Note: For this list only the creators of the characters first appearances are listed. As with all comic book characters, the Fantastic Four and there supporting cast have had several reinventions and different contributions from different writers. Theses include different iterations in different mediums that all have added different concepts to the overall mythology of the characters.
Theirs Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Susan "Sue" Storm/The Invisible Woman (referred to as Sue Storm or The Invisable Woman on screen), Jonathan "Johnny" Storm/The Human Torch (referred to as Johnny Storm or The Human Torch on screen) and Benjamin Jacob "Ben" Grimm/The Thing (referred to as Ben Grimm or The Thing on screen). They mall made their first appearance in the comic story "The Fantastic Four" from The Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961) by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.
Doctor Victor Von Doom/Doctor Doom, who made his first appearance in the comic story "Prisoners of Doctor Doom!" from The Fantastic Four #5 (July 1962) by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby.
Alicia Reiss Masters, referred to as Alicia Masters on screen. She made her first appearance in the comic story "Prisoners of the Puppet Master!" from The Fantastic Four #8 (November 1962) by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.
Norrin Radd/The Silver Surfer (referred to as The Silver Surfer on screen) and Galactus. They made his first appearance in the comic story "The Coming of Galactus!" from Fantastic Four #48 (March 1966) by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.
And Captain Frankie Raye, referred to as Captain Raye on screen. She made her first appearance in the comic story "The Crusader Syndrome!" from Fantastic Four #164 (November 1975) by writer Roy Thomas and artist George Pérez.
All other characters were created for the movie by the films writers.
Theirs Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Susan "Sue" Storm/The Invisible Woman (referred to as Sue Storm or The Invisable Woman on screen), Jonathan "Johnny" Storm/The Human Torch (referred to as Johnny Storm or The Human Torch on screen) and Benjamin Jacob "Ben" Grimm/The Thing (referred to as Ben Grimm or The Thing on screen). They mall made their first appearance in the comic story "The Fantastic Four" from The Fantastic Four #1 (November 1961) by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.
Doctor Victor Von Doom/Doctor Doom, who made his first appearance in the comic story "Prisoners of Doctor Doom!" from The Fantastic Four #5 (July 1962) by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby.
Alicia Reiss Masters, referred to as Alicia Masters on screen. She made her first appearance in the comic story "Prisoners of the Puppet Master!" from The Fantastic Four #8 (November 1962) by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.
Norrin Radd/The Silver Surfer (referred to as The Silver Surfer on screen) and Galactus. They made his first appearance in the comic story "The Coming of Galactus!" from Fantastic Four #48 (March 1966) by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.
And Captain Frankie Raye, referred to as Captain Raye on screen. She made her first appearance in the comic story "The Crusader Syndrome!" from Fantastic Four #164 (November 1975) by writer Roy Thomas and artist George Pérez.
All other characters were created for the movie by the films writers.
From the Marvel Database, Norrin Radd (Earth-616):
Superhuman Strength: The Surfer possesses tremendous physical strength, the exact limits of which are unknown. He can use his powers to enhance his strength beyond its limits, enabling him to lift in excess of 100 tons.
Invulnerability: The Silver Surfer's silvery "skin" was designed to easily withstand the rigors of deep-space travel, and thus far, it has proven to be virtually indestructible. In fact, his entire body was made highly resistant to injury and he is thus almost invulnerable to most types of physical harm. The Silver Surfer can withstand the crushing pressures of a black hole and can easily withstand great extremes in temperature. He is unbothered by the friction associated with atmospheric re-entry, and has withstood plunges into stars and even supernovae. He also routinely weathers the stresses associated with high-speed travel through space and hyperspace. His body is sustained by cosmic energy, and thus the Surfer has no need for air, food, or water. His brain, however, still occasionally requires sleep, although not nearly as often as humans do.
Godlike Stamina: The Surfer's highly enhanced musculature generates virtually no fatigue toxins, granting him nearly inexhaustible physical stamina. However, he does require sleep on occasion, due to his brain's biological need to dream.
