Marvel May Have Changed the Fantastic Four's Powers

The X-Men and Fantastic Four are two of the most pivotal brands in Marvel's stable right now, as fans are waiting for both properties to be introduced into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While we wait, however, Marvel Comics has made some massive changes to the X-Men's world and mythology via the "House of X" event series and "Dawn of X" reboot. Now, it looks like the mythology behind the Fantastic Four's powers is also being revamped in a big way! With the release of the new crossover event series X-Men/Fantastic Four (2020) this week, we get a bold new definition about what gives the Fantastic Four their powers, as revealed by Reed Richards himself!

Warning: X-Men/Fantastic Four #1 SPOILERS Follow!

The premise of X-Men/Fantastic Four is that Franklin Richards - having returned from an interdimensional expedition aged at an accelerated rate - is losing his reality-manipulating powers. Reed Richards has been searching for a cure to the problem, while the X-Men are trying to recruit Franklin to come to ther mutant nation of Krakoa, to be with his fellow mutants.

Keeping with the format and tradition that "House of X" started, X-Men/Fantastic Four also contains some Jonathan Hickman-brand charts in its story - including a journal entry from Reed Richards, speculating on the source of Franklin's power depletion. As Reed explains in his entry, his old theories about the Fantastic Four's super abilities being powered by radiation were wrong. The more modern theory is that the Fantastic Four are actually able to tap into an interdimensional energy source, which Reed dubs "Godpower":

"Ever since the accident that gave us our extra abilities, I've been trying to reconcile the high energy expenditure of each of our power sets with our seemingly unchanged individual energy intake. The most basic laws of physics make this seem impossible. At first I suspected we were absorbing energy from the air, possibly low-level radiation, but the numbers never added up.

Then I came across the research of Dr. Rachna Koul, who specialized in imperiumology, the science of super-powers. She posited that superhumans are each connected to one or more intradimensional sources of energy, which she dubbed "Godpower." A solid theory, though I'm still unable to find that conduit in my studies of the Fantastic Four's power sets.

Franklin's diminishing powers would appear to lend credence to the Godpower theory, as he seems to be running out of the energy needed to use his powers. If we were to believe there is a Godpower source, then it's possible that Franklin's connection to that source is broken.
Whether or not it can be repaired depends on first proving its existence.

Somehow."

This "Godpower" energy source is clearly just a theory, yet it has potentially massive implications for not only the Fantastic Four, but the entire Marvel Comics universe. If the theory proves true, "Godpower" would become the official source and explanation for the superpowers of the Marvel Universe; that would set the franchise on potentially dangerous ground, giving Marvel it's own Midichlorian pitfalls, a la the Star Wars franchise's attempt to explain the powers of the Force.

X-Men / Fantastic Four #1 is now on sale.