The Fantastic Four are the first family of the Marvel Universe, a group of science heroes who have traveled time and space battling the greatest threats and discovering amazing things about the cosmos. They're Marvel's first super-team and while they aren't as popular as they once were, they're an integral part of the Marvel Universe. Over the years, some of the smartest Marvel characters have been in Fantastic Four comics.

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These individuals are have done things that no other characters in the Marvel Universe have, using their brainpower to make discoveries, invent technology, and basically prove they are some of the smartest beings around.

10 Invisible Woman Is Not Only The Most Powerful Member Of The Team But Also Pretty Smart

The Invisible Woman inside a force bubble in Marvel Comics

For years, Invisible Woman was a victim of Stan Lee's terrible writing of women, and writers who came after him kept that tradition up. Eventually, writers realized that not only was she the most powerful member of the team but also one of the smartest. She's not a big brain like her often emotionally abusive and distant husband but she's easily the second smartest member of the team.

Sue Storm is one of the group's most intelligent members, her brains coming in handy during their adventures. She brings an unconventional opinion to things, one that Reed often can't see, making her one of the team's most valuable additions.

9 Namor's Knowledge Is As Deep As The Ocean

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Namor may not seem like the smartest person but he's much more intelligent than he gets credit for. Namor is an undersea monarch, with an understanding of tactics and statecraft that is just about unmatched among Marvel's heroes and villains. He also knows more about the ocean and its mysteries than just about anyone on the surface.

Namor's arrogance sometimes overrides his intelligence but that doesn't change the fact that he's very smart. He never would have survived as long as he did as monarch of Atlantis otherwise and he's even earned the respect of Doctor Doom, which is no easy task.

8 Black Bolt's Silence Hides His Intelligence

Invincible 5 Marvel Heroes Black Bolt Yelling

Black Bolt is the king of the Inhumans and one of the most powerful people on Earth. His slightest whisper is enough to level mountains and he has amazing self-control, in order to never accidentally destroy everything around him. While his silence makes it hard for him to express it, Black Bolt is a very intelligent person.

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He's a great monarch, with a knowledge of statecraft and the history of the Inhumans that is just about unmatched. He's often called a perfect man by his wife and the rest of the Inhuman royal family. He makes mistakes but he's still quite smart.

7 Silver Surfer Is Intelligent And Powerful

Silver Surfer 1998 Fantastic Four Marvel Comics

Silver Surfer is one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe. That's what most people think of when they think of Silver Surfer but that discounts just how smart he is. On his homeworld of Zenn-La, he was a scientist and respected scholar. Traveling the universe with Galactus only brought him even more knowledge of the cosmos.

While he's not an inventor or anything like that, he's witnessed cosmic phenomena up close in a way that few others have. He has access to the cosmic consciousness, as well, allowing him to witness all kinds of events from across time and space.

6 Adam Warlock Was Created To Be Perfect

Adam Warlock Cover

Adam Warlock was made by the Enclave to be the perfect being. While he would become better known as a solo cosmic hero, his first appearance was in the Fantastic Four books. First known as Him, the FF helped him escape the Enclave and that would set him on his journey, gaining more and more intelligence as he traveled the universe.

Taking on the name Adam Warlock, he would become known for his power, compassion, and intelligence. He saved the universe many times over, fighting against the likes of Thanos and the Magus,  and even gained the Infinity Gauntlet at one point.

5 Spider-Man Is One Of Marvel's Smartest Heroes

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Spider-Man has been through a lot of changes over the years but one thing that's never changed is just how smart he is. At fifteen, he invented web-shooters and the fluid to fuel them with just what he could get his hands on as a normal teenager. He kept inventing things that made his crime-fighting easier throughout his career. Later, he joined the Fantastic Four and the Future Foundation, as well, and has proved how smart he is many times over.

Spider-Man's scientific knowledge has helped him immensely over the years. If he wasn't a superhero and had more time to devote to it, there's no telling what he could create.

4 Black Panther Is One Of The Smartest People On Earth

Black Panther Last Annihilation Wakanda

Black Panther has long been one of the most skilled people on the planet. As the ruler of Wakanda, he presides over the most technologically advanced nation on Earth, has an innate understanding of that technology, and is an amazing tactician and leader. On top of all of that, his knowledge of fighting is just about unmatched, making him as fierce in combat as he is in matters of state or in a lab.

Black Panther has led both the FF and the Avengers and was successful both times. His intelligence has been an immense boon to him, his people, and the world, as he's saved the day many times over in situations where his fists alone weren't enough to win the day.

3 Reed Richards Is The Smartest Marvel Hero

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Reed Richards is much more of a scientist than a superhero. His devotion to knowledge is just about unprecedented, so much so that his family life has suffered immensely over the years. His pursuit of knowledge has often made him a terrible person, one who cares about the thrill of discovery more than anything else around. This has given him a pragmatic viewpoint that facilitated terrible actions with the Illuminati.

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Even with how morally grey and downright villainous he can be, there's no denying how smart he is. His intelligence dwarfs that of contemporaries like Iron Man and Hank Pym.

2 Doom's Accomplishments Are Amazing

Doctor Doom Cover

Many people think that Reed Richards is smarter than Doom but Reed couldn't even get the specifications for the cosmic ray shields right on his first space voyage. By this time, Doom had already created a time machine. Reed was able to create a portal to the Negative Zone, but Doom had a system on his armor that could drain the power of a god. Doom also figured out how to help Franklin with his powers when Reed couldn't.

Doom is one of the greatest villains in the Marvel Universe and easily one of its smartest beings. Doom has done things that no one else has done for science and knows magic deeply as well. Doom outclasses nearly everyone.

1 Galactus Is Older Than This Universe

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Galactus was once Galan of Taa, a scientist witnessing the end of his universe. He survived and the resulting cosmic energy transformed him into Galactus, gifting him with the Power Cosmic and transforming him into the World Devourer. Galactus is easily one of the smartest beings in the Marvel Universe and has witnessed things that no one else has.

Few mortal beings can match Galactus's knowledge and even his fellow cosmic beings are below him in that regard. His intelligence is only matched by his power and while he has access to the cosmic consciousness, he doesn't really need it.

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