Clan and Family...

Gargoyles/Fantastic Four #1 by Mark Bagley

"Clan and Family..." is the second issue of the Gargoyles Meets the Fantastic Four crossover by Dynamite Entertainment. It was released on November 12th, 2025. [1]

Crew
Writer: Greg Weisman Pencil Artist: George Kambadais Color Artist: George Kambadais Letterer: Jeff Eckleberry Editor: Nate Cosby Main Cover Artist: Lucio Parrillo Special Thanks: Kevin Pearl, Eugene Paraszczuk, Rodney Vallo, Benoosh Khalili, Julie Dorris, Kendall Tamer, Jeff Clark, Jeff Thomas, Scott Tilley Special Thanks: Michelle Marchese, Sven Larsen, and CB Cebulski

Solicitation

DISNEY’S STONE GUARDIANS MEET MARVEL’S FIRST FAMILY!

When the Manhattan Clan are invited on a tour of the world-famous Baxter Building — the high-tech home of the Fantastic Four — things quickly go from impressive to destructive when Coldsteel joins forces with the Dragon Man to unleash the terror that is Annihilus — trapping Franklin, Valeria, and Gnash in the Negative Zone in the process!

Now, both of these heroic extended families — enchanted stone and super-human alike — must team up in an all-out effort to save their children, their city, and their whole world from destruction!

Written by Gargoyles creator GREG WEISMAN and illustrated by celebrated artist GEORGE KAMBADAIS, the 40-page special features non-stop action and adventure, with cosmically iconic covers provided by LUCIO PARRILLO, DECLAN SHALVEY, AMANDA CONNER, MARK BAGLEY, and NICOLETTA BALDARI!

The Story

After the Labyrinth Clan discovered a hidden tunnel, Broadway and Angela invite the Human Torch and the Thing to help investigate. There, the heroes quickly found themselves surrounded by kaiju in the realm of the Mole Man. Johnny signals to Mister Fantastic that they need reinforcements.

At the Baxter Building, Reed Richards assures Johnny that preparations are underway for their Anti-Kaiju Compound and that soon he and the others will be joining the others deep underground. Goliath is reluctant to leave Broadway and Angela below, but Reed insists the coming battle will go more smoothly if they arrive fully prepared. As they speak, a pair of couriers arrive to deliver an Oscilating Virus Filter Reed had recently ordered, which he intends to use to restore Dragon Man to his benign programming. Reed asks his two children to show the couriers where to take the oscillator, and Valeria invites Gnash to accompany them. Gnash reluctantly agrees after Katana makes it clear he would not be joining the kaiju battle.

After showing the couriers where to leave the oscillator, Valeria expresses her frustration that her father refuses to prioritize repairing Dragon Man, noting that Draconus had previously served as their tutor and protector. Franklin agrees Dragon Man does deserve better, and Valeria – confident she is as intelligent as her father – decides to fix Dragon Man herself. Always eager to defy parental authority, Gnash agrees to help.

Down below, Johnny bursts into flames and prepares to take off, but Angela stops him, explaining that there are no air currents in the cavern. The Human Torch is confused, but the Thing clarifies that she needs a boost to glide with the hot air he can provide.

Once alone, the couriers reveal themselves to be exo-skeletons piloted by the father-and-son supervillains Yuri and Kondrati Tololov, also known as the Gargoyle and the Gremlin. They split up, each pursuing a separate objective. Yuri summons Coldsteel to the Baxter Building, while Kondrati opens the gateway to the Negative Zone.

As the children continue working on Dragon Man, Coldsteel arrives and attacks, forcing Gnash to grab Franklin and Valeria and flee. Coldsteel is unconcerned, however, as Dragon Man is the true prize his as-yet-unnamed partner seeks. While Coldsteel marvels at the technology the modern era, Kondrati soon dons the Titanium Man armor. Yuri reminds his son to exercise caution before leaving, but Kondrati assures him there's no need to worry. As he flies off into the Negative Zone with Dragon Man, he is pursued by Gnash, Valeria, and Franklin. Yuri is furious that their plan to beginning to go awry, but Coldsteel is less worried. He beleives at least one problem is bound to be solved: the children will surely perish in the hostile environment.

