[Silver Surfer escapes in the distance] “Johnny!”

[Johnny, caressing his tuxedo] “But this is Dolce . . .”

We’re getting closer and closer to the upcoming release of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, which comes out on July 25th! Marvel fans all over are anticipating the newest adaption of some of comics beloved characters, Reed Richards, Ben Grimm, Sue Storm, and Johnny Storm. How these heroes will fit into Marvel’s modern-day MCU, and into the subsequent release of Avengers: Doomsday is anyone’s theory. As we inch closer to finding these answers, this author wanted to take another look back into the screen adaptations we do have of the Fantastic Four, more specifically, of the 2007 film Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.

As a fan of Marvel and someone who was very invested in going to the premiere of every movie in the theatres, it may come as a shock that I had never ventured into watching the original Fantastic Four series . . . until recently. My previous article on the Fantastic Four was my reaction and celebration of the 2005 film, Fantastic Four. To sum it up—I liked it! I thought it was a pretty light hearted, fun, and good movie that was a way to introduce the world to these characters on the big screen. Overall, it got my thumbs up. Now, we’re going to put Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer to the same test

GOING ONCE, . . . GOING TWICE . . .

We all know that sometimes in the movie industry, the sequel just can’t live up to the original. It’s a tough thing, and we see it often in movies, books, shows; it’s just hard to live up to expectations when the original is just the best. Of course, there are some exceptions where a sequel is better than the original—think The Empire Strikes Back, The Dark Knight, and Paddington 2. It’s rare though, that audiences find a sequel to be their favorite in a series. An original is so hard to live up to because it’s a first introduction. It’s where we meet our characters and think, hello, nice to meet you. What are you bringing to the table today? I like you and your story.

A sequel is where ante has to be upped, because as an audience, we’re already familiar with the story. So, how do we up the ante? We know the characters, the plots, the good guys and the bad guys. Now audiences are thinking, hello again. Wait, what happened now? And who are the new guys? What more could there be to tell? The ideas that are introduced in a sequel not only have to be more exciting than what was present in the original, but they also need to have continuity.

Meaning, that these new concepts have to align with what we saw in the first story. A lot of the time, this is where problems arise in sequels in all variations of literature. Sequels also run into the issue of telling the same story we’ve already seen, just with another problem. Just because the conflict is now put into a different scale, doesn’t really make the story any different, and the audience can tell.

On top of all this, making a sequel for a superhero movie—yeah, that’s tough. Superhero movies have been around for a long time, and whether they’re being based on comic stories, or not, doesn’t change the fact that they can feel repetitive. It’s the hero’s journey; we’ve seen it before, and we’ll be seeing it time and time again. Luckily, for 2007, superhero movies were kind of new to the game. The 2010s were actually a pretty pivotal and influential time for spandex and powers, and that worked in the favor of the Fantastic Four.

2007 was also the year that Spider-Man 3 with Tobey Maguire was released, so there was some pretty big competition in who held the superhero screen. Spider-Man 3 ultimately did better in the box office and with critics, which I’m not shocked by. To my own surprise, however, I do think that Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is one of those rare cases where the sequel was better than its original. Let’s dig into why that is!

THE 5TH EVENT OF THE YEAR

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer begins with important news! The wedding of Reed Richards and Sue Storm is approaching! As the supers lives get more and more tangled, Sue and Reed quickly realize just how difficult maintaining a private life is when your face is polished all over gossip mags and news channels. Johnny, of course, doesn’t mind the extra attention, and even Ben Grimm is getting some well deserved love from the masses. I’m sure the 5th times the charm is the saying when it comes to weddings . . . right? Nothing could possibly spoil this special day for Reed and Sue!

