Johnny Storm may be gone, but the Fantastic Four is living on, with Marvel releasing a new character redesign by Marko Djurdjevic. Featured in this lineup is Mr. Fantastic, the Invisible Woman, the Thing and — perhaps not surprising to many — the Amazing Spider-Man.
“The point of these new costumes is to really hammer home that everything is fresh and new in the series again — and that it feels like a black-and-white world, following Johnny’s death,” Marvel Tom Brevoort SVP of Publishing wrote in the image above. “Marko Djurdjevic took my suggestion of ‘white outfits’ and ran with it. The hexagonal emblems were all him.”
What say you on all this? Are these monochromatic outfits a fashion faux pass, or is this redesign as Fantastic as the team who inspired them? Only one thing’s for certain — Spider-Man is going to have to get a bigger closet. What say you, Rama readers? Sound off!
February 9th, 2011 at 1:05 pm
Ugh, I get why they want Spidey on the team. But it’s still the Fantastic Four. Plus, Spidey and Wolverine are both over used. It just takes away from the greatness the Fantastic Four are without him.
February 9th, 2011 at 1:19 pm
I’d have to agree. Why do we need Spider-Man on another team when he has his own books and he’s on BOTH of Bendis’ Avengers teams? I’m game for expanding the team’s ranks and calling it the Future Foundation, but I just don’t get why Spidey needs to be a new member. Why can’t Hickman just bring up some other characters that aren’t being used or just make up some new characters to spotlight. I really like his writing and think he’s one of Marvel’s top talents, it seems like hampering him with Spider-Man takes away from what he might be trying to accomplish. But, hey, I could be wrong and this could rock with Spidey in it, who knows.
February 9th, 2011 at 1:30 pm
Spidey’s always had a great dynamic with the Fantastic Four, so him taking Johnny’s place makes a certain amount of sense…but I agree with PJ that this would really over-extend the character.
Plus, I’m not liking the white suits…especially the “tighty-whitey” version of Ben’s trunks, which can be seen here:
http://i.newsarama.com/images/FF_1_Cover_02.jpg
However, all of that said, I really have enjoyed Hickman’s run so far, so I’m willing to cut him some slack and see where this leads.
February 9th, 2011 at 1:36 pm
Spidey looks a good deal like AntiVenom, but otherwise, I like the FF’s redesigns. It’s a really fresh look for the team. I hope they keep them when Johnny returns, too.
February 9th, 2011 at 1:39 pm
I also like that Reed Sue and Ben have coordinating symbols, while Spiderman does not. It sort of says that “we’re a family” where Peter is more of “just a teammate”. I prefer that honestly. It’s less like they are replacing Johnny and more like Peter is just lending a hand during a rough time.
February 9th, 2011 at 1:46 pm
Ignoring that I don’t care much for the outfits, or the art, I just don’t see the need for this. The Fantastic Four has survived the deaths of its other members and gone on. It didn’t change its name or its look.
Never mind that it won’t last. Anymore than most other major costume changes for iconic heroes have. Personally, I love the classic look, though I did like Byrne’s variation on the theme. Whatever these costumes are, they are not what I want from the Fantastic Four.
But neither is anything else I’ve seen since Waid left the book.
February 9th, 2011 at 2:03 pm
NO story will last. The good guys will win eventually, no matter how overwhelming the odds. And we will eventually return to first position, providing us with what Alan Moore has described as “the illusion of change”.
The only real question is, did the story entertain you while it went through its various twists and turns? Will Future Foundation be a good book, keeping us interested until Johnny eventually comes back? And will there even be that sense of “Gee, I almost wish they stuck with this after all” once the actual FF re-forms?
Yes, at the end of Flashpoint, everything will snap back to normal. At some point, someone will realize that Johnny Storm is in a dimension where our laws of physics do not apply, and there’s really no reason to assume he’s even dead, merely trapped. And we’ll get a big long “StormHunt” miniseries to bring him back, maybe even amped up the power scale a bit.
And if you sit in your room refusing to even LOOK at the new stuff, stewing in your own juices until what you want, EXACTLY the way you want it, comes back, well, sei gesund. You’re probably the type who read the latest Justice League: Generation Lost and punched the air, shouting “Yes! FINALLY!!!”
February 9th, 2011 at 2:17 pm
Vinnie you make to much logical sense. That is not allowed on the internets.
I love the new designs. They’re Kirby meets Hickman’s modern design sense. The Spiderman costume is particularly genius. Look at how the hexagons become the spider’s body and the way the leg wraps over shoulder is echoed in Reeds suit.
More importantly, Valeria and Franklin suited up for action. It’s about damn time that the next generation of Marvel’s “First Family” are allowed to step forward into the spotlight. How many generations of X-Men have come and gone, while the FF remain static. This is terrific stuff folks.
February 9th, 2011 at 2:28 pm
Jack Kirby rolling over in his grave faster and faster every day. Again I don’t why I should care. Ugly costumes, stupid name, spider-man becoming the new wolverine (I don’t think bendis is letting him leave the two avengers books he is in), lame event that doesn’t make me want to read it. Seems though number 1 sales not to many other people other who currently read comics now are interested in it either. Didn’t seem bring the storm of fans in like marvel wanted.
