Who Is Franklin Richards?
Image Source: Kotaku
Warning: Spoilers for The Fantastic Four: First Steps
The Fantastic Four: First Steps took a different direction than the previous movies, focusing on the Fantastic Four as it had a specific focus on Franklin Richards, the son of Reed Richards and Sue Richards. In the film, Galactus detects the boy’s Power Cosmic and intends to pass his hunger onto him. A battle ensues with the Fantastic Four protecting Franklin from Galactus. After the battle, Sue dies, and the only power Franklin displays is resurrection as he brings her back to life. Everything else about his powers is kept vague. However, the comics take a much deeper dive into Franklin’s powers.
In the comics, Franklin shows an amazing amount of control over his powers. His main power is the ability to create pocket universes. Think of him as if the reality stone, or really all the infinity stones, were a person. If he imagines something, it becomes reality. This power has even been shown to alter Franklin’s powers. On a few occasions, he has made himself forget his powers except for one day a year to keep them in check. Throughout the comics, Franklin is predicted to last beyond the end of the world.
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Image Source: GamesRadar
Franklin’s story starts when Reed detects strange energy in Sue’s blood. Reed traveled to the Negative Zone to retrieve the Cosmic Control Rod from Annihilus. The rod stabilized the energy, and Franklin was born healthy but special. Franklin was believed to be a mutant, but unlike others who only showed powers once they reached puberty, his power was present from the start. After Annihilus’ interference, Franklin’s powers became so great that Reed had to induce a comatose state to protect the world and Franklin from himself. He only awoke when the Fantastic Four came under threat from Ultron-7.
Franklin goes on to experience countless adventures with the occasional pocket universe here and there, but what does this mean for the film Franklin? At the end of First Steps, Franklin is seen as an intelligent 4-year-old boy and chooses Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species for his mom to read to him. Later on, we see a cloaked Victor von Doom approach the boy, and that’s where the film ends with a teaser that the Fantastic Four will be back in Avengers: Doomsday. At this point, it’s unknown how much power Franklin has revealed between his infancy and his current age, but something alerted Dr. Doom to his existence.
Image Source: Comics Explained
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is currently in the middle of its multiverse saga. Doctor Strange learns about incursions after his confrontation with the Scarlet Witch. Loki works with the TVA to preserve the Sacred Timeline, and Spider-Man pulls in villains and heroes from other universes with a spell gone awry. Franklin’s reality-warping powers may just be the key to restoring the boundaries of the universe. The follow-up to Avengers: Doomsday is Avengers: Secret Wars. In the Secret Wars comics, Doctor Doom managed to create a world out of the incursions, and it may take someone with Franklin’s powers to stop him.
Franklin’s Power Cosmic gives him a connection to the Celestials. After all, Galactus, Devourer of Worlds, believes Franklin could replace him some day. In the Eternals film, the Eternals plan to stop Tiamut’s emergence. His birth would destroy the Earth, but they were so impressed with the reversal of Thanos’ snap that they defied orders from a celestial. Franklin’s powers seem to defy order and reshape reality according to his will. He is essentially a base breaker who can shake things up or restore them to order. Barring that, he might be able to create a pocket universe that never deviated from the Sacred Timeline.
Image Source: Fandom
Whatever the Avengers end up facing in their next outing, Franklin will surely be an asset. His Power Cosmic would be a challenge for any foe to overcome, particularly if he’s grown enough to understand his powers by then. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is set in the 1960s on an alternative Earth, so there's no telling how old any of the characters will be when they meet with the heroes of Earth-616, or the main MCU setting. Given the focus of Franklin in the film, the MCU is setting him up to be a powerful player.
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Source(s): Marvel Database, Fandom, TheWrap
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