Calling the FANTASTIC FOUR!
The history of ink and paper comics you should know
before the movie premiere
In the whirlwind of the comic book universe, one team shines as the cornerstone of the Marvel Universe, a beacon of adventure, family, and cosmic wonder: The Fantastic Four.
Let’s go back in time, to the very genesis of the Fantastic Four, this saga that redefined superheroes and comics as we knew them. Prepare to dive into ink and paper, because we’re going to decipher the DNA of the Fantastic Four, from their first breath on the printed page. I’ve scoured numerous archives, interviews with Stan “The Man” Lee and Jack “King” Kirby, and forgotten sketches to bring you the chronicle of their origin.
MARVEL, THE COMIC AND THE CREATORS OF THE FIRST FAMILY
The year was 1961, a time when the world was on the brink of change, the Cold War loomed, the Space Race was in full swing, and comics were still finding their place in post-war America. The beloved superheroes of the 1940s had fallen out of favor, replaced by romance, horror, crime, and Western stories. They had been popular, but censorship and public morality had held back many publishers. Marvel Comics, then known as Timely Comics and later Atlas Comics, was a struggling publisher under the direction of Martin Goodman, producing monster comics and teen humor to stay afloat. But the tides were about to turn, and the catalyst was a bold idea that would transform the industry.
The story goes that Martin Goodman returned from a round of golf feeling uneasy, as his rival DC Comics was enjoying considerable success with its Justice League, a team of established heroes, and the issues were selling like hotcakes.
Martin Goodman, then editor of Atlas, challenged his team to create a similar group. His order to Stan Lee was straightforward: “We need our own super team.” Lee, tempted to abandon the medium, decided to write “the comic I’d like to read” and called on his most explosive partner, Jack Kirby. The result would hit newsstands on August 8, 1961, although the cover date said November, with a price of 10 cents. The golf anecdote has been confirmed by several historians, although with nuances, it is today a foundational piece of the “Marvel Mythos.” And so, the magic happened: in a small, bustling studio on Madison Street in New York, two masterminds, two titans of creativity, came together to forge something completely new. I’m talking, of course, about Jack Kirby and Stan Lee.
Jack Kirby, the “King,” with his unparalleled visual dynamism and ability to capture cosmic action and scale in every panel, was the perfect visual architect for this vision. His bold designs and sequential storytelling were revolutionary.
Stan Lee, with his quick wit and ability to give voice to characters, was looking for more than just heroic archetypes. He wanted characters with problems, with internal conflicts, with personalities that clashed and complemented each other at the same time. He wanted humanity behind the superpowers. Instead of untouchable gods, what if he created heroes who fought, who had debts, who argued like a real family? And so, the seed of the Fantastic Four was planted.
The result was “The Fantastic Four #1,” published in 1961. This comic wasn’t a secondary publication; it was the cornerstone upon which the modern Marvel Universe would be built. At a time when comics sold for pennies, this initial issue became a cult object almost immediately. While I don’t have the exact number of copies printed from that first run (publishers at the time were quite secretive with such figures, and the industry was still gauging its reach), what we do know is that demand exceeded expectations. They sold very well, paving the way for what would become a comic book empire.
The creative laboratory: “Marvel method”
Faced with an overload of titles, Lee opted for a streamlined system: brainstorming, complete art by the artist, and a final script based on finished pages. This Marvel Method made Kirby a co-visual storyteller. The dynamism and human interaction, discussion, humor, and frustrations set the quartet apart from the impeccable heroes of their competition. Kirby had enormous creative freedom in the visual narrative, and Lee had the ability to infuse his inimitable voice, his dialogue giving the characters unique voices, from Reed’s technicality to Ben’s Brooklyn accent. The result was a creative synergy rarely replicated. They were an electric duo, producing 102 issues of unparalleled creativity from 1961 to 1970.
Fantastic Four #1: printing and distribution details
- Title: The Fantastic Four
- Script edition: Stan Lee
- Artwork / co plot: Jack Kirby
- Cover: Kirby inked by George Klein, colors by Stan Goldberg
Estimated print run: Marvel did not publish figures, but ownership statements from subsequent years serve as a barometer. The initial print run was modest compared to Marvel’s later successes. In the mid-1960s, the series sold 300,000 copies per month, peaking at 350,000 during the Galactus Trilogy (Fantastic Four #48-50). By the late 1970s, circulation was around 390,000 copies with paid sales of $160,757. It is reasonable to infer that #1 was printed in the range of 200,000–250,000 copies, a standard for the time.
