Talk:Mister Fantastic

Brute (Reed Richards) was nominated for deletion. The discussion was closed on 16 August 2023 with a consensus to merge. Its contents were merged into Mister Fantastic. The original page is now a redirect to this page. For the contribution history and old versions of the redirected article, please see its history; for its talk page, see here.

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Fictional characters

This article is within the scope of WikiProject Fictional characters, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of fictional characters on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Fictional charactersWikipedia:WikiProject Fictional charactersTemplate:WikiProject Fictional charactersfictional character articles

This article has previously been nominated to be moved. Please review the prior discussions if you are considering re-nomination.

Discussions:

Moved, 3 January 2021, from Mister Fantastic to Reed Richards, see discussion.
Moved, 13 August 2024, from Reed Richards to Mister Fantastic, see discussion.

WW2

In some of the early issues of the Fantastic Four, Reed Richards and Nick Fury talked about fighting together in WWII. Was Reed a Marvel character prior to his first appearance in FF #1? Kyle UNC Law 15:26, August 17, 2005 (UTC)

No. Hoever, Reed did make a WWII-period cameo in an early issue of Sgt. Fury, and Ben Grimm did likewise in one of the Sgt. Fury spinoffs (Captain Savage, I think). -Sean Curtin 05:33, August 18, 2005 (UTC)

Vital stats

Profile: Mister Fantastic
Alter Ego: Reed Richards
Occupation: Scientist, Professional Adventurer
Place of Birth: Central City, California
Base of Operations: Baxter Building II, New York City
Costume: Dark blue bodysuit. White "V" neck, gloves, boots, & belt. Circle on left side of chest with a "4" insignia. (Made of unstable molecules).
Identity: Publicly known
Nickname: "Stretcho"
Age: Early to mid thirties*
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 160 lbs. (73 kg)
Eye Color: Brown
Hair Color: Brown (graying at the temples)

A note on Reed Richards' Age: An ubiquitous trend in superhero comics is that towards retarding the age of characters. The Marvel convention is that roughly ten years have passed since Fantastic Four #1. Reed's gray temples don't imply that he's in middle age, because one story revealed that he went gray at the age of nineteen. In the days before the longevity of Marvel's properties necessitated time compression, Reed graduated from university as a teenager, and he met Sue, a few years his junior, for the first time. Ben was a few years older than Reed, thus making him in his late thirties/early forties today. Therefore, Reed was at least in his early to mid twenties as of his first appearance. He is estimated to be approximately thirty four.

Assigning ages to various points in the character's history is problematic; lacks sufficient citation and smacks of original research. Recommend removal. Gbsrd (talk) 15:27, 1 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Superhuman intellect or merely human-level genius?

CovenantD, even though I know this isn't going anywhere, this one is for you. Snippet from Reed's Wiki entry, which is supported by the comics.

"Not only has Reed proven himself to be a genius in virtually every science native to Earth, he has shown himself to be more knowledgable than even some of the most highly advanced alien civilizations in the known universe as well. He has been known to turn scraps of machinery into deadly weaponry within seconds. Reed also appears to have a degree of immunity to psychic attacks; his mind is as pliable and resilient as his body. (Some comic writers have shown that Reed's intelligence was increased by the Cosmic Rays that gave him his elastic powers, and that, when his powers are nullified, he is not as hyper-intellgent - though still a genius by most standards.) Mind control is rarely effective on him; when it does work, it wears off sooner than it would a normal person." MrBigB 18:51, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

"Some writers" is a weasel phrase that doesn't even mention which writer, much less an issue number. Wikipedia itself does not meet the criteria of a reliable source. You're going to need more than that to convince me it meets verifiability standards. CovenantD 19:12, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

