My ideas for a Fantastic Four reboot film...

[bat39]

I've been reading some of the old Lee/Kirby stuff, so I had an idea for a Fantastic Four reboot film gradually take shape in my mind, which I thought I'd share here.

(I'm assuming that Namor is one of the characters both Fox and Marvel are able to access...)


FANTASTIC FOUR: THE SUB-MARINER'S REVENGE

The film begins with the Fantastic Four already established as a team. There's a series of graphics with 3D animation explaining the Fantastic Four's classic origin as the opening credits play out (the four attempt a trip to Mars in an experimental new space-craft, are affected by cosmic rays, crash-land on earth, develop their powers, and decide to fight the good fight as a team). The graphics are then revealed to be part of a show celebrating the third anniversary of the FF's fateful space flight, and we see the FF appear on stage at a ceremony in New York City. Some of the FF's great victories over the last three years are alluded too/graphically depicted-such as their defeat of the Mole Man, Dr. Doom and the invasion of the Skrulls. The FF are clearly enjoying their lives as celebrity adventurers/superheroes. We get to see glimpses of their daily lives in the Baxter Building-Reed's scientific experiments, Sue's attempts to attract Reed's attentions and get him to commit to their relationship (they aren't married yet in this version), Johnny's playboy lifestyle, and Ben's relationship with Alicia.

We see a hobo with a beard and ragged clothes wandering the streets. He catches the news reports about the FF ceremony and this seems to trigger memories of his past, as he has vague flashbacks of the Fantastic Four at sea. He gets into a brawl with some criminals being pursued by cops and demonstrates his superior strength and agility. This leads to the FF being called in to subdue this new threat. During the battle, the Human Torch severely burns the hobo, who appears to be weakened by the heat. Much of his clothing, and his facial hair is singed off...but he manages to escape.

Later, Mr. Fantastic is analyzing footage of their battle, as he feels the hobo (without his beard) looked familiar. He believes that its possible that their unknown adversary was the legendary figure 'Namor - the Sub-Mariner'-an urban myth dating back to WW2, believed to be from the undersea kingdom of Atlantis...though there is little documentary evidence to prove he exists. In the meantime, the hobo, his flashbacks of the FF intensifying, is instinctively driven to dive into the ocean. Fully submerged in the water, he remembers his past and his true identity as Namor. In particular, he recalls how, nearly three years ago, there was a battle aboard a nuclear warship, with the then-inexperienced Fantastic Four battling a group of terrorist hijackers. Namor was observing the battle from afar, not yet prepared to intervene...and while the FF defeated the terrorists, the battle caused catastrophic damage to the ship, and some of the nuclear warheads sank into the sea and exploded. The shock waves of the blast hit Namor, causing him to become comatose, such that when he was washed onto the shores of the US, he awoke as an amnesiac and became a drifter. Namor returns to Atlantis only to find it a ruins owing to the nuclear blast. This angers Namor, who decides to declare war on humanity.

Namor manages to find a mystical horn that allows him to resurrect sea monsters to attack New York. He also finds some of the survivors of the blast, who accept him as their ruler and form themselves into an army, salvaging advanced Atlantean weapons technology. Namor and the Atlanteans thus declare war on the surface world. Namor blames the surface world for bringing nuclear weapons onto the sea, and the FF for being the immediate triggers of Atlantis' destruction.

The Fantastic Four find themselves outmatched during the initial battle, and Sue ends up being kidnapped. Namor takes a liking to Sue and tells her his story and the unwitting responsibility of the FF in the destruction of his kingdom. Sue begins to fall under Namor's spell and feel sympathetic towards him. In the meantime, the FF devise a plan to attack Namor's underwater base and rescue Sue, with Mr. Fantastic finding a way to disable Namor's enchanted horn and cause him to lose control over his sea monsters. He also defeats the Atlantean soldiers using a super-sonic weapon that affects them owing to their enhanced senses. The FF are on the verge of completely defeating Namor and taking him prisoner, but Sue intervenes and tells them the whole story, convincing them to let him escape as they are all responsible for his plight. Namor flees, torn between his hatred of humanity, his love for Sue and the mercy the FF have shown him.

[Monty_Cristo]

might work as a sequel. i don't think namor should be in the first one. i think the first one should also be a period piece (like Mad Men or X-Men First Class). the FF (especially someone like Reed) work better if set in another time, imo.

[DebkoX]

That's a really good plot, my only suggestion is to have doom somehow in there, maybe he gives namor the shell?

[bat39]

might work as a sequel. i don't think namor should be in the first one. i think the first one should also be a period piece (like Mad Men or X-Men First Class). the FF (especially someone like Reed) work better if set in another time, imo.

