Marvel has been going all out in channeling Silver Age of comics for The Fantastic Four: First Steps, which takes place in the mid '60s in its own timeline. Now, Marvel Comics is going so far as to turn back the clock on how it sells comics, announcing a new Fantastic Four "bookazine" that can be purchased off of newsstands, just like way back in the old days.
What qualifies as a "newsstand?" Marvel says it'll be at "retail outlets and wherever magazines are sold."
OK, maybe you don't have to be that old, but newsstand comics mostly stopped appearing in the early '00s, so it's not inconceivable for adult comic fans to have never bought or even seen comics being sold alongside Us Weekly and Cosmopolitan.
The new Fantastic Four "bookazine" contains reprints of three comic issues:
- Fantastic Four #60 (2002) “Inside Out” written by Mark Waid and drawn by Mike Wieringo
- Fantastic Four #570 (2009) “Solve Everything” written by Jonathan Hickman and drawn by Dale Eaglesham
- Fantastic Four #1 (2022) “The Last Town to the Left” written by Ryan North and drawn by Iban Coello
It also includes "an illustrated look at the origin of the Fantastic Four by renowned artist Alex Ross, behind-the-scenes sneak peeks at Marvel Studios’ The Fantastic Four: First Steps," and "interviews with Marvel Studios Executive Producer Grant Curtis and Creative Director of Visual Development Ryan Meinerding," according to the official press release.
Here's a gallery of the official covers for the "bookazine," by Phil Noto, and Arthur Adams and Christina Strain:
The Fantastic Four "bookazine" is coming sooner than you might think, hitting newsstands on Friday July 4 (an atypical day, as comics usually release on Wednesdays). It will beat The Fantastic Four: First Steps by just a few weeks, as the Marvel blockbuster hits theaters on July 25. For more, check out our guides to upcoming Marvel movies and shows and how to watch the Marvel movies in order.
