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Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes

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Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes
GenreSuperhero
Based on
Fantastic Four
by
Developed byCraig Kyle
Christopher Yost
Written byChristopher Yost
Directed byFranck Michel
Voices ofHiro Kanagawa
Lara Gilchrist
Christopher Jacot
Brian Dobson
Sam Vincent
ComposerNoam Kaniel
Country of originUnited States
Canada
France
Original languagesEnglish
French
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes26
Production
Executive producers
  • Christophe di Sabatino
  • Benoît di Sabatino
  • Nicolas Atlan
  • Avi Arad
  • Craig Kyle
  • Eric S. Rollman
  • Robin Lyons
EditorsBertrand Martineu
Benoit Tricot
Valerie Chappellet
Sandrine Mercier
Running time21–22 minutes
Production companiesMarvel Studios
MoonScoop Group
Taffy Entertainment
Original release
Network
ReleaseSeptember 2, 2006 (2006-09-02) –
February 25, 2010 (2010-02-25)
Related

Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes is an anime-influenced animated television series based on the Marvel Comics' Fantastic Four comic book series. This is the team's fourth foray into animation. The series is co-produced by American company Marvel Studios and French company MoonScoop Group, with the participation of M6 and Cartoon Network Europe, and is distributed by Taffy Entertainment.

Airing

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In the United States, the show had an erratic airing schedule on Cartoon Network, having premiered as part of Toonami on September 2, 2006. It ran for only eight of the season's 26 episodes before being pulled. It subsequently returned to the network starting June 9, 2007, shortly before the release of the film Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. The second launch of the show aired only nine episodes, leaving nine installments not televised in the USA. The show aired on Boomerang for a brief time before moving to Nicktoons in 2009 for the final episodes.[1] The series was produced in 16:9 widescreen, although it was letterboxed or cropped when broadcast.

Plot

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World's Greatest Heroes is not directly connected to any of the previous iterations of the Fantastic Four, telling its own version of the team's origin and their encounters with their rogues gallery. Unlike its 1994 predecessor, which consisted almost entirely of straight or modified reinterpretations of classic Fantastic Four comic book stories, World's Greatest Heroes features mostly original stories, though elements from various comic iterations of the Fantastic Four were used in the series. Most episodes finished with the 40-second "epilogue" scene.

Cast

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Guest stars

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Production

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In October 2004, it was announced Marvel Studios and MoonScoop Group would be teaming up to produce an animated series based on the Marvel Comics' Fantastic Four comic book series which would be shopped to potential buyers.[2] After development began, Christopher Yost was hired to serve as story editor for the series and worked with Craig Kyle, in developing the series.[3] In March 2006, it was announced Cartoon Network had picked up the series for broadcast.[4]

Episodes

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No. Title Written by Storyboarded by Original air date Production
code
1"Doomsday"Christopher YostOlivier Poirette and Franck MichelSeptember 16, 2006 (2006-09-16) (U.S.)101
Reed is accused of purposely exposing the Fantastic Four to cosmic rays. He soon finds out that the paper has been altered by Dr. Doom who plans to open another dimension.
2"Molehattan"Story by : Avi Arad
Teleplay by : Chris Hicks and Francis Lombard		Olivier PoiretteSeptember 4, 2009 (2009-09-04) (U.S.)102
After kidnapping Ben, Mole Man attempts to get the Thing to join forces with him and his Moloids to create an underground paradise where appearances don't matter.
3"Trial by Fire"Bob ForwardYacine Elghorri and Laurent DelionSeptember 2, 2006 (2006-09-02)103

After destroying a robot, Johnny inexplicably disappears. He finds himself in a stadium filled with aliens, where he has been put on trial for crimes against the Kree Empire, with Ronan the Accuser acting as judge. Meanwhile, Ben attempts to entertain the guests at a charity event. Reed is summoned to act as Johnny's lawyer while Ben and Sue are summoned as witnesses. Unfortunately, Ben and Sue's testimonies fail to help Johnny's case. Johnny is sentenced to immediate execution by robotic creatures. Ben, Sue, and Reed fight the robot executioners, one of which is accidentally thrown into the crowd. Johnny protects a Kree child in the audience from the errant robot, which inspires the crowd to demand that Johnny be exonerated and released. Feeling humiliated at having to appease the crowd, Ronan releases Johnny. The Kree return to their home world whereupon Ronan is banished from the Kree Empire, while the Supreme Intelligence notes that the Fantastic Four may be useful against the Skrull.

