Fantastic Four #1

   I'm tempted to just write, "It's about time," and leave it at that.

   But I'm so happy to see the Fantastic Four finally back in print, I have to say more about it.

   The title is my all-time favorite, so it's been tough going without it for so long (and shame on Marvel for letting that happen in the first place - it was disrespectful to the fans, frankly).

   The new series has a strong creative force in writer Dan Slott, who has a great grip on the beating heart of the team and gives each character just the right voice.

   He's joined by artist Sara Pichelli, with Elisabetta D'Amico and color artist Marte Gracia, who bring a nice sense of design and character to the issue.

   The story brings us up to date on The Thing and the Human Torch, the half of the team still operating on Earth - and offers some clues about the disappearance of Mr. Fantastic, the Invisible Woman and their children, Franklin and Valeria.

   It's wonderful and touching to see the story unfold - but that's one of the two problems with the issue. There's a lot of ground to cover and explanations to provide, so we don't really get to the heart of the matter until the end of the issue - and we only see the team together in flashbacks.

   The other problem, surprisingly, is with the art. Pichelli has given a somewhat new look to Ben and Johnny - and it really doesn't work for me. Ben's face is almost goofy in places, and the new design for Johnny's flame seems... well, bland. 

   All of which is surprising, because I really liked Pichelli's art on Spider-Man. 

    None of these picky complaints will stop me from buying each issue - I'm thrilled to see the FF back in action, and I'm anxious to see where it goes next.

   Thanks, Marvel, for bringing back "The World's Greatest Comics Magazine." Hopefully, very soon, it'll be worthy of that title again. But not quite yet.

Grade: B+

------------------

   (Let me also add how much I like the tribute to Steve Ditko that filled the first three pages of this comic - very classy.)