Marvel's superhero family the Fantastic Four will be undergoing a "new, major, permanent status quo change" this October... and its just in time for the celebratory 25th issue of its ongoing title under current writer Dan Slott's run.
Ahead of their full October 2020 solicitations coming later this month, Marvel has revealed the solicit for Fantastic Four #25 - and it promises big changes.
"This issue has it all: New artist! New villains! New uniforms! And a new, major, permanent status quo change for Marvel’s First Family!" reads their text. "All this and an appearance by Doctor Doom! One of the most important characters in the entire cosmos…returns from the dead! And a major turning point in the history of the Fantastic Four! Great entry point for readers!"
Breaking those down one-by-one, the "new artist" is R.B. Silva, who drew the recent Empyre: Fantastic Four #1.
The "new villains" are a mystery, however with a promised appearance by Doctor Doom in this issue and the current Empyre event concluding just before Fantastic Four #25, there are some suspects.
As for "New uniforms," if the Mark Brooks cover is any indication, the team have a revised costume that ditches the recent blue-on-black, in favor of a black-on-blue - this time with a functional belt, and some differences in the lines on the outfits.
The "new, major, permanent status quo change" would seem to be in reference to the upcoming events of Fantastic Four #23, which promised that "two lives that that [sic] will be forever changed!". Valeria and Franklin are on the cover to that issue, so it appears - or Marvel wants readers to speculate - that they'll be the ones "forever changed."
Lastly, who could Marvel be referring to when they say "the most important characters in the entire cosmos…returns from the dead"?
That could be referring to the Silver Surfer, who was thought dead in the opening moments of Donny Cates' Guardians of the Galaxy when he was sucked into a black hole. Readers know that Norrin Radd lived on - as seen in the Silver Surfer: Black limited series - but was left changed, sporting an all-black look after a confrontation with Knull - who happens to be the antagonist in Marvel's next major event, King in Black.