Note: In this episode, the opening theme music has been pitch-shifted to a noticeably lower key.
4"Doomed"Rob Loos and George TaweelChristophe PittetSeptember 9, 2006 (2006-09-09)104
The four return from extinguishing a fire that Johnny started, with Ben and Sue upset with him. Johnny apologizes, saying that he'll do anything to make it up to them. Doctor Doom switches bodies with Reed by injecting into him anesthesia. With Reed stuck in Doom's body, he slowly escapes the confines of Doom's lair. The next day, Johnny wakes up and finds a camera crew in his room. Sue explains that, as payback for yesterday, Johnny must be followed around by 'A Day in the Life' so viewers can find out what a day in the life of the Fantastic Four is like. When Doom, as Reed, tells Sue to cancel his lectures, the three figure out something's up. Reed, as Doom, shows up at the Baxter Building and is greeted by the four. Believing him to be Doom, they trap him. Reed eventually convinces Sue to trust him and together they stop Doom from turning the Baxter Building into a weapon while also switching their bodies back.
5"Puppet Master"Story by : Joseph Kelly
Teleplay by : Rob Loos and George Taweel		Luc BlanchardJune 16, 2007 (2007-06-16)105
Alicia's stepfather acquires a supply of clay irradiated from a fallen piece of Reed's ill-fated space station that allows him to control others as the Puppet Master.
6"Zoned Out"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Bob Forward		Luis RuizOctober 28, 2006 (2006-10-28)106
Things take a turn for the worse when Johnny gives his friend Frankie an unauthorized tour of Reed's lab. When Frankie is sucked into another dimension, Johnny goes in after her to prevent anyone from finding out. But as he does so, a small bug comes through the dimensional portal. Susan, Ben, and Reed now have to deal with the bug as it multiplies and slowly destroys the Baxter Building while Frankie and Johnny are trapped in the other dimension and look like they will be killed by worse versions of the bugs. In the end, Johnny and Frankie get back to Earth and the bugs are all put back to where they belong – except for one who remains in an old lady's fridge.
7"Hard Knocks"Joshua FineRoland BoschiSeptember 23, 2006 (2006-09-23)107
Bruce Banner visits Reed at the Baxter Building. Banner changes into the Hulk and now the Fantastic Four must stop his rampage in NYC and keep him from being captured by Agent Pratt who wants to use the Hulk for his bosses' own agenda. In the end, Pratt fails to stop Hulk and the Hulk is loose in the badlands. The Fantastic Four have saved the day again as Pratt and his men are arrested by the U.S. army led by General "Thunderbolt" Ross.
8"My Neighbor Was a Skrull"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Joseph Kelly		Christophe PittetSeptember 30, 2006 (2006-09-30) (U.S.)108
Skrulls impersonate the Fantastic Four's neighbors in order to collect tissue samples from the Fantastic Four. In the end, Skrull commander Kl'rt tells Ronan the Accuser all samples have been collected for him to begin making the greatest warrior the universe has ever known.
9"World's Tiniest Heroes"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Joshua Fine		Olivier PoiretteOctober 21, 2006 (2006-10-21) (U.S.)109
One of Reed's Microverse experiments causes the Fantastic Four to shrink putting them at risk when H.E.R.B.I.E. mistakes them for vermin and tries to exterminate them. The Fantastic Four are assisted by Ant-Man when it comes to getting to the lab and once there their lives are saved with Ant-Man’s help.
10"De-Mole-Ition"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Bob Forward		Laurent DelionNovember 4, 2006 (2006-11-04) (U.S.)110
The Mole Man uses Giganto attacks the Baxter Building in hopes of luring the Fantastic Four to his underground lair.
11"Impossible"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Rob Loos and George Taweel		Jeremie BonacheraJune 23, 2007 (2007-06-23) (U.S.)111
The Impossible Man is brought to Earth by one of Reed's space probes and immediately starts causing trouble for everyone. In the end, the Fantastic Four convince Impossible Man that Earth isn't as fun as he is.
12"Bait & Switch"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Bob Forward		Luis RuizJune 30, 2007 (2007-06-30) (U.S.)112
Doctor Doom hijacks one of Reed's experiments aimed at restoring Ben Grimm to human form and causes the Fantastic Four to swap powers with one another.
13"Annihilation"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Christopher Yost		Roland BoschiJuly 14, 2007 (2007-07-14) (U.S.)113
The Fantastic Four are brought to the Negative Zone where they come face to face with Annihilus. As if that wasn't bad enough, Doctor Doom arrives stealing Annihilus' power source and threatening Earth.
14"Revenge of the Skrulls"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Bob Forward		Luc BlanchardAugust 11, 2007 (2007-08-11)114
The Fantastic Four hold a contest where the winner gets to spend the day with the Fantastic Four. The winner ended up being a fan named Rupert the Geek. Having acquired their tissue samples back in "My Neighbor Was A Skrull", the Skrulls now have the technology to duplicate the abilities of the Fantastic Four. Unknown to the Skrulls, Commander Kl'rt, the genius behind the breakthrough, is actually getting help from Ronan the Accuser in his next plot against the Fantastic Four.
