Zeb Wells/Seth Fisher
Marvel
regardless of what type of comics you read, it pays off to read goofy ones once in a while. although this Wells/Fisher project certainly falls into that category, it has familiar characters that can hook in ordinary fans like me.
set in Japan, obviously as the title suggests, we find the world-famous Fantastic Four (Jessica Albaaaaaaaaaaaa ... she's not here? really? damn!) visiting the land of the Rising Sun like the rockstars they are, and they're the guests of honor for the Tokyo Giant Monster Museum and Expo Center. the curator, Dr. Yamane, acts as their guide for the museum, which honors a past era where Tokyo used to get attacked by dinosaurs ... sorry, megalosaurus (megalosaurii? megalosauruses?). the Japs even had a crude giant robot, otetsukun, as a final solution (this is after MegaMan, Shaider, the Power Rangers, and all the generic posers were wiped out by the megalosaur d'jour).
Reed is fascinated by the human Japanese skeletal system
the tour of the museum is an amazing eye-candy ride, and is an opening showcase of the talents of Seth Fisher, whose artistic style is unapologetically and unabashedly Japanese, having moved there years ago.
"crap ... this isn't a sex museum, isn't it??"
Reed Richards, the biggest brain/nerd in the Marvel Universe a.k.a. Mr. Fantastic, takes exception to Dr. Yamane's admission of megalosaurus DNA research being performed by the military, and its projected peaceful uses (ex. a megacow producing megamilk).
of course, when megabillionaire industrialist and inventor extraordinaire Tony Stark shows up, the place explodes in chaos (at least for the Hello Kitty set).
coincidentally, further chaos ensues as the megalosaurii specimens run amuck (you knew that was coming).
you know what that means, Tokyo G.I. Joes!
finding out your girlfriend is not human ... priceless.
in very little time, the clock turns back as Tokyo is once again overrun by crazy-looking monsters. Stark finds his "bodyguard", and the Fantastic Four and Iron Man try to quell the insanity. Wells' keeps the tone light and very Japanese.
The Invisible Woman saves the paparazzi from being squished, but manages to do a Fay Wray impression.
Fisher's art works hand in hand with that as well.
what's a "supa"?
The Thing and The Human Torch cleverly use the primitive otetsukun, with some results.
Reed, rummaging thru the museum's artifacts, manages to find a 'translator' and communicates with Grogg, the de facto leader of the creatures, and who bears a striking resemblance to Iron Man nemesis Fin Fang Foom (yes, that's the name).
Grogg explains that they are not attacking the city per se, but are running from a bigger critter than themselves. everything seems sorted out and the gojiras make nice with our heroes.
as it happens, we see a consistent behavior from Mr. Fantastic, where he is fantastic in putting lives at risk for the greater good, without bothering to consult anybody else first. damn scientists.
"you sold our son for a PS3?!?"
and thus the second half of the adventure begins. the five, accompanied by Dr. Yamane, travel to the North Pole (no, not that guy!), and try to face this bigger beast, whatever it is, as promised to Grogg and his scaly pals.
there they find the remains of the Kayama expedition, a group of explorers bent on finding prehistoric life who disappeared years ago. a cave leads to the discovery of the Kaa, 2-D creatures whose voices you can only hear at a certain angle.
"i think they're saying ... 'eat my shorts!'"
at this point, Dr. Yamane choses to reveal his true colors. his father was the leader of the Kayama cult, not exactly progressive-minded explorers they were made out to be, but more of worshippers of the "beast" that needs to be let in into our dimension. Yamane completes the arcane ritual and since this beast is of a 5-D nature, its presence results in time and space getting bent out of shape like in an M.C. Escher lithograph. to get a scale; here's a reference:
on the run from the monster, the quintet runs into an old nemesis of the Four, the Mole-Man.
Sue and Tony try to find a way to stop the beast from the inside (via its skin pores). meanwhile, the Mole-Man, always full of bravado and b.s., tries to make it look like he's in control of the beast, but as always ends up getting embarassed.
the Mole-Man threw a fit when he heard Reed got a PS3
through ancient carvings and pictures deep inside Mole-Man's hideout, the palpably-named Monster Island, Reed deduces that the Moloids, the Mole-Man's assistants, and the island itself, have a big role to play in this zarzuela.
an ancient mechanism functions as an injector of sorts, and they activate that and shoot the Moloids - designed by ancient foes of the beast as a virus - straight into the eye of the beast.
even looking at that makes me wince
since we have no idea what a 5-D monster shot with a virus looks like (and neither does Fisher), he just does his damn best - probably helped along by a few err, ... medicinal herbs.
monster is sent away; the universe is saved once again!
"... and only if you register first."
Seth Fisher went to the big artists' studio in the sky almost a year ago. as the reports go, he was a pretty eccentric guy - who knows what monsters lurked in his head. but we are grateful for sharing his talent with us, even for just a brief time. though wish i could get wrapping paper with this design:
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issues read: #1-4
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