Fantastic Four #240 — Nick Peron

Jan 5

Jan 5 Fantastic Four #240

Exodus

IMG 2020 20 01 05 06 04 56 pccs9.png — Credits

Quicksilver speed through New York City on a direct route to the Baxter Building, headquarters of the Fantastic Four. He enters the building as the Thing is busy hiding Franklin's Christmas gifts. Because it is dark, and because he does not recognize the Thing in his new form, he mistakes him for an intruder and attacks. The sound of battle attracts the Human Torch and his girlfriend Frankie Raye who try to subdue the speeding blur that is in their headquarters. Realizing who it is, Johnny stops Frankie from make a fatal error and killing Quicksilver with her flame powers. Still not realizing who it is, Ben is still trying to subdue Pietro, but he zips out of the away. Sue enters the room and tries to halt him with an invisible force field, but Reed steps in and shield's Pietro with his body. When everyone realizes who has come to their headquarters, the hostilities stop instantly. Quicksilver is surprised to see the transformation the Thing has undergone and is introduced to the Fantastic Four's new trainee, Frankie Raye.

With the introductions out of the way the Fantastic Four and Pietro get down to the matter at hand. Quicksilver explains that Attilan is in a deadly conflict and that it's people are dying from some strange illness. He explains that one day while they were out picking flowers, Crystal and Medusa were attacked by members of the Enclave. Soon after Crystal returned home to warn them the Enclave launched their full scale assault on Attilan. During the course of the battle the royal family learned that they were betrayed by Maximus. He finishes his tale by saying that the Inhumans began falling ill to some strange plague, which prompted him to see out the Fantastic Four for help. When Johnny berates Quicksilver for not using Lockjaw to get to them sooner, Pietro explains that the loyal dog would not leave Crystal's side until he could assure the Fantastic Four's aid. When Reed pledges the Fantastic Four's aid, Quicksilver activates a device that summons Lockjaw. Before departing, the Fantastic Four tell Frankie that this is a private matter and that she is to stay behind and teleport away. With nothing to do, Frankie checks on Franklin and finds him sleeping quietly then goes to the nearest phone to call her roommate.

Thousands of miles away, the Fantastic Four and Quicksilver materialize in the center of Attilan and the group is shocked by the level of destruction that has affected the kingdom. They are soon greeted by Medusa and Gorgon who informs them that the battle with the Enclave is now over and the battle won from the unlikeliest of corners: from Maximus himself, who seemingly sacrificed himself to save the Inhumans. The Fantastic Four are then taken to the great hall where Black Bolt has been expending his weakening energies to try and fight off the plague affecting his people, at the point of exhaustion Black Bolt faints when Reed checks to see how he is doing. Reed gets to work immediately trying to isolate the problem and determines that the illness affecting the Inhumans is the same that affected Crystal years earlier during her time with the Fantastic Four: pollution from the outside world. With no clean air left on Earth, Reed is at an impasse as to what to do, telling them that he can develop a drug to help them ward off the effects, but does not feel right making the Inhumans chemically dependent for their survival. When brainstorming on a solution, Medusa and Karnak mention how the Great Refuge was moved once before in the past. When it's obvious that there is nowhere on Earth they can stay, Reed suddenly has the solution to their problem: The Blue Area of the Moon.

Those who are still able-bodied begin working together to lift Attilan from its foundation and relocate it to the moon. With Reed and Black Bolt working on the anti-gravity generators and sealing up the city, Ben and Sue prepare a path of travel. After Karnak and Gorgon work together to crack the foundation around the Great Refuge. With only one task remaining, Black Bolt silently enters the tunnels of the Alpha Primitives, who have been faced with starvation and death since they were freed from the Inhuman's slavery and offers them a chance to join them in the stars. The Primitives grudgingly agree and Black Bolt then uses his voice to destroy the base of the mountain surrounding Attilan so the city can take off for the stars. Before joining his kingdom, Black Bolt then uses his powers to leave a marker commemorating Maximus for his sacrifice.

