Where we last left off, Ben Grimm/Thing and Johnny Storm/Human Torch encountered Victor Von Doom as they battled the Mole Man and his monsters on Monster Island and in private, Doom as left Thing with the Multisect, a device that will allow the ability to travel through the multiverse. However, Johnny has been losing his powers and they now have to get answers as to what’s happening.

While not exactly the resurrection of Fantastic Four fans have been clamoring for, Marvel Two-In-One is the start of something akin to that with Ben Grimm/Thing and Johnny Storm/Human Torch being the main leads of the book all the while using a past Marvel title which could count as a revival. And who better than to write these characters than Chip Zdarsky? And there is a reason he is among Marvel’s MVP of writers as of late.

From the first issue to Marvel Two-In-One #3, Zdarsky has a clear grasp on character, emotion and action. He also excels at humor excellently as well (see his Howard the Duck run for example) but I digress. He not only understands these characters but really develops them and make them more humor especially given Ben lied to Johnny that Reed and Sue could be still alive and yet, they’re going on a multiverse journey anyway which does make for a solid storytelling engine because of the dramatics it’d bring.

For this issue however, Hercules not only guest stars but a character from a previous issue appears in a major role, Rachna Koul via Hercules. And I got to say, Zdarsky really delivers when it comes to writing the dialogue for Hercules. It’s crazy spot on to a T while adding his unique touches such as how he deals with whatever Zeus says to him and the best part? That’s no doubt a callback to an issue of Secret Warriors. They don’t share the same writer but I’m sure a lot of writers in the Marvel offices share their stories with each other so I don’t doubt Zdarsky got wind of what Matthew Rosenberg wrote concerning that issue’s brief mention of Hercules.

Rachna Koul is also interesting of herself. You know the quote in Thor where it’s said that magic is a science people don’t understand? That’s kind of what happens here as she explains every single thing as to how even Hercules’s abilities work. It’s bizarre but also fascinating as to what Zdarsky even wrote. And it’s interesting to see what she has to say about superheroes with her main problem being they act better than everyone…yet she claims to be better than everyone else because of her own intelligence especially given how she managed to fight off a particular villain. All that and she’s very to read with her snarkiness and don’t care attitude and all.

Zdarsky does put in plenty of intrigue as well given the issue bookends itself with the presence of Victor Von Doom (or Iron Doom as I refer to him as) and the Mad Thinker. I can see why Zdarsky loves writing Doom. He gets Doom, he honestly does even when he’s in Iron Man armor. It’s just delightful to read, I can’t explain it. And the cliffhanger certainly has an interesting setup for things to come as to what could happen next in issue 4. And it kind of plays off like as if Zdarsky understands horror too, which, I’d be up for.

Zdarsky always knows how to tell a good story-even in his comedic ones and understands characters and can write in fun action scenes. The art by Valerio Schiti certainly helps matters especially when it came to the scenes with Doom and Mad Thinker. Plenty of shadows that give Doom a menacing look to him especially when there’s green glow surrounding him-having him look like a figure of death to creepy effect, same goes for the last couple of pages. And the rest, well staged and no doubt elevated what Zdarsky wrote. Again, another Marvel book where writer and artist are clearly in sync with each other.

And I should mention, this is a two page “end credits” kind of thing that humorously serves as an amusing punchline to a particular action beat.

If you’ve been enjoying Marvel Two-in-One, the book is still going strong and I recommend it to even people whoa aren’t fans of the Fantastic Four. If this is your jam, check it out!

 

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review