“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine!” Fantastic Four No. 231

13 Sunday Sep 2026

Posted by percivalhenry in The World's Greatest Comic Magazine

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1981, Bill Sienkiewicz, Doug Moench, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 131, Joe Sinnott, Marvel, Marvel comics, negative Zone

Fantastic Four 231
“In All The Gathered Gloom!”
Published March 1981
Writers: Doug Moench and Roger Stern (credited as “Gurland”)
Pencils: Bill Sienkiewicz and Al Milgrom (credited as “Moore”)
Inks: Joe Sinnott, Sienkiewicz and Frank Giacoia (uncredited)
Letters: Jim Novak
Colors: George Roussos
Editor: Stern (credited to Jim Salicrup)
Cover: Sienkiewicz and Sinnott

Synopsis

The Baxter Building is trapped in the Negative Zone with a small slice of Manhattan, whose residents blame the Fantastic Four for their predicament. As the FF try to steer their way back, they are attacked by Stygorr, a Negative Zone warlord. Meanwhile, Lew Shiner, a real estate developer stuck in the Negative Zone, rallies a mob to attack the Baxter Building. Mr. Fantastic devises a plan that both defeats Stygorr and Shiner and returns the missing piece of New York back to its own reality.

What’s going on here?

This is an interesting issue, for a number of reasons. I picked it up expecting the worst: The Doug Moench/ Bill Sienkiewicz run has been a disappointment and given this is their last issue the book, I expected them to mail it. And yet it’s a pretty good comic, with a crazy amount of plots and subplots that generate some real suspense and excitement. I was prepared to give Moench credit where credit was due until, researching this issue, I discovered it was both co-written and edited by Roger Stern (apparently Jim Salicrup was sick so Stern filled in as editor and rewrote some of the comic). It’s impossible to know from this distance who did what, but I’m going to guess the more enjoyable aspects were probably from Stern.

The comic’s art is similarly muddled. Most of the comic is laid out by Sienkiewicz, but only the first 21 pages are inked by Joe Sinnott. The next seven were finished by Sienkiewicz, and the last page, strangely, was penciled by Al Milgrom and inked by Frank Giacoia, neither of whom are credited (apparently, the credits were supposed to read (“& more” but it was rendered as just “Moore.”) The Milgrom/Giacoia art looks very out of place:

But the real story here is the unfettered Sienkiewicz. I’ve discussed before how Sienkiewicz said he appreciated Sinnott’s tutelage, but it’s pretty obvious how hemmed in he was by Sinnott’s conservative style. The pages that are all Sienkiewicz have a freedom and loose energy that foreshadows his work on the New Mutants. Here are a few examples:

The shame of it is we didn’t get to see Sienkiewicz unleashed until the last few pages of his run. With all due respect to Joe Sinnott, a Hall of Fame inker, his conservative style did Sienkiewicz no favors. As it happens, this is Sinnott’s last issue for some time.

What I liked

Along with the above-mentioned art, the story was better than most in recent months. Moench (or Stern) puts several stories in motion: The FF’s desperate struggle to return their slice of NYC to Earth, the menace and attack of Stygorr, the unhinged Shiner and his bloodlust, and lastly, Alicia, Franklin and Lorrie waiting at home for the FF’s return. It’s a lot, particularly because the main storyline involves some complicated (and mostly bogus) science, and it would have benefited from more space to tell the story properly instead of cramming it all into one issue. But the storylines come together nicely and it’s a pretty satisfying comic.

I thought this sequence, where the matter of Lew Shiner intersects the antimatter of Stygorr, was impressively dramatic:

I thought this was smart and revealing sequence, where Ben demonstrates his empathy for ordinary people:

And I liked how Lorrie, Johnny’s girlfriend of the moment, just isn’t that in to him:

Lastly, this was a cool idea from Sienkiewicz, as the various types of New Yorkers set out to discover what happened to them:

What I didn’t like

Stygorr is a pretty silly character. By rights the role of Negative Zone baddie should be played by Annihilus, but since the villain is killed at the end, I suspect he was off limits and so Moench/Stern concocted this Stygorr. Like many villains, including Shiner above, he wears purple, and he speaks like a parody of a comic book bad guy.

