“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine!” Fantastic Four No. 219

07 Sunday Jun 2026

Posted by percivalhenry in The World's Greatest Comic Magazine

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1980, Bill Sienkiewicz, Doug Moench, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 219, Joe Sinnott, Marvel, Marvel comics, Sub-mariner

Fantastic Four 219
“Leviathans!”
Published March 1980
Writer: Doug Moench
Pencils: Bill Sienkiewicz
Inks: Joe Sinnott
Letters; Jim Novak
Colors: George Roussos
Editor: Jim Salicrup

Synopsis

As the Fantastic Four squabble in the Baxter Building, the Sub-Mariner is attacked in Atlantis by Barracuda, a flamboyant pirate who steals the horn Namor uses to command sea creatures. Back on the surface, Barracuda summons sea monsters to attack Manhattan so he can rob a bank. The Fantastic Four battle them while Namor and Johnny take the fight to Barracuda’s submarine. Eventually Sue uses her force field to separate the horn from Barracuda, who is knocked out by Namor and spared from worse by Sue’s entreaties.

What’s going on here?

Fantastic Four 219 marks the debut of the new creative team of Doug Moench and Bill Sienkiewicz, with Joe Sinnott remaining on board as inker. Fittingly for a new start, this comic is very much a back-to-the-basics story, with deliberate echoes of the first FF issues and a relatively simple premise. These days, this issue would probably start another volume as a new No. 1, and be billed as a starting point for new readers.

Moench is probably best known for his runs on Batman and Master of Kung Fu, but by 1980 he had almost a decade of writing experience with dozens of credits on various horror comics. Moench and Sienkiewicz has previously worked together, mostly on Moon Knight stories that appeared in The Hulk magazine, but Moench had far more experience. Astonishingly, FF 219 was just Sienkiewicz’s 10th comic credit, and by far the most high-profile assignment for the then 22-year old. It was clear the powers that be at Marvel recognized his talent, and they would be richly rewarded in the years to come by some of the most innovative and ambitious comic art ever published in mainstream comics.

My first exposure to Sienkiewicz — and to be clear, it’s pronounced sin-kev-itch —was his groundbreaking New Mutants 18 from 1984, which shattered what I knew about comics. He quickly became one of my favorite artists, and many times I was crushed to find that a comic he provided the cover for was penciled by some lesser artist. In retrospect, it’s remarkable that in just four years Sienkiewicz went from this:

To this:

I had the pleasure of talking to Sienkiewicz at New York Comic Con a few years ago and I asked him if he felt hemmed in or cramped by Joe Sinnott’s inks on his FF run. I had assumed Sinnott was somehow holding him back, but he surprised be my saying that as a rookie artist, it was a great comfort in being inked by a legend like Sinnott, and he viewed his time on the FF as a valuable learning experience. Here’s a photo of the two of us (I’ll let you guess who is who):

To be clear, Sienkiewicz’s skills with his pencils and layouts are still embryonic, and on many pages, it looks like he’s trying to stuff to much on the page, making everything look small and cramped. Here’s an eight-panel page, which, to be fair, few artists besides George Perez can pull off:

But Sienkiewicz’s considerable abilities are also on display, such as in this quasi-comedic sequence:

Or in these dramatic panels:

What I liked

This issue featured a fun call-back to Fantastic Four 4, in which Namor summoned Giganto (a monstrous whale with arms and legs) to attack New York. The FF was able to defeat it when Ben carried a nuclear bomb into its gullet (art below by Jack Kirby and Sol Brodsky).

In FF 219, Ben wonders if the new monster is Giganto’s son.

Moench does a nice job drawing an arc from the FF squabbling in the Baxter Building (a classic Lee / Kirby opening), with first-rate Reed as Jerk material …

… to a warm, feel-good resolution.

I also liked this quip from Johnny:

And this reminder of the never quite resolved Namor-Sue dynamic:

What I didn’t like

Not much. I was prepared to be annoyed at Reed’s behavior but Moench played it off skillfully.

Barracuda’s pirate lingo is a bit much:

Overall

A promising start

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine!” Fantastic Four No. 104

12 Tuesday Sep 2023

Posted by percivalhenry in The World's Greatest Comic Magazine

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Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 104, John Romita, Magneto, Stan Lee, Sub-mariner

Fantastic Four 104
“Our World –Enslaved!”
Published: Aug. 1970
Writer: Stan Lee
Art: John Romita and John Verpoorten
Letters: Artie Simek
Cover: Romita and Verpoorten

Synopsis

To thwart Magneto’s plans and free his hostages, Mr. Fantastic convinces the Sub-Mariner to return to the evil mutant’s side. Then, with the Earth on the brink of defeat, Reed deploys a weapon that turns Magento’s powers against him, saving the day.

