Warning: Spoilers for Fantastic Four #27
Most fans are familiar with the main heroes of Fantastic Fourbut another heroine joined them and showed that she is as powerful as the adults. Nicki Masters-Grimm, the Thing's Skrull daughter, has just unleashed her super-powered potential in a battle against a classic foe. Through this fight, Nicki establishes that she is finally ready to be an official member of the Fantastic Four.
Fantastic Four #27 by Ryan North, Steven Summings, Jesus Aburtov and Joe Caramagna highlights Nicki. The Thing's daughter has the powers of a Skrull, namely shapeshifting, which allows her to take on whatever form she wants. Although the Skrulls tend to be seen as villains, Nicki is determined to use her powers for good.
By honing her abilities, Nicki has demonstrated that she is one of the Fantastic Four's most promising heroes to date, and her Skrull qualities are what amplify her power to such an astonishing degree.
The Thing's daughter explores her Skrull powers in a bold new way
Nicki Masters-Grimm can transform into each of the Fantastic Four heroes
As a Skrull, Nicki is capable of not only changing her own physical form, but also taking on the forms of others. In Marvel lore, Skrulls often replace heroes through their shape-shifting powers, earning them a negative reputation as sinister beings who seek to invade populations. Nicki leans into this stereotype when she begins transforming into the Thing to save her brother, Jo-Venn, from a meeting with the school principal. Of course, Nicki's powers aren't inherently nefarious, and she shows her heroic potential by using them to protect people rather than trick them.
Nicki begins transforming into Ben Grimm for various immature purposes, but she later discovers that this power also has practical applications. By disguising herself as the Thing, Nicki discovers that she can walk through walls and even attack with more force than with her standard physique. Essentially, she obtains her father's powers through shapeshifting, so she becomes almost as strong as the Thing himself just by stealing his physical likeness. This addition to your skill set means that Nicki has the capacity for super strength, and embodying a body with a strong enough exterior is enough for her to use this ability.
The Thing isn't the only Fantastic Four hero Nicki can emulate. When the Mole Man attacks the children's school to kill them while their parents are distracted elsewhere, Nicki transforms into each of the FF heroes to defend them all. To this end, Nicki transforms into Mister Fantastic, and she manages to replicate his signature elastic powers, reshaping his physical form. While she isn't necessarily borrowing her superpowers in the literal sense, Nicki's Skrull biology allows her to mimic these abilities. Nicki's proficiency at copying the Fantastic Four reflects how they influenced her as a heroine.
Joining the Fantastic Four family helped Nicki become a hero
The Thing and his teammates give Nicki an example to follow
Before joining the Fantastic Four, Nicki – then known primarily as N'Kalla – was a victim of the ongoing conflict between the Skrulls and the Kree. After being raised to hate Jo-Venn due to his Kree status, their programming was eventually undone thanks to the Fantastic Four's influence on them, and they have since become each other's trusted brothers despite their people's difficult history. . In Empyre Fallout: Fantastic Four by Dan Slott and Sean Izaakse, Ben and Alicia agree to adopt Nicki and Jo after their people are reunited and rebuilding again after the conflict.
Navigating the ways of Earth wasn't easy for Nicki and Jo, though the siblings learned valuable lessons over time that guided them on the path to becoming heroes like their father. For example, in Fantastic Four #16 by North and Francesco Mortarino, Nicki is influenced by Franklin and Valeria Richards to lie to her parents when an experiment goes wrong. In the end, she decides that it is better to confess everything rather than keep secrets. During her time with the Fantastic Four, Nicki not only maintained positive values, but also honed her superpowers beyond just shapeshifting into other people.
Nicki decides to fight as herself instead of the Fantastic Four
After embracing her Skrull powers, Nicki unleashes her full potential
Although much of Nicki's battle with the villainous Mole Man shows her utilizing the Fantastic Four's powers by inhabiting their forms, she eventually realizes that she doesn't need to copy them to fight. In truth, Nicki becomes even more powerful when she fights as a Skrull rather than as one of the existing members of the Fantastic Four. When the Mole Man tries to hit her, she hardens her flesh turning it into gold so that her attacks are ineffective. She can also grow her muscles to improve her strength, which is proof that she can harness this hidden strength without transforming into the Thing.
Nicki is currently inexperienced compared to the rest of the Fantastic Four, but with training, she could easily become the team's greatest asset.
As seen in this epic showdown, there is no limit to what the Thing's daughter can accomplish with her powers. Nicki quickly gains the advantage over the Mole Man by stretching her body, and upon defeating him, she declares: “I'm an unstoppable force of nature, a whirlwind of smart, helpful, shape-shifting girls.” Whatever attacks come her way, she can alter her physical form and combat them with ease, making her one of Marvel's most durable and versatile heroes. Nicki is currently inexperienced compared to the rest of the Fantastic Four, but with training, she could easily become the team's greatest asset.
The Thing's daughter is ready to fight alongside the Fantastic Four
Nicki's Skrull abilities make her a promising new superhero
At the conclusion of this issue, once the dust settles from Nicki and Mole Man's fight, Nicki states her desire to follow in her father's footsteps as a hero. She tells the Thing that she wants to defend the planet she calls home, just like he and his companions do. This feeling lays the groundwork for her to eventually join the Fantastic Four as an official member. THE Fantastic FourHer future is brighter than ever with a powerhouse like Nicki in line to join them, and the Earth will certainly be in good hands now that she's protecting it.
Fantastic Four #27 is now available from Marvel Comics.