How Did the Original ‘Fantastic Four’ Change Comics?

When the first issue of Fantastic Four went on sale on August 8, 1961, it was an unexpected success for Marvel Comics. The cosmic transformations of Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm into Mister Fantastic, the Invisible Woman, the Thing and the Human Torch kick-started Marvel’s dominance of the medium and proved that superheroes could be flawed. But what exactly made the Fantastic Four so relatable?

Marvel actually has its rival, DC Comics, to thank for the origin of the Fantastic Four. Following the 1960 debut of DC’s Justice League of America, which brought Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and other characters together, Marvel wanted their own team of superheroes. But, after over 20 years as Marvel’s editor and head writer, Stan Lee had become dissatisfied with his work, reported CNN.

It was Stan’s wife, Joan, who encouraged him to go beyond the typical restrictions of Marvel’s tropes meant for a particular demographic. “Before you quit, why don’t you write one comic you are proud of?” Joan reportedly told Stan.

In constructing their new superhero team, Lee and Kirby made the Fantastic Four a tight-knit family unit—Reed and Sue are a married couple, Johnny is Sue’s brother and Ben is a family friend. Beyond their superpowers, each character maintained their human side and their family arguments made them even more relatable.  

Before the Fantastic Four, comic-book protagonists were mostly shown to be morally perfect and archetypal heroes. But the Fantastic Four heroes had inner personal struggles; Reed was emotionally distant, Sue wanted more respect, Johnny was immature and Ben was riddled with self-loathing. 

Unlike other anonymous superheroes, the Fantastic Four’s real identities were known by the public, too. This allowed Kirby and Lee to explore themes of celebrity, the media and the volatility of the public eye.

The success of the Fantastic Four—in particular the group dynamics and how they used teamwork and their own distinct powers to defeat villains—provoked Marvel to create their own universe of additional characters. Over the next decade, further teams of superheroes, like the Avengers and X-Men, followed, as did the iconic characters Spider-Man, the Hulk and Iron Man, each of which helped Marvel to truly challenge DC as the dominant comic book publisher. 

Released just three months after Alan Shepherd became the first American in space on May 5, 1961, the Fantastic Four debuted at a time when the space race against the Soviet Union was particularly tense. The Fantastic Four's adventures in space and their use of technology to overcome alien threats resonated deeply with 1960s readers confronting real-world anxieties about science and survival.

In the Fantastic Four issue 1, Reed leads the team on an experimental space flight just to beat the Russians. While they’re up in space they are hit by cosmic rays that give them their superpowers. The Mole Man and Giganto, the villains in Fantastic Four issue 1, have been viewed as metaphors for the dangers and anxieties around nuclear war, as the Mole Man is a disgraced scientist who works underground and Giganto is the giant monster he created. Over subsequent issues, the Fantastic Four would also face the Red Ghost, a Soviet scientist.