Fantastic Four #563 Review- 'Mr and Mrs Thing'

I now return you to your regularly scheduled FF with a review of the latest issue of Millar/Hitch's Choose One: Critically Acclaimed / Critically Spurned run which has been Choose One: Fantastic/Terrible thus far. 

Fantastic Four #563: "Mr. & Mrs. Thing"

Writer: Mark Millar

Artist: Bryan Hitch

Coloring: Paul Mounts

Editor: Tom Brevoort

And here we are again, another issue of the book which never fails to split the fans. This issue had two main functions; advancing the subplots of the book such as SmartVal and of course the Thing and Debbie, and laying the foundations for future plots, such as the upcoming 'Scottish vacation story' and above all the 'Masters of Doom' that now looms over us on the immediate horizon. All things considered, Millar/Hitch FF seems to work best in between the big beats and this issue is no exception.

The Thing/Debbie plot is a strange beast. All things considered, we haven't seen a great deal of Debbie, nor has she really been delved into. Which is a pity, because everything AROUND her in this plot works brilliantly; the Thing's proposal last issue, Sue's talk here, the general way this plot is being handled... everything except Debbie herself, who remains largely a cipher. Her conversation with Sue here is a great character moment for Sue but we still don't know a heckuva lot about Bens' Bride To Be. Johnny also has some great characterisation as his genuine concern for Ben is clear beneath the posturing. And as always, Reed and Ben are the two Millar has nailed down to a tee. The conversation with Tony is nice in both simultaneously grounding this in Marvel, setting up what is to come while remaining low-key. And I continue to enjoy SmartVal, who serves *far* more of a purpose in the family than the old Valeria ever did and actually feels like a part of this wacky dynamic. 

And of course, we see the Masters themselves- the Marquis of Death and his mysterious partner. The scene of them in their alternate Earth is quite chilling. Millar reminds me of Morrison in the way that he created an entire backstory and whatnot for this world (As he's noted in interviews) only to utterly destroy it- and the ruin of this world's New York is chillingly rendered by Hitch- though not as chilling as the destruction of the Sun. The sense of menace that pervades these scenes is palpable, and our Earth is quite screwed when they arrive. And the very last page only added to the chill. As I presume Millar intended, the sense really is that if this is something Doom answers to... hohboy.

Oh, and though I'm not sure it was Millar, the intro page was very well done, and continues a tradition of inventive Marvel intro pages I've seen in recent years in 'Hercules', and 'Damage Control' among others, a trend I really like.

That said, I did have problems with the issues. As mentioned above, the Debbie plot is far too fast when we scarcely know her. Moreover, the Defenders are forgotten just a little too easily to me, and the fact that half the issue is spent in an alternate worlds means many characters- noticeably Johnny and Ben- don't get as much time as you might expect. The art is also a tad rushed in places, generally early on, although it's Hitch's typical phenomenal standard in the Masters scenes.

Score: Eight out of Ten- Pretty Good, but this team have done better

Fantastic Force

Okay, so I didn't expect that there'd be Fantastic Four news this quickly, but there it is.

In the newest 'My Cup o' Joe', Joe Quesada talks about the new Fantastic Force and gives a script excerpt.  Nevertheless, yes, the new Fantastic Force bears NO relation to the original, for which we can all be thankful, and is instead the New Defenders team from the just-completed arc of Fantastic Four created by Millar. 

The series- presumably a miniseries- will be launching in April. It's written by Joe Ahearne, a British TV writer from Doctor Who, and drawn by Steve Kurth.

Personal thoughts? Well, I think the concept produced by Millar is a sound one, and it gives the team a unique selling point. Launching it so soon is a wise idea, and the name change also probably makes it more commercially viable- not that 'Fantastic Force' is likely to be a big seller, but it makes explicit the connection to the Four, which should help more than the Defenders name. (Plus, conveniently it frees Marvel up for the original Defenders to return in Hulk.)  The script makes it clear it will be dealing with NuWorld and the FF will be in it, which is also a good thing. 

On a creative note, Kurth's a decent penciller, but Ahearne... well, the fact that he's from TV makes me weary we're going to see poor research and a half-hearted story with ludicrous delays, as we have with lots of other TV writers. On the other hand, you know, Paul Cornell is pretty much irrefutable proof that some TV writers work brilliantly in comics, so hopefully the fact that Ahearne has also worked on Doctor Who is a good omen.  Most importantly though, on a selfish FF note, I'm glad to see books being launched out of concepts from Fantastic Four. Remember that? When the book introduced new ideas which spun off into their own books? When the FF was the great big creative melting pot of the Marvel Universe? If this is a sign of that again, I'm very happy indeed!

Anticipation Level: Cautiously Optimistic

I'll hopefully be putting up my thoughts and impressions on Fantastic Four #1 tomorrow- the issue that started it all!