15"Strings"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Joshua Fine		Christophe PittetAugust 25, 2007 (2007-08-25) (U.S.)115
The Puppet Master gets the city to turn on the Fantastic Four by controlling its public officials like the Mayor of New York City and the Chief of Police. Evicted from their home much to the excitement of Courtney Bonner-Davis as well as their accounts frozen and their property seized, the Fantastic Four must clear their good names and stop the Puppet Master from taking over the minds of everyone on Earth.
16"Imperius Rex"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Len Uhley		Olivier PoiretteJune 9, 2007 (2007-06-09) (U.S.)116
Namor arrives with a decree banning humankind from the oceans. Susan and Johnny go underwater to negotiate, but are taken prisoner in Atlantis. Ben and Reed must fight their way through sea monsters, Atlantean soldiers, and Namor to save their teammates.
17"Doomsday Plus One"Bob ForwardLaurent DelionApril 27, 2007 (2007-04-27)
September 1, 2007 (2007-09-01) (U.S.)		117
Doombots invade the Baxter Building in the middle of the night, but their attack is just a distraction for Doctor Doom to launch the Baxter Building into space.
18"The Cure"Story by : Dan Slott
Teleplay by : Christopher Yost		Jeremie BonacheraJune 9, 2007 (2007-06-09)
January 18, 2010 (2010-01-18) (U.S.)		118
Reed finally cures the Thing, but the cure also takes away all of his memories since the formation of the Fantastic Four. In order to find a replacement for Thing, the other members of the Fantastic Four hold auditions where She-Hulk wins over the other candidates Squirrel Girl, Captain Ultra, Texas Twister, Frog-Man, and Flatman. When the Mole Man attacks with an army of Lava Men, She-Hulk must fill in for the Thing while the powerless Ben Grimm must find a way to save the day.
19"Frightful"Len UhleyLuis RuizAugust 18, 2007 (2007-08-18)
January 27, 2010 (2010-01-27) (U.S.)		119
The Frightful Four (consisting of The Wizard, Klaw, Trapster, and Dragon Man) is the new team in town saving New York always one step ahead of the Fantastic Four. Johnny even tries to prove that the Fantastic Four are still active in heroics by enlisting a photographer named Peter Parker. Reed begins to suspects that the Frightful Four are not the heroes they appear to be.
20"Out of Time"Joshua FineLuc BlanchardSeptember 15, 2007 (2007-09-15)
January 28, 2010 (2010-01-28) (U.S.)		120
After returning from the past to find out what killed the Dinosaurs, the Fantastic Four return to New York to find that the whole city has been conquered by Doctor Doom.
21"Atlantis Attacks!"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Bob Forward		Olivier PoiretteSeptember 1, 2007 (2007-09-01) (U.S.)121
Namor returns. This time, he needs help to defeat Attuma who has overthrown Atlantis. While Reed, Susan, and Ben head off to help free Atlantis, Johnny stays behind and faces an attack on the city from a giant mutant whale.
22"Shell Games"Rob HoegeeRoland BoschiOctober 6, 2007 (2007-10-06)
February 8, 2010 (2010-02-08) (U.S.)		122
After several attacks from Iron Man armors, the Fantastic Four track down Tony Stark. It turns out Doctor Doom was behind the attacks, and now the Four have to face both Iron Doom and Iron Man under Doom's control.
23"Johnny Storm and the Potion of Fire"Story by : Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Teleplay by : Len Uhley		Luc BlanchardOctober 13, 2007 (2007-10-13)
February 22, 2010 (2010-02-22) (U.S.)		123
During a confrontation with Diablo, Johnny is accidentally exposed to one of Diablo's potions he planned to use to gain control of all the elements.
24"Contest of Champions"Joshua FineJeremie BonacheraOctober 20, 2007 (2007-10-20)
February 23, 2010 (2010-02-23) (U.S.)		124
At the request of Ronan the Accuser, the Grandmaster forces the Fantastic Four to compete in his game against Ronan, Impossible Man, Annihilus, and Super-Skrull. The fate of all humanity hangs in the balance as the species of the losers are wiped out. In the final fight, Ronan bulks up and grows to monstrous proportions to brutally beat Ben. After Ronan shocked the crowd with his overwhelming strength, Grandmaster ultimately decides to wipe out Ronan and give Ben a desire.
25"Doom's Word Is Law"Story by : Craig Kyle
Teleplay by : Paul Giacoppo		Luis RuizFebruary 24, 2010 (2010-02-24) (U.S.)125
Doctor Doom creates a Doombot adaptoid to face the Fantastic Four. The Four try and retrain this Doombot to be on their side. In the end, Ben becomes the robot's friend and names him "Bruiser", but then Doctor Doom's control is too strong and it captures Susan and Reed. Johnny and Ben must save Susan and Reed, and fight Doom. But when Johnny is captured, Ben is left to fight Bruiser.
26"Scavenger Hunt"Christopher Yost and Craig KyleOlivier PoiretteFebruary 25, 2010 (2010-02-25) (U.S.)126
Terminus, an alien scavenger, comes to steal all of Earth's resources. While the Fantastic Four try everything to stop him, they realize he may be unbeatable.