The Power Cosmic: The Silver Surfer possesses the Power Cosmic which was granted to him by Galactus. He has the ability to absorb and tap ambient cosmic energy into his body at will, and expel those energies violently, or in more subtle ways. He can channel beams of energy through his hands with sufficient destructive force to destroy a planet, or wield the energies with such finesse as to restructure the molecules of the natural dyes within a plant to change its color. The Surfer can rearrange matter to create other configurations and can even transmute elements. (such as turning a steel napkin holder into solid gold or tons of rock into harmless gas) Other uses of the Power Cosmic have included the ability to phase through objects, accelerate the evolution of lifeforms (even on a planet wide scale), see the past by peeling back the layers of time, time travel, trans-dimensional travel, the manipulation or absorption of any form of energy or radiation, and granting limited cosmic powers to others. Essentially, the Power Cosmic gives the Surfer mastery over the four fundamental forces of the universe.
Cosmic Senses: The Surfer's senses were enhanced by Galactus, which allow him far-ranging vision (in space he can see people clearly over a light year away), the ability to see sub-atomic particles, superhuman hearing, the ability to detect fields, traces, and concentrations of energy and discern their natures. He also has an affinity for the life-energies of living beings, and can use his cosmic energies to boost the natural healing powers of a wounded individual, even if they are near-death. He cannot, however, raise the dead.
Superhuman Strength: The Surfer possesses tremendous physical strength, the exact limits of which are unknown. He can use his powers to enhance his strength beyond its limits, enabling him to lift in excess of 100 tons.
Invulnerability: The Silver Surfer's silvery "skin" was designed to easily withstand the rigors of deep-space travel, and thus far, it has proven to be virtually indestructible. In fact, his entire body was made highly resistant to injury and he is thus almost invulnerable to most types of physical harm. The Silver Surfer can withstand the crushing pressures of a black hole and can easily withstand great extremes in temperature. He is unbothered by the friction associated with atmospheric re-entry, and has withstood plunges into stars and even supernovae. He also routinely weathers the stresses associated with high-speed travel through space and hyperspace. His body is sustained by cosmic energy, and thus the Surfer has no need for air, food, or water. His brain, however, still occasionally requires sleep, although not nearly as often as humans do.
Godlike Stamina: The Surfer's highly enhanced musculature generates virtually no fatigue toxins, granting him nearly inexhaustible physical stamina. However, he does require sleep on occasion, due to his brain's biological need to dream.
The Power Cosmic: The Silver Surfer possesses the Power Cosmic which was granted to him by Galactus. He has the ability to absorb and tap ambient cosmic energy into his body at will, and expel those energies violently, or in more subtle ways. He can channel beams of energy through his hands with sufficient destructive force to destroy a planet, or wield the energies with such finesse as to restructure the molecules of the natural dyes within a plant to change its color. The Surfer can rearrange matter to create other configurations and can even transmute elements. (such as turning a steel napkin holder into solid gold or tons of rock into harmless gas) Other uses of the Power Cosmic have included the ability to phase through objects, accelerate the evolution of lifeforms (even on a planet wide scale), see the past by peeling back the layers of time, time travel, trans-dimensional travel, the manipulation or absorption of any form of energy or radiation, and granting limited cosmic powers to others. Essentially, the Power Cosmic gives the Surfer mastery over the four fundamental forces of the universe.
Cosmic Senses: The Surfer's senses were enhanced by Galactus, which allow him far-ranging vision (in space he can see people clearly over a light year away), the ability to see sub-atomic particles, superhuman hearing, the ability to detect fields, traces, and concentrations of energy and discern their natures. He also has an affinity for the life-energies of living beings, and can use his cosmic energies to boost the natural healing powers of a wounded individual, even if they are near-death. He cannot, however, raise the dead.
Galactus: (The "Devourer" of Worlds)
Older than the universe itself, the only survivor of the universe that came before our own, Galactus's fate is inextricably bound up with that of the entire cosmos. Although at times he has been a force for good, far more often he has brought doom, destroying whole peoples and consuming entire worlds, for his hunger for energy is insatiable; without it, he would cease to exist.
