Fantastic Four Annual #23
When Franklin Comes Marchin' Home
The Fantastic Four are returning home after having a picnic with Reed and Sue's son Franklin. However when they arrive at the scene they are shocked to see that their headquarters, the Four Freedoms Plaza, has been replaced with their former headquarters the Baxter Building. Suspecting a possible trap, Reed lands the Fantasti-Car in nearby Central Park so they can approach the building from the ground. From the front door their headquarters appears as it did before the Baxter Building was destroyed. Inside they are even more shocked to see the old doorman O'Hoolihan, even though he retired some time ago. Trying to operate the elevator, they notice that it operates on the old devices they used to contain in their belt buckles. However Sue has kept her old signal device for sentimental reasons and they are able to access the elevator. As they disappear, O'Hoolihan finds this entire incident troubling and calls upstairs.
When the Fantastic Four arrive on the main floor of their old headquarters they are suddenly attacked by the security systems. However these security devices are greatly outdated and they are easily able to fight through them. As they continue on, Franklin becomes more and more upset, telling his family that they have to stop as he feels something horrible is inside the building somewhere. Suddenly they are ambushed by what appears to be the original Fantastic Four as they were early on in their careers. The Reed Richards of this "original" Fantastic Four orders his teammates to attack and a fight breaks out between the two versions of the team. Despite the fact that they are more adept with their powers, the rest Fantastic Four are defeated due to the danger posed to Franklin and their reluctance to attack at full strength. The Fantastic Four are then taken to the fake Reed's lab to be examined. "Reed" comes to the conclusion that they are the real Fantastic Four. However the question comes up at to how two identical versions of the Fantastic Four exist. The real Reed tries to explain that they are future versions of their captors, but Reed's questions fall on deaf ears.
Suddenly they are in for a shock when the fake Sue calls in her son Franklin, who is a grown adult. This adult Franklin is confused and doesn't understand how the people contained on the wall could be their family. He has his family right before him. Sue tries to appeal to the adult Franklin to get him to listen to reason, but this only serves to confuse him more. Young Franklin meanwhile renounces his older self, saying that he is the real Franklin. Spurned into anger, the adult Franklin loses his temper and flees to gather his thoughts. Suddenly the illusion the adult Franklin was creating vanishes, along with the "Baxter Building" and the other Fantastic Four. Finding themselves free, Reed orders Sue to place an invisible force field around their headquarters and orders the others to begin searching for sign of their mystery intruder.
Meanwhile off the coast of Britain at the lighthouse headquarters of Excalibur, Phoenix spends some time outside with her teammate Meggan. When Meggan asks Phoenix about her life in the future, she admits that her memories of her past are scrambled. Suddenly, Rachel shouts out in pain and keels over. Recovering she tells Meggan that she has to go and deal with some personal business, refusing Meggan's offer to gather the rest of Excalibur to help her. Meanwhile, X-Men members Forge and Banshee are in New York City enjoying the sights when suddenly they are confronted by the adult Franklin Richards. Franklin recognizes them as his old teachers, but suddenly loses his temper again when he notices that they are much younger than he remembers and takes off again. Realizing who they were talking to, Forge suggest that they go to the Four Freedoms Plaza. Meanwhile, in the distant future, the being known as Ahab is awoken by his computers as they have located where Franklin Richards has escaped to. Seeing that he appeared in the modern age at the Four Freedoms Plaza, Ahab orders his minions to prepare for a time jump.
Back in New York City, Franklin is hiding out with who he believes to be his old friends the Power family and is passing time by playing hide and seek with them. Meanwhile, the Fantastic Four are examining the situation and Reed has come to the conclusion that this adult version of Franklin must be some kind of manifestation of Franklin's dormant mutant powers. He decides that the only way to protect their son is to remove his mindlocks and unlock his full mutant potential. While down below on the streets, Banshee and Force notice the force field around the Four Freedoms Plaza. They try to use their abilities to pierce it but to no avail. Suddenly as Reed is conducting tests on Franklin a time portal opens inside the building and they are attacked by an army of futuristic drones. Sue manages to gather them up and toss them outside the building where they harmlessly explode. With Sue's force field down, Banshee flies himself and Forge up to the hole in the building to see what is going on. After they explain their encounter with the adult Franklin, Sharon realizes that the man they are seeking is only seeking the comforts of his childhood. Asking Franklin where he would go to be safe if he couldn't be at home, Franklin tells them that he would stay at the Power's house.
