Nick Peron

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Fantastic Four (Vol 3) #13

I, Ronan

Credits

The Fantastic Four are having breakfast in the kitchen of the Baxter Building when they are suddenly attacked by Ronan the Accuser, whose has been training against the group since their last encounter years earlier. Ronan is able to trounce the four heroes, and upon doing so the virtual reality simulator ends. Although this is a victory for Ronan it is hollow so long as the Kree are still ruled over by the Shi'ar, but the Accuser vows that while his people have been humbled, all their enemies will be defeated -- starting with the Fantastic Four.

That morning in New York City, the Fantastic Four's mailwoman Billie Lumpkin comes knocking and warns the Thing that there is a woman armed with a sword on the roof of their Pier Four headquarters. A bleary eyed Thing tells her not to worry as it is only their ally Caledonia. Johnny goes up to the roof to bring her some coffee and asks her what she is doing. Caledonia recounts how she had a dream where the Fantastic Four were attacked and defeated by a being calling himself Ronan. Feeling that the dream had come as a warning, Caledonia has come to the roof to stand guard. Returning inside, Johnny and Alysande learn that everyone had the same dream. As they sit down for breakfast, Sue tries to reassure Franklin that what he experienced was just a dream and his family are safe. Reed listens to the events of the dreams and points out that the details were anachronistic as it was set in the Baxter Building and the team were still wearing their original uniforms. Richards suggests that if Ronan is coming to threaten them again, he is doing so on outdated intel and the team -- which has been through much since their last encounter with Ronan -- should be more than capable of dealing with him. However Reed warns that what little Ronan seems to know about them now is also true to them about him. Johnny then gets Alysande up to speed explaining who the Kree are and the Fantastic Four's last encounter with Ronan years earlier.

Later both Johnny and Caledonia are sparring on the pier and attract the attention of a school class that is on a field trip. This distraction is not welcomed by their teacher and soon the principal of the school calls to complain to Mister Fantastic. When Johnny and Alysande return inside, they are scolded by Reed and Franklin. Reed reminds Johnny that they no longer live in a skyscraper and they need to be better influences to young people. Sue interrupts the conversation and calls them all into the telecom room where she shows them that their access to DARPA, SHIELD and the Avengers database to learn that their access has been revoked, preventing them from learning anything new about Ronan or the Kree. They discover that this is yet another tangled mess they need to sort out since their return from the "dead". They attempt to contact Tony Stark for assistance by his secretary Pepper Potts tells them that Stark is busy. They then decide to try and reach the Avengers directly and get their newest member Firestar. She tells them that the Fantastic Four have a block on their computer files by United Nations decree. She is willing to bend the rules, completely star struck by the team, before she is stopped by her teammate the Vision who tells Ben that the data is unavailable to them and terminates the call.

Johnny comes back after scouring the internet for details and learns that the government has been trying to keep secret on manned flights to the moon. Reed also returns from his own investigation and informs them that there is a strange Kree signal coming from their old headquarters the Four Freedoms Plaza. At the Four Freedoms Plaza, a group of SHIELD operatives have brought captured Kree terrorists in order to turn them over to their masters, deciding to stay out of Kree business and let them deal with their own. Representing the NYPD is Charlotte Jones who is there are a courtesy. Soon Ronan teleports onto the ruins of the Fantastic Four's old headquarters. He declares that he has come to free his Kree brothers and clashes with the SHIELD Mandroids. The Fantastic Four suddenly arrive and join the battle even though their presence is not welcomed by SHIELD who try to detain the Fantastic Four. This causes enough distraction for Ronan to trounce all his human foe and teleport the Four Freedoms Plaza to the surface of the Blue Area of the Moon. Here he intends to destroy his foes on the grounds of the long abandoned Kree settlement.

Recurring Characters

Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, Thing), Caledonia, Franklin Richards, Charlotte Jones, Ronan the Accuser, Billie Lumpkin, Pepper Potts, Firestar, Vision, SHIELD

Continuity Notes

  • Multiple mentions are made to the Fantastic Four's first encounter with the Kree. This was when they accidentally activated Sentry 459 and destroyed it in Fantastic Four #64. This led to the Supreme Intelligence sending Ronan to battle the Fantastic Four in the following issue. Ronan projected a nightmare to his foe in that initial battle as well.

  • Ronan mentions how the Kree are ruled over by the Shi'ar. The Shi'ar took control of the Kree empire after it was decimated in a Nega-Bomb explosion during Operation: Galactic Storm which took place in Captain America #398-400, Avengers: West Coast #80-82, Quasar #32-34, Wonder Man #7-9, Avengers #345-347, Iron Man #278-279, Thor #445-446.

  • There are multiple mentions to the fact that the Fantastic Four spent a long time on Franklin's Counter-Earth. During Onslaught Marvel Universe #1 the Fantastic Four and Avengers were seemingly slain fighting Onslaught. In reality, Franklin saved their lives by sending them to live re-lived lives on Counter-Earth. This was chronicled in Fantastic Four (vol 2) #1-13. The Fantastic Four and their allies were returned to Earth during Heroes Reborn: The Return #1-4.

  • The Fantastic Four are incapable of reaching Tony Stark. This is because at the time of this story he was in the middle of a battle with the Controller as seen in Iron Man (vol 3) #11-13.

  • Firestar mentions how Warbird recently left the Avengers. At the time she had recently joined the current roster in Avengers (vol 3) #3, but later forced to quit in issue #7 when her alcoholism affected her ability to perform on the team.

  • The Fantastic Four have been denied access to the Avengers database is a United Nations response to the Fantastic Four's unsanctioned activities in Genosha in Fantastic Four (vol 3) #10-12.

  • The Four Freedoms Plaza is in ruins because it was heavily damaged during a battle between the Thunderbolts and their former leader Baron Zemo in Thunderbolts #10.

  • The Kree Prisoners were captured by the Avengers recently in Avengers (vol 3) #7.

  • The Blue Area of the Moon was constructed by the Kree centuries ago as part of a contest between them and the Cotati to see who was worthy of an alliance with the Skrulls. When the Cotati won the Kree slaughtered both starting the centuries old Kree-Skrull War. The Blue Area was abandoned shortly thereafter as depicted in Avengers #133-134.