Back in the lab, as Reed finalizes the compound, Goliath is startled by the arrival of the Inhuman Lockjaw. While Sue Richards figures that Lockjaw must have sensed danger, alarms begin to sound, alerting Reed that that someone must have opened the Negative Zone portal. Katana and the Invisible Woman's maternal instincts take over, and they began searching for the children. Within the Negative Zone, the children pursue Kondrati as he delivers Dragon Man to their partner, Annihilus!

Lockjaw quickly teleports the heroes from Reed's lab to the portal. Reed warns Yuri of the catastrophic dangers of anti-matter leaking into the universe and demands the portal be closed, but Yuri refuses to abandon his son inside the Negative Zone. Coldsteel warns the heroes not to close the portal, revealing to them that their own children are also trapped inside. Unfazed, the Invisible Woman tells Reed to to shut down the portal and orders Lockjaw to teleport Elisa Maza, Katana, and her into the Negative Zone. With that, Reed instructs Goliath and Brooklyn to shut the door.

Back at the cavern, The Thing gripes about being the only hero to do battle on the ground. Nevertheless, he begins to clobber one kaiju after the next. The Human Torch, Angela, and Broadway make their way for the Mole Man. Seeing trouble coming, Mole Man commands the kaiju Spitter to do his worst on the Human Torch. Angela directs Human Torch to distract the creature, undeterred in her pursuit.

Inside the Negative Zone, Annihilus is pleased with his acquisition and plans to use Dragon Man to conquer the rest of the Negative Zone and then the human world. Kondrati, however, is only focused on securing his payment: the raw ores needed to create adamantium, which is rare on Earth but plentiful within the Negative Zone. These materials will be used to upgrade both Coldsteel's frame and Kondrati's Titanium Man armor.

As the children observes the villains, Gnash questions why they don't attack. Franklin reminds Gnash that he avoided a confrontation with Coldsteel, but Gnash explains that the zombie robot is out of their league. With that, Franklin assures the rookling that Annihilus is far beyond their ability to confront. Hoping for a distraction, Valeria's wish is soon granted when Lockjaw arrives with Sue, Elisa, and Katana. Sue generates a force field as the villains open fire. Taking advantage of the chaos, the children move toward Dragon Man, drawing Elisa's attention.

Back on Earth, Reed observes the accumulation of anti-matter particules about to breach the threshold into their universe. Goliath engages Yuri in combat while Brooklyn battles Coldsteel. The two trade banter as Brooklyn references future encounters, explaining why he had insulated his sword before plunging it into Coldsteel's shoulder. Brooklyn then assists Goliath in breaching Yuri's armor with a blast from his laser-cannon.

As Sue continues to hold off Annihilus and Kondrati, Valeria reminds Franklin that telling her work faster won't restore Dragon Man any quicker. Elisa meanwhile, realizing that winning this interdimensional confrontation isn't the point, orders a retreat. Lockjaw teleports her, Katana, and the others behind the villains to Dragon Man and the children. With everyone reunited, Lockjaw teleports them out of the Negative Zone, leaving Kondrati to face Annihilus's wrath.

Upon returning to the Baxter Building, Coldsteel realizes the plan has been foiled and the deal with Annihilus is off, prompting his retreat. Reed instructs Goliath to close the portal. Yuri leaps into the Negative Zone, determined not to abandon his son. With the clan and family reunited, they returned to Reed Richards's lab, where Valeria has completed the restoration of Dragon Man's benign programming.

Meanwhile, Angela and Broadway eventually capture the Mole Man. With the the Anti-Kaiju Compound finally ready, Reed, Sue, Goliath, Elisa, Brooklyn, Katana, and Dragon Man have Lockjaw teleport them to Mole Man's domain, while the children remain behind under Elisa's supervision (much to her chagrin). The heroes subdue the kaiju before the night is done.

By sunrise, the gargoyles sleep as stone atop the Baxter Building as Sue and Elisa shake hands, confident they would remain allies – clan and family alike.

