It’s almost time for Ben Grimm and Alicia Masters to tie the knot, and you know what that means: short comic specials leading up to it! Yes, while this may not be the wedding issue itself, what this comic gives us are three short stories that help build up the events leading to it, and that’s perfectly fine.
Written by Gail Simone, Dan Slott, and Fred Hembeck
Illustrated by Laura Braga, Mark Buckingham, and Fred Hembeck
Colored by Jesus Aburtov, Matt Yackey, and Megan Wilson
Lettered by VC’s Joe CaramagnaCome and celebrate the impending nuptials of the Thing and Alicia Masters with a Ladies Night Out as only the First Family of Comics can do it! Guest-starring She-Hulk, Medusa, Crystal and more, it’s the bachelorette party Alicia never expected—and one whose ribaldry will be interrupted by the arrival of a Surprise Super Villain! (And no, we don’t mean Johnny Storm!) Meanwhile, the Thing has an unexpected meeting with his future father-in-law, the Puppet Master! Plus, Hembeck! The Fantastic Four family tree! And more! R.S.V.P. at your local comics retailer this December, and don’t forget to kiss the bride!
Let’s start off by acknowledging that comic book weddings are statistically likely to have something go horribly wrong, whether it’s from a super-villain attack, the revelation that one of them is actually a clone/skrull/robot, or any number of potential causes. With that said, this is the Fantastic Four we’re talking about – Reed and Sue are still married and their kids still exist, so familial continuity has slightly better odds with them. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s look at the comic itself.
“Fantastic Four: Wedding Special” gives us three short comics looking at how different characters are preparing for the big day. The first and lengthiest is “(Invisible) Girls Gone Wild,” written by Gail Simone and illustrated by Laura Braga, with colors by Jesus Aburtov. As one would hope, it’s all about Alicia’s bachelorette party.
Gail clearly had a lot of fun writing this issue, and it shows. From Johnny running into, in his words, “so many ex-girlfriends… so many…” on his way out to Crystal getting drunk in a superhero-themed male strip club, there’s plenty of humor and hijinks to enjoy.
There’s some great humorous dialogue throughout, like Medusa saying “Cosmo is a space dog, bring us beer as well” in response to a drink order and claiming “I have brought many units of their paper currency. There’s a fascinating tactic I wish to try called ‘making it rain.'” Or Jennifer Walters shouting “Hulk smash puny self-esteem issues” in the middle of battle and banter. Gail has witty and funny dialogue down to an art.
Yet there is heart in this story as well, even in the middle of a strip club. We get Alicia reflecting on what she loves about Ben, the Mole Man sending his best wishes to the couple, and even a great sequence where the characters help give their limo valet an anniversary to remember.
Laura Braga and Jesus Aburtov do a great job bringing the story to life. All the character designs are clean and solid (not counting the rock-solid abs within the strip club scenes), and we get some wonderfully expressive moments. There’s one particularly hilarious set of panels where the ladies are simply staring ahead in awe in one panel, then still staring ahead in awe with several dollar bills in hand in the next. The artwork brings out the humor and heart of the story wherever needed, and Jesus Aburtov’s color work helps add a degree of liveliness to everything.
We get a good amount of action too, although it feels a bit more hectic as it cuts from moment to moment within the battle. There’s less of an impact to each hit and moment, but the combat isn’t the core of the story, and it moves the comic along from point to point.
Following that, we get “Father Figure,” written by Dan Slott, illustrated by Mark Buckingham, inked by Mark Farmer, and colored by Matt Yackey. This is a shorter story, with less in the way of humor but just as much heart. It’s important to the characters involved, as it ties into their history and familial connections.
Continued belowWe do still get a good little humorous moment, where Ben passes by several prison cells shouting death threats at him, but still has a conversation with Pulverizer between the threats. It’s a nice characterizing moment for him. The buildup to Ben’s mission in this short is delivered nicely, and it’s something that works well with the sort of honorable man he is. At the end, though, there’s just a little bit of foreshadowing of problems to come, so it will be interesting to see how that pays off later.
The artistic team also handles this story very nicely, filling each panel with details and designs that make the world pop. There’s a great shift in colors and lighting the deeper we go into the Raft, adding to the tension of the showdown. It all works very well with the tone and mood of the story.
Finally, Fred Hembeck gives us “The Puppet Master’s Lament,” with colors by Megan Wilson. It feels a bit odd having two stories about Puppet Master in a row, but as he is a character connected to the Fantastic Four and Alicia, it’s not unreasonable.
Fred’s art style is rather cartoony, like something out of a comedic webcomic, giving it all a lighthearted mood and feel. Megan Wilson alternates the colors from panel to panel, keeping everything bright and fresh so even the multiple panels of a single character talking don’t get dull. So it’s a light read with an amusing little monologue, which also helps catch newer readers up on the characters and their history.
Overall, “Fantastic Four: Wedding Special” is a fun read for anyone looking forward to the upcoming marriage. It’s a good lead-up to the event itself, and is worth buying if just to see Sue, She-Hulk, Medusa, and Crystal making it rain. Each writer brings something good to the table, and each artist and colorist sets the tone and mood properly while bringing everything to life.
Final Verdict: 7.7 – A fun comic leading up to the wedding issue, providing good humor and heart backed up by enjoyable artwork. It’s a good self-contained read for any fans of the Fantastic Four.
