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Wow, I needed this issue of FF so badly. This restores my faith in the early FF. For about eight issues I'd been kind of bored by the series. Without going back and reviewing, I'd say this is my favorite FF issue since 12-14. I'd have to reread 14 to see if I like it better than this. Maybe this is my favorite since 9, 10, and 14, and probably better than those. I'm just so glad to read such a good FF story again. At least now I know I'm not crazy. I was starting to think that I was just not an "early FF guy", and I wondered what everyone else was seeing that I wasn't. But now I think that there are just legitimately lesser and pronouncedly better issues. To get FF 23 only a "week" after Avengers 3 is a real treat. Just can't say enough about how great it is to be enjoying the FF again. (And with 25-26 around the corner, this is making for a wonderful little mini-run.)

Part of what makes this story so good is Doom, but actually that's only one small part of it for me, namely the final two pages. Well, that's a lie I guess. The cover is fantastic. I love this cover. First of all, I wish it was clearer to me who the inkers are for the covers in all the Masterworks. Should I assume that whoever inked the interior of each issue also inked the cover in each and every case? The credits (before the Table of Contents) don't specifiy who drew and inked the covers, so maybe I'm supposed to know that the covers are always by the same two artists responsible for the interior.

Anyway, Kirby (and Roussos?) did a really stellar job on Doom's face on this cover. Superb. The eyes, and the nose and mouth, have rarely been so good. It's the best FF cover in my opinion since FF 16 (Doom again). It's not like I'm some huge Doom fan, but he is the best FF villian so far obviously, and I guess it's just coincidence that I think 16 and 23 are the best covers so far in V2 and V3. It's because of the facial expression they're giving Doom on these covers. His eyes and his mouth are just so well done. And 23 has the bonus of one of the best Thing faces I've seen. Very good comedy mixed with suspense and drama, and all without a word of dialogue! Just look at Thing's expression. It took me a few seconds of actually studying the cover to see what the danger was for the FF in that room, and once I saw it, I was blown away. This is one cool cover. Can't get over it. It's also somewhat akin to the cover of FF 5, Doom's first appearance. I don't know if this was a conscious move on Kirby's part or not. But both covers from 5 and 23 show Doom manipulating controls and watching the FF about to perish in a holding cell. The biggest differences are where Doom and the FF are positioned on the cover and also the perspective, i.e. this time the reader is in the same room as Doom whereas on the cover of 5 we were with the FF. Doom's expression is much better this time around. I don't think there's any contest between the two covers, this one is way better, because of Doom's expression, the nature of the danger, the lack of dialogue, and the colors. I just love it. Oh did I mention that Reed and Sue are clutching each other??

I'm even having trouble deciding which issue I like better, 5 or 23. 5 has so much to recommend it - betrayal by Ben, the Sinnott inks, the entire pirate sequences, the arrival and origin of Doom. But aside from the betrayal by Ben, #23 has much more enjoyable interactions and dialogue for the FF, and a more memorable danger.

Hmm, I seem to have neglected to include the Annual in my comparisons above. The Annual was the best FF story I'd read since 14. The Annual is probably better than 23, but not by a really huge margin.

This was the first time in a good long while that I wasn't bored silly by the "jokes" and the fights between Thing and Torch.

Someone mentioned earlier in the Marathon that the FF left Doom's functioning time machine in Doom's castle at the end of the Rama-Tut affair in 19. (That was the only non-Annual issue that did much for me in between 14 and 23, although the Thinker had his moments early on.) So it's nice to see Stan tie up what could have been considered a loose thread. It makes for a good attention-getter on the splash, and a good way to start the storyline of "Reed vs. the other three".

Before I get into that, I do want to say that I'm getting a little fed up with the inconsistencies of Johnny's powers. The water from a potted plant douses his entire flame?? Moving on...

Reed: "It's too bad that my so-called partners don't work as well as Doom's machine! Can't you do anything right??...You were too busy with your childish bickering. In case it's slipped your alleged minds, the work we do here means something!...Am I the only one who takes his job seriously around here?"

I'm with Reed here. Sometimes it seems like Ben is not even a grown man. I guess he just has too much pent-up energy from the Thing power he hardly ever gets to use. But he acts like another teenager. I love Reed's phrase "alleged minds".