The whole comic revolves around very complicated distinctions between matter and antimatter, the Negative Zone distortion field, the FF’s containment field and something called sub-space. It’s mostly gobbledegook and Moench/Stern lays it on heavy:

Like a lot of the so-called science in comics, it’s best ignored.

Overall

Better than it had any right to be.

But wait, there’s more!

As I’ve said before, my initial goal for this blog was A, to read the entire Lee/Kirby run, B, re-read the Byrne run, and C, somehow survive the issues in between. I can now tick the last item off the list. The 129 comics (plus a few annuals) between Lee/Kirby and Byrne was a decided mixed bag, with some surprisingly enjoyable comics and an unfortunate about off crud.

Here’s how I rank the various main runs over that span (this doesn’t account for fill-in issues by other creators):

1, Len Wein/ George Perez / Joe Sinnott (issues 184 -192). A disappointingly brief run but features an early Perez firing on all cylinders and solid storytelling from Wein.

2, Archie Goodwin /John Buscema / Joe Sinnott (115 -118) Another too-short run. Goodwin is a great writer and you can’t go wrong with Big John Buscema.

3, Roy Thomas / John Buscema / Joe Sinnott (119, 126 – 132) Thomas had a number of runs with different artists over this span but these were his best stories.

4, Marv Wolfman / Bill Mantlo / John Byrne / Joe Sinnott (210-218) Wolfman’s stories didn’t always soar but it was a treat seeing Byrne’s layouts.

5, Stan Lee / John Romita / Joe Sinnott (103 – 107). Two words: John Romita

6, Roy Thomas / George Perez / Joe Sinnott (164 -167, 170, 172) An uneven stretch but some Perez gems in there. Plus it’s fun seeing Luke Cage in the FF.

7, Len Wein / Marv Wolfman / Keith Pollard / Sal Buscema / Joe Sinnott / Pablo Marcos (193 – 209) Consistent but unremarkable comics. Pollard occasionally shines.

8, Stan Lee /John Buscema / Joe Sinnott. A run that reminds you just how creative was Jack Kirby. (107 -114, 120 – 125)

9, Doug Moench / Bill Sienkiewicz / Joe Sinnott (219, 222-231) Less than the sum of its parts.

10, Gerry Conway / John Buscema / Rich Buckler / Ross Andru / Joe Sinnott (134 -152) Some real stinkers in here.

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine!” Fantastic Four No. 182

27 Sunday Jul 2025

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1977, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 182, negative Zone, Sal Buscema

Fantastic Four 182
“Enter: The Mad Thinker!”
Published February 1977
Plot: Len Wein, Archie Goodwin and Jim Shooter
Script: Bill Mantlo
Pencils: Sal Buscema
Inks: Joe Sinnott
Letters: John Costanza
Colors: George Roussos
Editor: Goodwin
Cover: Ron Wilson and Sinnott

Synopsis

The Thing returns the bank-robbing android to the Baxter Building, and the evil Reed Richards doppleganger claims it comes from the Negative Zone, sending Ben and Johnny there ostensibly to investigate but in fact to strand them with the real Reed. In the Negative Zone, they encounter Reed and Annihilus battling a giant android, and after a brief battle, they flee and realize that they’ve been fooled by the evil version of Reed. The android vanishes, and it is revealed it is being summoned back to our dimension by its creator, the Mad Thinker. Meanwhile, Sue and Alicia travel to Agatha Harkness’s home on Whisper Hill to retrieve Franklin, only to witness the the child and his nanny abducted by mysterious, apparently supernatural creatures. Back home, Sue confronts the evil Reed, who turns into the Brute, and after a brief battle, throws her out of a Baxter Building window.

What’s going on here?