An example off of the top of my head happened during the Abraxas Saga. Have you read it? In it Reed travels to a parallel reality and meets a version of himself that was never exposed to the cosmic radiation. This unaltered Reed was a small time inventor that never met with any real success or made any major breakthroughs. "Our" Reed comments that the cosmic radiation must really have enchanced his intellect, something he had always suspected. There are other examples that illustrate this as well. Reed was always a genius, but the cosmic radiation made him a super-genius. MrBigB 19:18, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'm the one who originally added in the bolded bit in the above section. --Dr Archeville 19:29, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Do you have an opinion on this you'd like to explicitly share? CovenantD 19:33, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Aside from desiring to make sure that I, as "some writer," receives whatever praise or criticism is due for having inserted the above sentence which seems to have drawn such attention, I am of the opinion that, yes, the Cosmic Rays did indeed increase his intellect. It's mentioned in a few comics, and in most of his RPG write-ups (which were based on the comics and in most cases were written with collaboration from folks working at Marvel Comics).

Admittedly, finding the exact issuus where such is stated (like in the Abraxas Saga, mentioned above) would be very preferable. --Dr Archeville 20:57, 21 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I would to like to argue about Reed Richards' intellect. First of all, good examples have been presented directly from comics, but such as the Abraxas Saga when Reed saw an alternate version himself as a small-time inventor, and when his powers were taken from him he is barely able to keep up with Dr. Doom, but may point out that the results of Reed's cosmic bombardments are purely dependent on the writer, and the results have fluctuated over time. Also, the writers, and a number of fans have overlooked one fact: The fact that Victor Von Doom (Doctor Doom) met Reed Richards in Empire State University and considered Reed to be his only intellectual equal.

This was obviously prior to Reed's Sue's, Ben's and Johnny's space adventure. Also note that when Victor Von Doom conducted an unstable expermiment to breach the dimensions, it was Reed who warned about the consequenes of what he was doing, which ultimately scarred Victor's face permanently. If Dr. Doom is to be considered one of the greatest scientific minds on Earth, then surely if Reed wasn't as intelligent as he is with his powers then surely, he wouldn't be able to understand exactly what Victor was doing, let alone warn him about its possible result. Another example is the fact that Reed Richards inherited his intellect from Nathaniel Richards and even exceeded his, and as I recall, Nathaniel is a super-genius as well, even able to best Reed at times with his mind alone.

May I also point when Stan Lee and Jack Kirby were working on the Fantastic Four, The result of the cosmic radiation bombardments to Reed Richards, was simply to give him the power of elasticity, no other additional powers were given (or at least not that I know of). The fact that some writers depict Reed Richards' super-genius as result of cosmic radiation, just shows that the Fantastic Four has changed over time, sort of like the level of Superman's powers and how they work. In my view, although it would probably make sense to me Reed is as smart as he is because of his powers, depicting him without his powers barely able to keep up with Doctor Doom is a bit of a goof, escpecially considering that Doom started his vendetta to prove he is brighter than Richards simply because of his experiences in ESU. And speaking of schooling, Reed applied for several universities at age of 14. And the fact that his starship travel was funded by the U.S. Government, when he was just 22. The writers probly attempted to explore the incredible genius Reed Richards has, seen that his intelligence far exceeds that of many members of the human race, the best way to explain it is that it is because of the cosmic radiation, rather than his own innate ability, but I doubt that Reed's intellect is a result of the cosmic radiation, even if it is a good explanation. Ater all, it's probably not what Stan Lee originally intended, even if he doesn't has a problem with it. Uglyguy2006

You aren't getting it. Richards was always a genius - among the world's elite minds - but the cosmic radiation amplified his intellect. I have never read a comic where it was stated that Reed's genius is a result of his exposure to cosmic radiation, what writers have tried to do is explain Reed's seemingly "superhuman" intellect. The cosmic radiation gave him a flexibility of mind that he did not possess before the exposure. MrBigB 19:14, 7 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Navbox Guidelines

Please follow this link Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Comics/templates/navboxes to join in on the discussion . --Basique 12:12, 7 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

What about this character?

