Fantastic Four: The MCU Finally Remembered How to Make a Phase 1 Movie Again

Warning: This portion contains afloat spoilers for The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

It’s been a agelong clip coming, but the Fantastic Four yet person a bully movie to their name. The Fantastic Four: First Steps whitethorn not beryllium perfect, arsenic IGN’s Clint Gage said successful his 7/10 review, but it gets the fundamentals right: the Four themselves are good cast, the leads person large chemistry, Galactus really looks and acts similar his comics self, and the thematic throughline astir the spot the FF deduce from their familial connection–literalized by rallying some themselves and the satellite astatine ample to prevention some the satellite and Franklin from Galactus alternatively of giving successful to the latter’s tendency to assertion Franklin successful speech for sparing Earth–captures the tone of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s archetypal root material.

But astir of all, First Steps gives america thing we haven’t seen from the MCU successful a agelong time: a throwback to the Phase 1 mode of doing things. First Steps isn’t funny successful belaboring its runtime with shared beingness subplots, nostalgic references, oregon multiversal cameos that distract from the communicative astatine hand, nor does it necessitate doing immoderate homework with different films oregon Disney+ bid to wrapper your caput astir the plot. You could ticker First Steps with nary erstwhile MCU acquisition and travel distant with a coagulated movie that keeps the absorption connected its characters and the communicative it’s telling. Why does this consciousness similar specified a enactment of caller aerial for the MCU? Let’s instrumentality a look.

Fantastic Focus

The astir commendable facet of Fantastic Four: First Steps is however small interest it has for the MCU arsenic a franchise. It doesn’t spell retired of its mode to contradict oregon circumvent the MCU successful immoderate way, but its goals are squarely successful the realm of telling the astir effectual communicative it can. Like with this year’s Superman reboot, First Steps avoids depicting a afloat root communicative for the Fantastic Four (although however the squad got their powers is explained via a quality montage aboriginal successful the film), alternatively jumping successful 4 years aft the team’s founding connected Earth-828 and centering astir a menace to their presumption quo arsenic superheroes. That menace comes successful the signifier of Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds, and his herald, the Silver Surfer, some of whom people a sizable displacement successful the benignant of antagonist this FF is utilized to facing.

The Phase 1 Glory Days

It tin sometimes beryllium hard to retrieve aft truthful galore MCU movies (First Steps is fig 37 for those keeping people astatine home), but the archetypal question of root films similar Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America: The First Avenger each felt chiseled and comparatively self-contained. Sure, determination were hints of a wider satellite extracurricular the margins, and SHIELD was ever astir to reenforce that these movies existed successful the aforesaid reality, but those films were chiefly acrophobic with being bully movies archetypal and pieces of a bigger pastry second. That’s wherefore the MCU and their ensemble became truthful fashionable successful the archetypal place, but it’s thing the bid mislaid show of aft the Infinity Saga, with the post-Endgame slate suffering from galore poorly conceived and absurdly priced misfires.

That’s not to accidental determination weren’t immoderate highlights from this era, similar Spider-Man: No Way Home, Doctor Strange successful the Multiverse of Madness, Loki, oregon X-Men ‘97. But determination truly is nary denying that Marvel’s batting mean went from “pretty good” successful Phases 1 done 3 to “inconsistent astatine best” successful Phases 4 and 5. A immense portion of what went incorrect was the workplace processing a mentality that audiences fell successful emotion with the Marvel Universe itself, alternatively of the stories and characters that made up that universe. Marvel often tried to spot their problems with adapting excessively galore properties astatine erstwhile without a coherent program and sliding prime power by doubling down connected nostalgia and metatextual fanservice, which whitethorn enactment successful the fiscal abbreviated term, but is precisely the benignant of originative decease spiral that’s resulted successful Marvel’s erstwhile sterling estimation having agelong since been tarnished.

This makes Fantastic Four: First Steps’ backmost to basics communicative sensibility each the much remarkable. It proves that Marvel Studios is susceptible of curbing their worst tendencies and returning to the diligent brick-laying that made their aboriginal efforts specified a beardown instauration to physique the MCU connected apical of. The archetypal Avengers movie wasn’t a monolithic deed conscionable due to the fact that it had superheroes transverse over; it had superheroes the assemblage already cared astir crossing over. The dense lifting the Phase 1 solo films did successful presumption of quality improvement and assemblage concern was the catalyst that propelled The Avengers into the taste stratosphere, and by hold the MCU into Hollywood dominance. If they privation to get backmost there, taking their cues from what First Steps does would beryllium a great, well… first step.

What Marvel Should Learn From Fantastic Four: First Steps

The astir breathtaking infinitesimal successful Fantastic Four: First Steps is erstwhile Shakman reveals that helium knows Susan Storm is the astir almighty subordinate of the FF. During the last conflict with Galactus, it seems the Devourer is going to get distant with Franklin and subsequently devour the Earth… lone for him to beryllium held successful spot by Susan’s willpower done her unit fields. She successfully manages to propulsion him towards Reed’s teleportation device, salvaging a program they thought had failed, and on with a small assistance from a repentant Silver Surfer, Susan forces Galactus done the portal to the acold broadside of the beingness aft the remainder of the squad snatches Franklin back. Not lone does it bash justness to Susan from the comics, but it’s besides a due payoff to the affectional throughline the movie had built for the squad up to that point.

Earlier, the FF had to woody with astir of the satellite wanting them to manus Franklin to Galactus to spare the planet. As Reed says, it makes “mathematical” sense, adjacent if helium insists to Susan helium ne'er considered doing it. The statement Reed and Susan person astir Franklin, and her consequent code to the assemblage extracurricular the Baxter Building wherever she says she refuses to sacrifice Franklin to prevention the Earth but besides refuses to “sacrifice the Earth to prevention my child,” is the film’s motivation center. Susan, and by hold the full Fantastic Four, are not the benignant of heroes who marque casual choices for the alleged “greater good.” They garbage to springiness Galactus anything, due to the fact that it is not his close to request a household beryllium breached successful speech for cosmic mercy. The movie builds to this culmination done astute writing, show and direction, and it’s each contained wrong this azygous film.

That is the benignant of storytelling acumen that each MCU movie should have. Otherwise, wherefore are you making them? Movies should not beryllium conscionable to adhd other toys to a sandbox oregon punctual shareholders however overmuch perchance lucrative IP you possess. These stories and characters person captured imaginations for decades due to the fact that there’s thing successful them that connects with audiences connected an affectional level, and the amended MCU movies (of which we tin present number First Steps) recognize that. Sure, the post-credits country has a faceless cameo of Doctor Doom, and his beingness is teased a mates of times earlier that with bare “Latveria” seats astatine the United Nations. But that’s precisely what the teases are: tiny bonuses, not thing that intrudes connected the main narrative. That Marvel is adjacent susceptible of specified restraint aft debacles similar Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania oregon Deadpool & Wolverine is origin for celebration.

On Earth-828, the Fantastic Four are a awesome of anticipation that the aboriginal volition beryllium safer and brighter. In our world, the Fantastic Four: First Steps is overmuch the same, but that large franchise filmmaking, and Marvel Studios successful particular, tin get backmost to doing things right, alternatively of doing them easy.

Carlos Morales writes novels, articles and Mass Effect essays. You tin travel his fixations connected Twitter.