Review

Like its predecessor from Marvel, "Clan and Family...", the second crossover between Gargoyles and The Fantastic Four is mostly a "just-for-fun" piece. The gargoyles continue to interact with Marvel's "first family", sharing an adventure together.

Two adventures, technically, happening at the same time. First, Broadway and Angela join forces with the Human Torch and the Thing against the Mole Man (the Fantastic Four's very first super-villain – something that should probably not be brought up if you happen to be in Latveria). Goliath, Elisa, Brooklyn, Katana, Mister Fantastic and the Invisible Woman are preparing to provide them with assistance from the Fantastic Four's headquarters at the Baxter Building, when another group of adversaries strikes: a father-and-son team of super-villains from Marvel, Yuri Topolov and his son Kondrati (code-named "the Gargoyle" – yet another Marvel "Gargoyle", to match the crossover concept – and "the Gremlin" respectively), partnered with Coldsteel, engaged in a scheme to open an entrance in the Baxter Building to the Negative Zone and strike a deal with its ruler, Annihilus. And the children from the two hero-groups, Gnash from the Manhattan clan and Franklin and Valeria Richards from the Fantastic Four, get caught in the middle of it....

The comic puts the focus on the latter adventure, while still keeping pace with the former; in a nice touch, the pages (except for the opening and closing ones) share both plots, with the events at the Baxter Building and in the Negative Zone taking up most of each page, while the underground adventure versus the Mole Man and his forces gets a panel to advance it at the bottom of every page.

As the title shows, a major element of this story is the importance of family (something that both sets of heroes hold dear) – particularly when the adults discover that Nashville, Franklin, and Valeria are trapped in the Negative Zone and in danger, prompting a big rescue mission (particularly from both mothers, Katana and the Invisible Woman – alongside Elisa, who's not a mother yet but certainly ready to help out). In a surprising touch, even the villains show a touch of this concern when Yuri dashes into the Negative Zone to the aid of his son, gaining some respect from Goliath.

Although this is non-canon, there is one small element that might be intended to reflect actual canon: Brooklyn and Gnash both indicate that they have encountered Coldsteel, apparently during their TimeDancing.

Apart from Coldsteel, the antagonists in this issue are all Marvel characters; fortunately, we get just enough information about them (as in "Both Alike In Dignity...") for a reader with only a general knowledge of Marvel Comics to understand their role in the story. (And likewise with a guest star, the dog-like Lockjaw, who helps our heroes rescue the children.) It makes a fun excursion for Gargoyles and Fantastic Four fans alike, and while that ends this particular crossover (for now), another one is coming up, to pair the gargoyles with another popular series from the Disney Afternoon....

Featured Characters and First Appearances

Gargoyles	Humans	Others
Broadway Angela Goliath  Brooklyn Katana Gnash Coldsteel	Human Torch/Johnny Storm   Thing/Ben Grimm Mole Man Mister Fantastic/Reed Richards Elisa Maza Invisible Woman/Susan Richards Valeria Richards Franklin Richards Gargoyle/Yuri Topolov Gremlin/Kondrati Topolov	Dragon Man Lockjaw Annihilus Spitter

Places	Miscellaneous
Subterranea Negative Zone	Kaiju Moloids Oscilating Virus Filter Negative Zone Portal Titanium Man Inhumans Anti-Matter Adamantium Anti-Kaiju Compound

Quotes

• "So, Mom, am I getting in on this Kaiju fight or what?"

"You are not."

"Figures." - Gnash and Katana

• "Are we defying parental authority? Cuz I absolutely love defying parental authority!" - Gnash

• "Ah, the wonders of this century . . . this form – and this era – were positively made for one such as I." - Coldsteel

• "This was not part of the plan."

"No. But does solve a problem. After all . . . they'll most likely die in there." - Yuri Topolov and Coldsteel

• "Typical. Just leave me here. Nobody gives a second thought to Ma Grimm's blushing blue-eyed boy, Benjy." - Ben Grimm

Tidbits

Thanks to Brooklyn and Gnash's TimeDancing, Coldsteel is understandably confused during his interactions with the two gargoyles.

See Also

<< Previous Episode: "Both Alike In Dignity..."