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Listen up, cinephiles, because it’s clobberin’ time! The Cinematic Schematic is here with our Marvel summer extravaganza featuring a review of Fantastic Four: First Steps.
In this episode, we talk about the recent Kevin Feige interview, hinting at the state of Hollywood’s most reliable hitmaker over the last two decades. Then we take on the 37th entry in the megafranchise.
It’s been a long road to seeing the Fantastic Four join the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Marvel’s first family spent decades under 20th Century Fox. They first received two film adaptations under director Tim Story in 2005 and 2007, starring Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, and Michael Chiklis. In 2015, director Josh Trank failed with a darker spin on the characters with stars Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan, and Jamie Bell.
The impossible finally became an inevitability after the 20th Century Fox acquisition by Disney in 2019. Reed and Sue Richards, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm were finally stepping under the same umbrella as Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, and Black Widow.
Fantastic Four: First Steps is directed by Matt Shakman (Wandavision, Game of Thrones) and stars Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. This iteration of the family is living in their retrofuturist society on Earth 828, completely isolated from the events we’ve been following since Iron Man in 2008 on Earth 616.
Do they offer enough fresh ideas into the well-worn superhero genre to win back audiences?
Meet the Fantastic Four Film Critics
Caleb Masters and Laron Chapman are joined by returning guests and MCU aficionados Arthur Gordon from GoodTrash Media, and OKC filmmaker Jada Merritt.
Left to Right: Jada Merritt, Laron Chapman, Arthur Gordon, and Caleb Masters.
Laron’s Take on Superman
Time Stamp: 6:12
Laron Chapman returns to the table after being away making movies to provide his quick thoughts on James Gunn’s Superman.
The Big Kevin Feige Marvel Interview
Time Stamp: 14:31
Kevin Feige, the head of Marvel, recently opened up about the state of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and we got several notable updates about highly anticipated upcoming projects.
The fantastic film critic crew discusses a few topics from the interview, including:
- An acknowledgment that Marvel Studios is being spread too thin to achieve the best quality stories.
- The latest update on Blade starring Mahershala Ali
- Jake Schreier is doing X-Men…sometime after 2027
Is any of it good news? Listen to our takes.
Ice Breaker Question
Time Stamp: 41:05
To segue into our Fantastic Four: First Steps review, we break the ice with this discussion prompt:
“You are being sent on an uncertain mission going into space. What group of 4 people (real or fictional) do you take with you?”
Spoiler-Free Review
Time Stamp: 49:55
In our spoiler-free review, we cover:
- Our overall thoughts on Fantastic Four: First Steps
- What sets this film apart from our entries in the MCU
- Why the Fantastic Four is important for Marvel
- Letter grade verdicts
- Alternate media recommendations
Spoiler-Filled Analysis
Time Stamp: 1:41:51
To close the show, we talk about Galactus as a metaphor for parenthood and the environmental collapse, Silver Surfer, and what we expect to see in Avengers: Doomsday when it releases on Dec. 18th, 2026.
Special Guests
Arthur Gordon
Co-host of GoodTrash Genrecast and GoodTrash Media co-founder
Follow GoodTrash on Instagram @GoodTrashMedia
Jada Merritt
Filmmaker
Follow Jada on Instagram @j.merritt
About Fantastic Four: First Steps
According to IMDB, Fantastic Four: First Steps is described as:
Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, the Fantastic Four must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer.
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