The Fantastic Four was a hit, and this helped Marvel secure better distribution deals. These figures reflect its growing dominance, although it still lagged behind DC’s major titles such as Superman.
Business model: The distributor Independent News Company placed the comics in pharmacies and newsstands; unsold copies were returned destroyed, hence the relative scarcity of well-preserved copies.
MERCHANDISING FROM THE 1960S
Newsstand distribution: Marvel comics, including Fantastic Four #1, were mainly distributed at newsstands, drugstores, and convenience stores. There were no massive advertising campaigns like there are today; promotion depended heavily on visibility at the point of sale, where the cover played a crucial role.
In the 1960s, superhero merchandising wasn’t yet a well-established business model. Most comic book characters didn’t have toys, T-shirts, or licensed products like they do today. Everything was much more artisanal and editorial.
Advertisements in other comics, House Ads: Marvel used to include internal advertisements in its own comics to promote other titles. Although there is no specific evidence that Fantastic Four #1 had a dedicated advertisement in other Marvel comics prior to its release, it is likely that Martin Goodman, the publisher, relied on the reputation of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby to attract readers of the monster and science fiction titles that Atlas Comics was publishing at the time (such as Journey into Mystery or Tales to Astonish).
Word of mouth and cultural context: The Cold War and the Space Race provided a cultural context that made the theme of a group of adventurous scientists exposed to cosmic rays resonate with the public. Fantastic Four #1 capitalized on public interest in space travel, specifically following Yuri Gagarin’s flight in April 1961, which may have served as an implicit form of promotion by aligning itself with the trends of the time.
Animated series: The first Fantastic Four animated series, produced by Hanna-Barbera in 1967, spawned some merchandising, including comics and basic toys.
Merchandising years later
1970s: Figures of the characters begin to appear, companies like Mego began producing Fantastic Four figures, lunchboxes, and limited-license merchandise (often shared with other Marvel characters).
1980s: With animated cartoons and the rise of licensing, the Fantastic Four entered the toy, poster, and children’s clothing market.
1990s: The animated series (1994) sparked a new wave of merchandising.
2005–2007: Fox films brought toys, video games, clothing, etc.
THE HISTORY OF COMICS
Why was “The Fantastic Four #1” so different?
The impact of “The Fantastic Four #1” cannot be underestimated. It wasn’t just the debut of four iconic characters; it was the birth of a new way of telling superhero stories.
The team consisted of:
• Reed Richards: a brilliant scientific genius, though often absorbed in his research.
• Sue Storm: Reed’s fiancée and assistant, with surprising inner strength and adaptability.
• Johnny Storm: Sue’s younger brother, a young adventurer with an impetuous spirit.
• Ben Grimm: Reed’s best friend since college, an experienced pilot and a loyal but somewhat cynical man.
The Fantastic characters
Let me now introduce you, in detail, to the founding members of this legendary family.
Reed Richards: Mr. Fantastic, the elastic genius and the perpetually worried man
Full name: Reed Nathaniel Richards.
Origins of Power: He acquired his abilities when, along with his three companions, he was exposed to cosmic rays during an experimental spaceflight.
Powers and Abilities: His body became incredibly malleable and elastic. Every cell in his anatomy was transformed to allow him to stretch, bend, and contort his body into extraordinary shapes and lengths. The reason for this lies in the way cosmic rays reconfigured his connective tissue and molecular structure, granting him unprecedented plasticity. This power is a physical extension of his brilliant and adaptable mind, capable of finding innovative solutions even under extreme pressure.
Psychological profile: Reed Richards is the embodiment of intellect. A world-class scientific genius, his mind works at a speed and with a complexity that few can match. He is the natural leader of the team, but his obsession with science and problem-solving often leads him to be distant and absorbed. He is a man of insatiable curiosity, always seeking to expand human knowledge and unravel the mysteries of the universe.
Strengths: brilliant, strategist, teacher, devoted to science, protector of his family.
Weaknesses: socially awkward, emotionally reserved, sometimes prioritizes science over his family’s needs, prone to guilt when his experiments go wrong. His “gift” of elasticity also often feels like a curse, a distortion of his human form that further sets him apart from normal people. He is not only a genius, but has become something “beyond” human in physical form.
