Fantastic Four Annual 15

Fantastic Four Annual 15

1980

Time for the Prime Ten

by Doug Moench, George Perez, Chic Stone, Mike Esposito, Jon D’Agostino, Barry Grossman, George Roussos, Jim Novak, Jim Salicrup

Reed Richards builds an energy transmitter. Mailman Willie Lumpkin shows up just in time to interrupt Reed’s celebration and deliver a package from Alicia Masters. Not all is as it seems. Willie Lumpkin is a Skrull. The package he delivers is a device that sends Sue Richards, Ben Grimm, and Johnny Storm a couple hours into the future.

Mr. Fantastic is left alone to deal with the Skrull, who has brought some friends. There are ten Skrulls in all and they call themselves the Prime Ten. Mr. Fantastic gets some unexpected help from Captain Mar-vell. Sue, Ben, and Johnny return just in time to join the fight and help eject the Skrulls from the Baxter Building.

Thoughts

According to my research, this story is the first and only appearance of the Prime Ten.

The ratio of text to visual storytelling leans heavily in favor of text. I prefer that the ratio lean in the other direction if it isn’t close to one to one. 

There’s something about the time travel element that feels a bit off. I’m not sure if it works as well as envisioned by the writer. 

George Perez is credited with breakdowns. 

The Return of Doctor Doom

by Doug Moench, Tom Sutton, Jim Novak, Ben Sean, Jim Salicrup

10 pages

Doctor Doom‘s supporters rescue him from King Zorba who has been ruling Latveria and kept Doom imprisoned since Fantastic Four 200. 

The art work in this story feels a bit rough. Maybe it was drawn in a rush. 

One odd thing about this story is that on the first page, after the title are the words “Chapter One: The Power of the People”, but there are no subsequent chapters. What happened? Doctor Doom’s next appearance in Fantastic Four isn’t until Fantastic Four 236 (Nov 1981). He had appearances in other comic books before his next appearance in Fantastic Four but based on my research none of them seem related to this story.

I read both of these stories in Fantastic Four Visionaries: George Perez Vol. 2 but according to the Grand Comics Database there was no letters column or anything else in these issues Fantastic Four or Marvel Comics related other than these two stories.

That Toys "R" Us banner on the cover really sticks out like a sore thumb,