Within This Tortured Land

Having been brainwashed into thinking their powers no longer work, the Fantastic Four find themselves prisoners in the nation of Latveria, a country ruled by their arch-nemesis, Doctor Doom. When they attempt to revolt, Doom uses his advanced technology to subdue the group, telling them that they will never leave his country alive. Gloating over his victory, Doom asks his minion — Gustav Hauptmann — what his former master, Adolf Hitler, would have thought about Doom’s armies. When Hauptmann unintentionally insults Doom by comparing him to the Red Skull, prompting the dictator to angrily attack his minion, warning him against further insults in the future.

The Doctor then turns his attention to two dissident citizens who try to catch Doom off guard, he orders the slaughter of the entire village by Servo-Guards as punishment. In order to insure that the Fantastic Four do not attempt to stop this slaughter, he has them drugged, and, while they are unconscious, they are mentally conditioned to believe that they have lost their powers. They are also conditioned into abhorring violence of any kind. While Doom has a portrait painted of himself, he orders the robots to storm the city and kill everyone in it, including the Fantastic Four.

Back in the States, Sue goes house hunting for a home in which to raise her baby. She rejects her first choice, because it is located in a busy neighbourhood where the residents stand a chance of being hurt in a super-powered fight between the FF and its enemies. Her real estate agent takes her to a house of mysterious origins located outside of town that their company has been struggling to sell.

Recurring Characters

Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Human Torch, Thing, Crystal, Invisible Girl), Doctor Doom, Gustav Hauptmann

Continuity Notes

• Sue Richards is on a leave of absence from the Fantastic Four following the birth of her son in Fantastic Four Annual #6. It is revealed in Fantastic Four #88 that the bizarre home that she is looking at was built by the Mole Man in another bid for conquest of the surface world.