Flame Off! The Human Torch is Extinguished

Marvel Comics is killing off the Human Torch in Fantastic Four #587- which, by the way, is out this week. As I would expect, Marvel is releasing the comic with, at least, 2 different covers to inspire fans and collectors to purchase the same comic twice. There's also a special poly-bagged version of the comic so that fans and collectors can purchase the same comic three times. It's likely that there will also be numerous printings with numerous different covers. So, it looks like fans and collectors will be buying the same comic many, many times over.

Killing the Human Torch off is simply a gimmick to draw attention to the title and sell more comic books. The existence of variant covers and special poly-bagged versions for that particular issue makes the gimmick even more obvious. I think everyone knows that the Human Torch will be back. We've seen this superhero death thing play out numerous times in the past - DC killed Superman, Marvel killed Captain America. But, they always come back. A for-profit comic book publisher is not really going to permanently kill off a popular and profitable character. So, if you're shocked. Don't be. It's only temporary.

Gimmick or not, killing off a major character draws lots of attention. In this particular case, I'm very interested to see how the story evolves and what becomes of the super group. I guess Marvel sort of needs to change the title of the book and the superhero group to the "Fantastic Three" - at least until Johnny Storm (a.k.a Human Torch) comes back. Or, maybe, the Fantastic Four will recruit a new member - who knows?

Anyway, below is the regular cover for Fantastic Four #587. Notice the cracks and breaking of the 4 logo. This might be a subtle clue that somebody in the superhero group is gonna die. Or, maybe not.

The variant cover for Fantastic Four #587 is below. Notice that the Human Torch is missing from his circle by the title and, in the bottom left corner, he's not present with the other members of the Fantastic Four. If you haven't heard about the Human Torch death prior to seeing the cover, that may be a clue. And, I guess the story title, "Three:Casuality", in big white letters at the very top of the cover might be a huge clue too. Also, and this might be a stretch here, if you look where the Torch's chin meets his neck, the flames underneath look like the word "Bye". Directly under the flames that look like the word "Bye" are more flames that look like a flying Human Torch. The sum the two is "Bye Torch".

And, any true collector or fan would have to get the poly-bagged version too. It's fairly simple. Instead of the famous 4 logo that we usually associate with the Fantastic Four, there's a 3 logo. That might also be a clue that one of the Fantastic Four is going to die.

I personally think that Marvel should have used the 3 logo on the regular cover. Then again, the poly-bagged version may not sell as well if they did that.

I suspect that this issue, particularly the variant, is going to be initially hard to get. Fans and collectors are likely going to horde these comics and some will likely pick up as many copies as they can get their hands on hoping to make a quick buck later. I wouldn't be surprised to see this comic on ebay with overly inflated prices at 5 to 10 times the cover price or even higher over the next few weeks. But, I also suspect that the value will flatten out as time goes by. Still, there's no doubt that this particular issue is a key for fans of the Human Torch and comic book collectors in general.

The Fantastic Four is, and always has been, one of my favorite superhero groups. And, although the Torch can flame up to unimaginably high temperatures, he is definitely the coolest member of the Fantastic Four. After all, a guy engulfed in flames soaring through the sky at super high speeds is an awesome sight. So, why would Marvel kill off the Human Torch even if it's just temporary? Because he's very popular and a critical character in the Fantastic Four title. He's probably the most important member of the Fantastic Four. Aside from drawing lots of public attention to the title, the writers at Marvel can re-define the character and the Fantastic Four in some ways. Plus, it's sometimes easier to temporarily kill off a superhero than it is to come up with fresh new material.

My hope is that Marvel has a really cool master plan in the works. Ideally, the death of the Human Torch is an epic event that invigorates the Fantastic Four story and results in a completely redefined Fantastic Four experience. Of course, the Human Torch must come back to achieve that end and I'm positive that Marvel has every intention of bringing him back. I'm hoping for a groundbreaking blockbuster movie worthy story developing in the issues to come. After all, if you kill off a critical character in a superhero comic book and then bring that character back, it better be an epic revival that has major significance to the story.

R.I.P. Human Torch

...that is until Marvel will most certainly revive you

As is the case with many of my rants, I'm going to abruptly switch topics - sort of.

I have no idea if anybody has any plans to make another Fantastic Four movie, but I would like to see another one. In my opinion, the first Fantastic Four movie was really good and the 2nd was awesome. I personally think that both movies were produced extremely well and the cast was perfect. I'm sure that some people totally disagree and would argue that one or both of the movies sucked and/or that one or more of the cast was horrible. I don't really care what you might think. I liked both movies. I liked the cast. And, I liked the special effects - especially the Silver Surfer in the 2nd movie. If you disagree, you should probably quit reading this immediately.

Seriously, Ioan Gruffudd looks exactly like Reed Richards (a.k.a. Mr. Fantastic). It's as if Mr. Fantastic jumped out of the pages of a Fantastic Four comic book into the real world. He played the part perfectly too.

Michael Chiklis was excellent as Ben Grimm (a.k.a. The Thing). His big build and overall physical appearance are exactly what I would expect of Ben Grimm. And, his somewhat dramatic and dark acting style make him an excellent choice for the role.

Chris Evans delivered just enough youthful cockiness to make a great Human Torch. Plus, the special effects on the character were absolutely awesome!

Last, but not least, the lovely Jessica Alba played Susan Storm (a.k.a Invisible Woman). I think it's obvious why she was selected for the role. But, she actually played the role fairly good. And, it's always a pleasure to watch a hot chick strut around in a tight suit.

When I saw ads for the first Fantastic Four movie many, many years ago and learned that Jessica Alba was going to play the Invisible Woman, I immediately recalled a scene in a movie that she played in titled, Into the Blue. If you've seen that movie, I'm sure you already know where I'm going with this. The movie wasn't really that good, but the snorkeling scene was very memorable. If you haven't seen it, well, poor you. Seriously! Anyway, Jessica Alba is snorkeling in a very skimpy bikini. I'm not even going to try to explain it. So, take a look...

Jessica Alba snorkeling in the movie Into the Blue

Serious hind-quarters! And, just so you get an idea of what it looked like in motion...

Jessica Alba snorkeling in the movie Into the Blue

And, here's Jessica posing for advertising and packaging photo images for the movie...

Anyway, I got side tracked again, but I'm sure you understand why. Now, back to the Fantastic Four. Hopefully, Torch's death and certain revival by Marvel will result in something huge for the title. So huge, that it inspires another Fantastic Four movie about Torch's death and comeback and the events that reshape the Fantastic Four afterword. In reality, that's probably not going to happen. Marvel will bring the Human Torch back, but I suspect that it might be a trivial comeback that has no real purpose. I guess we'll find out if it was just a sales gimmick based on what happens in upcoming issues.

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