Role in the team: The brain, the strategist, the technology provider, and the undisputed leader. He is the one who drives the team forward in its scientific and exploratory missions. His laboratory is the epicenter of the team’s activity.
Susan Storm Richards: The Invisible Woman – The quiet strength and heart of the team
Full Name: Susan “Sue” Storm Richards.
Origins of Power: Also exposed to cosmic rays during space travel.
Powers and Abilities: Initially, her only ability was to become invisible. Over time, she developed the ability to project powerful psionic force fields that she can use for a variety of purposes, including defensive shielding, concussive attacks, flight, and object manipulation. Her invisibility arises from manipulating the wavelengths of light around her, refracting them in such a way that her body cannot be seen. The creation of force fields is a more advanced manifestation of her power, involving the manipulation of psionic energy and the creation of concise force barriers that can be solid or malleable. This power, in a sense, reflects her original personality, often feeling underestimated or “invisible” in the shadow of Reed’s genius, yet possessing immense strength and protective capacity.
Psychological profile: Sue Storm is the emotional backbone of the Fantastic Four. She is the most balanced member of the group and often acts as a mediator between the volatile personalities of Reed and Ben. She possesses great inner strength, deep compassion, and a maternal instinct, especially toward Franklin and Valeria (although these characters would appear much later in the continuity). Often underestimated by her teammates and villains, Sue has proven to be the most powerful member of the team in critical moments, using her abilities with astonishing precision and ingenuity.
Strengths: compassionate, intuitive, emotionally strong, incredibly powerful when provoked, protective.
Weaknesses: initially unsure of her powers and her role, sometimes feels overshadowed by Reed, can be prone to self-sacrifice. Her invisibility, at first, was seen as a reflection of her insecurity, of wanting to disappear or not be seen.
Role on the team: The protector, the emotional healer, the diplomat, and an incredibly valuable member in combat thanks to her offensive and defensive force fields. She is, in many ways, the soul of the family.
Johnny Storm: The Human Torch – The impulsive teenager
Full name: Jonathan “Johnny” Storm.
Origin of powers: Sue’s younger brother, he was also affected by cosmic rays.
Powers and abilities: He can envelop his body in flames, fly at high speeds, project fire in various forms (fireballs, heat blasts), and absorb heat from his surroundings. His battle cry, “Flame on!” is iconic. His body was transformed into living plasma, allowing him to generate and control fire. He can ignite himself at will, fly propelled by heat, and project bursts of fire. The reason behind this is that cosmic rays altered his metabolism, allowing him to absorb oxygen from his surroundings and transmute it into an unstable form of plasma, releasing heat and light. This power is a reflection of his fiery, impetuous, and extroverted personality.
Psychological profile: Johnny is the youngest and most impetuous member of the team. With the exuberance and arrogance of youth, he is an extroverted character who loves attention and is prone to pranks. His relationship with Ben Grimm, characterized by constant teasing and occasional confrontation, is one of the most beloved dynamics in the comic. Despite his carefree attitude, Johnny is loyal to his family and, when the situation calls for it, shows surprising maturity and courage. He loves being a superhero and is often the most “public” of the Fantastic Four, enjoying his fame.
Strengths: Loyal, brave, daring, resourceful in combat, optimistic.
Weaknesses: Impulsive, arrogant, sometimes irresponsible, prone to getting into trouble. His transformation into a figure of fire, while giving him power, also makes him an outcast, someone who can burn everything he touches.
Role in the team: The air attack, the fast scout. He is often the first to jump into action, sometimes without thinking about the consequences.
Benjamin Grimm: The Thing – The tough heart and tortured soul
Full name: Benjamin “Ben” Grimm.
Origins of Power: A pilot and college friend of Reed Richards, he was the most drastically transformed by cosmic rays.
Powers and Abilities: His body transformed into an indestructible orange rock skin. He possesses incredible superhuman strength and endurance, making him a powerful hand-to-hand combatant. Ben’s transformation was the most dramatic and visually stunning. His skin turned into an orange rock, granting him superhuman strength and durability. Exposure to cosmic rays caused an irreversible mutation in his cellular structure, calcifying his skin and increasing his muscle and bone density to extraordinary levels. This made him virtually invulnerable to most forms of physical damage and granted him tremendous strength. His monstrous appearance, however, left him deeply affected and resentful, as unlike the others, his transformation was constant and visible, condemning him to a “monster” existence. His power is a tragic irony, as the strongest man on the team feels emotionally weakest.
