by: Brandon Pope
ave you ever taken a bite of a beautifully decorated cake, only to find it underbaked? All the right ingredients are there, the flavor is promising — but it needed just a little more time in the oven. That’s exactly what Fantastic Four: First Steps feels like. – an entertaining and visually impressive film that easily clears the low bar of previous F4 adaptations, but feels rushed from poor pacing, with underdeveloped character arcs when considering the source material.
This isn’t just another superhero flick – It’s a monumental and high stakes cinematic moment for Marvel Studios, reviving the “First Family” IP after regaining the rights from Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox. The Fantastic Four were pivotal to Marvel’s success as a comic company in the 1960’s. Back then, you could argue F4 saved the brand, challenging DC’s comic sales dominance.
Fast forward to 2025, and the superhero team is once again being depended on to carry the Marvel brand forward- this time not in print, but on screen. After losing critic and audience trust from a string of middle of the road entries in their cinematic universe, the F4 are expected to lead the next Avengers team-up, Doomsday, titled after the group’s arch-nemesis, Dr. Doom. Robert Downey Jr. will play the iconic villain, but has yet to be introduced despite the fast-approaching Winter 2026 release date.
That weight is hard to ignore when watching First Steps, with the urgency of the moment bleeding through for better and for worse. Though it succeeds in giving viewers a retro futuristic superhero tale unlike anything they’ve seen before, it whizzes by core themes and character dynamics from the comics that would have had more time to mature and grow without a major team up looming. Plus, there’s a major elephant *not* in the room that feels like a strategic misstep (no spoilers here).