Fantastic Four 153
“Worlds in Collision!
Published Sept. 1974
Writer: Tony Isabella
Pencils: Rich Buckler
Inks: Joe Sinnott
Letters: Joe Rosen
Colors: Petra Goldberg
Editor: Roy Thomas
Cover: Gil Kane and Frank Giacoia


Synopsis

Mr. Fantastic, the Human Torch and the Thing manage to escape their confinement on Machus, the male-dominated world of Mahkizmo, only to be to sent to an arena, where they battle monsters alongside Thundra. Medusa arrives with Femizons from Thundra’s world, and the Thing and Thundra deal Mahkizmo a blow that detonates his nuclear power, and (somehow) merges Machus and the Femizon world, while returning the FF and Thundra to Earth.

What’s going on here?

There’s a lot to deal with here, but probably the most important development of FF 153 is that it was written by Tony Isabella, not Gerry Conway. The previous issue was Conway’s last on the FF, after a respectable 21 issue run (from 133 to 152) as either writer or scripter. His departure isn’t noted or addressed in the comic, and since it comes midway through a complicated arc, I suspect he didn’t leave on good terms. Conway was writing an insane seven or eight comics a month at this point, and maybe he just had enough. Isabella only lasts for one comic before Len Wein takes over for a handful of issues.

Isabella was a relatively new Marvel writer at this point — and he was enough of a fan that he had a letter to the editor printed in the FF only a year or two earlier — and unfortunately the handoff from Conway was not a smooth one. This issue is full of plot holes, clichés, and uses some awkward deus ex machina devices to reconcile a complicated story in a few pages. It’s unfortunate because, despite the clumsy Battle-of-the-Sexes framing, the multiverse concept Conway (and I’m guessing Roy Thomas) introduced here is a an intriguing one, and deserves more than the rushed treatment it gets here.

Also, it’s worth noting the cover is by Gil Kane, with inks by Frank Giacoia. Not their best work.

What I liked

There’s not much in this comic to get excited about. Bucker’s art, usually sturdy, felt rushed, but I did like this Kirby Krackle filled sequence.

What I didn’t like

It’s a long list. Probably the most egregious flaw in the comic is Isabella’s attempt to solve how the brutes of Machus and the Femizons will coexist. Basically, they’ll resolve their conflict by making out. While Conway and Isabella thankfully don’t dwell too much on this male/female parallel-worlds construct, it’s as painful and silly as the World of the 1950s / 60s storyline from about a dozen issues earlier. I can understand the impulse for why these writers want to tackle meatier subjects, but please guys, don’t tackle social commentary unless you have the space and ability to do it properly.

Equally maladroit was the explanation of why Thundra was returned to the FF’s dimension. Apparently “natural forces” wanted her there.

Also disappointing was the resolution of Medusa’s story arc and her mysterious disappearance. She traveled to Thundra’s world to recruit the Femizons, which would have been a cool way to defeat Mahkizmo, expect they last all of two panels.

There’s a lot of other goofy details, including various power- and will-sapping rays and cages, none of which are really necessary to the story and don’t make a ton of sense. There’s also the return of the FF-Must-Fight-For-Survival-In-The-Arena plot device, something we’ve seen at least twice so far in the Fantastic Four and will again many more times.

And, needless to say, Sue is nowhere to be seen in this issue, even after the heroes return to Earth.

Anything else?

This response in the letters page, probably by Thomas, was interesting and addresses the implications of Sue returning to Reed after their separation. It’s too bad they didn’t print the letter from Denys Howard, which sounds more thoughtful than most of the what got printed. A quick Google search reveals Howard went on to be active in the fanzine world in the late 70s.

Overall

Blech