Two words--Plastic Man. He should be metioned somewhere in the article.204.80.61.110 16:00, 15 June 2007 (UTC)Bennett Turk[reply]

Films

The official Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer webpage states that he is a brilliant physicist and mathematician, humble genius, and gifted idealist. He claims to be one of the greatest minds of the 21st century in that movie. He was educated at MIT like Victor von Doom and geneticist Susan Storm, and won a top science prize as a child and an international prize as an adolescent. In the first movie, Dr. Richards reveals that cosmic clouds passing near earth can cause evolutionary changes and perhaps aid humanity. Victor von Doom says Reed is always right. Mr. Fantastic is working on an equation for a suit of unstable molecules, but Dr. Doom invents it before him, with Susan noting that "great minds think alike." He apparently has knowledge of spacecrafts, as indicated in his discussion with Ben Grimm, his talk with NASA, and his work on the shuttle. Reed checks Susan's medical chart, monitoring her health and advising the physician looking after her. Susan states that unless something is stated in terms of quantum physics, he doesn't understand it. His Baxter Building loft-turned laboratory shows several devices he has invented and machines he maintains for his research. When he investigates Thing's fundamentally-altered DNA, he shows an advanced knowledge of genetics. He writes chemical equations on a chalkboard. He designs a device to reverse the Four's mutations. Doom notes Richards and himself are both doctors. In the end of Fantastic Four, he uses his skill in chemistry to stop Doctor Doom, as Doom had done to him. In the second movie, he gives an exposition on the Big Bang, designs a satellite sensor and constructs the rocket-like Fantasticar, which is of his own design. When he initially refuses to build the sensor to detect the Surfer, he refers the military to a colleague, the head of the physics department at Brown University, to serve as a replacement. Mr. Fantastic discovers that the Silver Surfer destroys any world he visits and how to separate him from his board — through the application of a tachyon pulse. When Doom works on the device to control the Silver Surfer's board behind the military's and Four's backs, he tells Richards to keep up with him. Dr. Richards determines that Johnny Storm's molecular structure is unstable after Silver Surfer affects him. --68.224.247.53 22:36, 31 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Powers and abilites

I put up the "unverified claims" part because this section needs a lot of references. 130.241.18.31 11:12, 20 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Reed's Mom

According to Scans_Daily, Reed's Mom is shown in 'Marvel Knights 4' (whatever that means) as being a big-brain scientist also. Lots42 22:29, 6 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Ok, we NEED a new main image.

Any one got any ideas?Phoenix₇₄₁(Talk Page) 16:38, 4 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Top Ten most intelligent fictional characters

According to BusinessWeek, Mr. Fantastic is listed as one of the top ten most intelligent fictional characters in American comics. Smartest Superheroes Bookkeeperoftheoccult (talk) 10:04, 9 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Fair use rationale for Image:Señor Fantastico2.JPG

Image:Señor Fantastico2.JPG is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images lacking such an explanation can be deleted one week after being tagged, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.

BetacommandBot (talk) 08:40, 15 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Fair use rationale for Image:Reed1.jpg

Image:Reed1.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images lacking such an explanation can be deleted one week after being tagged, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.

BetacommandBot (talk) 13:10, 21 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Fair use rationale for Image:Reed1.jpg

Image:Reed1.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images lacking such an explanation can be deleted one week after being tagged, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.

BetacommandBot (talk) 04:20, 24 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Reed Richards did not attend Empire State University

Not in the beginning at any rate. In Fantastic Four Annual #2 (1964) (and, I think, Fantastic Four #11), it says he went to State University, not Empire State. And in Fantastic Four #35 (Feb 1965) Reed actually goes there and the university is obviously not anywhere in the city of New York. In some edition of the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, State University is identified as being in "Hegeman, New York." I'm perfectly willing to believe that later writers have identified his alma mater as "Empire State", but I don't know where or when that might have happened; and I think we should go with the original statements in the comics. Ford MF (talk) 05:50, 25 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I just read both the F.F. Annual #2 and F.F. #35. In the annual, Doctor Doom is invited to "State U" to study and, after spurning Reed Richards for a room mate, enacts the fateful experiment that scarred his face. To my knowledge, after the early appearances of "State U" in Fantastic Four, it's never referenced again, and Doom is always said to have been scarred at ESU. Also, in FF 35, when Reed Richards goes to State U as an alumni lecturer, he encounters Peter Parker, who is looking to enroll after he graduates. Fast forward to Spidey #31, and we have Empire State University. I'm thinking the name just got lengthened. If not, then the reference to Doom's face being scarred at ESU should be removed from the ESU article and corrected in the Victor Von Doom article.HXcGeek (talk) 10:33, 10 February 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Mister or Mr.?