Ben: "Listen, skinny! I always thought you were a stuffed shirt, and now I'm sure of it! But I'm not takin' that kind of talk from you!"

Reed: "Stop flapping your lips, and get back to work, Ben...and all of you!"

I like this. Some may feel that Reed is unnecessarily brusque or rude, but I think he puts up with a lot from a supposed adult like Ben. I'm kind of glad to see Reed give Ben a dressing down. But on the other hand, they are all friends, so I can also see that maybe Reed shouldn't sound quite so authoritarian.

Ben: "Mister, that does it! I say it's time we elected a new leader! Hey, listen when I talk to ya!"

What's hysterical here is not only that the rest of the FF think they could lead the team and tell Reed the best course of action, but that Ben tells Reed to listen while Reed just goes back to his machine and basically ignores them. It's classic. Never have I seen Reed give them the brush-off like this. He really sharpens his sentiments by completely ignoring their protestations and not even looking at them. I'd like to see this scene adapted somehow for the third FF film.

Sue: "I can't let my personal feelings for you affect a decision like this, Reed! I agree with the boys!"

Really, I'm laughing.

Wonderful pacing here. S&K pick a great time for a scene shift, a two-page introduction of Doom and his Master Plan to the story. And when the FF are seen again, everyone but Reed is gathered to vote on a new leader. This implies that Reed never did look up from his machine again. Just classic. Now for some truly hilarious dialogue and characterization:

Ben: "We each wrote the name of the one we think should be the new boss of the FF! So let's see who's elected and why I was!" What a great great line! Then they each reveal that they all voted for themselves. This is really too much. It's so funny. Not only the action itself, but the way Kirby presents it. The panel shows all three hands showing all three slips of paper and their writing. Something about that makes it even funnier. Especially Thing writing, "THING".

Ben: "I accept the job with my usual heart-warmin' modesty!"

Ben: "What's your favorite hospital?" Now that is a great line. In my opinion Stan was really really on his game this month. Much funnier than the usual FF banter.

Reed: "Look at the three would-be leaders of the FF!...you two clowns..."

Johnny: "We both let our tempers get the best of us!"

Ben: "Everyone knows I never lose my temper!"

Reed: "If you think I like being the leader of a group of temperamental primadonnas, you're crazy! But someone's got to do it, and I'm the only one who can stand you!...If anyone wants to quit, you know where the door is!"

I mean, you go, Reed. You just go. Reed is awesome here. He's really coming into his own. I remember in the very early issuse where he hardly had any personality. S&K have really honed him and given him a backbone.

Look at Sue's expression while Reed says all this. A great illo of her. Eyes closed in frustration, hands on ears, nice hairdo and dress.

Well it was four issues since Thing had changed back to human Ben. I really did forget how often that happened in these early issues. I wonder if Doom now has the ability to force Thing to change anytime he cares to whip out the cosmic-beam gun. Why doesn't he use it later in the story? I'd like to hear in a future story that this was a one-of-a-kind prototype lost in the solar wave, or else craft a whole new story around its use and have it destroyed. This gun is the equivalent of Banner's gamma ray machine.

A wonderful page of interaction and characterization for Reed and Sue on pg14.

Sue: "I'll thank you not to call me 'dear', Mister Richards! I'm still angry with you!"

I have to laugh. OK, you go be mad, little girl.

Reed: "Just like a woman!! Everything I do is for your own good , but you're too scatterbrained and emotional to realize it!"

Sue: "Oh, go polish a test tube or something!" What a great line. And look at her pose while she says that - haughty, disinterested, aloof. Turning away with her eyelids drooping. "That man! I know he's right...and that's why I'm angry! If only he understood females better!" More than any love scene between Reed and Sue (as if there have even been any), this is the best scene I've seen for the two of them in the whole series. Real human dynamics. Great to see them fighting, if only because it makes them seem so real. And it adds to the depth of the relationship and romance. I don't usually expect Reed to chance losing Sue by telling her off so demonstratively, and I wouldn't have been surprised to see Sue bring the Namor picture out of the drawer. Anyway, nice poses and illos of her in both bottom panels of pg14.

I think that Stan's dialogue and characterizations moved up a notch this month in FF, X-Men, and Avengers.