Psychological Profile: Ben Grimm is perhaps the most tragic and complex character on the team. Trapped in the form of “The Thing,” a rock-skinned monster, he yearns for his old life and appearance. Despite his gruff exterior and constant complaining, Ben has a heart of gold. He is incredibly loyal to his friends, especially Reed (whom he often blames for his condition, but whom he also deeply admires). He is a man of few words who hides great sadness and self-pity beneath a facade of sarcasm and snarls. His interactions with Johnny, which range from camaraderie to sheer exasperation, are the lifeblood of many of the early stories.
Strengths: Loyal, unwavering, brave, with a strong sense of honor, protective.
Weaknesses: Depressed by his appearance, prone to anger, insecure, sometimes melancholic. His transformation is the most evident and the one that most isolates him from the normal world, a constant reminder of what he lost. Role on the team: the muscle, the “tank,” the first line of defense. He’s the one willing to take the hardest hits and protect his teammates at all costs.
Humanity over heroism
Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s decision to portray their heroes as real people with real problems. They worried about money, complained about traffic, and yes, they fought with each other. This made them incredibly relatable to readers. They were no longer distant, untouchable figures; they were like your neighbors, only with superpowers and bigger problems.
The family dynamics
The interaction between Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben was something never seen before. The tension between Reed and Ben, the brotherly affection between Sue and Johnny, and the constant “love-hate” dynamic between Johnny and Ben were at the heart of the series. This gave them an emotional depth that many comics of the time lacked. They weren’t mysterious heroes with secret identities. They didn’t have coordinating uniforms (at first, at least). They were scientists, adventurers, and most importantly, a dysfunctional family.
Complex, cosmic villains
From the beginning, the Fantastic Four faced threats that went beyond small-time villains, challenging the heroes not only physically, but morally. This elevated the superhero narrative to a whole new level.
Exploration and adventure
Although they were superheroes, the Fantastic Four were first and foremost explorers. Their adventures took them to the depths of the Earth, to alternate dimensions, and to the far reaches of space. They were scientists and adventurers, pushing the boundaries of knowledge and imagination.
The Origin of the Fantastic Four’s Powers: An Unexpected Cosmic Journey
The Fantastic Four, Marvel’s “first team,” acquired their powers in a way as fortuitous as it was cataclysmic: through exposure to cosmic rays during an experimental spaceflight. Their initial motivation wasn’t the pursuit of powers, but rather scientific ambition and the need to stay ahead of a global threat.
The space mission: the unauthorized flight that changed everything
Reed Richards had designed a spacecraft to travel beyond Earth’s orbit and study a series of strange cosmic storms that had been affecting terrestrial communications. However, the US government refused to fund his project, considering it too risky.
Driven by his fervent desire to advance science and, in some interpretations, by concern that a rival nation might beat him to it, Reed made the decision to launch his ship without authorization. He persuaded Sue to accompany him as his assistant, Johnny to crew the ship, given his experience as a pilot, and Ben Grimm to be his backup pilot and the team’s strongman.
As Richards’ ship traveled through deep space, they encountered a far greater intensity of cosmic rays than Reed had predicted. Despite Ben’s desperate attempts to return to Earth, the radiation bombarded the ship and its occupants mercilessly. During the flight, the ship was bombarded by an unexpected storm of cosmic radiation, which penetrated the protective shields. The exposure altered their molecular structure and transformed them forever.
It wasn’t an instant process of acquiring powers, but rather an exposure that fundamentally altered their biological makeup at the cellular level. After crash landing back on Earth, the four quickly discovered the drastic changes in their bodies.
The birth of the Fantastic Four
Despite the initial trauma and confusion, the four decided to use their new abilities for the good of humanity. They adopted their heroic names and devoted themselves to scientific exploration, protecting Earth from supernatural threats, and solving cosmic mysteries. Their story is a testament to chance, human resilience, and the acceptance of the extraordinary in everyday life.
Esta es la base fundamental del origen de los poderes de los Cuatro Fantásticos, la que ha perdurado a lo largo de décadas y que sigue siendo un pilar en el universo Marvel.
