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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Vol. 1 = get on with it. Vol. 2 = much, much better., June 20, 2004
By A Customer
Fantastic Four Visionaries: John Byrne Vol. 1 left me with the feeling that Byrne was really keeping his good stuff in his back pocket until he had established himself on the FF. In Volume 2, you get a much better sense of the kind of Fantastic Four Byrne was trying to create. His art is its usual outstanding self, but the "just get on with it" feeling you got from most of the short vignettes of Vol. 1 is nowhere to be found.You can't talk about FF Visionaries: John Byrne Vol. 2 without talking about the Galactus epic. Galactus' rebellious herald Terrax comes to Earth, battles the Fantastic Four, and then holds the entire island of Manhattan hostage unless the FF kills Galactus. It's pretty much everyone versus Galactus in a melee that most of comicdom wanted to see happen for years. The panels with Spiderman and Daredevil deciding to sit this one out ("We'd just be in the way.") are priceless. One note, though: I should call it a half-epic, as the Trial of Reed Richards, and the fate of Terrax that happened after issue #250 are not included in this volume (hopefully there will be a Vol. 3). A bit disappointing, but only mildly so. There are other good tales here as well - the fate of Frankie Raye, Dr. Doom enlisting the FF's help to reclaim the throne of Latveria, the revelation of Franklin Richards, etc. However, the other jewel in this volume is the finale - issues #249 and #250 - which features Gladiator (of X-men and Imperial Guard fame), as well as guest appearances by Spiderman, Captain America, and the aforementioned X-men (sort of). All in all, I'd have to say that if you're trying to gather the best graphic novelizations of Byrne's work, this title is a must-have.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Best of the Bunch, November 20, 2006
The second year of Byrne's legendary run on the Fantastic Four is some of the best American superhero stories, bar none. John Byrne was able to write compelling comics without veering from the formula that makes the FF great. He's also the master storyteller. The amount of information conveyed in a single panel continues to astound me, densely but clearly showing the actions and reactions all at once. Issues 241-245 are the standouts, but all of them are SWEET! In twelve issues they fight Galactus, a hippy with a surprising identity, and some X-Men who don't seem to be acting quite right.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic truly is the word for this second collection of John Byrne F.F. stories, April 18, 2006
Want some good, old-fashioned superhero storytelling, with adventures that are truly imaginative, innovative, and full of heart? Then get this second volume of Fantastic Four stories written and drawn by John Byrne. In this collection, writer/artist Byrne continues making the F.F. his own, but he also more fully embraces the goings-on in the Marvel Universe at large, resulting in some memorable appearances by Thor, Captain America, Spider-Man, Daredevil, and the like. The multi-issue Galactus story is a particular stand-out (that's where most of the superhero guest appearances just mentioned take place), and for those who like big, epic fights, the battle with the shape-shifting Skrulls at the end of the volume will nicely do the trick. There are still some great John Byrne stories to come in future "Visionaries" collections (I'm mainly thinking of "The Trial of Reed Richards" here), but this particular volume arguably contains the best stories of Mr. Byrne's run.
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