FF #5

"Spooky Kids
or, Merrily into the Eight Arms of Durga the Invincible We All Go"
written by Matt Fraction
art by Michael Allred
colors by Laura Allred

Things have taken a turn for the decidedly ominous at the Future Foundation.  Following the departure of Alex Power over a disagreement with Scott Lang about whether or not to eliminate Dr. Doom and the departure of old Johnny Storm after Medusa again questions his identity, she also brings her son Athura to join her.  Barring the now absent Alex Power, he's easily the oldest and largest of the group and he's prone to periods of mental instability and violence.  Medusa also produces a terrigen lotus with a strange and threatening secret.

Scott's reeling from his perceived failures and the increasingly heavy responsibility of being the man in charge.  He's short-tempered, not shaving, and has allowed his room to be taken over by his computers and uneaten delivery pizza, which is apparently all he's living off of.  Darla Deering, who after her initial bout of insecurity has become the most reliable of the replacements, talks some easy sense into Scott Lang.

Meanwhile, John Storm is losing his mind somewhat, and finds himself on a fiery spree of destruction through the city.  Confronted, extinguished and ultimately sedated by the Replacement Four, along with the help of Vil and Wu and Bworrg the East River leviathan, Johnny is now incapacitated, still raving about the need to "end Doom".  But the most immediate threat seems to be the Wizard, with whom Medusa has been conspiring and who now approaches his clone-son Bentley-23.

While Fraction elevates the action in "Spooky Kids" and raises the stakes for most of his characters, many of the small moments, which relied so prominently on levity and fun, get condensed.  Vil and Wu rising to the occasion and summoning Bworrg to help the Four, as Scott Lang abruptly requested before rushing out, was a pleasant surprise, as was Lang's genuine appreciation of their contribution.  However flawed his approach has been so far, Lang's aptitude for this job remains high.  He could be really, really good at it.  Alex Power's idealistic crusade takes him to Latveria.  It's probably foolish and will undoubtedly get him into trouble, but at least Power is acting on his idealism.  He needs to be more than just talk, and he's fully aware of it.  The relationship he and Scott will develop—whether it's growing together or apart—is one of the series' most promising interpersonal dynamics.

[May 2013]