Broadcast

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During its original run on Cartoon Network, the series was subject to an erratic airing schedule and as a result only 8 of its 26 episodes ended up being broadcast during its initial broadcast run.[5] Cartoon Network briefly brought the series back in June of 2007 to tie-in with the release Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, but this run would also be cut short and the series wouldn't be broadcast in its entirety until 2009 when the rights to the series were acquired by Nicktoons to air alongside Wolverine and the X-Men and Iron Man: Armored Adventures.[5][6][7]

Home releases

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DVD Name Region 1 Episodes DVD Name Region 4 Episodes
Volume One March 27, 2007
  • "Doomed"
  • "Hard Knocks"
  • "World's Tiniest Heroes"
  • "De-Mole-Ition"
 Volume One October 10, 2007
  • "Trial by Fire"
  • "Doomed"
  • "Doomsday"
  • "Hard Knocks"
Volume Two September 11, 2007
  • "Trial by Fire"
  • "My Neighbor Was a Skrull"
  • "Impossible"
  • "Revenge of the Skrulls"
 Volume Two October 10, 2007
  • "My Neighbor Was a Skrull"
  • "World's Tiniest Heroes"
  • "Zoned Out"
  • "Puppet Master"
Volume Three March 11, 2008
  • "Annihilation"
  • "Doomsday Plus One"
  • "Out of Time"
  • "Shell Games"
 Volume Three February 6, 2008
  • "De-Mole-ition"
  • "Impossible"
  • "Bait and Switch"
  • "Revenge of the Skrulls"
The Complete First Season June 10, 2008
  • All 26 episodes of the first season
 Volume Four June 4, 2008
  • "Doomsday Plus One"
  • "Annihilation"
  • "Strings"
  • "Imperious Rex"
Volume Five September 3, 2008
  • "The Cure"
  • "Frightful"
  • "Atlantis Attack"
  • "Out of Time"
  • "Shell Games"

References

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  1. ^ "Marvel Animation Age". Archived from the original on July 16, 2009. Retrieved 2015-08-09.
  2. ^ "Marvel tooning up 'Four'". Variety. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  3. ^ "Prepare For The Fantastic! Chris Yost Talks Fantastic Four!". toonzone.net. Archived from the original on 2006-10-04. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
  4. ^ "Cartoon Network gets more Fantastic". animatedviews.com. March 16, 2006.
  5. ^ a b "The Animated Fantastic Four". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  6. ^ IGN, Staff (2007-06-15). "Fantastic Four on TV". IGN. Retrieved 2024-05-03.
  7. ^ ""Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes" Comes to Nicktoons Network in October 2009". Animesuperhero.com. 7 July 2009. Retrieved 2024-05-03.
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