By "Comics’ #1 Fan" Sean Kleefeld

The first page of the story in Fantastic Four #587 shows Johnny Storm and Ben Grimm holding off an army off alien bugs trying to make their way through the Baxter Building. This, not surprisingly, picks up from the previous issue where the building was first invaded by a small troupe who snuck in and opened the Baxter Building’s portal to the Negative Zone. But if you’ve only been reading this “Countdown to Casualty” story (begun in FF #583), you might not be getting the larger picture.

The Negative Zone is another dimension, parallel to Earth’s. It was discovered by Mr. Fantastic way back in Fantastic Four #51, although the team didn’t really begin to explore it until a couple years later. Reed set up a dimensional portal within their headquarters to be able to study this new universe in depth. On an initial, cursory exploration, though, the Negative Zone native Blastaar snuck through the portal into the Baxter Building. Although the FF were able to send him back, they only then began to understand the dangers of this uncharted dimension.

Blastaar, it turned out, was formerly the monarch of his home planet, Baluur. He was a powerful and ruthless ruler, but was eventually deposed, imprisoned in a unique containment suit and set adrift in space. His escape, and subsequent accidental discovery of Earth, heightened his power-lust by showing him the larger scope of what he might conquer. His home planet, while still useful, was small in comparison to what he had now seen. His appetite had been whet and he wanted to expand his domain.

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Tags Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four Three, Human Torch, Marvel Comics, Negative Zone

Who know who bit the big one. (SPOILER!)

Now, four becomes three.

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Tags Alan Davis, Fantastic Four Three, Jonathan Hickman, Marvel Comics, Nick Dragotta

This is the second spotlight by Sean Kleefeld on this week's game-changing "Fantastic Four" #587. After running a Fantastic Four fan site for several years, Kleefeld was named “Comics’ #1 Fan” by Diamond Comic Distributors in 2003 -- and is considered one of the world's biggest Fantastic Four fans and experts. Warning: this post contains spoilers!

The Fantastic Four was the comic that really drew me into the medium. The four main characters, acting in concert, was really enjoyable and there was an interesting dynamic there that I hadn’t seen in the Justice League or the Avengers or any other team book at the time. In the first place, these folks weren’t working together because they had to or were getting paid; they were a family and genuinely cared about one another. In the second place, they weren’t really superHEROES in the traditional sense; they didn’t swoop down at the last minute to save the day, rather, they were super-powered explorers who were just poking around in a different dimensions to see what was out there. They were, collectively, a different group and that was part of what attracted me to them.

But that’s not to say I didn’t have my favorite characters WITHIN the Fantastic Four! They were each individuals with their own personalities, and one of them spoke to me more loudly than the others. That character, that early favorite of mine, died in Fantastic Four #587.

The Human Torch seemed like the obvious star of the book when I was 11. He had a seemingly endless supply of female attention. He was light-hearted and quick with witty comebacks. He drove race cars. He was confident. He had the most flamboyant powers. He was the most independent of the group. He lived in the moment. He was cool. He was everything a four-eyed social outcast verging on adolescence would want to be.

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Tags Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four Three, Marvel Comics

The much-hyped "Fantastic Four" #587 has sold out at Diamond distributors before even officially hitting stands -- leading Marvel Comics to produce a special 2nd Printing with a cover variant by none other than from Marvel Chief Creative Officer Joe Quesada himself! Other recent sold-out offerings from Marvel with 2nd printing variants on the way are "Amazing Spider-Man" #651, "Amazing Spider-Man" #652 and "Invincible Iron Man" #500.

Take your first look at the new cover variants for "Fantastic Four" #587 and "Invincible Iron Man" #500 below, and then read on for more details about these very special issues!

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Tags AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four Three, Human Torch, Invincible Iron Man, Marvel First Looks

Stan Lee exclusively told MTV Geek his reaction to the death of the Human Torch in Fantastic Four #587 "Three" :

“I’m too shook up about it to make a comment,” Stan said with a laugh.

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Discuss this story in our Comics forums! Follow @MTVGeek on Twitter and be sure to "like" us on Facebook for the best geek news about comics, toys, gaming and more!

Tags Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four Three, Human Torch, Marvel Comics, Stan Lee

One of the biggest surprises for me reading the reactions on Twitter regarding the death of the fallen FF member was how many "non-comics" people commented on it. If there is any doubt whether the Fantastic Four are as much a part of the pop-culture landscape as Spider-Man and Iron Man, this is your answer. As for the reactins? They ranged from the heartfelt to the...well...onto the Tweets:

@xerjester: "So. Marvel's killing the Human Torch. I guess he didn't realize... *sunglasses* that this is a no smoking section. YEEEEEEEAAAAAAA-*gunshot*"

@drhastings: "Why is the death of the Human Torch news? Remember the death of Superman, Batman, Robin, Thor, Capt. America, Bucky, Green Goblin, Aunt Ma--"

@JoelBryant: "Is it way too ironic to light a candle for the passing of the Human Torch? ...And was that pun unavoidable?" Read more...

Tags Death of Human Torch, Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four Three, Human Torch

"FLAME OFF!" the press release sent by Marvel Comics screamed, as the mysterious death of a Fantastic Four member was revealed. With issues of Fantastic Four #587 polybagged as to prevent "spoilage," why announce Johnny Storm's death via an early-morning (I'm still in my pajamas writing this) release?