Which is it? The article alternates without explanation. It's his name, not an honorific, surely it must be one or the other. If the usage changes in the comics, that needs to be mentioned. Lectio difficilior potior supports Mister. Spicemix (talk) 00:21, 30 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Michael Gough

Looking at Michael Gough in the film Konga which came out before Fantastic Four # 1, I can't help wondering if Reed Richards was based on him? He plays a scientist (evil) and had the grey hair over both ears, as Reed did. The slim figure, hairstyle and face are similar too.(88.22.225.93 (talk) 16:35, 8 August 2012 (UTC))[reply]

Fictional characters on the autistic spectrum

I would like to request that Reed Richards is added to this category, given that he self diagnosed with autism in "Fantastic Four: Season One". It was also mentioned in "Fantastic Four: 1234". David A (talk) 04:13, 13 June 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Discrepancy Between Mister Fantastic and Invisible Woman Pages

Hi there. I note that in the Mister Fantastic page it is stated that "When 19-year-old Reed continued his education by attending Columbia University in Manhattan, he rented a room in a boarding house owned by the aunt of a young girl named Susan Storm. To his embarrassment, the girl, who was 13, instantly fell in love with him.". However, this doesn't match up with the information on the Invisible Woman page where it says "While living with her aunt, Susan, at the young age of 17, met her future husband, Reed Richards, a house guest who was attending college.". A quick search up on the Marvel Wikia gives an age of 12 for when Invisible Woman first met Mister Fantastic. Can someone who actually knows about Marvel shed some light on the matter?

(Chilokver (talk) 02:22, 29 May 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Where does it say Reed started college at 14

I added a fact tag for this, I'd like to know when that was introduced into Marvel canon, it isn't clear.

http://www.cbr.com/the-abandoned-an-forsaked-did-mr-fantastic-really-first-meet-the-invisible-woman-when-she-was-twelve/ includes this letter column from Tom Breevort which shows Reed as a "college freshman" being significantly taller than Sue Storm when she was 12 years old.

It doesn't really appear to be accountable by a 2-year age difference, and Breevort refers to Reed as a "college-age man" in it. ScratchMarshall (talk) 20:18, 31 July 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Where does it say that Sue funded Reed's spaceship?

Fantastic Four #32 states that Franklin Richards's "gambling losses took all his money" -- i.e., he gambled away the family fortune after his wife's tragic death. He accidentally killed a loan shark who was looking to be repaid because he didn't have the money. So he cannot have had any money to leave his children while he was imprisoned. And then the Storms' Aunt Marygay (probably their paternal aunt) ran a boardinghouse and rented out rooms to support herself and Johnny and Sue, which is how they met Reed. And then in Fantastic Four #520, Sue tells Johnny that between working and caring for him, she hardly has time for her schoolwork. If they had a fortune, why not use it to help pay bills? How does Sue have enough money to fund Reed's spaceship but not to pay monthly bills? Why is she working and risking not making it to her graduation if she's rich and doesn't need to? I've seen this mentioned on a few Wikipedia pages, but there is never a source offered, and I have EXTENSIVELY read Fantastic Four comics and never seen any hint that Sue and Johnny were anything other than scrambling to make ends meet before they first met Reed. Basically, source?