What’s going on here

We are now in the second issue of the post-Kirby era and unfortunately this one has a formulaic, paint-by- numbers feel. This is not the first time Earth has been brought to the brink by invading Atlanteans, nor the first time Reed has saved the day by whipping up a gizmo. In all, the plot reads a lot like FF stories from the first two dozen issues.

What I liked

There are some more fun nods to Nixonian geo-politics, including an ironic comment about the US never losing wars. And I loved the design in the climactic panel above.

What I didn’t like

Along with the dull story, the art felt rushed and un-Romita like, making me suspect he only did breakdowns and Verpoorten did the finished work.

Anything else?

Here’s a very early Arnold Schwarznegger ad:

Overall

Just OK. Nothing special.

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine” Fantastic Four No. 33

26 Sunday Sep 2021

Posted by percivalhenry in The World's Greatest Comic Magazine

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1964, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 33, jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Sub-mariner

(*This cover image on Marvel Unlimited is irritatingly cropped, so this is the best I can do – sorry*)

Fantastic Four 33
“Side-by-Side with the Sub-Mariner!”
Published: Sept. 1964
Story: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Script: Lee
Pencils: Kirby
Inks: Chic Stone
Letters: Artie Simek
Cover: Kirby and Stone

Synopsis

FF 33 opens with the team in the Baxter Building, examining a strange undersea creature that washed up on shore. Sensing something is amiss beneath the ocean, Mr. Fantastic sends the Human Torch to patrol the shoreline, where he discovers Lady Dorma of Atlantis, last seen in FF Annual 1, surfacing. Johhny brings her to the Baxter Building, where she explains the barbarian warlord Attuma has attacked Atlantis. Worse, she betrayed the Sub-Mariner and aided Attuma because Namor spurned her affections. Now she asks the FF for help.

The team, aided by an “Oxy-Spray” that allows them to breath underwater, descend with Dorma to Atlantis, where Namor is battling Attuma’s forces. The team surreptitiously helps him, with Sue making Namor invisible at a critical juncture, helping him defeat Attuma. The FF runs out of oxygen, however, and flees to the surface, leaving Namor unaware they aided him. The issue concludes with Namor forgiving Lady Dorma for her betrayal.

What’s going on here

FF 33 is a pretty straightforward story, told in the traditional style: It opens in the Baxter Building, the plot unfolds slowly, the second half is mostly action, and it’s all tied up in a few panels at the end. To the extent it adds to the FF’s larger narrative, it does signal Sue seems to be over her infatuation with Namor (although we don’t know if Namor is done with her, since he doesn’t know she’s helping him) and it’s another step in recasting the Sub-Mariner as a hero. Here, he is a noble warrior fighting for his kingdom. The story also introduces Attuma, who becomes a main antagonist of Namor’s over the years. Surprisingly, it’s one of the few times he appeared in the FF’s own comic.

The sexist sixties

The whole plot hinges on Lady Dorma betraying Namor because her feelings are hurt. It’s a trite and lazy story-telling device, and the same result—Dorma enlists the FF—could have been achieved in a number of other ways.

On the flip side, Stan and Jack give Sue a rare star turn in combat, where she uses her force field power to cause some real damage.

Weird science

FF 33 is a gold mine for zany, pseudo-scientific devices, starting with Reed’s “subionic analysis structure-scope.”

There’s also Oxo-Spray…

and Explo-Grenades (it’s unclear how these are different than normal exploding grenades)…

and Globules of Darkness …

and Ionic Rays …

and when that fails, Disintegrator Rays. All this stuff works underwater, too.

The Incredible Mr. Fantastic

Reed changes his shape into a manta ray, which is kind of cool

Krazy Kredits

A little more sedate in this ish.

All’s well that ends well

Stan and Jack stuff a whole lot into the last three panels here: We learn Namor is unaware of the FF’s help, Reed is convinced of Sue’s love, and we get a bit of snappy banter between Ben and Johnny.

Dig that Kirby Krackle

Jack gives us another pair of collages, with one on the cover, and this one:

Also, there are some great fight scenes, like this:

And this:

Pin up!