They make a quick run to the home of the Power family where they convince the adult Franklin to accompany them home. Along the way back, the adult Franklin spots X-Factor's ship looming over the New York skyline and doesn't think it should exist. Suddenly, he teleports out of the Fantasti-Car. Ben tells Reed that the grown-up Franklin has disappeared. They quickly land and within moments both Reed and Forge have developed a device to track Franklin's unique energy signature. Detecting two identical signatures the team splits up into two groups: Ben, Forge, and Sherry to search downtown while Johnny, Sue, Reed and Banshee investigate elsewhere. With Reed's device, Ben and his group follow Franklin's energy signature toward X-Factor's ship....
... This story is continued simultaneously in New Mutants Annual #6 and X-Factor Annual #5.
Recurring Characters
Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, Ben Grimm, Ms. Marvel), Franklin Richards, Franklin Richards-811, Phoenix, Meggan, Forge, Banshee, Ahab
Continuity Notes
The Baxter Building was the Fantastic Four's original headquarters circa Fantastic Four #3. The building was later destroyed by Kristoff Vernard in Fantastic Four #278, the Fantastic Four then constructed their new headquarters the Four Freedoms Plaza from Fantastic Four #285-293.
The Fantastic Four run into an illusion of O'Hoolihan who had been the doorman at the Baxter Building since Fantastic Four #79. He was last seen performing his duties in Thing #10. This story confirms that O'Hoolihan went into retirement.
The Fantastic Four duplicates created here are based on the team as they originally appeared between Fantastic Four #10-100.
There is some confusion caused by these illusions by seeing the real Ben Grimm in human form. Ben was restored to human form in Fantastic Four #326.
The adult Franklin Richards hails from the future of Earth-811, aka "Days of Future Past". He was last seen being killed by Sentinels in Uncanny X-Men #141 in his native era. As revealed in Uncanny X-Men Annual #14, the adult Franklin sent his dream form into the past when his physical body was destroyed.
Franklin's confusion with the Four Freedoms Plaza existing where the Baxter Building should be is because his native reality has a Baxter Building, not a Four Freedoms Plaza, as seen in Uncanny X-Men #141.
Phoenix also comes from the same future as the adult Franklin Richards, also seen in Uncanny X-Men #141. She makes mention how her memories of the past have been scrambled. This happened when Rachel traveled back in time to the modern age of Earth-616 in New Mutants #18/Uncanny X-Men #184. The events leading up to her jaunt into the past were depicted in Excalibur #52.
Technically speaking, Banshee and Forge are the only members of the X-Men left together as a time at the time of his story. During this period of time, most of the team had traveled through the Siege Perilous in Uncanny X-Men #251 and had been reborn into new lives. Forge and Banshee began looking for the missing members of the X-Men in Uncanny X-Men #254. The group is eventually reunited by Uncanny X-Men #270. They both appear here following the events of X-Factor #58.
The individuals here appearing to be James and Margaret Power and their children the Power Pack here are actually impostors created by the Technocrat. They appear here between Power Pack #59 and 60.
Reed states that Franklin's mutant powers are dormant. This has been the case since Franklin willingly shut down his powers back in Fantastic Four #245.
The appearance of the Twin Towers at the site of the World Trade Center in this and other stories contained in this issue should be considered a topical reference per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616.
Cast in Fire, Carved in Stone
Somewhere in New York City, Doctor Doom accesses his computers and pulls up his files on Marsha Rosenberg, aka Volcana. He pulls up her history, recalling how during the Secret Wars he endowed Marsha and Skeeter McPharren with super-powers to bolster his super-villain army and how she developed a close relationship with Owen Reece -- aka the Molecule Man. More recently, Doom recalls how during a confrontation with the Shaper of Worlds, Kubik, the Molecule Man and the Beyonder were merged together into a Cosmic Cube. Suspecting that Reece may have endowed her with a portion of his power before seemingly sacrificing himself, Doom decides that she requires further observation and has gone to investigate Volcana after receiving reports of her battle against the Wizard.