Requested move 3 January 2021

The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

The result of the move request was: Moved Mister Fantastic → Reed Richards. There is no consensus to move the other two. I mean, this request has been up for a month and we haven't really advanced, so I'm not sure why relisting would help. (non-admin closure) Red Slash 16:12, 5 February 2021 (UTC)[reply]

– This set of characters is as well known by their "street" names as by their made-up names. In particular, I would contend that even in-universe in the comics, Reed Richards is far more commonly referenced by his "real" name. Frankly, "Sue Storm" and "Johnny Storm" already sound like like "superhero" names. BD2412 T 17:35, 3 January 2021 (UTC) —Relisting. — Amakuru (talk) 15:53, 12 January 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Support move of Reed Richards as more common than "Mr. Fantastic" in Google books. "Human Torch" is more common than "Johnny Storm" and "Invisible Woman" Marvel is more common than "Sue Storm" Marvel as well as "Sue Richards" Marvel, which has been the character's "real" name since 1963.--Cúchullain ^t/c 17:38, 5 January 2021 (UTC)[reply]
- The results for Reed Richards have a lot of false positives. Vpab15 (talk) 14:54, 12 January 2021 (UTC)[reply]
Support renaming Mister Fantastic to Reed Richards, I'm torn on the other two. Renaming Human Torch to Johnny Storm would make a further distinction with Jim Hammond, although Johnny is undeniably more notable. As noted above Susan Storm has been Susan Richards or Storm-Richards for decades now, and Invisible Woman is still in plenty use. FN17 (talk) 15:45, 7 January 2021 (UTC)[reply]
Oppose. As nom says, in-universe in the comics the "street" names might be commonly used, but I am not sure those are the common names in secondary sources. Vpab15 (talk) 14:49, 12 January 2021 (UTC)[reply]

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

New Main Image

like this one is so bad Cordelia Van Allen (talk) 20:49, 26 December 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Requested move 13 August 2024

The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

The result of the move request was: moved. Moved as an uncontested request with minimal participation. If there is any objection within a reasonable time frame, please ask me to reopen the discussion; if I am not available, please ask at the technical requests page. (closed by non-admin page mover) Safari Scribe^{Edits! Talk!} 03:16, 20 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Reed Richards → Mister Fantastic – "Mister Fantastic" was the original name of the article and where the article was located for about 18 years until the above requested move in 2021 which had minimal participation (2 users supporting, 1 user opposing) and should have been either extended or closed as "no consensus" instead of being closed as "consensus to move".

Having this article at "Reed Richards" is inconsistent:

inconsistent with his teammates: Invisible Woman, not "Susan Storm"; Human Torch, not "Johnny Storm"; Thing is currently at "Ben Grimm", but that was only moved there together with that aforementioned 2021 move which again, should have been closed as no consensus
inconsistent with his enemies: Doctor Doom, not "Victor von Doom"; Mole Man, not "Harvey Rupert Elder"; Puppet Master (Marvel Comics), not "Phillip Masters"; Galactus, not "Galan"
inconsistent with his colleagues, most Marvel superheroes: Iron Man, not "Tony Stark"; Captain America, not "Steve Rogers"; Spider-Man, not "Peter Parker"; Doctor Strange, not "Stephen Strange"
inconsistent with most superhero articles, even those outside Marvel: Superman, not "Clark Kent"; Batman, not "Bruce Wayne"; Wonder Woman, not "Diana Prince"; Spawn (character), not "Al Simmons"

Wikipedia:Naming conventions (comics) says to use the common name:

Google currently returns 2,800,000 hits for "Mister Fantastic" OR "Mr. Fantastic" and 2,280,000 hits for "Reed Richards" (which would also include some hits from real-life people named Reed Richards, not just the comic book character), so Mister Fantastic is the common name.
Collectibles and merchandise almost invariably use "Mister Fantastic" rather than "Reed Richards"; just do a search for Mister Fantastic or Reed Richards toys on Amazon or Google, and you will see they are virtually always labeled "Mister Fantastic" on the box, not "Reed Richards".

Naming conventions (comics) allows an exception if a character has multiple well-known codenames like Dick Grayson (who has been Robin, Nightwing, and even Batman at different points in his history), but Reed Richards is not known by any other common codename than Mister Fantastic.

In summary, consistency, common name, and Wikipedia naming conventions all support "Mister Fantastic", not "Reed Richards".

—Lowellian (reply) 01:24, 13 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]

You might want to also consider the same thing for Ben Grimm for consistency. BOZ (talk) 04:48, 13 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.