A nice moment when Sue gives Reed a mental acknowledgement and we see that she took his advice even while mad at him. This speaks well of Sue, she's more mature than the preceding page made her out to be. "Lucky Reed warned me to be on guard! I held my breath while holding the flowers..."

I mean it's already page 16. It's pretty rare for me to not even be paying attention to page numbers like I was in the previous eight non-Annual FF issues (like watching the clock), and to suddenly notice that I'm two-thirds into the story.

A dramatic plot development now as Reed is fooled by a Doom robot. We get so used to Doom robots that we can hardly blame Reed, but on the other hand, it's his declared job to know Doom's abilities, and the Doom robots are one of his most obvious talents. But how is Reed supposed to always and everywhere check for Doom robots? Maybe he should build a device they can all wear that beeps when not detecting lifesigns from the humanoid form in front of them.

Doom: "Too bad you forgot...I'm a master robot designer! But, that one oversight will cost you...your very life!"

One thing I don't understand is why does Doom enter the FF's room again on pg18? Why didn't he just activate the solar wave already?

Ben: "Some crummy way to treat a guest!"

On pg 20, panels 4 and 5, we see evidence that the Thing hit Doom and knocked him off his feet. It's a cool two-panel sequence, because we don't actually see the blow, but we're led to infer it, because suddenly Thing is in the panel and Doom's feet are perpendicular to the floor. Cool stuff.

Now comes the resolution of the argument from the story's beginning, as we all knew it would:

Reed: "Some leader I'm turning out to be! If not for you three..."

Johnny: "Skip it, Reed! From where I sit, we all need each other!"

Sue: "Reed, darling...I was so worried!"

(If Reed was the sarcastic or vindictive type, he could say, "I'll thank you to not call me 'darling', Miss Storm!")

Kind of a good moment at top of pg21 when Doom lands a good one on Ben.

So now...the solar wave from that great cover.

"The floor is dissolving! And you can see outer space outside!...Space is closin' in on us!!" We get about four really really good illustrations of this. It almost reminds me of a Doctor Strange illo. I love these four panels, Kirby did a pretty nice job with it, the ragged edge of the room getting closer and closer to the FF. I like the visual effect of the stars and planets in the same panel as the walls and floor of the room. The best panels are when Doom has one leg in and one leg out, and the one at the bottom of the last page where there is only a little section of wall left and Thing is dangling in outer space. It's a great visual and concept to imagine for real in your mind's eye, and I also like how the room rapidly dwindles and disappears just as the story does the same. The room and the story run out at just about the same time, like they're both squeezed out of existence by the page itself.

Sue saves the day yet again (is this getting to be a habit?) by trapping Doom, knowing that if there's any chance of escape, Doom will now be forced to show them.

Doom: "The world must not lose a magnificent brain like mine!...Keep away, you brainless gargoyle!...Hellllllp..."

Yet another classic "death" for Doom to escape from. This is one of the most entertaining features of the series. This one was a doozy right up there with #6, #10, and also Puppet Master in #14.

Maybe it was just because I liked the script so much, but Roussos seemed to do a better job in this issue, not making the inking so noticeable in a bad way.

I'll be able to read 2 or 3 slightly boring FF issues now, just because I have this one to look back on, like a satisfying meal. So 24 and 27 and 28 can all be duds for all I care.

I think we can thank the Wasp for actually defeating the villain (first I thought he pinched the Black Knight's butt, but then I realized that she pinched the horse

on page 16, for example. Look at the way Giant-Man's body turns! It's just impossible

The past few months the Comics has had a "can you identify Ditko's planted character and appearances" contest in the letters section. It has not concluded yet, but when it does it should clearly identify Osborne as the Green Goblin.

Something that struck me this month was, from the moment Doc Ock went insane and became a super-villain, Stan Lee never brought it up again. Before his identity was revealed, there was no hint (if you don't count that costume) that The Green Goblin was insane-- in the Ditko stories he always struck me as a clever, scheming, ambitious would-be mob boss. I wonder if, once Ditko left, Stan got his villain's states-of-minds confused?

Reminds me of Peter Cushing's "explaining" why the TARDIS is bigger on the inside than the outside in the movie DALEKS' INVASION EARTH: 2150 A.D. Total gibberish!

Is there something funny with perspective where Johnny and Sue are?