Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four

(Marvel, 2007)

In Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four, writer Jeff Parker (Marvel Adventures: Avengers) and artist Mike Weiringo (The Flash) turn in a lighthearted, classic-feeling Marvel story. A mysterious being shows up in Central Park with equipment that promises to bring to Earth invaders called the H’mojen, who, much like Star Trek’s Borg, desire to make all galactic races into one identity-less conglomerate (note the pun on “homogenous” in the aliens’ name), and it’s up to Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four to stop him.

There’s not a lot of depth to the villains, and the dialog is full of banter and light-hearted quips, much like the Spider-Man and Fantastic Four stories of the 1970s and 1980s. But while the tone of this series is old-fashioned, the book is not just a throwback; instead, it can be viewed as a nice break from all of the ponderously heavy and morally ambiguous tales that Marvel Comics has, of late, favored; it’s the perfect outlet for those fans who prefer their super-heroes more on the innocent side.

— Eric Garneau

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