Although it only ran for twelve issues in the 1960s, Stan Lee’s Fantastic Four is the highest-selling comic series of all time and is considered the first superhero team book. Their origin is simple: four astronauts gain superpowers after being exposed to cosmic rays during a space flight.
The Fantastic Four is a superhero comic book created by artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee. This series of comics was the very first superhero team created by Marvel Comics in 1961. They were the 1st superhero comic book with an all superhero cast.
The group, comprised of Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, and The Thing, are some of the most iconic superheroes in the Marvel Universe. Whether you read comics or not, you have probably heard of them. Mr. Fantastic has the ability to stretch his body into any shape he wants, the Invisible Woman can become invisible and generate force fields, and her husband, the Human Torch, can generate flames and surround his body with them; and their friend the Thing, who has superhuman strength and is covered with an indestructible rock-like skin.
Even though they’ve been around for over 50 years, comic book readers still have a lot to learn about Marvel’s First Family, The Fantastic Four!
- Author Jonathan Lethem once stated that “Doctor Doom was invented by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby so that they could have a villain to fight the Fantastic Four,” and many fans of the Marvel comic book series agree with this assessment. However, Lethem’s statement is patently false. In reality, Doctor Doom was not created alongside the Fantastic Four.
When the team first appeared in comic books, Doctor Doom was not a part of the story. Instead, he made his first appearance in the second issue of the series as the leader of the team’s first archenemy, the country of Latveria.
- One of the most amazing things about the Human Torch is his ability to control the fire within his own body. But did you know that this power comes in many different forms? For example, the Human Torch has used his fire to create protective clothing, fly, melt metal objects, and even create weapons out of thin air. He can also project fire from his body at will. There are actually several different ways that the Human Torch can control fire, all of which are detailed in the blog below.
3. Galactus is a cosmic giant, the devourer of worlds, a god-like being of unimaginable power, right? Wrong. Galactus isn’t a giant cloud of cosmic energy. He’s actually an obese old man with purple skin and a big purple hat wearing a purple cloak who rides around in a starship designed like an eyeball who eats planets to survive.
- In the comics, Doctor Doom is a pretty terrible guy. He’s a dictator, a murderer, and a genius capable of toppling the Fantastic Four almost single-handedly. But, if you ask most comic readers, he doesn’t have the capacity to threaten as many people, similar to the mad Titan Thanos. Doom’s powers are pretty terrifying, but they pale in comparison to Thanos’s Infinity Gauntlet, which allows him to obliterate everything he touches or his fleet of personal space armada. That is, Doom is a threat, but not as much of a threat as Thanos.
- Reed Richards has been the smartest man in the Marvel Universe for decades. He is the smartest supervillain, the smartest superhero, and the smartest person in the Marvel Universe. Some may argue that Tony Stark is smarter than Reed Richards, but he has only ever claimed to be. In comparison, Reed is the second most intelligent character in the Marvel Universe.