For sale

In near mint (9.8) condition, FF 33 will cost you $32,000. A Fine version (6.0) is $240. Both seem high to me, to be honest.

Next issue: Who is Mr. Gideon?

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine” Fantastic Four No. 9

26 Friday Feb 2021

Posted by percivalhenry in The World's Greatest Comic Magazine

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1962, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 9, jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Sub-mariner

Fantastic Four 9
“The End of the Fantastic Four”
Published: Sept. 1962
Plot: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Script: Lee
Pencils: Kirby
Inks: Dick Ayers
Lettering: Artie Simek
Cover: Kirby & Ayers

Synopsis

The Fantastic Four are broke, a result of Reed’s poor stock market investments, and are selling their (not-yet-named) headquarters and equipment. The Sub-Mariner gets wind of their plight and launches a plan. The team is offered $1 million to appear in a movie, which they eagerly accept only to later discover is being bankrolled by Namor.

After dining with the Invisible Girl, Namor escorts the team’s male members to their “scenes” which are actually ambushes. Mr. Fantastic fights the mythical Cyclops, the Human Torch must escape a fire-proof African tribe (really) and the Thing battles Namor himself. Finally, after Sue rejects Namor’s marriage proposal, they fight before the rest of the team arrives to save her. She brokers a peace that lets the Sub-Mariner leave unharmed in exchange for the team receiving their money and appearing in the movie.

This is the first issue with proper credits (previous issues were signed by Stan and Jack), so inker Dick Ayers and letterer Artie Simek finally get their names in print.

What’s going on here?

This bizarre story strains credulity at every turn. From Reed losing everything in the stock market to Namor financing a movie studio (“SM Studios”) to the ridiculous traps he sets for the team, the comic feels more like an absurdist Julie Schwartz-era Superman that the science-fiction infused Fantastic Four. There’s very little here that advances the characters and their story, save for a brief reappearance of Alicia Masters and her deepening friendship with Ben. The issue is otherwise a madcap lark, or a waste of time, depending on your appetite for this sort of thing.

Without any indication of irony, the issue ends with the FF as movie stars and Stan boasting about the FF’s “down-to-earth realism.”

About the Fantastic Four’s money troubles

This is the first time a FF story hinges on the Fantastic Four’s financial woes or business dealings, but it won’t be the last. Over the years the FF have either owned their building and had trouble with their tenants, or been tenants and had issues with their landlord. They are also evicted again, the plot device in 2004’s Marvel Knights 4 (an FF book aimed at older readers). In that story, the City of New York refuses to indemnify the team for damages caused by their battles, and demands the Baxter Building as compensation. The FF then find “real” jobs: Sue teaches high school english, Reed performs IT support at a law firm, Johnny tries to become a firefighter and Ben works construction. The premise was as far-fetched in 2004 as it was in 1962.

To move the plot of FF 9 along, Stan and Jack suggest that Reed is both a terrible and reckless investor, but also that he has no capacity to imagine jobs for the FF outside of freak shows and crime. Again, none of this makes much sense if we are to accept Reed is one of the world’s smartest men.

Hooray for Hollywood

Jack includes some movie stars cameos as the FF go show biz.

I recognized Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Alfred Hitchcock. The internet tells me John Wayne, Amanda Blake, Charles Bronson and Jack Benny are also there. Dean Martin appears in another panel.

The Sub-Mariner goes all-in as a movie mogul, which includes dressing like Noel Coward. Namor hangs on to his movie studio and it shows up years later, renamed Imperial Pictures.

That escalated quickly

After her introduction last issue, Alicia Masters is now established as Ben’s “dear friend.” Expect to see a lot more panels like this one:

Speaking of Ben

Ben has trouble catching a cab, not because he’s an orange monster but because the cabbie thinks he’ll stiff him on the fare.

Which is as a good an excuse as any to drop in this panel of Ben taking a cab by John Byrne, one of my favorite drawings of the Thing (and which also echoes the Ben’s concern about getting a job in the real world).

Also in issue 9, Ben also transforms to human form after being struck by lightning while fighting Namor (it’s a sign of how bananas this issue is that it’s the first time I’ve mentioned this totally random event). This marks at least the third time the Thing has reverted to human form in the first nine issues.

And now for my next trick

The Human Torch creates flame duplicates, I think for the first time

Call my decorator

Another interesting interior design choice for the FF.