FF as a period piece might be interesting...but I highly doubt they'd work that angle.

[CHOX]

I'm completely with Cristo on this one. The only way to make the Fantastic Four's individual personalities work would be in a period piece. Not to mention, all Reed's goofy scientific experiments are right out of 60's era science fiction. They just work in the 60's perfectly, space race and all.

With the X-Men being set in the 60's, and Millar wanting to connect their films, I think it's highly probable that it will be a period piece. I'll bet the X-Men return to the 60's after their next film, keeping the 60's universe in place.

[Doombot]

I don't think the FF have to be stuck in the 60's, all they really need is someone who actually gets the characters, Reed especially. In my opinion, if you get Reed worked out the others will fall into place. The FF movies failed for a number of reasons, but mostly because the characters were really flat, and very few people, even in comics, seem to get how to write Reed. He's either this stuffy, 60's patriarchal caricature or some oblivious uber nerd. To me, Reed is the key to making a FF movie, or story of any kind, work well.

I always thought a great way to set up a FF movie would be how they were set up the mini series called "First Family". I think that mini was really well done and handled the origin of the FF in a great way. It wouldn't have to be the same old movie origin story that we have to sit through a million times with every comic book movie, it just starts with the crash back to earth after the accident in space, with the family and the government trying to figure out what the hell happened to them and what to do now. The villain in that series if kinda forgettable, but everything else works pretty well. You'd just need to figure out what villain you want to use and how to figure them into things.

My first impulse would be Doom, probably like everyone's, but I think Doom would need more of his own set up and I honestly thing he'd be better off in a sequel where they could focus more on who and why he is and less on the FF origins. Namor doesnt really work well for a first film either. I'm not actually sure who would be the right fit.

[bmath]

If I were with Marvel, I'd pitch to Fox to try and make it into a TV show. I know it would be expensive, but I think it could be hugely profitable joint venture, both monetarily but from an intellectual property perspective of fleshing out characters and the Marvel Universe. Really, alot of thee characters are held under the Fantastic Four trademark will never see the light of day unless they do something like this, because there is way too much history. IMO, you start the pilot with the accident, and blend the story with flashbacks of Reed's recruiting Johnny, Sue, and Ben. Tie in the Negative Zone with the space traveling as the origin (a little 616 and Ultimate) as a way to traverse the universe. Then, exploration of powers before tying into the big bad, and I would use Blastaar and the cosmic control rod so that he has some weight, but isn't one of the tremendous big bad who deserves a lot of fleshing out. How would they beat Blastaar? Send him back into the negative zone channeling energy off the cosmic control rod, and separate the two (so Annhilus can get a hold of it). All the while, build up Reed as kind of a great mind without confidence, beginning to sow the seeds of him as the entrepeneur and inventor he is now.

First season, I would use Annihilus as the big bad, but I would slowly build up the changing threat to space given the advancements in technology changing the landscape as well as the unique position in time and space. Introduce the Kree and the Skrulls, Super-skrull and Ronan, Shi'ar in addition to the earthbound enemies. Really flesh out Doom and his history with Reed and Ben. Then when you get to the season finale, they can do an Annihilation Wave threat where Reed refuses to kill while Annihilus and his army threaten the entire Universe, leading to an Annihilators coalition telling Reed they will destroy Earth to save the universe. In the end, it takes Doom to deliver the kill shot, and give Doom his moment to just walk away.

Second season with the Reed/Sue wedding and continued escalation of space stuff leading to Galactus.

Third season is kind friction within the team and Sue's pregnancy leading to eventual dismantling at end of season with destruction of the Baxter building. This is Doom as the big bad, using his diplomatic immunity, playing mind gaes, and dividing the team enough for Reed to recognize at the end that he and Sue need to raise their family and can't so this, while Johnny's celebrity gets to his head and Ben is left out trying to make sense of what he is if not a superhero. They defeat Doom at the end, lock him up, and cost him Latveria.

This allows for in the fourth season to have a four or five year old Franklin and three year old Val. Sue's gone without using her power for the whole time to raise her kids outside of the realm of superpowers. Reed's built an empire and Four Freedoms plaza. Ben's gone on to be a great superhero, maybe an Avengers. And Johnny is still Johnny, as he hasn't grown up. Doom bring them back together at the start of the season, as he tries to harness Franklin's power (akin to the Surfer) causing Sue to lash out and lobotomize him. No big bad, although hints are given that Sue is unbalanced and unhinged from not using her powers, leading her to become Malice.

