Fantastic Four: How Ant-Man & Three Unlikely Heroes Became Marvel’s New FF

In 2013, the Fantastic Four embarked on a journey across time and space. After just recently defeating a band of Mad Celestials, Marvel's First Family had certainly earned a vacation. In truth, however, Reed Richards was dying. With no Earthly cure for his ailment, Mister Fantastic needed to travel off-world to save himself. Disguising his quest as a family trip, Richards headed off for the cosmos.

Still, the Fantastic Four had responsibilities on Earth. Indeed, Richards had recently formed the Future Foundation, a team of bright young minds from many different species. The Future Foundation, while smart, still needed a guiding force in their young lives. Moreover, the Fantastic Four were needed to defend the Baxter Building. While the Fantastic Four have typically called in substitutes for individual members, this time, the World's Greatest Heroes needed an entire replacement team.

FF, by Matt Fraction and Mike Allred, focused on this substitute Fantastic Four. Each hero in the new FF was selected by an original team member. Reed approached Scott Lang, Ant-Man, to take his place. Still reeling from the loss of his daughter, Scott was hesitant to watch over a group of children. Yet Ant-Man ultimately accepted Reed's offer.

The Thing naturally asked She-Hulk to take his place, since Jennifer Walters had already filled in for Ben Grimm during John Byrne's run on Fantastic Four. Medusa was chosen by the Invisible Woman, since both were powerful leaders within their respective families.

Characteristically, the Human Torch put off finding a replacement until the night before leaving. Hastily, Johnny Storm asked his then-girlfriend, Darla Deering, an ordinary woman, to take his place. Given a mechanical Thing suit, Darla became Ms. Thing.

While the FF said they would only be gone for four minutes, as usual, things went wrong. While waiting for the original team to return, the new FF were subject to many trials and tribulations. Most embarrassing was the public scrutiny and ridicule which came with taking the place of such a prominent team. The Daily Bugle had no mercy on this new FF. Ant-Man also struggled with looking after the children of the Future Foundation, especially since these mutants and aliens were very eccentric and excitable.

She-Hulk and Medusa clashed over cultural differences between humans and Inhumans, while Darla struggled to become a superhero, especially due to The Yancy Street Gang. Over time, however, The FF grew to bond with one another. The Moloid children developed an attachment to She-Hulk, while Medusa became a nurturing figure for the children, such as Adolf The Impossible. Scott and Darla also shared a romantic relationship that lasted for the rest of the series.

Furthermore, the FF went on plenty of strange adventures, battling monsters in New York, visiting Uatu the Watcher on the moon and entering the micro-verse with Marvel Comics creators. Along the way, the FF fought Maximus The Mad, The Frightful Four (with only two members) and the Red Ghost. The ultimate challenge came, however, when the Johnny Storm of a dystopian future warned them about Doctor Doom.

Indeed, Doom planned to combine his power with Annihlus and Kid Immortus, a young version of Kang the Conqueror. Remembering how Doom killed his daughter, Scott took this battle personally. In a strike on Latveria, the FF defeated Doom, avenging Cassie's death. Shortly afterward, the original FF returned, relieving the new team of their duties.

Even after they disbanded, Ant-Man's FF left quite a legacy. For example, Darla returned as Ms. Thing, teaming up with Scott to battle the Magician. Ant-Man's daughter, Cassie, also returned, reuniting with her father. Later on, Ms. Thing helped Ant-Man save his daughter from longtime foe Darren Cross.

She-Hulk, meanwhile, rejoined the Avengers, standing alongside Captain America and Thor among others. Medusa went back to ruling the Inhumans, staying in touch with the Fantastic Four just like her former teammates. In Fantastic Four #3, for example, when all previous members of the FF were summoned to fight the Griever, the new FF were among their ranks. Ultimately, while Ant-Man's Fantastic Four may have been short-lived, they will forever remain a part of Marvel's First Family.

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