Summary
- Reed Richards' stretchy body begins to tear as he fends off an army of vampires.
- Reed is protecting a group of survivors, but after stretching to protect an entire building, his skin begins to rip open when he pushes further.
- Fantastic Four #22 is available from Marvel Comics July 31.
Mister Fantastic, the heroic leader of the no limit to what Reed can do, but it turns out that Mister Fantastic is very vulnerable under one circumstance.
In a preview of Fantastic Four #22, Reed does his part against the vampire army unleashed by the Blood Hunt event. Last issue, Reed and Alicia Masters were on a trip to the museum when the Sun was blotted out, and Mister Fantastic was able to get a large group of people to safety. Not only did Reed create a safe zone by setting up daylight-replicating lights, but he covered an entire building in his stretchy form, protecting everyone inside (since the vampires can't actually bite his ever-shifting body.) However, as the vampires regroup, Reed hits his limit.
As the lights in their stadium stronghold go out, Reed once again stretches to protect every human present. However, performing this feat so soon after stretching to cover an entire building pushes Reed beyond what his body can take, and large wounds begin to open up above the survivors as the Fantastic Four's leader begins to tear apart.
Fantastic Four #22 (2024) |
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The Fantastic Four's New Origin Is a Groundbreaking Rewrite of Marvel Lore
Marvel is officially rebooting the Fantastic Four's origin, with a dark beginning that totally transforms their most iconic nemesis.
Reed Richards' Stretchy Body Tears After He Pushes It Too Far
The Fantastic Four's Leader Is Struggling to Survive the Blood Hunt Vampire Apocalypse
The ongoing Blood Hunt event has unleashed a vampire army, with Darkforce energy used to block out the Sun and allow them free rein over Earth. Like many heroes, Reed Richards was caught by surprise, saving and protecting the people he could. Not only did Reed cover an entire building with his body, he then became a tunnel, allowing the survivors to move to a larger stadium where they could hole up. It was a showcase of Mister Fantastic's genius and his powers, but it turns out that after putting his body through so much stress, Reed is in trouble.
The current volume of Fantastic Four has added surprising clarity to Reed's powers, confirming that much of his biology is similar to a regular human, with the expected bones and organs stretching along with his skin. This is a very different approach to the Ultimate Fantastic Four continuity, where Reed's powers were explained as decidedly non-human, with most of his body being a plastic-like substance with a tiny 'sack' of internal organs that he could move around at will.
It's likely that - as his skin tears and he has to shift his wounds away from the surface to stop the vampires infecting him - the mainstream Reed wishes he was more like his Ultimate self. Fans have seen Reed stretched so far that he struggles to reconstitute himself, but the idea that his body becomes vulnerable to tearing directly after extreme stretching is relatively rare, and a fascinating weakness for the Fantastic Four's leader to have - albeit also a terrible one, as Reed Richards fights an army of vampires who can recruit him if they get access to even the smallest wound.
Fantastic Four #22 is available from Marvel Comics July 31.
