Rating:  -
Since the launch of the Ultimate series of Marvel, I've been anxious to see how they were going to represent the Fantastic Four.
As the ultimate universe is more "humanitized" and controlled in time terms, the stories and the events of the two paperback stories (The Fantastic and Doom), pictured in the Hardcover version are excellent and not time consuming.
The artwork is really good, proving that the "Ultimate" universe has something valuable to show. Also the hardcover version is very detailed and loaded with the extra script, a must have for those who want to study comics in their free time.
In general, it's worth buying both as a collector's item, or as a fan material.
Rating: -
Hardcover collects first two storylines for the Ultimate FF, and includes some cool extras. Good stories, considering FF is not my favorite. The whole "other dimension" aspect doesn't really excite me - I preferred the cosmic rays as the source for their powers. I liked the way Doom was portrayed, and the resulting storylines.
Good collection for FF fans, and even non-fans.
Rating: -
Wow.
I am well familiar with the "Ultimatizing" of the Marvel Universe. And I like it. It won't keep me from reading the original lines, but the fresh approach and undeniable quality of these Ultimate titles means they're simply good comics. Often great comics.
They work just as well for those well-versed in Marvel's mythology as those who confess ignorance.
Having said that, this "Fantastic Four" blew me away. I loved the story, the art, the characters, the ideas, the images...you can tell by reading these twelve stories that the creators love the characters so much, they've put every creative impulse of their being into them. The four key characters are suffused with love and respect.
They've unleashed genius comic geeks on Marvel's oldest saga, and come up with something startlingly fresh and new. They've tangled with some of the most stale and staid characters in the Marvel Universe, and derived phenomenally interesting and intriguing people out of them.
First, the tweaking of the origin works. Oh Lord does it work. You got Reed, Sue, Johnny, Ben, Victor Von Damme/Doom, Mr./Dr. Storm, the Baxter Building, the Negative Zone...even the freaking Fantasti-Car. I do not in any way want to hint at what their "new" origin has to do with, as discovering it for yourself will prove to be sheer delirium. I got this fizzy glee reading the first few issues...
Oftentimes, I found myself seeing scenes I had always goofily joked about as a young child. Does The Thing go to the bathroom, for example? Does The Invisible Girl go invisible in layers or all at once? This story has you seeing your old favorites in a new light, and it's wonderful.
Dr. Doom shows up, and his 'reimagining' is a bit more bold than the others, but it feels authentic. His physical appearance, including one drastic alteration, perfectly fits the new origin.
These twelve issues read like one solid arc, and this "Ultimate" hardcover just became "essential" in my estimation.
This is bravura comic-book-making.
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