Fantastic Four #45
Fantastic Four #45 (December 1965) is the issue that introduced the Inhuman Royal Family to Marvel continuity — delivering first appearances of Black Bolt, Crystal, Karnak, Triton, and Lockjaw all in a single story, while also giving pre-existing characters Medusa and Gorgon their first context as Inhumans rather than mere Frightful Four mercenaries. The premise — a genetically altered hidden civilization secretly living among humanity — opened a storytelling avenue entirely distinct from the mutant metaphor running through X-Men at the same time, giving Marvel a second framework for exploring the outsider experience. The romance between Johnny Storm and Crystal, seeded here, became one of Silver Age Marvel's most consequential relationships and drove Inhuman stories for years. As the launch point of a mythology that eventually sustained its own ongoing series, backup features in Thor, and a live-action television adaptation, this issue marks one of the most creatively productive single issues of the Lee-Kirby run.
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Marvel in 1965 was barred by distribution agreements from expanding its line with new titles, so editor Stan Lee and Jack Kirby embedded the Inhumans — originally conceived as a standalone concept — directly into the pages of Fantastic Four rather than launching a dedicated book. Medusa had been introduced without explanation as a Frightful Four villain in FF #36 (March 1965), and Gorgon had appeared one issue earlier in #44; FF #45 was the payoff issue that retroactively unified those appearances into a coherent civilization and royal family. The issue fell during what comics historian Mark Alexander identified as the 'Cosmic Era' of the Lee-Kirby run (roughly issues #44–67), a period aided by Joe Sinnott's inking and a reduced Kirby workload, which together produced some of the most visually ambitious pages of the collaboration. In a radio interview quoted in later scholarship, Kirby indicated it was he who drove the visual design of the Inhumans, describing his deliberate choices for each character's costume.
Trivia · 7 facts
- Title of story: 'Among Us Hide…the Inhumans!' — written by Stan Lee, pencilled by Jack Kirby, inked by Joe Sinnott, lettered by Artie Simek; cover date December 1965, on-sale September 1965.
- First appearances (confirmed across Marvel Database, GCD, Key Collector, and Wikipedia): Crystal (Crystalia Amaquelin), Black Bolt (Blackagar Boltagon), Karnak, Triton, and Lockjaw — all debut in this issue.
- First team appearance of the Inhumans as a named group; Medusa (first appeared FF #36) and Gorgon (first appeared FF #44) are present but are not new characters.
- The issue also features returning antagonists Sandman (Flint Marko) and the Trapster (Peter Petruski), as well as a continued subplot involving Dragon Man at the Baxter Building.
- This issue marks the end of Johnny Storm's long-running relationship with Doris Evans, which had begun in Strange Tales #113; Crystal effectively replaces her as Johnny's love interest going forward.
- The Inhumans' concept — that they are an offshoot of humanity genetically altered by the alien Kree — was not established in this issue but was retroactively explained in Thor #147 and Inhumans #3.
- The issue has been reprinted extensively, including in the Fantastic Four Omnibus Vol. 2 (2007), Marvel Masterworks: The Fantastic Four Vol. 5 (2010), Fantastic Four Epic Collection Vol. 3 (2018), and the dedicated Inhumans: The Origin of the Inhumans collection (2013).
Cast · 23 characters
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Full plot ⚠ may contain spoilers
▸ Reveal full plot — may contain spoilers
Crystal lures Johnny into a trap where he is captured by the Inhumans. The rest of the FF hurry to his rescue.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).