Fantastic Four & FF (USA) di Matt Fraction

[Azrael]

Matt Fraction and Mark Bagley deliver the next exciting chapter of Marvel's First Family. Looks like we can expect a lot of action and adventure here.
The Good
The Fantastic Four are more than just the original four members. This is something we've seen a lot of emphasis put on before and it's something that Matt Fraction understands as well. The Fantastic Four are more than just a group of superheroes. They are a family of adventurers. This is something thankfully Jonathan Hickman focused on before and Fraction is as well.

As a long time fan of the characters, I never understood when people expressed disinterest in the characters. They are all about big and dynamic adventures. With Mark Bagley on board, you can immediately see that Fraction is going to capitalize on that. Even though this is a first issue, the first time we see the team, they are in the midst of a grand adventure. It's not a typical scene with the good guys always winning. This is a scene where you know there are risks involved. But because of the nature of the team and who they are, they do what they have to do.

Now jumping into the middle of a scene isn't a bad thing. What it does is put us all on equal footing. New and old readers can easily realize this is just another day for the team. There might be some comparisons between this run and the previous (which I've tried to avoid), but there really shouldn't be a comparison. This is a new series with a (slightly) new direction but on the other hand, it's not completely ignoring everything we've seen the last few years. Franklin and Valeria are still around, the Future Foundation is still a thing and they still have the black and white costumes.

What Fraction does do, aside from reassuring fans that too much won't change immediately, is set the stage with a bit of a mystery. Something happens which will clearly lead into the next adventure for the team. When you see Reed Richards say "Uh oh," you know it can't be good.

Mark Bagley is spot on here. I've always dug his art and with Mark Farmer inking, we get to see all the members of the team in different locations, Johnny still has that weird Negative Zone thing on his arm, Ben visits Yancy Street and the kids look like kids. I can't wait to see where Fraction is going to take the team so Bagley can draw it all.

The Bad
As a F4 fan, I've been enjoying HIckman's run. It's a huge relief having Fraction and Bagely taking over to guide the book in this Marvel NOW! period.

The Verdict
One of the Marvel NOW! titles I've been looking forward to and dreading is finally here. My silly fears can be set aside as you can clearly see the characters are in safe hands. If you're going to relaunch a successful comic series, this is the way to do it. All the familiar elements are still here from the previous series yet the book is pretty accessible to new readers as well. This is a team of superheroes that are also a family. Fraction gets what they're about and is ready to take them all on an adventure they may never forget. Bagley gets to shine as there are so many different characters and settings he gets to draw. Having Mark Farmer on inks and Paul Mounts on colors makes the issue that much sweeter. Just thinking about where this series may go has gotten me excited once again. That doesn't happen too often with today's comics.

5/5

CVine

[Sef-]

5 su 5!! 

Grandi Fraction e Bagley, non vedo l'ora!! 

[Azrael]

FANTASTIC FOUR #4
MATT FRACTION (W) • MARK BAGLEY (A/C)
Variant Cover by TERRY DODSON
• An alien world, a thousand-year-old prophesy—is the Invisible Woman a long-awaited intergalactic messiah?
32 PGS./Rated T ...$2.99

[eddiekrueger]

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FF #4
MATT FRACTION (W) • Michael ALLRED (A/C)
Variant Cover by MICHAEL ALLRED
• It's Valentine's Day at the Baxter Building! So why does that spell trouble for She-Hulk?
32 PGS./Rated T ...$2.99

[Azrael]

PREVIEW: FANTASTIC FOUR #2 (Unlettered)

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[Deadpool]

 

[Sef-]

Che bello, torna pure Jen! 

[Mr. Seven]

Primo numero niente male, mi aspettavo di peggio sinceramente.
Bagley: come gli si può voler male, a Bagley?
Ma è anche vero che un disegnatore più di punta avrebbe aiutato maggiormente all'economia della serie.

[Sef-]

Primo numero niente male, mi aspettavo di peggio sinceramente.
Bagley: come gli si può voler male, a Bagley?
Ma è anche vero che un disegnatore più di punta avrebbe aiutato maggiormente all'economia della serie.

