Defenders by Matt Fraction cover courtesy Marvel.com
The current run of the The Defenders will come to an end with issue 12. Matt Fraction united Doctor Strange, Iron Fist, Red She-Hulk, Silver Surfer and Namor on missions against supernatural threats. Fraction is leaving to write the Fantastic Four and FF in the Marvel Now.
Fraction tells Marvel.com that Betty Ross was the character that surprised him the most and “fell in love with writing her immediately”
“The whole experience was so unlike any other I’ve had at Marvel, and I got to work with so many amazing artists; the whole thing was a joy. Bittersweet at best, as they say.
And yeah; we were only just getting started. I didn’t touch on a tenth of what I had planned for that book, for the places it would go, for the characters we were going to meet. Oh well. Next time, next time,” he adds.
The Defenders #12 courtesy Marvel
For more preview art of the final issue here’s the Marvel.com link. The Defenders #12 arrives in November. Never fear! Given this team’s history expect to non-team to reteam again – I just hope it’s as much fun as this run has been!
Matt Fraction and Mark Bagley take Marvel’s First Family into the Marvel NOW. Reed, Susan, Ben, Johnny and the kids take a cosmic vacation across space and time.
Marvel.com shared 4 images by Bagley from Fantastic Four #1.
Fantastic Four #1 courtesy Marvel
The first image looks like a new interpretation of the iconic moment when the four were first bombarded with cosmic rays. Ben Grimm is in human form but the kids are in the picture so…
Fantastic Four #1 courtesy Marvel
This must be a dream as we see Franklin wake up from a nightmare. A sign of things to come?
Fantastic Four #1 courtesy Marvel
The final shots show the family in what looks like prehistoric times complete with a dinosaur….always welcome in an adventure in time and space!
Fantastic Four #1 courtesy Marvel
Fantastic Four #1 by Fraction and Bagley arrives this November.
The coming years are BIG for a little guy! Ant-Man will get the big screen treatment in a film by Edgar Wright. Erik O’Grady has gone from shady to dark in Rick Remender’s Secret Avengers. Scott Lang is joining FF by Matt Fraction and Mike Allred. Let’s give a big hand for the little guy!
This Ant-Man (Scott Lang) is featured in a new tease for Marvel Now! Point One courtesy Marvel.com. This book will be a primer for the Marvel Now 2013 relaunch. Fraction has said Lang will take a pro-active role against Fantastic Four nemesis Doctor Doom as retribution for the death of Stature aka Cassie Lang.
Marvel’s First Family is blasting into outer space but Reed Richards is hiding the motivation for their far out family getaway. The replacement heroes are targeted by a classic villain. Marvel revealed covers and teasers for Fantastic Four #2 by Matt Fraction and Mark Bagley and FF #2 by Fraction and Mike Allred.
FF #2 courtesy Marvel
Fantastic is the classic cast but FF is She-Hulk, Ant-Man, Medusa and She-Thing? What’s interesting about the Allred cover is the reflection showing the Richards/Grimm/Storm clan but with an old man – is that Nathaniel? Franklin?
How will Dragon-Man and other members of the Foundation react to the new FF?
Matt Fraction is sending the Fantastic Four into space and forming a new FF to hold down the fort here on Earth in the Marvel NOW relaunch. One member is planning some serious payback against Doctor Doom but it’s not who you think.
Scott Lang aka Ant-Man (along with Medusa, She-Hulk and She-Thing) are the new FF lineup. Fraction tells Comics Newsarama he’ll follow through on a tragic moment from Avengers: The Children Crusade.
SPOILER WARNING:
IF YOU HAVEN’T READ AVENGERS: THE CHILDREN’S CRUSADE (READ IT- I LOVE THIS STORY!) THEN YOU MAY WANT TO STOP NOW.
SERIOUSLY.
HERE IT COMES.
OK.
FF #1 courtesy Marvel
“Doom killed Scott’s daughter. There’s no other way to put it, there’s no other way to phrase it, there’s no skirting around the issue. Because of his actions, Doctor Doom killed Cassie Lang. What this book is going to be about is Scott and his replacement Four, and the Future Foundation, aiming their resources right at Doctor Doom. The premise he presents to the Future Foundation is “End Doom.” And not just kill him, but eliminate him from human memory. That would be worse for Doom than dying. And that’s the payback that Scott ultimately wants.
This is their macro arc, this is their reason to being, this is their constant through line: “Let’s remove Doom from the equation of life on Earth, and see what happens.” But concurrent to that, every FF villain that ever was comes out of the woodwork, gunning for these imposters, thinking now’s their time to take their shot. So you’ve got these people who have not been the Fantastic Four longer than 10 minutes having to fight off all of the latest and greatest versions of the characters you know and love the most. Whereas Fantastic Four is constant new stuff and new places we’ve not been before, FF is the greatest hits performed by a brand-new band.”