This issue is jammed full of plots and sub-plots, and coheres fairly well, despite it being the product of four (!) writers, including the FF debut of Jim Shooter. While Shooter was never a regular FF writer, he had a big impact on the comic as Marvel editor-in-chief from 1978 to 1987. He sadly passed away earlier this month at age 73.

Why so many writers were needed is unclear, although last issue Roy Thomas suggests he made an abrupt departure from the FF, leaving incoming editor Archie Goodwin in the lurch. Also filling in is penciler Sal Buscema, Marvel’s ultimate journeyman penciler, making his Fantastic Four debut. Buscema, younger brother of John, would contribute a few more fill-in issues before taking over as semi-permanent penciler in 1986. And Ron Wilson penciled the cover.

There are so many creators for this issue that it appears they only added credits for the letterer and colorist as an after thought:

It’s no secret Marvel was in a state of editorial flux, if not chaos, in the late seventies and the revolving door of creators during this stretch of comics is certainly evidence of a lack of stability. In the four issues from 178 to 182—and not including 180, a reprint of issue 101 (and more proof of the upheaval) the Fantastic Four was credited with six writers, three pencilers, two inkers, two editors and four cover pencilers.

What I liked

Sue finally confronted the evil Reed, a satisfying resolution to an uncomfortable storyline.

I also liked this elegant solution that established that the Reed on Earth was in fact the evil version.

This scene was appropriately unnerving:

As was this:

What I didn’t like

This vignette with the Mad Thinker was deeply confusing, in part because issue 69 (discussed here) doesn’t really explain what’s going on.

Even after Sue recovers some agency and confronts evil Reed, she’s easily battered about and defeated by the Brute:

Overall

A perfectly fine issue, particularly given the disruption on the masthead.

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine!” Fantastic Four 181

20 Sunday Jul 2025

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1977, Annihilus, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 181, Marvel comics, negative Zone, Roy Thomas

Fantastic Four 181
“Side By Side with … Annihilus??”
Published January 1977
Writer: Roy Thomas
Pencils: Ron Wilson
Inks: Joe Sinnott
Letters: Joe Rosen
Colors: George Roussos
Editor: Thomas
Cover: Jack Kirby and Sinnott

Editor’s note: The previous issue, FF 180, was a reprint of FF 101, so this comic picks up the story from issue 179

Synopsis

Mr. Fantastic, exiled to the Negative Zone by his evil doppelgänger, is attacked by Annihilus, who eventually admits he needs Reed’s help in defeating the Mad Thinker, who is attempting to conquer the Negative Zone. The rest of the issue is taken up by various subplots which are either advanced or introduced, and will be discussed below.

What’s going on here

This is very much a place-setting issue, with the main storyline — Reed in the Negative Zone —inching along, and a whole of space is devoted to four other narratives. This issue also happens to be Roy Thomas’s last as writer, and in an editor’s note he almost gleefully announces he is handing over this mess to his successor, Len Wein (and in fact next issue is written by four writers). Thomas, who wrote 32 issues of the title in the 1970s, won’t return to the FF until 1995, when he writes something called Fantastic Four Unlimited.

Thomas finishes his run as the writer with, to date, the second or third longest tenure writing the FF, depending how you want to count Stan Lee’s solo writing efforts. Not counting annuals and the like, here is how it breaks down (occasionally two writers are given credit for the same story):

Stan Lee and Jack Kirby: 102 issues
Thomas: 32 issues
Lee solo: 11 issues
Gerry Conway: 20 issues
Len Wein: 3 issues
Archie Goodwin: 3 issues
Tony Isabella and Bill Mantlo: one each

The art was again handled by Ron Wilson, who does a workman-like job filling for George Perez. It’s unclear if the editor’s note announcing Perez’s absence is meant to be taken seriously.

The cover, by Jack Kirby and Joe Sinnott, is pretty generic, probably because they used the story-specific one last issue.

What I liked and didn’t like

Instead of my usual likes and dislikes commentary, I’m going to discuss the various plots in this issue in order of my interest in them:

1, The Creepy Evil Reed

This storyline continues to give me the willies, as an evil Reed is sharing a home (and bed) with Sue. At least in this issue she realizes it’s not really her husband, but it’s definitely an icky idea.