Meanwhile, Namor enjoys the latest in underwater TV technology. Note the photo of Sue.

Namor’s Hollywood office is pretty groovy, too

They’re fighting again

The sexist sixties

Sue needs to be rescued, because of course she does.

Kirby Krackle

More good stuff from the King as the Thing fights some beach bullies, a la Charles Atlas

Let’s talk about us

Reed is reading comics, and takes a meta-swipe at the lack of such prosaic concerns as money in (presumably) DC’s comics

For sale

A mint (9.8) copy of FF 9 is worth $14,000, quite a bit less than the previous issue.

Pin up

Part 2 of the Human Torch’s explainer pin ups. He seems lot more level headed here than in actual stories.

Next issue: The return of Dr. Doom!

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine” Fantastic Four No. 6

06 Saturday Feb 2021

Posted by percivalhenry in The World's Greatest Comic Magazine

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1962, Dr. Dom, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 6, jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Sub-mariner

Fantastic Four 6
“Captives of the Deadly Duo!”
Published June 1962
Plot: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Pencils: Jack Kirby
Script: Stan Lee
Inks: Dick Ayers (uncredited)
Cover: Kirby and Ayers

Synopsis

The Fantastic Four are unsuccessful at finding Dr. Doom, who escaped in the last issue. Meanwhile, Doom recruits the Sub Mariner to help him attack the FF, appealing to Namor’s desire for revenge. Namor plants a magnetic “grabber” in the the FF’s headquarters, which lifts the entire building into space. Doom, however, has double-crossed Namor, who is in the building as it leaves Earth and intends to send him into the sun with the FF. While the members of the FF are unable to reach Doom’s spaceship, Namor—revived by the FF’s water tank—successfully disables Doom’s ship, and returns the building to Earth. Doom, clinging to a meteor, is lost in space.

What’s going on here?

This is the best issue to date. The story is suspenseful, the plot is straightforward, and the villains have plausible motivations (revenge!). And Kirby delivers some gorgeous art.

Fantastic Four 6 establishes Dr. Doom as a recurring villain (oh, how he reoccurs!) and the Sub-Mariner as a more complex character, as he eventually joins forces with the FF to defeat Doom. The story also layers in more world-building, as we are introduced to various elements of the FF mythos that serve as touchstones over the years, such as the unstable molecules in their uniforms and the Yancy Street gang.

The main plot device— Dr. Doom lifts the team’s still-unnamed headquarters building into space—is delightfully absurd and Doom-ish. So delightful that John Byrne recreates the basic plot in FF 278:

What’s up with Sue?

Sue is revealed to have a crush on the Sub-Mariner, hiding away a photo of him in a book shelf. Where, exactly, she got an 8×10 glossy of Subby is unclear, but the plot device reveals that Stan and Jack view Sue as little more than a silly teenage girl, despite being engaged to Reed. (She also refers to her brother as “Torch” which seems a bit weird, while Johnny calls Namor the team’s “arch-enemy,” despite only facing him once).

Inside the (not yet) Baxter Building

For the second time in three issues, we are treated to a cutaway illustration of the FF’s headquarters. This one is a bit more in depth and shows four floors, not just three.

In this issue we are introduced to unstable molecules …

Want to know how Reed’s clothes stretch with him? So did a kid in a nearby hospital, whom Reed is more than happy to lecture while visiting.

… and elevator belt buckles …

FF 6 introduces another gee-whiz aspect of the team’s gear.

… and the Yancy Street Gang …

They don’t appear (well, they never really do) but they are first introduced here as Ben’s antagonists from his old neighborhood. “Yancy Street” is derived from Delancey Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, near where Kirby grew up.

and footnotes!

Long a staple of Marvel comics, Stan started using footnotes to remind readers about what happened in past issues. Even though there have been only six issues so far.

Mid-century modern

It’s never clear who decorated the FF’s headquarters, but they certainly had an eye for interesting objet d’art.

Kirby Krackle

Kirby drew some wonderful street scenes for this issue. I wonder who he used as models for the faces.

He also drew this amazing sequence of Namor leaping into space to attack Doom

The sexist sixties

In the thin air of our space, Sue is the only member to succumb from the last oxygen because of course she is. (The Sub-Mariner also wears red trunks in this issue, insead of his standard green).

Oops!