I LOVE the Young Avengers. Scott was killed by the Scarlet Witch (kinda) in Avengers Disassembled. The amazing and inspiring Cassie carried on her father’s legacy as Stature in Young Avengers. The time twisting events of Avengers: Children’s Crusade led to a brief, heartwarming and heartbreaking reunion between father and daughter. I’m thrilled that Fraction will continue Scott’s story. Hurt Doom, hurt him bad!
This is Cassie by Young Avengers artist Jim Cheung. Hope Marvel will have Cheung create a variant for this story.
Asgard Inferno! Matt Fraction and Kieron Gillen are torching Thor and Kid Loki’s realm with Everything Burns. This crossover marks the final chapters of Fraction on The Mighty Thor and Gillen on Journey Into Mystery with the Aesir/Vanir War. Fraction tells Marvel.com how this war surpasses the previous war – one of the darkest moments of Asgard history.
Journey Into Mystery #642
“Well, historically, it’s a big chunk of the Norse cycle that’s just been lost. The Marvel-Norse myth, however, has no duty to its source and has been pretty freely rewritten over the years. One of the biggest missing components to the Marvel-Norse stuff is, quite frankly, the women; for whatever reasons, whereas women are extraordinarily vital and important in the original cycles, they’ve been kind of shunted off to the sides over here. Of course there are exceptions, and important ones at that, but these merely prove the rule rather than right the wrong.
The Mighty Thor #19 courtesy Marvel
Anyway I started wondering if I could tie the two together: the legendary lost Aesir/Vanir War, and a boys vs. girls story that would explain the Marvel-Norse patriarchy. And so here we are. This new flare-up, pardon the pun, is a proxy war waged by Surtur; a war hidden inside a war, bigger and bloodier than anything. Even Ragnarok is simply a cycle’s end and rebirth—but this is the end of everything, the very extinguishing of light and life in the universe.”
The Mighty Thor #19 courtesy Marvel
Fraction says the Odinson’s biggest fear is losing all because he was wrong about Loki and warns “Thor’s greatest fear cripples him at the worst possible time.”
“Loki’s prime fear remains what it always was: that he’s exactly what everyone else thinks he is. He’s a destroyer, a chaos-bringer,” adds Gillen.
The legendary Alan Davis and Carmine Di Giandomenico provided the art on this crossover ending the Fraction and Gillen runs on the Asgard icons. For more of their interview here’s the Marvel.com link.
Fraction is moving on to Fantastic Four and FF. Gillen is taking on Iron Man. Jason Aaron unleashes Thor: God of Thunder in November. Kathryn Immonen makes Sif the new star of Journey Into Mystery.
Matt Fraction revealed he’s taking the Fantastic Four on a family vacation into space with artist Mark Bagley. While Marvel’s First Family is away the Earth will be protected by the FF with artist Mike Allred. Fraction’s backup team includes Ant-Man and Medusa of the Inhumans. The Madman creator tells Marvel.com why he joined the FF.
“When I was approached with a project starring one of my all-time favorite, and vastly under-rated, characters, Ant-Man, I leapt out of my shoes. Literally. Those shoes are ruined now. Ant-Man has been there from the beginning. One of the very first Marvel heroes, folks; I think the first or second behind the Fantastic Four. Most people don’t know that.
Then add claiming the Baxter Building with my fave Marvel lady, Medusa, big and sexy She-Hulk, and one of the cleverest creations in recent memory, Miss Thing—now I’m almost out of my skin. Fortunately that’s just a figure of speech. I’m still tucked nicely away into my skin.
Seriously, I’m going nuts with excitement. I’m living the dream I dreamt when I was a kid, laying on the living room floor making comics with my big brother Lee.”
I have to agree with Allred’s excitement for Medusa – I love her too. Here’s the link to Matt Fraction revealing his take on the Fantastic relaunch.
Defenders by Matt Fraction cover courtesy Marvel.com
Matt Fraction is taking on the Fantastic Four and FF this November as part of the Marvel NOW! relaunch. Fraction revealed to USA Today that he will leave The Defenders and that series will come to an end with issue 12 in November.
Fraction took the Defenders concept into a strange and fun new direction with Dr. Strange, Iron Fist, Red She-Hulk, Silver Surfer and Namor as his team. I hope Fraction will get the chance to write Dr. Strange again – he has one of the most unusual and realistic takes on the Master of the Mystic Arts.
I recently wrote In Defense of the Defenders part 3 – Case Closed. I had no idea how soon it really would be closing time but this franchise seems to roar back to life every few years. Maybe next time we’ll see a reunion of Valkyrie and Hellcat in a new Defenders book!
