TheFantastic Four’s iconic origin was just horrifically rewritten, turningReed Richardsfrom the leader of a beloved superhero family to the broken sole survivor of an experiment gone wrong.Marvel’s new Ultimate Universedepicts a warped version of Marvel’s timeline - one in whichReed Richards has become this reality’s Doctor Doom. Now, fans get to see the horrifying events that led up to his transformation.
InUltimates #4, readers finally get to see Doctor Doom’s past. Reed’s story starts like usual, with him, Susan Storm, her brother Johnny, and Reed’s college friend Ben Grimm stealing an experimental craft after the government rescinds funding for Reed’s maiden voyage. However, in this world, Johnny burns alive and Sue is damaged on the cellular level, killing both the Storm siblings… and they were the lucky ones.
This new timeline was created by the Maker - a super-genius villain with a major grudge against Reed Richards. While fans knew that Reed’s family died, they didn’t know until now exactly how dark things got.
In classic Fantastic Four lore, Reed’s miscalculations exposed his family to cosmic radiation, causing them to develop powers. However, 2020’sFantastic Four #17(from Dan Slott and a variety of artists) revealed that Reed wasn’t actually to blame. The corrupt leader of the alien planet Spyre was actually responsible for thecosmic rays that transformed the Fantastic Four, clearing Reed of the blame.
Each of the Fantastic Four gets an ironic death that references the powers theyshouldhave been given - for example, the Human Torch burns alive.
The Fantastic Four’s Space Voyage Kills Them in New Continuity
Reed Richards Is Destroyed, While the Other Heroes Die Tragically
The Ultimate Universe was created in 2023’sUltimate Invasionby Jonathan Hickman and Bryan Hitch. The series sawthe evil Maker escape Marvel’s main reality(Earth-616), using time travel tech and his knowledge of history to conquer a new dimension (Earth-6160) and rewrite its history to give himself total control of human civilization.The Maker killed many of Marvel’s most iconic heroes, corrupted others, and prevented those remaining from ever gaining their powers. Fans knew from that series that the Fantastic Four were dead and that the Maker used their deaths to break Reed Richards, turning him into a genius servant of the Maker’s regime.
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Now,Ultimates #4shows exactly what Maker did to Reed Richards. Sabotaging the Fantastic Four’s space flight by unknown means, the Maker allowed Reed to think that he was responsible for the deaths of his girlfriend Sue and her brother.The theft of the spacecraft ended up disgracing Ben Grimm, who took his own life, and earned Reed a lifetime in prison. Each of the Fantastic Four gets an ironic death that references the powers theyshouldhave been given - the Human Torch burns alive, the Invisible Woman fades away to illness, the Thing leaps onto rocks that resemble the original’s rocky skin, and Reed’s body is mangled by the Maker, who takes custody of him from the government.
Despairing over his family, Reed is then tortured by the Maker, who uses time travel to extend his pain indefinitely. The Maker methodically breaks down Reed’s identity, deliberately turning him into the new Doctor Doom by telling him that he ‘doomed’ everyone he loves. Of course, Maker knows that Doctor Doomshouldhave been Reed’s nemesis, and forces Reed into the villain’s image as sadistic punishment fortheoriginalReed Richards of Earth-616 imprisoning himearlier in Marvel lore.
While this Doctor Doom may be heroic, his secretive experiments are a threat to the Ultimates' desperate fight for survival.
The Maker Just Humbled Thor Like No Villain Ever Has
As the evil Reed Richards sets about conquering his own reality, the Maker first turns his attention to Asgard, bringing Thor to his knees.
The Maker Secretly Undermined Reed Richards to Break Him
The New Doctor Doom Has a Heartrending Origin
Thankfully, Tony Stark’s father rebelling against the Maker finally freed Reed, and he joined Tony’s Ultimates team as Doctor Doom. However,Ultimates #4makes it clear that he’s been experimenting extensively with time travel in an attempt to change his past. This is something that the Ultimates have sworn off, since going back in time and gifting various superheroes the powers they ‘should’ have gained caused multiple deaths, with heroes likeCaptain Marvel unable to control their powerswithout years of experience.