February 9th, 2011 at 2:38 pm
I love how the vision of “the future” presented in the “Future Foundation” costumes looks exactly like what I grew up with from the films of the 1970s. Black-and-white color schemes coupled with hexagon designs? AWESOME! The new FF is gonna be able to do the most badass cosplays of Logan’s Run, THX 1138 and The Terminal Man EVER!
February 9th, 2011 at 2:39 pm
“The only real question is, did the story entertain you while it went through its various twists and turns?”
And since Hickman’s entire run to date has left me cold …
February 9th, 2011 at 3:23 pm
Fantastic Four is the only title I’m still reading, and Hickman makes me want to continue, even with an overused Spidey on the team. I like the new outfits and the idea of the Future Foundation, but it doesn’t make sense to have Spider-Man here as well as in his own books and Avengers. He can’t possible find the time for all those commitments, realistically speaking… but who said comics were realistic?
February 9th, 2011 at 3:24 pm
why is spiderman here?
the suit looks great but seriously why is he here?
February 9th, 2011 at 4:25 pm
Well, if the original FF is a family, then Spider-Man has always been kind of a nephew/cousin figure…at least from my point of view (as a long, long time Marvel reader).
After all, the FF guest-starred in the first issue of The Amazing Spider-Man, Spidey was a fifth member in the first issue of What-If? way-back-when, and Spidey and the Torch have been rivals/buddies since the very earliest days of the Marvel U….so there’s definitely some history and tradition there.
Plus, considering I don’t buy any of the Spider-Man or Avengers titles, I’m looking forward to getting a little dose of Spidey in the FF title…even though I could do without the white jammies.
February 9th, 2011 at 5:44 pm
Is Spidey overused? heck yes! However I do remember that at one point Spidey was featured in Amazing Spiderman, Marvel Team-up, Web of Spiderman, and The Spectacular Spider-man. All of those books had Spidey as the main character and they were all occurring more or less simultaneously. If he could do that then him being on two Avengers books, a FF book, and Amazing Spiderman is not that great of a stretch since he is not THE main character in all but one of those books. I think that him being on this new team is a good idea and is very true to the character, more so then him being on any of the Avenger teams.
February 9th, 2011 at 6:43 pm
Okay, setting aside my feelings (somewhat) of the stupidity of killing/removing The Torch and repeating what many new writers of the FF do, which is removing one of their members…
Peter Parker is a great fit with the FF. I’ve long thought that Peter should have been a protege of Reed’s and learn under the master. Perfect idea. It’s been too long since Peter’s scientific genius has been remembered. It’s just a shame that it’s finally been done inside a cliched death plot. And of course working with the FF as Spidey logically follows, personality-wise. I’m not sure what he adds to the power mix, though.
I agree with Simon on the costumes during Byrne’e era, they were great. They provided a new look while still respecting the old. I don’t know that an entire team in white costumes will be that visually exciting. Even the White Queen has to cleavage-it-up to get noticed.
Vinnie, I understand your point about trying the new series, although “stewing in your own juices” takes it a bit far for a difference of opinion. My feeling is that this plot isn’t really anything new: kill a team member, replace him, bring him back, etc. It’s similar to being a Cubs fan. I don’t see the sense in financially supporting a product that fails to deliver over and over. And coming through with an all-too-familiar plot is not really “something new.”
I’ve hung with Marvel and the FF for 35 years. I think I’ve “tried new things” plenty of times and have earned the right to stop buying them if I’m weary of what they’re doing yet again.
February 9th, 2011 at 10:46 pm
I don’t even understand why this franchise is getting all this attention! There isn’t even another movie scheduled! Hey, Mouse House, you can’t force me to buy this in the future!
February 10th, 2011 at 8:08 am
I don’t know. Hickman could have created this whole thing originally without ever having written the FF and it would have been more excting to me. Oh well, there’s always back issues….
February 10th, 2011 at 9:26 am
Ok, in light of the Torch’s “death” having Spidey join, to me, makes PERFECT sense given his friendship rivalry with the Torch, his scientific acumen and just his overall history with the team.
With regards to Spidey being on the Avengers, it would be very cool if Spidey resigned his Avengers membership to be part of the Future Foundation to add a bit of realism to it and to make his joining the team seem more ‘special’. Unfortunately, I don’t think that will happen.
As for the costumes…I don’t mind the design for the FF original members, even if they remind me of Miranda Lawson from Mass Effect 2, but Spidey’s I am torn about…I find it makes him look like an “alien”, which is neat given the concept but it doesn’t say “future FRIENDLY neighborhood Spider-Man”.
February 10th, 2011 at 1:39 pm
Also, because I will never stop beating this drum, the more teams that Spidey joins, and the more successful he’s allowed to become, the more that it invalidates every single excuse that Marvel made for retconning his marriage.
February 16th, 2011 at 5:02 am
Looks like a cheap video game instruction manual…
February 18th, 2011 at 10:01 am
Awful awful AWFUL! Spidey’s mask makes him look like a “grey”! TERRIBLE!
November 30th, 2011 at 6:29 pm
Why does The Thing look so small? Is Mike Chikalis in there?