2, Reed in the Negative Zone

Despite the absurdity of its various elements (Annihilus just happens to stumble upon Reed floating on a rock in the middle of nowhere), a villain needing Reed’s help is an intriguing concept. The monster animated by the Mad Thinker looks pretty lame though.

3, Agatha and Franklin

This came out of nowhere. While Sue visits Alicia, who is babysitting Franklin, to discuss her suspicions about Reed, Agatha Harkness appears and kidnaps Franklin for reasons unknown. Sue then sets off in pursuit. I suspect this will tie into a Salem’s Seven story coming later, but we’ll see. Either way, it’s unsettling.

4, About that robot …

Much of this issue is devoted to Ben — with the eventual help of Tigra, Thundra and the Impossible Man — retrieving from the ocean the bank-robbing robot he defeated in issue 179. The heroes then fight the military which the claims the robot for their own, then relent when they discover there’s more to the robot than meets the eye. I don’t know where this is going, but at least the robot now has a backstory.

5, Frankie and Johnny

Johnny once again acts like a jerk around women. Maybe it’s because I know how this relationship ends, but it’s not all that interesting to me.

Anything else?

This is the first ad for a movie I recall seeing in the Fantastic Four (also, this comic came out in January, a full year before King Kong would debut). They will appear more often in the years that follow.

Overall

A lot of spinning plates

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine!” Fantastic Four No. 179

13 Sunday Jul 2025

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1976, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 179, Gerry Conway, Marvel comics, negative Zone, Ron Wilson, Roy Thomas

Fantastic Four 179
“A Robinson Crusoe in the Negative Zone!”
Published November 1976
Writers: Roy Thomas/ Gerry Conway
Pencils: Ron Wilson
Inks: Joe Sinnott
Letters: Joe Rosen
Colors: George Roussos
Editor: Thomas
Cover: Al Milgrom and Sinnott

Editor’s note: Apologies for the two week absence. It’s summer vacation season!

Synopsis

While Mr. Fantastic is trapped in the Negative Zone, his evil doppleganger infiltrates the Fantastic Four. Tigra—who is hanging around the team along with Thundra and the Impossible Man—has her suspicions, but before she can reveal them to the Thing, the two fight and defeat a giant bank-robbing robot. The comic ends with Reed about to confront Annihilus in the Negative Zone.

What’s going on here?

This is an odd issue, one that interupts the momentum of the recent arc and contains a lot of character development and banter but not much plot. That may be because of the divided authorship, with Gerry Conway returning to plot the comic. The battle with the robot — called Metalloid on the cover but never identified in the issue — seems to serve no real purpose other than to insert an obligatory fight scene, although it may play a larger role in the next few issues. What stands out is the interactions between Johnny, Tigra, Thundra and Ben, and Ben’s obvious discomfort at being an object of attraction. Also of note is the very creepy dynamic between Sue and the imposter Reed.

The credits for this issue are peculiar:

This was Conway’s first FF credit since issue 152. For this month alone, Conway is credited with writing eight (!) comics for two companies: Ms Marvel 2, Ghost Rider 22, Superman 308, Avengers 156, Defenders 44, Iron Man 95 and Spectacular Spider-Man 3, along with this issue of the FF. Why they called on the busiest man in comics to plot this issue doesn’t make much sense, but from the lack of coherent story it’s pretty clear Conway was overstretched.

This issue also marks the Fantastic Four debut of Ron Wilson, who handled the pencils. Wilson would only draw a handful of FF issues, but would have a very long run drawing the Thing in Marvel Two-in-One and the Thing’s subsequent solo book. The cover was drawn by Al Milgrom, using a very Kirby-esque design. Milgrom inked an earlier issue but this is his first FF cover.

What I liked

The scenes of the FF hanging out with their guests are genuinely fun. Johnny flirting with Tigra, Tigra swatting him down, Thundra’s pursuit of Ben, and Ben’s unease with her.