Babè, ma Bagley non mi sembra proprio l'ultimo arrivato
Cioè, sarà che io lo adoro, anzi, quei disegni sono FANTASTICI, però non mi lamento affatto!
Che poi, Bagley se non erro è pure piuttosto veloce (credo, insomma, per fare 125eppassa numeri di USM di fila...)

Puoi darmi qualche info in più sul numero?
Qualcosa che ti è piaciuto in particolare o che non hai gradito?

[Mr. Seven]

Primo numero niente male, mi aspettavo di peggio sinceramente.
Bagley: come gli si può voler male, a Bagley?
Ma è anche vero che un disegnatore più di punta avrebbe aiutato maggiormente all'economia della serie.

Babè, ma Bagley non mi sembra proprio l'ultimo arrivato
Cioè, sarà che io lo adoro, anzi, quei disegni sono FANTASTICI, però non mi lamento affatto!
Che poi, Bagley se non erro è pure piuttosto veloce (credo, insomma, per fare 125eppassa numeri di USM di fila...)

Puoi darmi qualche info in più sul numero?
Qualcosa che ti è piaciuto in particolare o che non hai gradito?

Non sarà l'ultimo arrivato, ma non ha nemmeno lo stesso appeal di tanti suoi colleghi che lavorano alla Marvel.
La cosa positiva è che Bagley (assieme a JrJr e Larroca) è uno di quei pochissimi disegnatori a non aver bisogno di fill-in, tanto è veloce: su questo primo numero è molto curato, non come su Brilliant dove era ai minimi storici.
In definitiva, è un buon primo numero, con buone premesse:

Spiacente, ma non sei autorizzato a visualizzare il contenuto degli spoiler.

[Sef-]

Grazie Joey! 

A me Bagley piace, soprattutto per valore affettivo, se così si può dire, dato che mi sono addentrato nei comics attratto dal suo Ultimate Spider-Man 
Per il resto, comunque, non avrei potuto chiedere di meglio: se non ci davano uno dei top (tipo Deodato, Coipel, Immonen, e altri) come scelta secondo me è perfetta! 
Una delle cose che mi piace di meno è, invece, Sue coi capelli così corti: troppo casalinga!

[Azrael]

If there was ever a title that seemed tailor-made to Matt Fractions sensibilities, it's FF. Counted among the cast are a former teenage superhero, the kid with the world's biggest imagination and his know-it-all kid sister, a pint-sized maniacal genius, a pacifist killer dragon robot, and a host of other weird and wild aliens and being. And that doesn't even include the four characters that will become our world's greatest heroes when the Fantastic Four's mission inevitably goes awry.
If that doesn't sound like Matt Fraction's brain running wild, then maybe you haven't read his Twitter feed.

Combine that with a stellar premise - the aforementioned stand-ins desperately trying to fill the void left by the Fantastic Four when they are off-world too long - and some of the best art yet in Marvel NOW! and you've got a recipe for pop-art perfection.

To say that FF #1 is perfect would be overselling it, however. This first issue feels like just that, and not necessarily in the way that Fraction's Fantastic Four #1 did. The gimmick of having the cast introduced through interview style talking heads is a little cliche and expected, but pairs nicely with the longer sequences of the F4 recruiting their stand-ins. The bite-sized bits of characterization for each of the Future Foundation's students and members shows incredible promise, with Fraction, and moreover his artistic collaborator Mike Allred, nailing the subtleties and personae of everyone from Valeria - Fraction's obvious avatar - to Artie and Leech, the latter expressed solely through body language and acting. Still, there's the lingering feeling that this title will only really take off once these characters are, well, doing something.

Perhaps the strongest moments of this issue are the conversations between the F4 and their stand-ins, as Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben each find substitutes that say more about each of them than any of them would maybe care to admit. Reed chooses Scott Lang, the recently resurrected Ant-Man to take his place as leader of the team, whose self-doubt and grief over the loss of his daughter draw strong parallels to Reed's secret impetus for this family vacation. Sue chooses to trust Medusa, the matriarch of a troubled kingdom who knows her marriage isn't all its cracked up to be. Ben drafts She-Hulk, an F4 vet for whom he obviously has tremendous affection, but whose impulsiveness and competitive spirit are far more reminiscent of Johnny Storm, who, himself, chooses the unnamed girl with whom he is sharing breakfast, basically because he forgot to "ask someone about the thing," a calendar reminder that he misinterprets,leafing to one of the issue's best gags. There's a definite psychology to these choices that goes deeper than many may give Fraction credit for, an understated and yet brilliant analysis of what each member of the team thinks that the FF can't survive without.