Spoiler alert! The villain in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, is in fact, this so-called Silver Surfer. His actions against Earth are committed with an unknown motive, but what our characters do know is that by creating deep craters (using cosmic radiation) around Earth, the planet will be destroyed, and soon. And he decided to broach NYC just before Reed and Sue say their I-do’s, perfect timing as usual. Johnny gives chase, burning his Dolce and gaining some extra mutant powers for all his efforts. Turns out, fighting the Silver Surfer somehow means that Johnny can now switch powers with the rest of the Four. Not good for him, but funny for us.

THE ENEMY OF MY ENEMY IS MY . . . DOOM?

I can’t forget about the underlying plot in all of this though, because double spoiler alert! Dr. Doom is unfortunately alive and well. Ugh, I’m sick of this guy. He makes his way back to the Four after having an interaction with Silver Surfer. He (clearly pretending to not be evil) meanders into the arms of the United States military and offers his services to humanity. Yeah, I’m sure that won’t backfire. Working together, The Four, Doom, and the military find a way to separate the surfer from his board. In doing so, the group hopes that he won’t be able to use his powers.

Captured, the Surfer is imprisoned in a military base in Siberia, with the Four not far behind. Doom and the military have taken over the operation, so they believe, until Dr. Doom reveals himself and his ulterior motives—which were never very ulterior. Taking the board for himself, Doom plans on using its powers. Sue Storm, in the meantime, becomes close with our pal chrome dome, and wants to know why he is destroying planets. She discovers that he is a servant of Galactus, who threatens the people he loves if he doesn’t do as wanted. He tells Sue all of this as she reminds him of his partner who he dearly misses; aw, the tin man does have a heart!

Fighting Doom and Galactus is no easy feat for the Fantastic Four. Johnny has to use all of their powers combined to take down Doom, who plummets into a river in Japan (hopefully to never be seen again). Galactus though, is another challenge. Sue dies in the battle, but is saved by Norrin Radd (the real name of Silver Surfer) who chooses to fight Galactus himself. Board restored and back in his hands, Norrin flies into the cosmic entity, with some help from Johnny, and destroys Galactus with a pulse of energy that also destroys himself.

With the world looking right again, and all Four alive and well, Sue and Reed finally get married (in Japan)! The ceremony is quick and short, as all private moments for them are these days, and the Fantastic Four fly off to help the next world-ending tragedy. The End! Or is it . . .

Nah, that’s it. They didn’t make another movie, at least with this cast.

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY VILLAINS MADE OF METAL?

So, here’s my take on why Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is better than its original. This movie gets right into it—who the good guys are, the bad guys, and the villains we’re facing. Essentially, I think the pacing is better in this film. The first Fantastic Four has to spend so much time introducing its audience to all of the characters, their powers, the plots and side plots, etc. Sometimes, that’s the stuff viewers really enjoy watching. In this case, however, I think that it actually offsets the pacing of the original film—this is where Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer can use the audience’s familiarity with the story to its advantage.

We don’t have to spend a lot of time creating context, because it’s already there for us. The story is also broad enough where it differs from Fantastic Four, so audiences don’t feel like we’re repeating the same story. Though, I will admit, seeing the reappearance of Dr. Doom did feel a bit monotonous. I was really hoping that we wouldn’t have to deal with a metal man again, let alone two in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (this, of course, refers to the appearance of the Silver Surfer). Seriously, what is with the obsession with metal in the superhero verse?

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is another thumbs up in my book. I think in this film we get to see some great character development, especially from Johnny, and we learn more about our characters and their world, without it feeling like repeat information. While I’m going to miss some of the characteristics and portrayal from these actors, I am getting really excited to go see Fantastic Four: First Steps! Before we know it, the movie will be on our doorstep and we’ll get to see the gang fighting Galactus once again. It’ll certainly be fun to compare the newest adaption in 2025 to the first ones we saw so long ago! I wonder what shape the popcorn bucket will be in . . . a surfboard? A cosmic cloud? Ben Grimm’s rock face, based on the face of Ebon Moss-Bachrach? We’ll find out soon enough!

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is currently streaming on Disney+

Flame on!