12:01 PM
Brad
Plot Overview: An experiment of Reed's increases Sue's invisibility powers. Now she can create a shield and make other objects invisible. Meanwhile, the FF field numerous complaints from neighbors about the dangers of Reed's experiments. Reed decides that maybe he should experiment in a more secluded area. As luck would have it, there's an ad for an island for sale.
Reed and the FF take off to check out the island in the U-Car. The island is concealed by a barrier reef so the Torch burns a path through for them. The island is quite creepy but Reed thinks it will work for his purposes.
Suddenly, the U-Car begins to sink. The Torch tries to see what's going on but the steam caused from his flames puts him out. Reed makes the save and is critical of how careless Johnny was. They spot a mysterious figure watching them and chase him to a nearby cave. They fall into a trap. They're in a ring surrounded by a radioactive wall.
They come face to face with the Mole Man. The Mole Man reveals that he's planning to pull the cities of New York and Moscow under the ground. The Americans and Russians will blame each other and start a nuclear war. The FF spring into action but the Mole Man captures each of them in specially made prison cells.
They each use their powers to escape their prisons in the nick of time. The battle continues and the Mole Man escapes with the trigger to sink the cities. Reed let's him go and herds the other members of the FF to the found U-Car. The other members doubt his motives but as they escape the whole island sinks. Reed reveals that he rewired the trigger and New York and Moscow are safe.
My Take: I have mixed feelings on this issue. The first half of the book had some good energy with the antics of the various FF members.The art also was really good in this issue. The characters really had a lot of personality. I might have missed it in a previous issue but this felt like a big jump in the quality of the art. It's like Jack Kirby decided to try a more detailed approach in this issue.
The second half of the issue, I didn't like as much. The Mole Man capturing them in various prisons. I've felt like they've used that plot device several times and it feels kind of tired. The second he captured them, it felt like the air just went out of the story. I would rather they just had more straight up battles in this book. The gimmicks are just tiring at times.
Reed was also kind of a jerk in this issue. He was very short with the other members of the team during the mission. That seems different for him but I could be glossing over some instances in previous issues. Reed being a little grumpy is a little more characterization than he's shown in previous issues though. I would prefer they dial it back a little from this issue but I think it makes him a little more interesting.
Overall, I'm just going to say it was an average and forgettable issue. There were some character things I liked and I laughed at a few of the moments earlier. I also like that Sue has a broader range of powers now and she can do more than sneak up on the bad guys. It will be nice to see her be more useful in more situations. Outside of that, I didn't like how the fight with the Mole Man went. I'm just going to cut the difference on this one.
I give this **1/2 out of *****.
Notes: The Thing utters his catchphrase "It's Clobberin' Time" for the very first time in this issue.
Next Issue: Tales to Astonish #51
Posted in: Fantastic Four,Human Torch,Moleman,Reed Richards,Sue Richards,Thing
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