Editor's Desk 
‘Fantastic Four Epic Collection: Heroes Reborn’ is the crown jewel of a compelling but sloppy experiment
The behind-the-scenes story of the original Heroes Reborn is fairly well documented: having declared bankruptcy and suffering a dearth in sales, Marvel reached out to some of the founding Image creators (and some of that generation’s peers) to refresh a handful of properties that had been falling behind, namely Fantastic Four, Avengers, Iron Man, and Captain America. Those characters, written out of the main continuity during the climax of the Onslaught Saga, were whisked away to a new universe (created by Franklin Richards in the narrative) with blank slates.
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The experiment could be seen as a sort of proto-Ultimate Universe, an experiment in fresh, modern talent retelling classic stories in fresh, modern ways. Lasting about a year, the stories didn’t have a ton of room to breathe, but there seemed to be endless potential – potential somewhat sapped by some of the primary talent finding it hard to keep up with the pace. Though somewhat financially successful – the books all saw an uptick in sales from their preceding volumes – the whole experiment was a critical wash. Not enough felt new, exciting, or particularly re-inventive.
Perhaps the best series of the lot, Fantastic Four, is collected in Fantastic Four Epic Collection: Heroes Reborn. Kickstarted by Jim Lee on pencils and plotting, Brandon Choi writing, and Scott Williams on inks, the book was a visual and narrative standout from the pack. Tightly written, the book uses logical links to tie each issue together, building toward the final conclusion that would run through each series’ final issues.
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A distant cosmic event draws the attention of Reed Richards and company, which draws the team into space in time to be bombarded by cosmic rays and become the Fantastic Four; the neat narrative trick is that those cosmic rays were provided by the Silver Surfer; it is Galactus’s coming that provides the book’s final, terrifying conflict twelve issues later.
Trips to Monster Island, Wakanda, and Attilan all provide new clues toward that unknowable cosmic secret – an ancient language on plynths and stone tablets; gigantic Inhuman statues of the coming devourer of worlds – so that each introduction of a classic Fantastic Four supporting character or villains feels uniquely tied to a central narrative. It’s tidy, well-crafted storytelling.
Marvel
The trouble is that most of that storytelling skewed a little too closely to the original Fantastic Four. Most of what was presented felt neither exciting nor novel. Characters like Doctor Doom and Black Panther are introduced, and though they might reappear later down the line they ultimately play little part in the proceeding narrative. The central team is as the team always is, with no varying of their attitudes or interpersonal relationships. Unlike the forthcoming Ultimate Universe, this universe made no effort to stray from the well-established path.
There is a great deal of quality slippage as the series goes on; Jim Lee ultimately leaves the artist’s chair, and though he passes the torch to capable artists like Brett Booth and Ron Lim, a lot of the ‘superstar artist’ street cred bleeds away. The book ultimately ends up being another Fantastic Four story, the shine of a new start worn away. What started as a truly promising event dies out with a sloppy crossover of titles, barely strung together by disparate creative teams.
The Heroes Reborn is a compelling but sloppy experiment, but Fantastic Four remains the crown jewel of that experiment.
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