving shit out of Reed, calling everything Fantasti-something. It's a nice way to develop characters, and also keep Reed from being too high and mighty above everyone else, which was something I always found off-putting about Marvel U Reed a lot of the time.

Sue's also no slouch intellectually, which I greatly enjoy!

This all leads to a breakout where the Four go after Victor, and we see a showdown, only broken up by the arrival of the Army, and then the realization that he's got diplomatic immunity...as a Danish citizen...
However, we see a bit more anger and action from Reed here, so it's a different direction, but I will for sure be following along with this one.

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun read!

Reed helps Ben to get through his transformation and the usual stuff with Sue and the romance there and dealing with the army and all and we get an insight into what Doom is doing and his history and the ties with Dracula are interesting and then his transformation too and hatred for F4 and sending threats their way like some mechanoid insects and all and then the F4 gather together to take on Doom in the foreign land and I love the way this battle is handled and it shows the menace of Doom and how the team deals with it.

The conclusion to the fight is a quick one but does play on the Latverian angle and also gives birth to the arch-nemesis-ness of these characters and it was brutal what Reed did and you can see the beginning of what he will become in this universe. Great stuff and I like the way Ellis takes his time to explore Doom and his motives and all that and really hits home giving birth to the enmity between the two and its tragic sort of .. his origin and the whole fight. Plus the art by Immonen is so good and it makes for a quick, fun read again!

[Shadowdenizen]

Good, but a weak introduction, IMO to the Doom character.

[Tony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Score: 3.25 out of 5
Grade: 65% (C) | Decent

A step up from the first volume, but I wanted more from Doom. I can't get over how they changed his name from Victor Von Doom to Victor Van Damme... I was just waiting for him to do the splits and punch Reed in balls or something.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I have locked you in your own bodies! You are my subjects now!"

Fantastic Four is a group I thought I'd never like. But I'm two volumes in and I want to read the entire run... Also: Doom is a badass beyond belief.

I liked pretty much everything about this. Sue and Johnny and Ben were crazy good on the fighting end, and Reed offered up his bigger than life brain at every turn. The artwork was super legit. The conflict was so real. I think I'm in love.

And DOOM! Not only does he have history with FF, but he's also played the biggest trick on them all that I've ever seen. How terrifying would it be to literally be trapped inside of your own body, not knowing your abilities, the excess to which you can harm people, how to live your life as a brand new person with the same personality. Doom has done a fantastic job at making himself into a villain. And his families past is seriously interesting.

The only reason this didn't get five stars is because I'm holding out until a volume SCREAMS LOVE at me. This was awesome though.

[Cameron Chaney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doom has always been the most well-known villain of Fantastic Four, so I was expecting a pretty special volume when I saw that this was centered around him. And it was pretty good, especially the last comic in this volume with its dark visuals and epic action.

The character design of Doom is more than menacing, making him the kind of guy you wouldn't want to encounter in a dark alley. Then again, you shouldn't be wondering around in a dark alley anyway. Idiot. Anyway, the design of Doom is pretty fantastic (haha) and so is the art. There were some pages in the finale that I had to pause and stare at for a while because they were so beautifully drawn.

The story is rather 'meh, but it had its moments. The dialogue, on the other hand, was a little schizophrenic. There were times where it read just fine and made me laugh, and then there were others where I rolled my eyes or couldn't understand what the characters were talking about. Overall though, this was a fun addition to the series and I'm looking forward to continuing on.

FINAL VERDICT: 3.25 stars

[Michael Emond · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gosh I am late to the party for the Ultimate Universe. It is interesting to see how much the MCU movies (or non MCU movies in the case of FF) borrow from the Ultimate universe.

This is the Ultimate universe take on the FF. I wonder what the Ultimate universe mandate was. Grittier? Younger? I do appreciate they aren't just retelling the same silver age stories with cell phones and computers. I do like getting a fresh take on "introducing" the characters. But I then have to look at the 616 versions and these versions and make comparisons. Right off the bat, I don't like Reed Richards as much. He's younger but seems a lot meaner than our version. Our version is aloof and sometimes thoughtless but it isn't out of meanness. This one is mean. He likes insulting Doom while defeating him and saying how worthless Doom is.

Sue Storm? She is a lot smarter and more independent in this universe and I like it. But - to be fair - more modern takes on her in the 616 universe have her smart and independent as well (in comparison to the Lee and Kirby version). Her weird attraction to Reed is weird.

Ben and Johnny seem like the same Thing and Johnny from 616.

Doom is weird and off putting (he creates a cult in Denmark). Other reviewers have noted this new Doom sucks compared to the 616 and while I didn't love him I do see the potential of having him raise his followers in this universe instead of being granted them as a lord of he kingdom.

Overall - this is one of Ellis' weaker efforts. I would have loved to see him geek out more and with Reed and Doom he is given the chance to do this and does it a bit but he could go even further. The geek touches (when he gets into the science) that do show up are wonderful and I loved them (Reed not having organs, how Doom's bugs work). But even a weaker Ellis has a strong story structure and well defined characters.

I was not blown away but did enjoy it. Recommended for a quick read.

