In Fantastic Four #45, Nick Fury has taken up the mantle of a cosmic Marvel icon, and his new role comes with the most extreme weapon in the universe.
The following contains major spoilers for Fantastic Four #45, available now from Marvel.
The Reckoning War has given Nick Fury a new cosmic mission, one that just so happens to come with the Ultimate Nullifier.
Fantastic Four #45 sees the threat of the Reckoning finally come to an end. Miraculously, Uatu has survived taking on the memories and power of all his fellow Watchers, ascending to a new form in the process. After undoing much of the damage wrought in recent months, Uatu imparts upon Nick Fury his former home on the surface of the moon. From there, Fury will be able to take over Uatu’s duties as Watcher, as well as that of keeping the Ultimate Nullifier safe.
Introduced in the pages of 1963’s Sgt. Fury #1 by Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, Nick Fury has long been one of the most polarizing figures in the Marvel Universe. Though his exploits are the stuff of legend, Fury has been behind just as many atrocities as he has prevented. From the various Secret Wars that he has waged to his calculated sacrifices, even those closest to him have little reason to ever trust Fury. When Fury killed Uatu, he was sentenced to replace his victim as The Unseen, becoming himself once more only upon Uatu’s resurrection. Since then, he has worked as an operative of Uatu, helping to locate and safeguard the Apex from the Reckoning.
The Ultimate Nullifier first appeared in 1966’s Fantastic Four #50, also by Lee and Kirby, which saw Johnny Storm retrieve the weapon from Galactus’ own ship in a bid to stave off the threat of the Destroyer of Worlds. The Nullifier has been considered the most powerful weapon of all time since its introduction, and has passed through plenty of hands. While the likes of Doctor Doom and Franklin Richards have wielded it at various points, Galactus has always been able to recall the Nullfiier to him whenever he so chooses.
During the course of Reckoning War, Uatu, Nick Fury, and Sue Storm discovered that the Ultimate Nullifier was created by the Watcher’s brother Emnu. When the Reckoning first emerged, Emnu crafted the Ultimate Nullifier to defeat them, though using it also seemingly obliterated nearly the entire Marvel Universe. When a dying Reed Richards made his final stand against the Reckoning at the Apex, he only managed to survive turning the Nullifier on his enemies thanks to his temporary status as a human Watcher.
Fantastic Four #45 is written by Dan Slott and features illustrations by Fario Karami, colors by Jesus Aburtov, and letters by VC’s Joe Caramagna. Main cover art is provided by Cafu, with variant covers courtesy of Francesco Manna and Flavio Dispenza, as well as Russel Dauterman. Fantastic Four #45 is on sale now from Marvel Comics.
Source: Marvel