There almost aren't enough words to describe Mike and Laura Allred's gorgeous art. Mike Allred captures the spirit of each character to perfection. It's his little touches that really hit the nail on the head, like Reed's chin stretching as he thoughtfully strokes it, or the way Artie quizically cocks his head, shining his lighted helmet on Leech. It's because of these simple touches, these moments of unspoken pantomime, that the intro pages for the younger cast members go over as well as they do. Perhaps his best character, however, is She-Hulk, whose strength is palpable and sexy, and perfectly reflected in her physique. Shulkie, as Allred's almost equally lovable Ben Grimm calls her, is an easy character to under - or over- sell, and Allred strikes the perfect balance. Laura Allred does some heavy lifting herself, filling in details and nuances that Mike's ligne claire cartooning leaves open, such as She-Hulk's veins as her muscles strain, or the subtle textures of Dragon Man's skin.

While it isn't quite the treatise on first issues that Fraction's Fantastic Four #1 proved to be, FF#1 offers an immensely promising start, showcasing, again, Fraction's take on each member of this admittedly large and bizarre cast. The real test of this title will come as these characters start moving into the larger world, having adventures, interacting with each other instead of, ostensibly, the reader, and finding their own dynamic. This issue more than proves that Fraction and Allred have the chops to make this the kind of book that, like Fraction's Hawkeye, can push its expectations to the limit, they just need to quickly start doing so, lest FF become a sit-com instead of pop-art sci-fi.

9/10

Newsarama

[eddiekrueger]

The Good

With Marvel NOW! bringing new creative teams and titles to replace existing ones, there has been a lot of excitement as well as concern over the new directions. With Matt Fraction and Mike Allred taking over FF from Jonathan Hickman, we are clearly in safe and capable hands.

Let's be clear, this issue is a 'set up' issue for the series. If you've read FANTASTIC FOUR #1, you know that the team (and Franklin and Valeria) are planning a year-long adventure/vacation (with a hidden agenda, of course) and it's important for replacement members to take their place. In scenes that only Fraction and Allred can deliver, they not only serve as a way to introduce new readers to all the character but also superbly sets the tone for the series.

When it comes to characterization, Fraction is able to zap out little zingers that adds a human touch to the characters. Fraction will have to channel the voice of the adult team members as well as all the young members. Writing kids isn't always easy. Combined with Allred's art, each character's personality and emotions oozes off the page. Allred's art is always prepared for big and crazy action but even in page layouts with a few characters just talking, you get such a sense of what's to come. This issue is setting the stage for big adventures and extremely fun times. That is exactly what I want.

It's not every review that the colorist must be mentioned. Laura Allred is the perfect match for Mike Allred. The two styles highly complement each other and the colors just bring each page to life. There is the slight retro feel the Allreds bring to each issue they work on yet the detail in each panel beautifully conveys the modern feeling in this corner of the Marvel Universe.

The Bad

Nothing. Reading this comic was a great way to start the day.

The Verdict

The Marvel NOW! titles are continuing to deliver fun and excitement with each new series. As a fan of Matt Fraction and Mike Allred, pairing the two together is a wonderful treat. There is an odd choice in the four core members but there shouldn't be any doubt that Fraction has a reason for selecting them. Fraction sprinkles in the humor he's know for bringing to the table and Allred's art (with Laura Allred's amazing colors) brings adds another level of life to the characters. For an issue full of set up and introductions, it was still a blast. If you want fun and enjoyment in a comic book, there's this is a series you need to check out.

5/5

ComicVine

[Azrael]

EXCLUSIVE: Art from "Fantastic Four" #2 by Mark Bagley

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EXCLUSIVE: Art from "FF" #2 by Mike Allred

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[Red Lantern 00075]

Letto FF#1.
Inizio più che promettente.