Villains and threats
a. Mole Man
A villain who debuted in issue #1, November 1961. A metaphor for the “social underground,” the team’s first enemy, a subterranean tyrant, set the tone for their battles against the marginalized and misunderstood.
b. Namor, the Sub-Mariner
He made his appearance in issue #4, the hybrid son of a human and an Atlantean princess. He is long-lived due to his Atlantean ancestry, and his super strength increases underwater. He introduces a love triangle between Reed, Sue, and Namor.
c. Doctor Doom
Appears in issue #5. Reed Richards’ arch-nemesis, he was a complex tyrant, a brilliant scientist whose ego and resentment drove him to evil. These storylines cemented the notion of a shared universe, characters crossing over magazines, paving the way for Avengers two years later.
- Los Skrulls
Fantastic Four #2, 1962. These shape shifting aliens became recurring threats, showcasing the cosmic reach of the team. The Super Skrull is a being with enhanced powers, who was granted the powers of the Fantastic Four.
- Galactus
The Devourer of Worlds introduced an unprecedented cosmic scale to comics, challenging heroes not only physically but also morally. This elevated superhero storytelling to a whole new level.
- Silver Surfer
Fantastic Four #48-50, 1966. This trilogy introduced a planet devouring god and his noble herald, cementing the cosmic grandeur of the series.
- Puppet master
His power is the manipulation of radioactive clay, with which he creates human figures and is able to manipulate the individual represented.
h. Red Ghost
A Soviet scientist designed a spacecraft to reach the Moon, intentionally omitting the necessary protection against cosmic rays. He traveled with a gorilla, a mandrill, and an orangutan, who, upon being exposed to cosmic rays, became Super Apes.
h. Diablo
He is a powerful Aragonese alchemist, born in the 9th century. It is said that he sold his soul to Mephisto in exchange for an extended life. With a Machiavellian character, he uses his knowledge of alchemy to create all kinds of potions.
- The Frightful Four
Consisting of The Wizard, The Sandman, The Trapper, and Medusa, they were a group acclaimed by fans and, in their appearances, they put The Fantastic Four in a difficult position.
i. Annihilus
He is a member of the insectoid race of Arthosians and has a cosmic control rod that grants him a kind of semi-immortality, strength, and the ability to fly.
The fan club before social media
Each issue included the Fantastic Four Fan Page, a pioneer in publishing reader letters, contests, and even piloting retcons (reinterpreting the founding events of the Fantastic Four). The volume of letters forced Marvel to found the “Merry Marvel Marching Society,” the official fan club, intended to strengthen the emotional bond between readers and the nascent Marvel Universe, which by then included Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, Hulk, Iron Man, etc., selling kits by mail (button, floppy disk, and stickers). This created a two-way community decades before social media.
THE PRINT LEGACY, CONTINUITY, AND EVOLUTION
Starting with “The Fantastic Four #1,” the series was published monthly, building an interconnected universe that would expand exponentially. Not only did we see the Fantastic Four deal with their personal problems and villains, but their world felt alive. Other heroes would begin to appear in the same universe, and the Fantastic Four, in many ways, acted as the foundation for the creation of the interconnected Marvel Universe.
The series wasn’t limited to adventures; it explored themes of discrimination, Ben’s struggle to accept his appearance, the weight of responsibility (Reed), the power of family (Sue), and the search for identity (Johnny). As the years passed, the team would evolve. They would marry, have children (Franklin and Valeria), and their lives would become even more intertwined with the fabric of the Marvel Universe.
“The Fantastic Four” was Marvel’s flagship series for many years, setting the tone for what was to come. It paved the way for Spider-Man, the Avengers, the X-Men, and countless other characters who would become global icons. Without the boldness and vision of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in creating the First Family, the landscape of modern comics and, by extension, superhero cinema, would be unrecognizable.
So, the next time you think about the Fantastic Four, think about the big screen, but also close your eyes and imagine the vibrant pages of “The Fantastic Four #1” from 1961. Visualize Kirby’s pencil bringing Reed stretching, Sue fading, Johnny on fire, and Ben growling to life. Listen to Stan Lee´s words, as he breathes voice and humanity into them, because it is there, in the ink and paper of those early comics, where the true magic lives, the beating heart of the first family and the original spark of a universe that would never stop expanding.
Now, you’re ready to go to the cinema and enjoy the movie Fantastic Four: First Steps!