In the aftermath of the battle with the Wizard, Volcana explains the battle with the police when she is informed that her friend Annie was trampled by a fleeing mob of people during the fight. Convincing the officer to give her a gas mask to conceal her identity, Marsha is driven to the local hospital to check on her friend. As Dr. Doom scans for energy readings outside, Marsha regrets ever letting her friend come to harm.
Giving up on waiting for her friend, Marsha decides to leave unaware that through a sheer force of will she is causing all those injured at the hospital to suddenly be healed. One of these patients is Moonstone, who has been in a coma for some months. Awakening from it, Moonstone revitalizes her powers and goes on a rampage on the hospital grounds.
When the officer driving her stops to shoot at Moonstone, the villain retaliates. Diving at the officer to push him out of the way, Marsha is surprised when she suddenly turns into hard volcanic rock instead of the magma form she is more commonly used to. Incapacitated by a blast, Volcana is unable to stop Moonstone from grabbing the officer and breaking his wrist. Volcana revives and frees the officer and continues her battle with Moonstone. Their battle takes them to a construction site. Although Moonstone has the upper hand, Marsha eventually prevails, defeating Moonstone and leaving her tied up in chains for the authorities. Marsha then flees the scene.
Having seen enough, Dr. Doom returns to his hideout to go over his data and is convinced that Owen Reece must have given a portion of his power to Marsha and begins plotting how to claim it for himself.
Recurring Characters
Volcana, Doctor Doom, Moonstone
Continuity Notes
Doctor Doom endowed Marsha with her powers in Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #3. Her romance with the Molecule Man began in Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #5.
The events leading up to Owen being merged with the Beyonder into a Cosmic Cube (and why they were both two parts of a cosmic cube were explained in) occurred in Fantastic Four #317-319.
Marsha's battle with the Wizard occurred in Marvel Comics Presents #88.
Marsha's power increase coming from the Molecule Man is confirmed in Fantastic Four Annual #24, Marsha's next appearance.
Beyond and Back
Somewhere out in time and space a Cosmic Cube suddenly explodes, sending one beam of energy flowing toward Earth, while the other -- formally the being known as the Beyonder -- remakes itself in a female form calling itself Kosmos. Kosmos is met by Kubik, another fellow evolved Cosmic Cube who has come to teach her the secrets of the universe.
Kubik takes Cosmos on a tour of the universe showing her great destructive forces like the Phoenix Force, and the cosmic observe known as the Watchers. Single-minded individuals of great power such as the Mangog, Overmind and the Eternal's Uni-Mind. He also shows her the High Evolutionary, the Stranger before moving onto great cosmic being who are involved in evolutionary change, such as Eon, the Celestials and the mystical Vishanti.
He then shows her the great evils of the universe: Mephisto, D'Spayre, Null the Living Darkness, Shuma-Gorath, Thanos, Satannish and Chthon.
But he reveals that everything serves a part of the embodiment of the universe that is Eternity. He then shows her the absolutes of the universe: Death, Master Order and Lord Chaos and their minion the In-Betweener, as well at the Living Tribunal and Galactus.
Explaining that the universe is made up of many things both big and small.
Recurring Characters
Kosmos, Kubik, Phoenix Force, Mangog, Mephisto, Dweller-in-Darkness, Thanos, Satannish, D’Spayre, Shuma-Gorath, Chthon, Galactus, Molecule Man, Watchers, Overmind, Uni-Mind, High Evolutionary, Stranger, Eon, Celestials, Vishanti, Eternity, Death, Master Order, Lord Chaos, In-Betweener, Living Tribunal
Continuity Notes
The exploding Cosmic Cube is the very one created when the Beyonder and Molecule Man merged at the end of Fantastic Four #319. The streak of energy seen streaking toward Earth is Reece, who resurfaces in Fantastic Four Annual #24.
The Beyonder has remade himself into the female form of Kosmos starting in this story. The Beyonder remains in this form until it is killed in Annihilation: Silver Surfer #3.
