Marvel’s Mutant Reed Richards Has the Most Extreme Version of His Stretching Powers

As the Fantastic Four approach their MCU debut, fans could be forgiven for thinking that Reed Richards‘ Mister Fantastic is Marvel’s ultimate stretching superhuman. However, there’s another ‘Mister Fantastic’ in the Marvel Universe who takes Reed’s powers and makes them even more extreme – a mutant hero who is often underrated, even by Marvel itself.

Flatman Is the Mutant Answer to Fantastic Four’s Reed Richards

The Flat Hero Is Halfway Between Superhero and Body Horror

Debuting in John Byrne’s West Coast Avengers #46, Flatman is a mutant hero whose body is in a permanent hyper-malleable state. He possesses the same powers as Reed Richards, able to stretch and reshape his body, extending it to many times its natural height and length. However, the hero – who goes by the name ‘Val Ventura’ – also has additional powers. Flatman has enhanced strength and durability, and his body is so flat that when he turns sideways, he becomes invisible to the naked eye – a power that echoes Reed Richards’ wife Susan Storm, aka the Invisible Woman. Unlike Reed Richards, Flatman doesn’t naturally return to a default human state. He is always flat and elongated, adding a body horror aspect to his powers – especially because he can only be perceived from certain angles.

Flatman is a longtime member of a team that has gone by many names, from the Great Lakes Avengers to the Great Lakes Champions to the Great Lakes X-Men. Often treated as an embarrassing afterthought, the team have some genuinely powerful members, and have saved the entire universe in the past. Indeed, with Marvel’s greatest healing factor and the Thanos-beating Squirrel Girl, it’s arguable that the GLA are secretly Marvel’s most powerful team. Before becoming a superhero, Flatman used his mutant powers to work as a Reed Richards impersonator, and to this day wears a clear rip-off of the Fantastic Four hero’s costume, with a large ‘F’ in place of his numeral logo.

Reed Richards Is Still Marvel’s SMARTEST Stretching Hero

Mister Fantastic’s Genius Is a Big Part of His Hero Persona

While Flatman seemingly has all Reed Richards’ powers, Mister Fantastic has done far more for Earth due to his genius intellect. This aspect of Reed allows him to use his powers in incredibly versatile ways that Flatman might not think of, as well as helping to enhance his family’s powers and inventing advanced gadgets. Reed is Marvel’s smartest man alive, to the point that many stories treat his powers as something of an afterthought – especially becuase he can mechanically recreate any number of superhuman abilities at will.

While Flatman will never be as famous or respected as Reed Richards, he’s still an impressive character, and a curio for Marvel fans who may not know there’s a mutant with Mister Fantastic’s powers. While the Great Lakes Avengers may be tragi-comic characters, they’ve still defeated major villains like Maelstrom, who would otherwise have destroyed the planet, and it would be a mistake to think of Flatman and his allies as just a joke… even if they’re not quite Reed Richards and the Fantastic Four.

Fantastic Four

Summary

The Fantastic Four is a superhero franchise centered on Marvel Comics’ first family of superheroes. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the team made its comic book debut in 1961 and quickly became a cornerstone of Marvel’s success. The franchise follows four astronauts—Reed Richards, Susan Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm—who gain superpowers after being exposed to cosmic radiation. Over the years, Fantastic Four has been adapted into several live-action films, animated series, and video games. The films have seen multiple reboots, with varying levels of success, and are now set to be integrated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), with a new film slated for release in 2025.

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