Why did Martin Goodman ask Stan Lee to create the Fantastic Four?

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Christopher Reeve as Superman flies over a city at night, wearing a blue suit with a red cape and yellow belt, from the 1978 film Superman. — Superhero Christopher Reeve in *Superman* (1978).

At the time, Marvel Comics was primarily publishing monster and thriller stories and needed a commercial boost. Consequently, publisher Martin Goodman directed his staff editor and writer Stan Lee to create a group of superheroes to compete with the Justice League of America.1

Lee viewed this mandate as an opportunity to innovate within the genre. Working with artist Jack Kirby, he created the Fantastic Four, which debuted in 1961. Unlike the Justice League, which emphasized traditional teamwork and secret identities, the Fantastic Four were portrayed as a dysfunctional family living in the real world who bickered and lacked secret identities, bringing a new level of realism to comic book heroes.12