Marvel’s First Family has gotten the short end of the stick recently due to its movie rights belonging to Fox. But now that Marvel Studios has them back, they are pouring everything they have into revitalizing the franchise. If you want to get pumped for things to come here are ten Fantastic Four stories to get you going.
- 1234– Grant Morrison tries his hand at the Fantastic Four and doesn’t disappoint. This mini-series puts each member of the group into their own personal crisis and at the end, as always, Doom awaits.
- Back to Basics!- This is the start of John Byrne’s run on the comic. The arc is enjoyable but really this makes the list as a good entry point to binge Byrne’s run which includes some really excellent FF stories.
- Unthinkable- The peak of Mark Waid’s run on the title. Doom goes full Faust and gets himself a shiny new human suit and a punch of new magical powers. This arc changed the Fantastic Four in ways that are still being felt today.
- The Galactus Trilogy– The original epic that introduces us to the world eater Galactus and his herald The Silver Surfer. This is Stan Lee and Jack Kirby at their best and stands as one of the most influential arcs in the history of comics.
- Solve Everything– This is the first arc of Jonathon Hickman’s epic run, which is perhaps the greatest of any modern era writer. Where you want to start if you don’t want to sift through the team’s whole history and just want to get caught up with stories from this century.
- Ultimate Fantastic Four- Every arc in this series is good and most are excellent. Like the other books in the Ultimate Line, it cuts through the excess and tells classic FF tales in a streamlined modern manner.
- FF– For a while, there were two Fantastic Four comics, the main title and the FF title where the FF stood for the Future Foundation: Reed Richard’s personal think tank of geniuses. The second volume of this title is bonkers and a definite must-read.
- The Peril and the Power- Stan Lee and Jack Kirby at their best. This is the pinnacle of Silver Age Fantastic Four comics and another classic Dr. Doom story.
- New Fantastic Four– The Fantastic Four take a break for a bit and are replaced by a new team: Hulk, Ghost Rider, Spider-Man, and Wolverine. Yeah, it’s just as ridiculous as you might expect, but in a good way.
- This Man This Monster- I usually don’t put single issue stories on this list because they lack enough content to make for a proper binge, but this is the best Thing story ever written and maybe the best issue of the whole franchise. It is essential reading for any FF fan.