Marvel Studios officially kicked off Phase Six of its cinematic universe with the release of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and the film is already garnering solid reviews and a strong start at the box office. The cast is terrific across the board, and the production design is, well, pretty darn fantastic, evoking Disney's Tomorrowland (the park, not the film) with its 1960s retro-alt-future aesthetic. Just let your brain relax and don't try to make too much of the nonsensical plot.
(Some spoilers below, but no major reveals.)
Director Matt Shakman (WandaVision) took a page from James Gunn's Superman playbook and skipped the usual origin story for our heroes. How the Fantastic Four acquired their unique abilities is recapped via brief flashbacks, along with some of their early exploits, thanks to the Four being featured celebrities on a popular talk show hosted by Ted Gilbert (Mark Gatiss). Reed Richard/Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal) and Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby) are even expecting their first child, to the delight of Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach).
