I: Feature Story: "The Peril and the Power!"

Pages: 20

Script: Stan Lee
Pencils: Jack Kirby
Inks: Joe Sinnott
Letters: Sam Rosen

Villain: Dr. Doom

Guest Appearance: The Watcher, Inhumans: Black Bolt, Medusa, Gorgon, Crystal, Karnak, Triton

Cameo Appearance: Wyatt Wingfoot, Black Panther

Gadgets & Technology: Wakandan Intercontinental Cruiser, Ionic Trangulator, Opti-Scope, Anti-Cosmic Flying Wing

Synopsis: (continued from FF #59)

The Fantastic Four watch helplessly as the cosmic Dr. Doom wreaks havoc across the planet. Thing wants to take on Doom, but Reed holds him back, telling him that they have a plan in development and they are going to stick to it. The prototype weapon he had created and tested on Ben (see FF #59 has been handed over to Army Ordnance, so a copy can be developed by the military.

The Human Torch attacks Dr. Doom alone. He pours on the heat but Doom simply changes into a diamond like substance that can withstand the temperature. Doom retaliates with a cyclone that wipes Johnny out.

While Doom's guards beat on a helpless Silver Surfer back in Latveria, the Fantastic Four race towards Doom with a borrowed ship on loan from the Black Panther. Doom disintegrates the ship as it nears and turns the very trees and rocks of the earth against them. Thing weathers the cosmic storm and fights Doom hand to hand, in a raging battle where Thing meets his match in strength from the power-amplified Dr. Doom.

The Watcher is curious about this struggle, but he fights an urge to intercede. He detects a new humanoid species on another planet that commands his full attention, distracting him from the battle between Doom and the FF.

Reed and Sue find Johnny in a pile of felled trees. They have little time to comfort him as Doom focuses his rage upon the entire team. He leaves Thing weightless and lifts him up into the sky, then erases the ground from underneath the other three. The four employ delaying tactics, each approaching them with their own powers in a bid to keep Doom distracted and stall for time. Doom seems to enjoy the scene, watching them struggle mightily against him and coming up empty.

Meanwhile, in a remote mountain terrain somewhere in Europe, the royal family of the Inhumans become used to life in the human world. Their camp is stumbled onto by humans, who see the fantastic powers of the Inhumans on display and run away in fear.

Back at the fight, the delaying tactics finally pay off, as the Anti-Cosmic Flying Wing that Reed invented and had US Army Ordnance build comes gliding over Doom. It staggers Doom, and as he flies into a rage he chases after it as it flies up into the atmosphere. But the closer he gets to the outer atmosphere, he smashes into Galactus' barrier at full speed. Reed explains that anyone who holds the Surfer's power cosmic is exiled within the Earth's atmosphere. The staggering explosion against Galactus' barrier causes Doom to lose all his powers. As the FF take comfort in their final victory over Dr. Doom, the board flies across the sky, returning to the Silver Surfer.

--synopsis by Jonathan Clarke, aka doesitmatter, with Gormuu

--letter pages provided by Crusher Creel