[Frank Richards]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kylactus

I don't think the lack of a FF monthly book is necessarily a conspiracy, I just think there a bit played out. really it's a team who's name literally limits the number of members, they have been around longer than my mom, the writing (for decades) has been marginal at best, constantly revisiting the same plots and dynamics, I think Jean Grey is the only person in the marvel universe that has been "dead" as much as any FF member! and the plain and simple of it is since there creation (by the way at the time no doubt they were cutting edge) there have been so many "better" super heroes. I just think they come off as a bit generic now days, Reed: leader, super smart father figure. Ben: the muscle. Jonny: wise cracking smart ass kid. Sue: the woman with the ability to protect people and hide. the whole set up is too "beaver cleaver" to me. and like I said the writing over the series for a long time is just really out there. and to top it all off...I'll say it... I hate Reed and Sue's kid! or kids? how many do they have now? there are so many retcons and time skips and alternate realities and reboots in that book who the hell can keep it all straight! they are better off as background pieces until Marvel wants to devote a real writing team to stream line that title.

I agree with you about the absence of a conspiracy, but respectfully disagree with pretty much everything else you said, lol!

I honestly believe that Marvel would have cancelled the title a few years ago, if it were not for Hickman's amazing run drastically improving sales and placing the book back into the forefront of the Marvel U.

Frankly, Marvel readers don't want a team of "adventurers, explorers, and imaginauts", which is what the team has been since Mark Waid (or perhaps an even earlier writer) decided to downplay their status as superheroes and veer the book into the direction of a predominantly sci-fi book that was taking place within the context of a universe filled with superheroes.
But again, readers these days don't want this. They want stuff like Deadpool
Nothing against Deadpool, the creative teams on his book(s), and his readers, but that sort of character just doesn't appeal to me.

Concerning the "real writing team", over the past decade, Marvel has had nothing but their best writers on that book: Mark Waid, J. Michael Straczynski, Dwayne McDuffie, Mark Millar, Jonathan Hickman, and sadly disappointing runs by the typically talented Matt Fraction and James Robinson. The title has been one of Marvel's most consistent books, in term of writing.
Granted, Matt Fraction's run was very by-the-numbers, and Robinson's current run is nothing that Mark Waid or John Byrne didn't already do, but they were (and are) still worthwhile reads.

Whew, sorry for the rant, but Fantastic Four is one of the few Marvel books I read, and I think that it is often misunderstood as a kitschy, throwback, Silver Age-y superhero book.
I can understand if the characters don't appeal to you, as many of Marvel's other characters don't appeal to me (and LOL, I SWEAR I'm not harboring any grudge concerning your opinion of the inspiration for my ToyArk ID ).
We all have our own personal tastes and preferences, and I would never begrudge anyone for having their own opinions about comics, no matter how dissimilar from mine they may be.

Again, sorry for the rant, lol, as this isn't necessarily the right place for it.
Now, back to the Marvel Legends talk !!!