[Fugo Feedback · Rating 3 out of 5]

De lo poco que leí hasta ahora del universo Ultimate de Marvel, lo único que me pareció buenísimo fue Ultimates, tanto el primer volumen como el segundo. En segundo puesto, aunque bastante lejos, vienen los Fantastic Four y su reversión industrializada y, por lo tanto, más coherente con lo que sería en realidad un grupo de supergenios con poderes. Y aunque este tomo lo escribe un Ellis menos inspirado que en otros laburos (y que sus antecesores), se encarga de narrar una buena historia del futuro Dr. Doom sin irse a los extremos. Y el dibujo por suerte no está a cargo del ineficaz de Adam Kubert sino de un Immonen vacilante pero efectivo. Ahora que comenzaron a largar todas las series Ultimate en un coleccionable nuevo no sé si tendré que esperar a que superen los seis primeros volúmenes -que ya tengo leídos en Marvel Deluxes- para seguir con la serie o si volveré a los UFF pronto. Como sea, seguro valga la pena la espera.

[Mark Desrosiers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unwitting hippie recently tattooed by Dr. Doom: "Wow, that stings like..."
Dr. Doom: "Don't touch it. The microfibers have to mate with your brain stem."

Here, our chipper quartet ends up defying the U.S. military in order to confront Dr. Doom and his gang of scruffy hippies in Copenhagen (?!). Warren Ellis and Stuart Immonen perform their usual hilarious & gripping brain-stem mating here, so you won't be disappointed.

[Ma'Belle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the first two volumes of Ultimate Fantastic Four as one combined hardcover volume (and as part of my current Warren Ellis binge).

I gotta say, Bendis, Kubert, and Ellis all did a great job writing an origin story about a team I'd never previously cared for but am now fascinated by. I hope the series continues to be as enjoyable.

[Brandon Daniels · Rating 4 out of 5]

Volume two is just as strong as the first one, in both writing and art. Warren Ellis takes over, but you can barely notice a shift in style. I dig the changes to Ultimate Doom, except his name Von Dam, which I’m expecting them to change at some point. The art by Stuart Immonen, Wade Von Grawbadger, and Dave Stewart is very good but not quite as strong as the the the great art in the first volume.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not Ellis’s best, but hardly his worst. Not riddled with his clever turns of phrase, and doesn’t speak volumes to futurism (though maybe it’s the fact I’m reading this 20 years after he wrote it, and the future sufficiently caught up).

Still a couple of smiles - and Ellis does a decent job at getting the Thing/Torch antagonism, so I’m good enough with this.

What’s more intriguing is how Ellis treats Reed and Sue - Sue’s an absolute badass with NO PATIENCE for everyone’s bullshit - and Reed continues to be the more-than-emotionless nerd with a massive chip on his shoulder. Wonder who exactly we have to blame for the Maker (who awesomely made the post-Secret Wars-jump over to the 616)? Bit of Millar’s fatalistic lazy violence, bit of Ellis’ cynical revenger. Let’s see how much of Carey made it in there?

[Stormy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love Warren Ellis and how he writes these comics they keep you captured all the way through so this one particularly Focuses on doom what I didn't know much about all so we find out a little bit more about the other Fantastic Four characters I found it especially weird that Mr fantastic doesn't have a stomach or any of his ones kidneys heart any of that so but obviously I sort of understand it as well because he stretches but it was just so weird and I'd love to seem his relationship with Sue it was just a really good comic again and I can't wait to read the next one and the history about doom and the Dracula's stuff a little bit hard to read because of all the weird names but apart from that this was great

[Sebastian · Rating 5 out of 5]

That moment when we learn that Victor van Damme - which will become von Doom - is related with Vlad Țepeș aka Dracula. This was super fun to read!

[Ramón S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a normal comic book, nothing really special. Even Immonen has lower his art

[Kyle Spishock · Rating 2 out of 5]

Arguably the weakest portrayal of Dr. Doom in Marvel history.

After sabotaging the Fantastic Four’s inter dimensional device that turned them into super powered beings, Doom is running a shanty town of people under mind control from tattoos he inked on them.

His look is bizarre, which is a contrast from the thoroughly brainstormed designs of this universe.

Warren Ellis takes over for Brian Bendis. Usually, I’d say this is a fine switch, but Bendis contained a mastery of the Ultimates universe that Ellis is lacking.

[Shane Stanis · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Ultimate Year #8

I really like how they did Ultimate Doom, almost a reverse of the OG, tho the hooves are a weird touch. Punchy script, good battle art, a somewhat anticlimactic wind down, unfortunately.

Read for Sue giving the boys physiology lessons and all the fantastic-jokes

[Colin Rapp-Ellis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t realize until halfway through, confused by the tonal change in the series, that a new creative team consisting of Warren Ellis and Stuart Immonen had taken over. This volume is more light-hearted and humorous than its predecessor. Immonen’s art lends itself to these changes better than Kubert’s would.

It’s odd to see the creative team change after only 6 issues. I imagine they had Bendis, Millar, and Kubert kickstart the series as established ultimate universe creators then passed it off to a new team for workload balance reasons. A quick google search confirms that to be the case.