(What’s unclear is who among the writers speaks Yiddish, or if any readers understodd the reference to the “whole magilla.”)

The team then adjourns to watch the Bionic Woman:

This is a great splash page from Wilson:

What I didn’t like:

It’s implied that the imposter Reed sleeps with Sue, which today can only be understood as rape. It’s not exactly swept under the rug here, but the magnitude of the crime isn’t made clear, either. We’ll see if it’s addressed more fully in subsequent issues:

Less seriously, there’s a bit too much fourth-wall breaking by Thomas:

And this reference to Bruce Wayne wasn’t very subtle (or in character for Reed):

Lastly, this is pretty silly. Flint can create a spark, but it’s a stone and doesn’t burn:

Anything else?

Here’s a look at the Marvel masthead, the first time I recall seeing this printed:

Lots of familiar names.

This is a cool looking toy:

Overall

A decidedly mixed bag

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine!” Fantastic Four No. 62

30 Monday May 2022

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1967, Blastaar, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 62, Inhumans, jack Kirby, negative Zone, Stan Lee

Fantastic Four 62
“And One Shall Save Him!”
Published: Feb. 1967
Story: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Script: Lee
Pencils: Kirby
Inks: Joe Sinnott
Letters: Sam Rosen
Cover: Kirby and Frank Giacoia

Synopsis

Fantastic Four 62 picks up where the last issue left off, with Mr. Fantastic tumbling through the Negative Zone toward the “exploding area” while the rest of the team watches helplessly through a scanner in the Baxter Building. The Inhuman Crystal and her teleporting dog Lockjaw then appear—Crystal has been looking for the Human Torch for about a dozen issues now—and she offers to help.

We then cut to a Mediterranean island where the rest of the Inhumans repel an invasion by a hostile army. Crystal arrives and explains the situation, and Black Bolt dispatches Triton to save Reed.

Back in the Negative Zone, a space craft drops off a menacing package near where Reed flounders, soon revealed to be the villain Blastaar. Triton then appears and rescues Reed, and as they return to our dimension, Blastaar sneaks in behind them. He is then confronted by the Sandman, who has been on the roof of the Baxter Building since the last issue, and they form an alliance. The issue concludes with the happy reunions of Reed and Sue and Johnny and Crystal.

What’s going on here?

A bit of an unsatisfying issue. For one, despite the promise of the cover, Blastaar —a major villain making his first appearance—doesn’t fight the FF in this issue. He appears, but there’s no confrontation—they don’t even intersect with each other. More significantly, the rescue of Reed is incredibly anticlimactic. Instead of Reed figuring out some scientific whammy, or Ben plunging into the Negative Zone after him, he’s rescued by Triton in a development that comes out of left field. And Triton just … goes and gets him. It’s explained that Triton’s ability to navigate the ocean depths makes him uniquely suited for this mission, but the rescue seems pretty straightforward. There’s no real drama or unusual heroics required.

The arrival of Crystal does serve to reunite her and Johnny, resolving their soap opera separation that began in issue 48. We also get a lot of Inhumans action, seemingly setting them up for their own series.

They didn’t get their own book until 1970, however, and even that they had to share with the Black Widow. As I recall, the mistreatment of the Inhumans was another factor that led to Jack leaving Marvel for DC.

Negative Zone

FF 62 also marks the first time the Negative Zone is really understood to be an alien dimension, complete with its own races and civilizations. Blastaar is he first villain to appear, but eventually we’ll be introduced to Annihillus, a first-tier bad guy.

The Negative Zone becomes a major part of the FF’s mythos, and Reed and the FF are often either exploring it or using it place to store undesirables, such as when Reed created a prison there during the Civil War.

Civil War Front Line 5 (2006, Ramon Rachs and John Lucas)

Kirby Kollage

This is the first double-page splash in 62 issues of the Fantastic Four, and another amazing Kirby collage. Unfortunately I don’t have the tools to stitch the two pages together properly.