Jack draws the headquarters returning safely to its block in New York, while Stan is left to explain in a word balloon that it was Namor who somehow used Doom’s spaceship to maneuver it in place, all off-camera. It seems Stan may have had of explain just exactly how the building returned to Earth.

For sale

A mint (9.8) copy of FF 6 should cost you $98,000.

Next issue: The FF battle Kurrgo, master of Planet X!

“The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine” Fantastic Four No. 4

24 Sunday Jan 2021

Posted by percivalhenry in The World's Greatest Comic Magazine

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1962, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 4, jack Kirby, Namor, Stan Lee, Sub-mariner

Fantastic Four 4
“The Coming of the Sub-Mariner”
Published: Feb. 1962
Story: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Pencils: Kirby
Script: Lee
Inks: Sol Brodsky (uncredited)
Cover: Kirby and Brodsky

Synopsis

Following last issue’s departure of the Human Torch, the remaining members of the Fantastic Four search for him around New York. After a brief scuffle when he’s found by the Thing, the Torch hides in a Bowery flophouse, where he encounters a hobo with surprising strength. He’s revealed to be the amnesiac Namor the Sub-Mariner, and after the Torch drops him in the ocean, his memories are revived and he pledges revenge on surface dwellers for the destruction of Atlantis.

The Sub-Mariner enlists Giganto, a monstrous whale with arms, to invade New York, and it’s stopped only after the Thing detonates a nuclear bomb inside it. The Sub-Mariner then threatens to take the Invisible Woman as his bride or he’ll unleash a greater invasion. Sue agrees, but Namor, sensing her reluctance relents, and is defeated when the Torch created a tornado of fire that deposits Namor in the ocean.

What’s going on here

The issue is of course notable for the introduction of Namor to the Marvel Universe, and the beginning of his decades-long preoccupation with Sue Storm, which is occasionally reciprocated.

It’s also the best issue to date. It flows directly from the events of the previous issue, and the Fantastic Four tangle with a foe with a real backstory, plausible motivations, and the ability to cause serious trouble.

So who is this guy?

The Sub-Mariner, created by Bill Everett, first appeared in 1939. Inspired by the original Human Torch, Everett wanted to create a nautical equivalent and chose his name, Namor, because he wanted something noble-sounding (Namor is “Roman” spelled backwards). Half-human, half Atlantean, his father was a sea-captain and his mother was daughter of the emperor of Atlantis, making Namor its eventual king.

The Sub-Mariner was a mainstay of Timely Comics (Marvel’s precursor) during the 1940s, but faded out in the 1950s along with most super-heroes.

His depiction in Fantastic Four 4 is consistent with his Golden Age characterization: Arrogant and impetuous, but driven by a pursuit of justice. Initially written as a villain, Marvel gradually transitioned Namor to hero and his rages were retconned by John Byrne as a consequence of his mixed ancestry.

Namor becomes a Marvel mainstay, starring in several versions of his own book while serving as a member of the Defenders, Avengers, and X-Men, with his ability to fly identify him as a mutant. He’s also retconned into Captain America’s World War II -era team, the Invaders.

Fantastic Four 4 also introduces the Namor-Sue entanglement, which twists and turns over the decades. One mild irony of Namor’s infatuation of Sue is that he clearly sees something in her which doesn’t become evident to the rest of us for decades, when her writer’s finally give her a personality and backbone. Until then, though, she’s mostly just a pretty face who whimpers a lot.

Their relationship is mostly flirtatious, although once in a while a writer will push things a bit, especially when Sue and Reed are in the midst of their occasional marital difficulties. Grant Morrison may have taken it the farthest in Fantastic Four 1234, a miniseries where Sue’s frustration with Reed’s absences comes close to a tipping point.

New York, New York

For the first time the Fantastic Four are described as living in New York instead of a fictional city like Metropolis or Gotham. That will have major repercussions for the future the Marvel Universe, and become a key differentiator of Marvel from DC as its fans celebrated the “realism” of its comics.

They’re fighting again

The Atomic Age

Namor plots his revenge on the surface world after discovering lingering radiation in the ruins of Atlantic, which he attributes to human and “their accursed atomic tests. And Ben somehow locates a nuclear bomb and totes it into the mouth of Giganto, Jonah-like, before detonating it.

Are you sure he’s a genius?

Mr. Fantastic takes a rather aggressive approach to asking some passing motorcyclists about the Torch’s whereabouts. Thankfully, they don’t press assault charges.