I have never loved the Fantastic Four. I am a Marvel fanboy, so I have followed the FF over years and enjoyed the Ben Grimm quips, the cosmic-level fighting, and the myriad appearances of Dr. Doom, but my heart was always with the X-Men, Avengers, and Captain America.

Imagine my surprise, then, at how this book scratched my itch. I have recently come to the belief that comics are an especially good way to represent alternate and multiple realities, as books lack the visual imprint needed, and movies are too locked in reality to teach us much about the surreality of alternate universes. Hickman has taken a thread left from last year's FF, in which Reed reveals his "idea #101" - solve everything. As he ponders how to do this, he is visited by the Reeds of the multiverse, including those with powers of the Invisible Woman and Human Torch. By the end of the book, he is brought to the ultimate out-of-continuity elseworld - the "council" populated by even more alter-Reeds. Talk about scratching a sci-fi itch! This ain't your typical Hickman, and I don't know whether it will lead to a brilliant conclusion, but man is it a great start.

With regards to Eaglesham's art, I must confess that I am a big fan. I thought that he was by far the best artist in Geoff Johns' recent Justice Society run. The shift to FF is interesting. I love Eaglesham's Thing, and I like his Invisible Woman. The Torch is solid, and the coloring supports the look. If I have one complaint, and it is a minor one, it is that Reed suffers from what is known to be Eaglesham's tendency to draw all of his males in an overgrown fashion, as though they all share (alleged) steroids with Albert Pujolz and Barry Bonds. Somehow, this isn't so bothersome, as Reed's face is drawn very well.

Overall, a fantastic opener to what looks like it will be a terrific run. My POW in what I think was the best week in comics this year.