Writer: Ryan North
Artist: Francesco Mortarino
Color Artist: Brian Reber
Cover Artist: Alex Ross
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewer: StoryBabbler
The Baxter Building finally returned, and with it the return of the Fantastic Four’s children. After some time apart, the team’s family is truly reunited once more. But their kids are adventurous themselves, and just as soon as they come back, they’re ready to embark on their own adventures. See what the kids off the FF get up to on their first day of school in Fantastic Four #16.
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Review:
Now, I didn’t review the previous two issues primarily because there wasn’t much to review. In issue #14, we get just one double-page spread of the Fantastic Four fighting the Sinister Syndicate, then they’re gone for the entire comic. Afterward, the entire plot of that issue and issue #15 revolve around the FF dealing with the “Metamind”, a rogue superintelligence created by a corrupt, tech-bro CEO. Once all that drama is settled, we finally get what we’ve been waiting for, the Baxter Building finally returns and with it the FF’s kids. Reed even sent Dr. Doom a picture of the kids’ return.
And here is where we get to see the Fantastic Four’s kids take center stage in a good way. Essentially, Valeria, Franklin, Jo, and Nicki, are all going back to school and they’re having a ball. They go to homeroom, meet their classmates, and we thankfully don’t get any typical cliches and stereotypes. It helps that the comic doesn’t dawdle too long at school. However, once Valeria and Franklin get their first major assignment, they intend to aim for the stars and create an impossible creation. From there, shenanigans ensue as the kids get into a little trouble with their science project and we see their efforts to keep it from their parents’ notice.
One thing that Ryan North does right is give a good characterization of the kids, each of them feel like different characters thanks to each of them having distinct voices for each other. It helps that North actually keeps their personalities consistent with recent portrayals in past comics, the better ones anyway. On top of that, Francesco Mortarino does a good job on the art with their expressions, making them look youthful and excitable, and he manages to give them a range of emotions to match their current moods and circumstances.
The only downside is that the kids’ invention isn’t that mindblowing or exciting, despite the obvious practical applications. However, it’s their efforts to contain and deal with the situation that make up for it. Above all, the story is straightforward and easy to understand, and while things get crazy real quick, it feels like an enjoyable little adventure for the kids. It also helps that North isn’t trying so hard to write these teens and pre-teens since so many comic writers, heck writers in general, seem to have a hard time writing kid and teenage characters and fall back on many overused stereotypes and the like. But here, we get genuinely enjoyable even relatable kid characters in Valeria, Franklin, Nicki, and Jo, and if this comic is someone’s first exposure to them, then it’s a good place to start.
Final Thoughts:
Fantastic Four #16 shows the team taking some downtime after the kids finally return and it focuses on said kids getting into their own scientific shenanigans. Ryan North really captures the better characterizations of each of the kids, makes them likable, distinct, and the story feels like a fun misadventure for them. Francesco Mortarino’s art goes well with the story and characters and makes the comic more enjoyable as things get crazier in the comic. Overall, it’s as I said earlier, a nice misadventure with the Fantastic Four’s kids.