Fifth season I'd love to see Death of Johnny played out, and sixth season would be the last bit of Hickman's run. I think that last issue would be a great cap to a series like this, really putting the emphasis on family. I would play on Reed's guilt from Sue's breakdown, as well as the fact that he sees the consequences in the universe without the Fantastic Four's presence. I'd love to see a two-part episode of flashbacks spun out of the Annihilation event in Season 4, similar to the way Civil War weighed on Reed. Yes, that means they would do the Bridge mid-season. The death of Quasar and the arrival of Nova (yes, they would both be introduced in the first season) in the fourth season would be a question of "what were you doing?" similar to Nova's talk with Tony Stark.

[bat39]

If I were with Marvel, I'd pitch to Fox to try and make it into a TV show. I know it would be expensive, but I think it could be hugely profitable joint venture, both monetarily but from an intellectual property perspective of fleshing out characters and the Marvel Universe. Really, alot of thee characters are held under the Fantastic Four trademark will never see the light of day unless they do something like this, because there is way too much history. IMO, you start the pilot with the accident, and blend the story with flashbacks of Reed's recruiting Johnny, Sue, and Ben. Tie in the Negative Zone with the space traveling as the origin (a little 616 and Ultimate) as a way to traverse the universe. Then, exploration of powers before tying into the big bad, and I would use Blastaar and the cosmic control rod so that he has some weight, but isn't one of the tremendous big bad who deserves a lot of fleshing out. How would they beat Blastaar? Send him back into the negative zone channeling energy off the cosmic control rod, and separate the two (so Annhilus can get a hold of it). All the while, build up Reed as kind of a great mind without confidence, beginning to sow the seeds of him as the entrepeneur and inventor he is now.

First season, I would use Annihilus as the big bad, but I would slowly build up the changing threat to space given the advancements in technology changing the landscape as well as the unique position in time and space. Introduce the Kree and the Skrulls, Super-skrull and Ronan, Shi'ar in addition to the earthbound enemies. Really flesh out Doom and his history with Reed and Ben. Then when you get to the season finale, they can do an Annihilation Wave threat where Reed refuses to kill while Annihilus and his army threaten the entire Universe, leading to an Annihilators coalition telling Reed they will destroy Earth to save the universe. In the end, it takes Doom to deliver the kill shot, and give Doom his moment to just walk away.

Second season with the Reed/Sue wedding and continued escalation of space stuff leading to Galactus.

Third season is kind friction within the team and Sue's pregnancy leading to eventual dismantling at end of season with destruction of the Baxter building. This is Doom as the big bad, using his diplomatic immunity, playing mind gaes, and dividing the team enough for Reed to recognize at the end that he and Sue need to raise their family and can't so this, while Johnny's celebrity gets to his head and Ben is left out trying to make sense of what he is if not a superhero. They defeat Doom at the end, lock him up, and cost him Latveria.

This allows for in the fourth season to have a four or five year old Franklin and three year old Val. Sue's gone without using her power for the whole time to raise her kids outside of the realm of superpowers. Reed's built an empire and Four Freedoms plaza. Ben's gone on to be a great superhero, maybe an Avengers. And Johnny is still Johnny, as he hasn't grown up. Doom bring them back together at the start of the season, as he tries to harness Franklin's power (akin to the Surfer) causing Sue to lash out and lobotomize him. No big bad, although hints are given that Sue is unbalanced and unhinged from not using her powers, leading her to become Malice.

Fifth season I'd love to see Death of Johnny played out, and sixth season would be the last bit of Hickman's run. I think that last issue would be a great cap to a series like this, really putting the emphasis on family. I would play on Reed's guilt from Sue's breakdown, as well as the fact that he sees the consequences in the universe without the Fantastic Four's presence. I'd love to see a two-part episode of flashbacks spun out of the Annihilation event in Season 4, similar to the way Civil War weighed on Reed. Yes, that means they would do the Bridge mid-season. The death of Quasar and the arrival of Nova (yes, they would both be introduced in the first season) in the fourth season would be a question of "what were you doing?" similar to Nova's talk with Tony Stark.

This is a pretty ambitious idea for a TV show (and you're knowledge of the FF mythos is definitely FAR superior to mine!)

That said though, we'd be lucky if A-listers like Spider-Man or the X-men get a six season TV show...the FF are definitely not in line for that kind of treatment...not when so far the franchise has only delivered two mediocre (albeit entertaining!) films.

[Omega Alpha]

If I'm not mistaken, the rights to Namor don't belong to Fox, so no deal.

The FF are a family that has superpowers, the concept sells itself. I agree with Doombot that the key to the movies is get Reed right.

