By [ad_1]
While Civil War was largely an Avengers storyline, the Fantastic Four actually came the closest to being genuinely splintered by the event.
One of the most enduring elements of the Fantastic Four as a concept is the importance of family. Whether it’s through blood, marriage, or friendship, family is always at the center of the team. But that means events that come close to breaking those bonds always stand out, even when they aren’t really Fantastic Four stories.
While the Reckoning War has threatened to permanently upend the Reed Richards/Ben Grimm friendship, it was a previous event that actually came the closest to shattering the group. Mark Millar and Steve McNiven’s Civil War turned much of the Marvel Universe against itself and actually came closer to splintering the Fantastic Four than almost any other conflict that’s endangered Marvel’s first family.
At the heart of Civil War was the question of registration, and whether or not the hero community could — or should — agree to reveal their identities to the government. Doing so could legitimize the hero community, but leave them open to being utilized by ever-changing administrations and governments. Captain America resisted this idea from the onset, but Iron Man was convinced this was the best way for the heroes to go forward. Notably, one of the only heroes to openly agree with him from the onset was his like-minded fellow science-based hero, Mister Fantastic. Having quietly concluded that the Registration Act could help prevent escalating conflicts from destroying the world, Mister Fantastic threw himself fully behind registration, even helping Iron Man develop a clone of Thor as muscle.
But his secrets quickly came back to haunt him, leading to the near dissolution of his family. After the events of Stamford, the Human Torch was one of the heroes attacked by the public, with a mob beating him and leaving him in a coma. Witnessing the chaos of the burgeoning conflict, the Thing refused to take sides and instead left the country for a time, relocating to Paris. Meanwhile, Invisible Woman was enraged at the prospect of betraying their friends. Upon seeing the clone of Thor go berserk and kill their longtime ally Bill Foster, Invisible Woman turned against her husband and went on the run as a member of Captain America’s underground resistance. A reawakened Human Torch joined his sister and directly confronted Reed Richards in Fantastic Four #542 by Dwayne McDuffie and Mike McKone.
Notably, as opposed to other events which have briefly broken up the Fantastic Four, Civil War left genuine emotional damage on the family. Ben Grimm’s heartbreak at the conflict pushed him away from pretty much all of his friends, a betrayal of his long-standing loyalty to his allies. Sue and Reed came dangerous close to fracturing their romance once and for all, and only survived the event as a couple thanks to Reed’s last-minute self-sacrifice to protect Sue from a potentially lethal attack by Taskmaster. Afterward, the pair left the Fantastic Four for a time, one of the few times the typically work-obsessed Reed Richards ever successfully left his lab behind to spend time with his wife. Human Torch was left changed by the event, resulting in a series of events where he became more aware of his morality and potential.
With Captain America and Iron Man firmly at the heart of Civil War, it makes sense why the event is primarily remembered as an Avengers-centric event. Even outside of it being adapted into the Marvel Cinematic Universe largely as essentially Avengers 2.5, Civil War came close to breaking apart plenty of Marvel heroes from their most trusted confidants, friends, and family. The Fantastic Four was one of the closest to full collapse. Although the family unit has largely remained in-tact during Devil’s Reign (which repeats registration in key ways), Reckoning War has been tested to splinter them again. This means it’s important to remember that despite the bonds that bind them, the family unit isn’t perfect. Even an event they were on the sidelines for like Civil War could destroy the Fantastic Four.
Fantastic Four’s Mister Fantastic Gained a Dangerous Upgrade That Could Doom Him
About The Author
[ad_2]