As Attilan flies over the Earth, its passage is detected by a SHIELD satellite. Aboard are Nick Fury and Dum Dum Dugan. They don't know what to make of the strange craft, but their attention are soon diverted to some strange energy readings coming out of Africa. As Uatu the Watcher looks on, Attilan makes its final descent onto the Blue Area of the Moon, where it's pure artificial atmosphere will be safe for the Inhumans to breath. As Attilan lands on the surface, it buries the spot where the Phoenix sacrificed her life to save the universe. Not long after the Inhumans touch down on their new home, Crystal goes into labor. Reed assists in the birth and Crystal gives birth to a healthy baby girl who, much to the surprise of everyone, is a totally normal human being.

Recurring Characters

Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Girl, Human Torch, Thing), Quicksilver, Frankie Raye, Inhumans (Black Bolt, Medusa, Triton, Gorgon, Karnak, Lockjaw, Luna), Watcher, Enclave, Maximus, HUBERT, Franklin Richards, SHIELD (Nick Fury, Dum Dum Dugan)

Continuity Notes

References to Pietro Maximoff being a mutant here are false as revealed in Uncanny Avengers (vol 2) #4-5. Unknown to all at the time of this story -- including Pietro himself -- he was actually a normal human genetically altered by the High Evolutionary. The Evolutionary made it so that Pietro would always register as a mutant in order to cover up his work.

This is the first time Pietro has seen the Thing since he was reverted to an earlier form in Fantastic Four #238. This is also the first time he has met Frankie Raye since she unofficially joined the Fantastic Four, also in that same issue.

Frankie confuses Pietro as a member of the X-Men instead of recognizing him as a member of the Avengers. Pietro quips that his relationship with the X-Men was less friendly. Some facts about that:
- Pietro was a founding member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants starting in X-Men #4, and they regularly clashed with the X-Men, their polar opposites.
- Pietro eventually attempted to reform and joined the Avengers back in Avengers #16. At the time of this story, Pietro was bumped from the Avengers active roster by their government liaison Peter Gyrich in Avengers #181. Although he remained with the team unofficially from Avengers #182-188 before returning to Attilan to be with his pregnant wife.

The flashbacks involving the attack on Attilan by the Enclave and Maximus was an effort to clear up the plot hole left when the Enclave kidnapped Medusa in Fantastic Four #207. This invasion plot was expanded upon in Avengers Annual #12. Although it is implied that Maximus had died here, Avengers Annual #12 states that he merely went into a death-like coma.

Johnny once again thinks about his former romance with Crystal. The couple dated between Fantastic Four #66-105 when she was forced to return to Attilan. She subsequently met Quicksilver in Fantastic Four #131 and the couple got married in Fantastic Four #150.

The illness the Inhumans are experiencing is caused by their vulnerability to pollution. This vulnerability was first discovered in Fantastic Four #10 when Crystal was stricken by the illness from being in the outside world too long.

The Inhumans mention that they moved Attilan from the Atlantic Ocean decades ago, as depicted in What If? #30. What they don't mention is that they were helped by the Eternals.

The narrative of this story mentions how the Alpha Primitives were made free by the Inhumans and this attempt proved to be a failure. The Inhumans released the Alphas from their bondage in Fantastic Four #132.

The reason why Black Bolt writes his tribute to Maximus in Kree is that the Kree were responsible for the genetic experiments that created the Inhumans, as first identified in Thor #147.

Dum Dum Dugan's appearance here is a complicated one. As revealed in Original Sins #5 Dugan was seemingly killed in action back in 1966 and it was suggested that he was replaced by a complex LMD that thought it was Dugan. However as revealed in New Avengers (vol 4) #17, Dugan's body was kept alive and his mind was transmitted into LMDs.

The narrative of the story references the fact that the Blue Area of the Moon was first seen in Fantastic Four #13. Avengers #133-134 reveals that the Blue Area of the Moon was constructed 10 million years ago by the alien race known as the Kree when they were in competition with the Cotati to construct a city that could please the Skrulls who were looking to ally themselves with whoever won the contest. When the Cotati won, the Kree slew both the Cotati and the Skrulls on the moon, launching the opening salvo of the centuries-long Kree-Skrull War. The Blue Area was abandoned not long thereafter.