I would rather have seen Warren Ellis write the series from the beginning or have Bendis and/or Millar stay on as writer rather than have the switch happen after one arc.

Not much happened in this arc. I didn’t pick up on much character development and the story can really be boiled down to the following: Doom is alive, he attacks the Baxter Building, F4 crew heads out to capture him. It’s readable and mostly-enjoyable, but hardly compelling or exciting. Not a slog to get through, but it won’t have you eagerly turning the pages. You get the idea. I found the first volume more interesting and exciting.

Immonen is solid, as he usually is. It’s possible I’m being harsh here, but I don’t think his art in this series is as good as his work years later on projects such as All New X-Men. It seems to me he’s still perfecting his style at this point in time. Reed Richards' design was sometimes inconsistent and I wasn’t a big fan of any version we saw. Likewise, I didn’t like the design for Doom, he looks more silly than threatening.

Sidenote: It’s astonishing that not a single woman in the entire Ultimate universe has ever worn an outfit which covers their midriff. Superhero Comics have always been pathetically horny but c’mon with the designs in this universe across all titles regardless of artist.

[Nate]

We spend some downtime with the (still unnamed) FF in this volume as they learn about their powers and become closer as a group. The science revelations – like how Reed has basically no internal organs, or that Ben still goes to the bathroom – are pretty great. I think Ellis has a good handle on the characters, too, especially Reed and Sue. I’m not sure about this version of Doctor Doom, though. He seems a little too… unbalanced? His backstory isn’t as compelling as that of his 616 counterpart, either. I give Ellis credit for trying something new, but it doesn’t quite work for me.

This is still a good series of superhero science-fiction adventure. I’m just not in love with it yet.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basic Plot: Introducing Dr. Doom to the new iteration of the Fantastic Four.

I bought/read these books as they came out, so it's been a hot minute since I read them. I remember the book feeling fresh and very accessible to me, a person who was unfamiliar with the FF lore, and still was learning about the Marvel universe at the time. The art and storytelling were both very solid. I'm still willing to bet these books still hold up better than any of the movies thus far.

[Graham Barrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Read as a kid, review from 2024)

This was one of the first Fantastic Four comics I read as a kid. While I think there's better FF stories and regular Doom beats his Ultimate equivalent, this was pretty entertaining (even influential as elements of this story appeared in both of Fox's FF movie series)

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome art. I really like this series--teenage versions of the Fantastic Four work better than the X-Men or some of the other characters getting the "ultimate" treatment.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great.

[Paxton Holley · Rating 4 out of 5]

More awesomeness. I will definitely continue reading Ultimate Fantastic Four. I just love these characters.

[Vincent Russell · Rating 3 out of 5]

really enjoyed this one.
next please!

[Daniel Palička · Rating 4 out of 5]

Čtenářská výzva na Goodreads 2018 (48/205)
Výborná záležitost z Ultimate vesmíru, kterou bych si rozhodně chtěl někdy v daleké budoucnosti přečíst ještě jednou. Je to parádní akční podívaná, kde v podstatě máte formovaný tým Fantastic Four, který už má za sebou nějakou tu bitvu a nyní musí, zase, čelit obrovské hrozbě, kterou vám nebudu nikterak výrazněji představovat, ale určitě vás její jméno napadlo po přečtení názvu samotného komiksu.
Warren Ellis zde píše zajímavé charaktery s několika úžasně napsanými zápletkami a hlavně zde dokázal pojmout podstatu osobnosti titulního záporáka, jehož plán sám o sobě nepůsobí špatně. Navíc, ke svému chování má zajímavou motivaci.
Hrdinové jsou taktéž propracovaní a vyzdvihnout bych mohl zejména Reeda Richardse (alias Mr. Fantastica), který zde dostává ze všech členů Fantastic Four největší prostor a je to jedině dobře, protože jakožto vůdce týmu ho Ellis napsal úctyhodně. Navíc, dokázal z něj udělat jednotící most pro vícero dějových linií, jmenovitě tedy třeba pro problémy Bena Grimma neboli Thinga, který se nedokáže smířit s tím, co se z něj stalo, aby mohly být úspěšně rozvíjeny osobnosti ostatních hrdinů, díky čemuž ve výsledku nemáte pocit, že postavy jsou nijaké.
Co se týká kresby, o kterou se postaral Stuart Immonen, tak ta byla sympatická. Některé panely sice působí trochu prázdněji nebo nedokresleně, ale vše (naštěstí) zachránily výrazné barvy.
Abych ovšem jenom nechválil, musím říci, že Warren Ellis nějak nedokázal najít adekvátní způsob na to, jak napsat úvod spolu s koncem, jelikož začátek působil místy moc natahovaně a konec byl naopak příliš urychlený, přičemž finální bitva by si zasloužila ještě pár panelů navíc. A abych nezapomněl, celá ta záležitost na konci byla trochu podivná. To však nic nemění na tom, že se i přesto jedná o výborný akční zážitek, který mi určitě zůstane v hlavě.
4/5 (80%)