When I read the first page of this issue, it read to me like an interaction from The Venture Brothers. Which, of course, is a parody of just this kind of superhero story and series, but it occurred to me that, through parody like VB, it's possible for a Fantastic Four comic to become a retroactive parody of itself. If that makes any sense.
This is a nice little rarity in the life of the malodorous Man-Thing. Rather than a constant state of pain due to the incessant fear that seems to follow him around, the swamp creature instead basks in the radiance of Ben Grimm's heroic nature. There are so many moments in this comic that really are textbook cases of the hyperbolic nature of superhero storytelling. A rooftop Oscar-moment facing the setting sun, flashbacks of old war stories while staggering half-dead, refusing to give up. And, truly, they're glorious. It's over the top and ridiculous, a story of extremes, in art and in letters. I think it may rank as one of my favourites of this era, and reaffirms my opinion of Marvel Two-in-One and writer Tom DeFalco's tenure on the title. They're really, really good.
To be continued.
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