Renaissance

Reed Richards is the project lead on a space mission called the Excelsior. He has created a new Quantum drive with which the Excelsior will use to explore a stellar anomaly. Richards has chosen his old friend, Ben Grimm to pilot the Excelsior. The Excelsior project is co-sponsored by NASA and the Storm Foundation. Susan Storm is the head of the foundation, while her brother Johnny is the manager of a Storm-owned Las Vegas casino.

S.H.I.E.L.D. discovers that the stellar anomaly may represent a threat to the planet. Agent Wyatt Wingfoot goes to Central City, California and tells Susan Storm that S.H.I.E.L.D. is taking over the Excelsior project. Susan is outraged that the government would so blatantly take control of a civilian project.

Wingfoot and the Storms fly to Central City and meet with Reed and Ben. Wyatt requires Sue and Johnny because they alone can activate the launch sequence code for the rocket. But what they don't realize is that Wyatt is actually a rogue agent. He is not following S.H.I.E.L.D. protocols but instead answers to a Latverian monarch named Doom. After getting what he needs from Sue and Johnny, Wyatt imprisons them inside of a cell. Ben learns that Wyatt's team are packing the Excelsior full of nukes with the intent of bombing the anomaly.

Reed, Sue, Ben, and Johnny eventually escape from their cells and hop inside of the Excelsior prototype model. It too is outfitted with a quantum drive but does not possess the same radiation shielding that the other rocket has. As Sue and Johnny are required to initiate the launch codes, they are forced to come along.

The second rocket flies after the Excelsior, just as Wyatt's team launches its nuclear payload into the stellar anomaly. A large burst of cosmic radiation washes over both ships. The prototype is damaged and plummets back towards Earth. The crew escapes via their life capsules and land on a small island in the Mediterranean. They discover that the cosmic rays have mutated them giving all four fantastic powers. The quantum drive from the ship has managed to survive the explosion and has landed on the island. But it is damaged and threatens to go critical unless it is shut down. But the four weary astronauts have an even larger problem. An underground inhabitant called the Mole Man rises to the surface and steals the quantum drive.

Recurring Characters

Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, Thing), “Wyatt Wingfoot”, Doctor Doom, Mole Man, Moloids, SHIELD, Silver Surfer

Continuity Notes

• As becomes evident in Heroes Reborn: The Return #1–4 this world exists in a pocket universe created by Franklin Richards to save the lives of the Fantastic Four and the Avengers after they sacrificed their lives to stop Onslaught during Onslaught Marvel Universe #1. While the members of the Fantastic Four and Doctor Doom come from Earth-616, all the other characters in this story are creations of Franklin's imagination.

• This entire story is a re-imagining of Fantastic Four #1.

• References to Ben Grimm being a pilot during the Gulf War should be considered topical references per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616.

• Wyatt Wingfoot is really the Skrull known as Kl'rt as seen in Fantastic Four (vol. 2) #5, also revealed that issue is that the alien encountered in space is the Silver Surfer.

• The carvings on the wall in the Mole Man's domain are in worship of Galactus, something that the Inhumans do, as seen in Fantastic Four (vol. 2) #8–10.