Marvel Gives Away Five Fantastic Four Comics for Free

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Today is April 4, or as Marvel wants to call it, 4-4 Day which means it’s time to celebrate its first family, the Fantastic Four. With the MCU’s Fantastic Four movie gearing up for production this year, Marvel is now giving away five comic books that may or may not tie into the film’s plot.

If you head to the official website celebrating the F4, you’ll be greeted with error 404, but don’t worry as that’s just a cute joke. Scan the QR code on the robot H.E.R.B.I.E’s body, and you’ll redirected to the actual page where you can redeem the comics. There’s just one catch - you’ll need to sign up and subscribe to Marvel Unlimited to read them, but a free 7-day trial is also available, which should be enough to go through the comics.

Here are the Fantastic Four comics that you can read for free on Marvel Unlimited:

• Fantastic Four (1961) #1

• Fantastic Four (1961) #48

• Fantastic Four (1961) #49

• Fantastic Four (1961) #50

• Fantastic Four: Life Story (2021) #1

How do these comics connect to the upcoming movie? Well, the first issue is self-explanatory - this is where the team debuted in Marvel comics. Issue #48 marked the first appearances of the Silver Surfer and Galactus, with the following issues seeing the former turn against his master. The latest comic, Life Story, was the celebration of the team’s 60th anniversary with a new story where the team aged in real-time from the sixties to the modern era.

Marvel Studios recently cast Julia Garner as the Shalla-Bal, Silver Surfer’s lover who takes on his mantle in the comics, in the upcoming film. The film is expected to include Galactus as well, so it makes sense to prepare fans with comic books featuring these characters. What’s more interesting though is the addition of the Life Story comic.

The film is heavily implied to be set, or at least start in, the 1960s. Perhaps we’ll see the eponymous team age into the modern day, or travel the multiverse to arrive in the sacred timeline of the MCU. Time will tell. The website where you can redeem the comics is called Future Foundation, a team formed by Mr. Fantastic who played a crucial role in the 2015 Secret Wars storyline. With Marvel Studios developing Avengers: Secret Wars, the page may be teasing a similar destiny for the Foundation in the film.

Fantastic Four is directed by Matt Shakman, and stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing.

Related: Marvel Studios Reveals The Fantastic Four Cast With New Poster

Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four releases in theaters July 25, 2025.