The Fantastic Four is coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and there’s a lot to be excited for. We’ve waited long enough for Marvel’s first family to make their big MCU debut and now it’s finally happening. As excited as I am for this movie, I’m also a bit nervous. I know I’m not alone on this and we fans have good reason to be nervous. Why? Well, because there have been Fantastic Four movies done before and they were big misfires. Yeah, that’s old news, and we can easily say, “But this time, they’re being done in the MCU!”. So that means things will be okay, right? Can we forget about the other FF movies, especially that 2015 one (yuck!) and have faith in Jon Watts’ vision? I’d certainly like to think so, but it’s honestly a matter of believing it when we see it.
As nervous as I am, I’m still immensely stoked for the MCU’s Fantastic Four. Kevin Feige and Jon Watts have done right by us so far and they’ve earned our trust. But I don’t want to keep going strictly on faith. I believe there is one crucial element to this upcoming FF movie that it needs to be a hit. Granted, it needs many things to be successful, but I’m talking about the cream of the crop. In other words, it needs to have a villain that’s worthy to fight the Fantastic Four. Any takers?
The first and obvious candidate is the main adversary of the Fantastic Four. Yes, that would be Victor Von Doom, or just Doctor Doom. That’s the obvious choice, because he’s their greatest enemy. Plus, we’ve been waiting to see a proper version of him done for years now. He’s not only the FF’s greatest enemy, but one of the greatest villains in Marvel Comics. I want to see Doctor Doom in the MCU. Like, very badly. You know what? Give Michael Fassbender a call, because he killed it as a young Magneto and he can undoubtedly kill it as Victor Von Doom. When Doctor Doom does come around, I seriously hope he gets the call.
There is a problem with Doctor Doom being the main villain of the MCU FF movie, however. He was the big bad for the last Fantastic Four movie. And also the one before that, and the one before that. Oh, and also for that 1994 movie that I never saw and never will see. The point is, Doctor Doom failed to be the compelling big bad in several FF movies. Not that he can’t be a great villain in an upcoming MCU movie, but I think it’s time that we see the FF tackle another villain.
So who else is a part of the FF’s rogues gallery? It extends way beyond Doctor Doom and it goes from the hostile extraterrestrial, to the downright silly. This is a team that has spend a lot of time in space, so it would make sense for them to take on some alien-like villains.
Let’s start with a villain who we all know for a fact already exist in the MCU. The hint is in the name. He’s a Skrull named Kl’rt and he has the power to imitate the powers of the entire Fantastic Four. He can stretch his body to incredible lengths, turn invisible and create force fields, manipulate fire, and turn his fists into big, orange rocks. His best-known alias is, wait for it… the Super-Skrull. Kind of corny, right?
We’ve seen the Skrulls in the MCU already in Captain Marvel, but they weren’t the villains. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if there were a rogue group of Skrulls led by Veranke committing acts of terrorism throughout the galaxy. She’s going to need her bodyguard and Super-Skrull is the best Skrull to take on that role. If he does encounter the FF, he’ll be like a one-man team giving them more than they can handle. That would be an awesome fight to see and it will pave the way for a new batch of villains for the MCU. Who do you think will be the villains of Secret Invasion?
Super-Skrull would be a great physical challenge for the FF, but he’s not strong enough to be a main villain. Well, if not Doctor Doom, what about their next greatest enemy? That would have to be Galactus. Now he’s been being talked about for a while now and he can even be the next Thanos-level villain for the MCU. It’s understandable, considering he’s ridiculously powerful, but the thing is, if he’s the next Thanos, he needs to face not just the Fantastic Four, but the Avengers as well. I have a feeling we’ll see him eventually, but it will be just a tease that slowly builds to his big villainous debut. Yes, it would be just like how Marvel built up Thanos.
You see, I have a rather unusual villain in mind for the MCU FF movie. I’ve mentioned some of the hostile extraterrestrial and now it’s time to talk about the downright silly. I’m talking about the first villain the team has actually ever faced in the comics. His name is Harvey Rupert Elder, better known as Mole Man. Yes, I know how lame that sounds. I mean, the guy’s name is Mole Man, so how intimidating could he be, right?
Well, think of it this way. Remember back when Marvel announced that they were doing an Ant-Man movie? At the time, I remember many fans, including myself, were unenthusiastic about it. I mean, it was a movie about Ant-Man, so cool could his movie possibly be, right? Well, we all remember how his movie actually turned out. Thank goodness they proved us wrong, because before that movie, there weren’t too many people who thought that an Ant-Man movie would be awesome. The point is, if Marvel can make Ant-Man cool, they can make Mole Man cool as well.
Making Mole Man the main villain would ground the film on Earth, but the team would still have their hands full. While he has no superhuman powers, he’s an incredible scientific genius. Basically, he’s the mad scientist type of villain, but he doesn’t use technology to fight his battles. He’s called the Mole Man for a reason. He lives underground and rules over an army of subterranean, mole-human hybrids called the Moloids. In the comics, he’s used the Moloids to attempt to conquer a world that rejected him, leading to conflict with the Fantastic Four.
This would make for an exciting story for the MCU FF movie. They’ll fight monsters as a team, save the Earth, and a villain that seems lame on paper can have his chance to shine on the big-screen. Again, if Mole Man sounds lame to you, just remember how Marvel handled Ant-Man. Can we really doubt them after that?
Now I think Doctor Doom can appear in the MCU FF movie. They can tease him or even set him up for his future “big bad” appearance in a future Avenger movie. Secret Wars anyone? Anyway, it’s time that a villain who isn’t Doctor Doom take on the FF in another big movie. Heck, maybe Doom can briefly assist them to defeat Mole Man? Now that sounds like an interesting route.
Boy, the more I talk about it, the more I want to get to the MCU Fantastic Four movie. We can be nervous, but hey, it’s Marvel. Have a little faith.
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