I also think Doom should be saved for the second film, so one can see his origin and the beginning of his rivalry with Richards. But I'm not sure who would be the ideal villain for the first one- Mole Man is too goofy, the Wizard would seem like a second rate Doom, Mad Thinker isn't threatening enough. Maybe the Skrulls or the Kree? But then again, I'm not sure Fox has the rights for them.

[bat39]

If I'm not mistaken, the rights to Namor don't belong to Fox, so no deal.

The FF are a family that has superpowers, the concept sells itself. I agree with Doombot that the key to the movies is get Reed right.

I also think Doom should be saved for the second film, so one can see his origin and the beginning of his rivalry with Richards. But I'm not sure who would be the ideal villain for the first one- Mole Man is too goofy, the Wizard would seem like a second rate Doom, Mad Thinker isn't threatening enough. Maybe the Skrulls or the Kree? But then again, I'm not sure Fox has the rights for them.

If I recall correctly, around the time of the 'Avengers' release, it was stated by someone from Marvel Studios in an interview (don't recall who) that there are some characters which both Marvel AND the other studios can use. These potentially include Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, Namor, the Skrulls etc.

[bmath]

This is a pretty ambitious idea for a TV show (and you're knowledge of the FF mythos is definitely FAR superior to mine!)

That said though, we'd be lucky if A-listers like Spider-Man or the X-men get a six season TV show...the FF are definitely not in line for that kind of treatment...not when so far the franchise has only delivered two mediocre (albeit entertaining!) films.

It's ambitious, but if done right, it would work. Hickman's run proves that Fantastic Four can be successful. But it's hard to write four main characters like that, get the whole family aspect and origin, build their relationships, and then introduce a villain in one full swoop. Not impossible, but I think the Fantastic Four is more set up for serialized format on TV then any other comic book concept. If you really focus on the family aspect at the core, you can really build up the sympathy on characters like Ben and Reed, the strength of Sue, and the flare of Johnny. This is really the type of TV show that Whedon excels at IMO. The performance of the two movies, which were casted poorly and never caught onto the themes of the comics, should not be held against something serialization potential.

[Monty_Cristo]

FF as a period piece might be interesting...but I highly doubt they'd work that angle.

possibly not. but i think they'd benefit from the setting. strange events tend to seem more "fantastic" when placed outside of the present. nowadays, everyone would look at Galactus as some kind of special effect for marketing purposes. plus it helps to establish the Four as the beginning of the new superhero era. do it in the present and Reed is suddenly one of at least 3 supergeniuses (stark and banner).

[Omega Alpha]

It's ambitious, but if done right, it would work. Hickman's run proves that Fantastic Four can be successful. But it's hard to write four main characters like that, get the whole family aspect and origin, build their relationships, and then introduce a villain in one full swoop. Not impossible, but I think the Fantastic Four is more set up for serialized format on TV then any other comic book concept. If you really focus on the family aspect at the core, you can really build up the sympathy on characters like Ben and Reed, the strength of Sue, and the flare of Johnny. This is really the type of TV show that Whedon excels at IMO. The performance of the two movies, which were casted poorly and never caught onto the themes of the comics, should not be held against something serialization potential.

FF is the least appropriate to TV of all Marvel series, exactly because it deals with space and other realities exploring, and very big villains, like Galactus or Doom, and would require too much visual effects to work. TV simply doesn't have the budget for all that.

[bmath]

Does Doom really require that much CGI? I figure you limit what SFX you can, focus more on costume and make-up, and set as much of it as possible in closed quarters with continuous camera work. Not every episode would have to be a Terra Nova type production. I think you can really keep most of it within the Baxter building and New York street for the first season if you do your Mole Man episode with a focus on Ben and his change or Dr. Doom invading based on his rivalry. For the aliens, you can have them all converging on the Baxter Building as Reed's inventions and the Negative Zone portal are a potential threat to other races as well as sign of Earth's escalation of technology. Other then maybe the Inhuman City, they can probably get away without building too many elaborate threats (although, I would love to see an episode where the FF wake up in the clutches of the Supreme Intelligence in Hala, with flashbacks of Ronan attacking and kidnapping them, leading, and after finally letting them go, having Ronan explain to Reed as he's looking out the window and admiring Hala, "This is just one of our worlds"). Heck, you can even make the watcher a normal-ish looking guy (he is an observer after all) whose appearance is based on our ability to perceive (akin to the Galactus' explanation), then thread him throughout the show with little spot appearances prior to a reveal.

[DebkoX]

I think doom could work in a way like they did the iron man suit.