Strange Tales #101 (October 1962)

Starring the "Fabulous Human Torch", this was about as exciting as an issue of the Incredible Hulk. The issue begins by telling us (once again) why Johnny Storm is a cool kid. We get another glimpse of his origin story, followed by an explanation as to why his identity is still a secret, despite the fact that he made it a very public thing in other stories.

Fantastic Four #6 (September 1962)

The Diabolical Duo! - a name that only Stan Lee could come up with.

When I saw the cover, MAN was I excited! This is the first 'team-up' issue that I've gotten to, and it's the two best villains so far that are teaming up! Before opening this comic, I was already jumping to figure out how this sort of alliance would take place. I GUARANTEE that if I were a reader of the FF back in the day, I would have snatched this issue without so much as taking a second breath. THIS is what comic books are all about! It's the ability to cause excitement, being able to connect to the characters, and having a frame of reference to put it in. These villains have already appeared before, and we know as readers how they fit into the grand scheme of things. This will help to flesh out a little more of the epic story that's taking place (slowly building the Marvel Universe into what it eventually would become), and really is the start of team-ups that will come to make comics great. Obviously, this is only a small taste of things to come!

CCA - The Comics Code Authority!

Hrm...is this comic MISSING something?

Another thing that I'm NOW discovering is the meaning behind a symbol that I've been so used to seeing on the front of comics in my youth, that I've never even questioned what it meant. I'm talking about this logo:

Fantastic Four #5 (July 1962)

The first thing I saw was Doctor Doom on the cover, and I was ready to go! Dr. Doom has always been the epitome of "the Marvel Villain" to me, alongside Magneto and Thanos, so I was very excited going into this issue. The cover was probably a little misleading to people originally, as it seems to make Doom appear to be a giant behind a plate of glass. Contrary to this, he's actually just your typical human height - and I bet people were a little disappointed once they found out further into the comic. To make matters worse, the first page features a towering Dr. Doom with miniature statues of the Fantastic Four, which makes him look like some sort of puppet master or something.

Fantastic Four #4 (May 1962)

So here we are, back to the action/villain-oriented cover. This time we know what to expect, and that is Namor: the Sub Mariner.

Fantastic Four #3 (March 1962)

Ugh - that's the first thing that comes to mind.

The interesting thing is the saying, "don't judge a book by it's cover." The first two covers gave you a good idea of what you'd expect (the conflict, the villains, a dramatic situation), this one, not so much. Instead they use the cover as a means to focus on their new costumes, the Fantasti-car, and secret hide-out. When I first saw the cover, I was a little taken back, but I pushed forward.

Fantastic Four #2 (January 1962)

Wow! The Skrulls!

I've always thought of them as one of the more popular Marvel Universe villains, but had no idea that they entered in so early on. When I think of Skrulls, I always picture the Super Skrulls (for whatever reason), so seeing them here was a little difficult for me to wrap my head around. They just looked so different in their early iteration, with more frog-like features. To be honest though, they really reminded me of some weird aliens out of The Outer Limits or something. I was a little disappointed by them, and this story felt more sci-fi fantasy than superhero. As I'm reading these, I'm noticing more and more that, yeah, it IS more like sci-fi fantasy. There's something that feels reminiscent to Flash Gordon serials with the Fantastic Four - though, as I said previously, the characters are more fleshed out.

Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961)

THIS is THE comic book that started it all for Marvel. It wasn't their first comic (that was actually 22 years before! - Marvel Comics #1), and they weren't even the first Marvel Superheroes (Captain America Comics #1 in 1941). This comic, however, brought realism into the fold of comics - and was one of the first that featured more true-to-life dynamics and storylines.

For example, most comics in those days featured archetypal cardboard cutout heroes. They would save the day, and that was pretty much it. The Fantastic Four was a group of unlucky people who were transformed beyond their control. While three of them were happy to use their powers to help others, the fourth member (The Thing), saw his "blessing" as a curse. He was depressed, bitter, and unappreciative towards the other members of the group. Simply, it made for a great dynamic!

I've grown up reading comics, so I've always known the synopsis for this first issue. I also remember the cover quite fondly - though I had never gotten a chance to peek inside until now. I was surprised by the overall feel of the story. It definitely feels like another era - with callbacks to the Red Scare, the Arms Race, and the overall early Cold War era mindset.

One particularly interesting thing about this story is that it's set up to almost make them seem like villains at the beginning. Mr. Fantastic is a man holding a flare-gun in the shadows, and The Thing is running amok on the streets. Near the end of the first chapter we finally get to see a flashback that describes the events leading up to their biological changes.

The main antagonist of this story is The Moleman - whom I've never found frightening (until now). He commands a horde of strange cave-dwelling monsters that live on a secluded island, and it reminded me of something out of King Kong. I found his origin story to be pretty sad, akin to The Penguin from Batman. He was too ugly for the world around him, so after being shunned by society, he left in order to find a new world in which he could be King (a legendary land in the center of the Earth). He eventually found the cave that lead to the supposed center of the earth, and was so excited that he screamed for joy. The scream caused a cave-in, and he was left blinded by it.



At the end of the story we find out that The Moleman gets away (darn!). Overall, it was a great introduction into the world of Marvel, and it left me wanting more!