BIO:
Born Galan, on paradise world of Taa, Galactus was fated to live in the last days of the universe, just as it was entering the final stages of the Big Crunch. Realizing that his people were doomed, he persuaded them to pilot a vessel into the heart of the Crunch, to die in one last act of heroism. His people perished, but Galactus was somehow saved by the Phoenix Force of his universe. For billions of years he slept, and when he awoke it was with an immense hunger that could ony be satiated by consuming the life energies of an entire world. At first he searched for uninhabited worlds but his hunger gradually forced him to consume planets populated by sentient races, as these more fully satiate his hunger. Galactus's conscience was only eased by the prophecy that he will ultimately make good on the devastation he wrought.
Galactus' Herald
During a search for food, Galactus came upon the planet Zenn-La. To save his homeworld, a young man named Norrin Radd agreed to become Galactus's herald and to search out planetary fodder. Transformed into the SILVER SURFER, Radd's emotions were subdued so he would be willing to indentify inhabited worlds for Galactus to consume. However, the Surfer's conscience was reawakened by Alicia Masters. When Galactus turned his attentions to Earth, the Fantastic Four & the Surfer drove his master away. Galactus has since attacked Earth several times, but has been defeated. Nevertheless, he remains as dangerous as ever, with no sign of the earlier, hopeful prophecy coming to pass.
The Marvel Encyclopedia, page 106
Older than the universe itself, the only survivor of the universe that came before our own, Galactus's fate is inextricably bound up with that of the entire cosmos. Although at times he has been a force for good, far more often he has brought doom, destroying whole peoples and consuming entire worlds, for his hunger for energy is insatiable; without it, he would cease to exist.
BIO:
Born Galan, on paradise world of Taa, Galactus was fated to live in the last days of the universe, just as it was entering the final stages of the Big Crunch. Realizing that his people were doomed, he persuaded them to pilot a vessel into the heart of the Crunch, to die in one last act of heroism. His people perished, but Galactus was somehow saved by the Phoenix Force of his universe. For billions of years he slept, and when he awoke it was with an immense hunger that could ony be satiated by consuming the life energies of an entire world. At first he searched for uninhabited worlds but his hunger gradually forced him to consume planets populated by sentient races, as these more fully satiate his hunger. Galactus's conscience was only eased by the prophecy that he will ultimately make good on the devastation he wrought.
Galactus' Herald
During a search for food, Galactus came upon the planet Zenn-La. To save his homeworld, a young man named Norrin Radd agreed to become Galactus's herald and to search out planetary fodder. Transformed into the SILVER SURFER, Radd's emotions were subdued so he would be willing to indentify inhabited worlds for Galactus to consume. However, the Surfer's conscience was reawakened by Alicia Masters. When Galactus turned his attentions to Earth, the Fantastic Four & the Surfer drove his master away. Galactus has since attacked Earth several times, but has been defeated. Nevertheless, he remains as dangerous as ever, with no sign of the earlier, hopeful prophecy coming to pass.
The Marvel Encyclopedia, page 106
Galactus does appear, but not in his comic book form. In the comics, the character Galactus is a humanoid giant that lives by consuming the life-energies of planets, but he is not a villain. Galactus has been described as being very much like a force of nature-like a hurricane or volcano, and beyond abstract concepts as good or evil. In this movie, however, Galactus has been changed to a huge swirling cloud of dust and rock. Unlike the comic books, that is his physical shape on the movie, and he is considerably powered down from his comic book incarnation. Plus Tim Story said he never wants to make a movie with giant robots in it. There has been some mis-perception regarding Galactus's size among some people. He is typically drawn as appearing around 30 to 50 feet in height, but often appears taller depending on what other characters are around him. Galactus' traditional comic book appearance is hinted at twice in the movie. Once, when he is seen passing by Saturn, a shadow can be seen on a moon, that resembles his helmet. And when the Surfer says that he will no longer serve him, a huge fiery mass is seen inside the the cloud form that looks like his helmet.
Jessica Alba is wearing a wig for this movie. In the last movie she bleached her hair, but since that badly damaged her hair last time, she opted for a wig this time.
The Silver Surfer dragged Johnny into the stratosphere. The air is very thin and there is very little oxygen (but, apparently, enough to stay conscious for a short period of time) and, because oxygen is a main fuel for all flame, Johnny's flames go out. Johnny passes out shortly after and falls back to Earth.
Yes, they are, according to the novelization, and this is how it is in the film.
