Marvel’s biggest time-traveling plot was finally presented in Fantastic 4

A classic Marvel time travel plot hole is finally solved in Fantastic Four – by Reed Richards’ own stupidity.

Warning: SPOILERS for Fantastic Four #4

of Fantastic four They finally pinpointed a major plot hole regarding time travel in the Marvel Universe — and tragically solved it. Reed Richards may be one of the smartest people on Earth, but he’s also very compassionate, and he’s proven time and time again that what he believes is best isn’t always the case. His latest “solution” to the end of the world problem solves the time travel conundrum in the worst possible way.

Fantastic Four #4, Written by Ryan North with art by Iban Colo, it begins the alien invasion of Manhattan with a flashback sequence, the backdrop being the Baxter Building. The aliens have so far opposed all of Reed Richard’s plans, so he quickly devises a dangerous solution: send the entire Baxter Building forward one year. This eliminates the aliens by throwing them all into space, outside of Earth’s solar system, while everyone in the building is safe. They will return within a year.

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Reed Richards always knew that a machine is also a space machine

Reed manages to achieve this in a little-known (and little-commented upon) event in time travel. Most of the time in science fiction (Marvel Universe included) they take the traveler back to the exact location they left – but those machines have to account for the motions in space for the Earth and the Solar System. Reed’s reaction indicates this, and for the first time Marvel has acknowledged that time travel should send the traveler through space and time.

Unfortunately, Reed’s method of winning the day can easily be overblown in this situation. In the face of an invasion where only foreigners are to be cared for, Richard decides to move everyone in the building – including the children – forward one year. While this method ostensibly saves Earth, it destroys the families inside the building, who now have to cope without their relatives for a year (or more if Reed’s calculations are wrong). The leader of the Fantastic Four, once again fails to understand people.

There are many time travelers in the Marvel Universe (Cable, Kang, and Doctor Doom in more than a few cases), and they all have teleporters with time travel powers. As for Earth’s movement, Reed Richards successfully fended off the alien invasion, but it may have irreparably damaged the team’s standing in Manhattan for the foreseeable future. of Fantastic four The leader probably wishes he could send himself back in time to warn himself about the decisions he will soon make.

Next: John Krasinski may return as Reed Richards despite rumors to the contrary.