While the new Doctor Doom is on the side of the angels, fighting to destroy the Maker’s power base, it’s clear that he has his own agenda in trying to rewrite his tragic origin. The issue exposes Doom’s experiments with"Project: Four,“in which he has given four mice the powers of the FF, only for them to degenerate and die. It seems Doom intends to bring back his family and gift them the powers the Maker prevented them from having.
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As much as Doom’s mission is understandable, it’s also a potential problem for the Ultimates. Currently, every month that passes brings them closer to the Maker’s return from his forced exile. There’s no time for Doom to be righting personal wrongs when theUltimates need to build a worldwide coalition of superhumans.While this new Doctor Doom is Reed Richards, that’s no guarantee he’ll stay a hero, and if he has to choose between opposing the Maker and getting his family back, it’s possible he’ll side against Tony.There’s also the dark question of what he might create if his experiments go wrong.
It would make sense for Doctor Doom to replace the Maker as this new Ultimate Universe’s big bad.
The Ultimate Universe Has Always Been Hell for the Fantastic Four
The current Ultimate Universe is actually Marvel’s second imprint by that name, withthe first Ultimate Universe beginning publication in 2000. In that continuity, the Fantastic Four had a similarly dark ride, with the Thing’s trauma over being trapped in rock form being a major focus. However,the story got way darker when Reed Richards (whose brain kept growing as a result of his powers) became an amoral villain, wanting to engage in extreme human experimentation without any limits. That Reed killed his parents, destroyed Asgard, and plunged America into a vicious Civil War as part of his plans.
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Thor’s homeworld Asgard has seen Ragnarok come and go but the Ultimate Asgard met its end at the hands of Reed Richards and his Children of Tomorrow
This Reed’s crimes broke the Fantastic Four as a family, with Invisible Woman and the Thing even entering into a relationship in the aftermath. Having fully rejected his heroic ‘destiny,‘this Reed remade himself as the villainous Maker- thesameMaker who is now the ruler of Earth-6160. The Maker’s hatred for other ‘Reeds’ comes from the fact that he is one of the rare versions of Reed in the multiverse who didn’t become a hero, and his destruction of Doctor Doom’s life and identity is a horrific mix of revenge and self-flagellation. Having broken his own family,the Maker made sure to destroythe Fantastic Four in his new reality, putting extra effort into making this world’s Reed Richards suffer.
So far, Marvel’s new 2023-launched Ultimate Universe has echoed the original in fascinating ways. However, the most interesting is Reed Richards’ transformation into Doctor Doom. That’s because the character he’s echoing isn’t just an old variant from a 2000s-era comic - he’s the main villain of Marvel’s entire new Ultimate line, who personally destroyed his life and legacy. It’s fascinating to see a broken heroic Reed in Doctor Doom go up againsta broken villainous Reed in the Maker, as two super-geniuses go to war in a clash that redefines what it even means tobe’Reed Richards.’
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Sadly, just because he opposes the Maker doesn’t make Doctor Doom the ‘good’ Reed. After what was done to him, he’s severely traumatized and more focused on getting a second chance at the past than working towards a better future. Hopefully,Reed’s heroism is intact and he can remain on the side of the angels, but fans shouldn’t be surprised to see his desire to save theFantastic Fourcorrupt him, and it’s even possible he could replace the Maker as the Ultimate Universe’s big bad at some time in the future.
Fantastic Four
TheFantastic Fouris a superhero franchise centered on Marvel Comics' first family of superheroes. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the team made its comic book debut in 1961 and quickly became a cornerstone of Marvel’s success. The franchise follows four astronauts—Reed Richards, Susan Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm—who gain superpowers after being exposed to cosmic radiation. Over the years,Fantastic Fourhas been adapted into several live-action films, animated series, and video games. The films have seen multiple reboots, with varying levels of success, and are now set to be integrated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), with a new film slated for release in 2025.