From the Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer movie novelization, page 192: It's pointed out when the Silver Surfer is questioned by Susan Storm a.k.a Invisible Woman about the "source" of his power and how it's the "key" to Earth's destruction by drawing his master Galactus, who bears the moniker "the Destroyer" in the novelization: "Could you stop the Destroyer from coming if you wanted to?" she asked over her shoulder, keeping her gaze on the miles of artic land around them.
The Surfer answered her quickly, like a child who longed to be awarded. "It's not I who draws the the Destroyer (Galactus) here. It's the beacon."
"What beacon?" she asked.
"The source of my power," he said.
"The board?" she thought to herself. The earth is doomed to a fiery apocalyptic demise because of a surfboard?
"Take joy in the last few hours you have left," the Surfer added. "For it is nearly here."
In the comics, on the other hand, the Silver Surfer's power comes from the Power Cosmic, not his surf board. On more than one occasion the board has been destroyed and he has simply remade it. In the time since 2007, this had been seen in the Annihilation mini-series. The Silver Surfer has complete mental control over his board, regardless of whether or not he is in physical contact with it. While the aforementioned is true, it also true that (at least originally) his surf board contained his weak points in the comics. While his powers did not come from the board, damaging the board would damage the Surfer.
From the Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer movie novelization, page 192: It's pointed out when the Silver Surfer is questioned by Susan Storm a.k.a Invisible Woman about the "source" of his power and how it's the "key" to Earth's destruction by drawing his master Galactus, who bears the moniker "the Destroyer" in the novelization: "Could you stop the Destroyer from coming if you wanted to?" she asked over her shoulder, keeping her gaze on the miles of artic land around them.
The Surfer answered her quickly, like a child who longed to be awarded. "It's not I who draws the the Destroyer (Galactus) here. It's the beacon."
"What beacon?" she asked.
"The source of my power," he said.
"The board?" she thought to herself. The earth is doomed to a fiery apocalyptic demise because of a surfboard?
"Take joy in the last few hours you have left," the Surfer added. "For it is nearly here."
In the comics, on the other hand, the Silver Surfer's power comes from the Power Cosmic, not his surf board. On more than one occasion the board has been destroyed and he has simply remade it. In the time since 2007, this had been seen in the Annihilation mini-series. The Silver Surfer has complete mental control over his board, regardless of whether or not he is in physical contact with it. While the aforementioned is true, it also true that (at least originally) his surf board contained his weak points in the comics. While his powers did not come from the board, damaging the board would damage the Surfer.
Realistically his clothes wouldn't stretch unless he made all his clothes out of the suit material, including his tuxedo, his leisure clothes, his lab coat, etc. That is most likely what happened, since just having one piece of clothing that stretches (or catches fire or turns invisible) would be awkward for all four of them, as Sue proved in this movie and the previous one. His powers don't transfer onto clothing like X-Men's Kitty Pride's do.
The song is called "Tambourine" performed by Eve.
Actually, Doctor Doom stealing the Surfer's powers is based on an early Fantastic Four comic book when he did exactly that. While his method of stealing his power by way of stepping on his board is original to the movie, the concept of Doom wielding the Power Cosmic comes from the comic books.
No, he is not. However, his role in the film was originally going to be Nick Fury, but was re-written has General Hager, probably so that Nick Fury can appear in Marvel Studios' own features.
Yes, he did. Unlike in the other movies, in this movie, he made a cameo playing himself trying to get into the Reed and Sue wedding ceremony. That is a reference to the original comic books of the Silver Age (like Fantastic Four) where Stan Lee and the people at Marvel were portrayed as real people living in the Marvel Universe. Nowadays, that has been explained in the She-Hulk comics as the fact that (in the Marvel Universe) Stan Lee and his people simply transcribed the events occurring in the Marvel Universe to comic book form as documentaries.
Yes, there is an additional scene for the movie showing that the Silver Surfer did not die. He passed out and was drifting in space. After that, it shows that his board was slowly drifting towards him, thus leaving the door open for the Surfer's own spinoff movie.
There is a Michael Chiklis interview with Your Greek News featuring clips from the film in advance of the release. It may be featured in the review here.
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What is the Japanese language plot outline for Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007)?
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