Well, this is the Internet, folks.

Am I shocked at Human Torch biting the bullet? Actually yes, I was pretty sure it would either be a) The Thing or b) everybody but the Human Torch. But killing the youngest member of the FF sends a chilling effect (if you will excuse the pun) through the Marvel Universe...Johnny Storm, in his prime, cut down in the midst of battle. Next to The Thing, probably one of the most popular Fantastic Four members. You don't expect one of the youngest members to die -- he had everything to look forward to in life.

It's a sad day, friends. Yeah, it's comics...but still, kinda sad.

One of the images Marvel sent over is, I would imagine, *the* death scene in question:

Cripes. Not a fun way to go AT ALL.

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Tags Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four Three, Human Torch, Human Torch Dies, Marvel Comics

Getting into a comic book mid-way through its run is hard! So we’ve made it easy for you: in just five short minutes (or less), we’ll get you caught up on a comic book you need to pick up tomorrow… Today! Oh, and in case it wasn’t clear: spoilers on.

This week's issue of the Fantastic Four is the big death issue, in case you’ve been living under a rock, and suddenly decided to come out from under that rock, learned to use the Internet, got interested in comics, and decided you wanted to start with the five-hundred and eighty-seventh issue of Fantastic Four. But hey, if all that’s true – good choice! Jonathan Hickman, who currently holds the reigns of the title, is a writer on the rise, and this is his (so far) seminal mainstream story.

The gist of the book (and seriously, if you’re one of those non-rock people, you may want to skip this paragraph): four friends get sent into space, hit with cosmic rays, and gain fabulous powers. Mr. Fantastic can stretch, The Thing is a super-strong rock monster, The Human Torch can set himself on fire, and The Invisible Woman is a metaphor for racism. JK, you guys, she can turn herself and other things invisible, and create invisible objects with her mind.

Just a few short months after the title launched, and here’s where we are: the team has been drawn in very different directions, all facing grave threats from their past that almost definitely is going to kill one of them. Since we already covered who the basic characters are, here’s what they’re facing:

Mr. Fantastic (Reed Richards) is out in space with Galactus, a giant purple world eater. He has threatened to eat either Nu-World, a synthetic world populated by the human race from hundreds of years in the future, or Earth. Mr. Fantastic chose Nu-World, and now – on the planet currently being munched on – is racing Read more...

Tags Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four Three, Jonathan Hickman, Marvel Comics

Next week, an unprecedented event will happen: one of the members of the Fantastic Four will die. Forever. Never to be brought back. It’s a monumental occurrence in the Marvel Universe, especially as it’s only happened a half dozen or so times prior to this. So before we send one member of Marvel’s first family sailing into the long, dark night, here’s a look back at some of the other times they died:

Mr. Fantastic

While fighting an alien called Hunger, Doctor Doom was seriously injured, or so it seemed. Not wanting to die before he had taken care of his greatest enemy, Doom reached out his armored hand for Reed Richards, seemingly asking for his help. Instead, Doom zapped the both of them, reducing them to piles of ash. Unable to accept that Reed was dead, The Invisible Woman led the team through numerous dangers, until they finally did find Reed. Hyperstorm, the evil alternate universe child of Franklin Richards and Rachel Summers had actually sucked him into the past – because in the Marvel Universe, your children are always evil. Fun fact!

The Invisible Woman

In 2008, Mark Millar launched a storyline in Fantastic Four titled, “The Death of the Invisible Woman.” And it turned out to be completely accurate – though also a little misleading. Reed and Sue hire a nanny named Tabitha Deneuve, who turns out to be Susan Storm from five hundred years in the future. She’s returned to Read more...

Tags Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four Three, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, Mr. Fantastic, Thing

This is the first of a three-part spotlight by blogger/author Sean Kleefeld on next week's "Fantastic Four" #587, the final chapter of the game-changing "3" storyline. After running a Fantastic Four fan site for several years, Kleefeld was named “Comics’ #1 Fan” by Diamond Comic Distributors in 2003 -- and is considered one of the world's biggest Fantastic Four fans and experts.

I first met the Fantastic Four when I was seven or eight. My family was visiting a good friend of my mother’s. I figure I must have been a little on the annoying side as her husband pulled out a few dozen comics to give to me to keep me occupied. They were mostly DC books, and I easily recognized Batman and Superman. But also in the pile were Marvel’s Greatest Comics #91-92, which reprinted Fantastic Four #111-112. It was the first I’d seen or heard of these characters.

The story centered on the Thing, who had recently gained the ability to switch back to his human form at will. This, however, seemed to alter his personality so that he was quite a jerk, and that led him into a fight with the Hulk. The second issue was largely an out-and-out brawl between the two, until the Thing’s girlfriend called out to him at the worst possible moment, allowing the Hulk to land a killing blow. The Thing was pronounced dead on the last page.

“Of all the lousy...! What a gyp,” I thought. “I spent two whole issues getting to know these guys, who were Read more...

Tags Fantastic Four, Fantastic Four 3, Fantastic Four Three, Marvel Comics