Fantastic Four #5
Fantastic Four (Vol. 3) #5 serves as the creative handoff issue that formally closes out the Heroes Return transitional period and plants the seeds for Chris Claremont's long run on the relaunched title. It delivers the first introduction of Alyssa Moy — Reed Richards's brilliant former flame who would remain a recurring presence in the Claremont era — and introduces the villain Crucible, whose theft of Reed's intellect becomes a slow-burning multi-issue plot thread reaching well into the following year. The issue also marks the last instance of Scott Lobdell sharing co-writing credit, making it the precise seam where the Lobdell/Alan Davis era gives way, in full, to the Claremont/Larroca partnership that would define the book through issue #32.
In "Broken Reed," Reed Richards and Ben Grimm journey to Stockholm for a physics symposium alongside Reed's friend Alyssa Moy, only to face the sudden arrival of the enigmatic Crucible. As the attacker begins to mimic Doctor Doom’s appearance, Reed's intellect is mysteriously siphoned—leaving him vulnerable in ways he never expected. Written by Scott Lobdell and Chris Claremont, with dynamic art by Salvador Larroca and inks by Art Thibert, this 1998 issue delivers a gripping psychological twist on the team’s most brilliant mind. The cover, penciled by Larroca and inked by Thibert, captures the tension with striking precision.
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Following the controversial Heroes Reborn experiment — during which Marvel temporarily outsourced Fantastic Four to Jim Lee's WildStorm studio — the series relaunched in January 1998 (Vol. 3 #1) under writer Scott Lobdell and penciller Alan Davis as part of the 'Heroes Return' initiative. That opening creative team lasted only three issues before Chris Claremont, who had returned to Marvel in a senior editorial-creative capacity, took over scripting duties beginning with issue #4, co-writing with Lobdell on issues #4 and #5 from Lobdell's pre-existing plots. Issue #5 therefore reflects an abrupt behind-the-scenes transition; Lobdell had publicly stated intentions to remain on the title far longer, but Claremont — long associated with the X-Men — arrived on the book unexpectedly and shaped its direction for nearly three years alongside penciller Salvador Larroca and inker Art Thibert.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Published May 1998 by Marvel Comics; part of Fantastic Four Vol. 3 (the 'Heroes Return' relaunch series).
- Story titled 'Broken Reed'; plot by Scott Lobdell, script by Chris Claremont — the second and final issue co-credited to both writers.
- Art team: pencils by Salvador Larroca, inks by Art Thibert, colors by Liquid!, letters by Richard Starkings and Albert Deschesne; editor Mark Powers, editor-in-chief Bob Harras.
- First introduction (intro and origin) of Alyssa Moy, Reed Richards's former romantic partner and fellow scientific genius, who becomes a supporting character throughout the Claremont run.
- First full appearance of the villain Crucible (secretly Wladyslav Shinski), who attacks Reed and Ben at the Cosmic Ray's Symposium in Stockholm, Sweden, and steals Reed's rationality and mental capabilities — a plot thread with consequences across multiple subsequent issues.
- Reed notices a physical resemblance between Crucible and Doctor Doom, foreshadowing the Doom-centric storylines that dominate Claremont's later issues.
- The Genoshan Freedom Brigade and the Warwolves appear behind the scenes, tying into the X-Men-adjacent storylines Claremont wove into the FF's world.
- Reprinted in Fantastic Four: Heroes Return – The Complete Collection Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2019), collecting Fantastic Four (1998) #1–15, ½, and Annual '98.
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Reprinted in Fantastic Four #5 (1999), Fantastic Four: Heroes Return - The Complete Collection #1 (2019)
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