Marvel and Disney’s The Incredible 4: First Steps continues to be months away from launch (assuming that the whole lot goes in line with schedule) and Marvel formally revealed the primary solid of the movie on Valentine’s Day. This confirmed Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as members of the eponymous group. Nevertheless, Marvel went one step additional and revealed further solid members, a few of that are portraying undisclosed roles, main followers to take a position about potential character appearances within the coming film.
The extra solid contains Natasha Lyonne, in all probability finest recognized for her work on Orange Is the New Black and American Pie film. Admittedly, her casting was already talked about again in Could of final 12 months, with fan theories suggesting that she may play the Inhuman Medusa or perhaps a feminine model of Physician Doom. Nevertheless, after Lyonne shared an image of her and Moss-Bachrach (who portrays the Factor) from London, the place the film is being filmed, many now speculate that she could be portraying Alicia Masters.
For many who are unaware, Alicia Masters is a blind sculptor in Marvel Comics who varieties a right away bond with Ben Grimm and goes on to change into his love curiosity and, finally, his spouse. Earlier than we dive into how she met the Factor and the way she chiseled one of many softest bonds in Marvel Comics, let’s focus on Alicia’s origins within the comics and the way she met the Incredible 4 group within the first place.
Alicia wasn’t born blind. She was struck blind by a blast brought on by an obvious accident, which additionally killed her father. Nevertheless, the “accident” was no stroke of misfortune; her father Jacob was pushed right into a vat of radioactive clay by his enterprise associate Phillip, which killed Jacob and triggered the explosion. Phillip survived the blast and informed everybody that the blast was an accident, preserving Jacob’s homicide a secret for a lot of, a few years.
Following her father’s funeral, Phillip started educating Alicia, an suave little one who cherished to color, easy methods to sculpt with clay. He additionally finally married her mom, with Alicia taking over his final title. However Alicia’s private tragedies didn’t finish there; her mom Marcia died of radiation poisoning brought on by the blast that killed her husband years prior. After her mom died, Alicia and Phillip moved to Manhattan, the place she attended a particular faculty for the visually impaired. It’s value noting that Alicia’s character historical past has some discrepancies within the comics, which have been by no means addressed in comics.
Someday after, Alicia’s stepfather Phillip developed powers that allowed him to regulate the minds of others attributable to his publicity to the radioactive clay. Taking over the title of Puppet-Grasp, he took management of the Factor, captured Sue Storm, and had Alicia change her. Nevertheless, Mr. Incredible freed Ben from the Puppet Grasp’s management by reverting Ben to human kind, and Alicia rebelled in opposition to her stepfather and have become a buddy of the Incredible 4. She was particularly within the Factor, not due to his look, however due to his character.
She began spending loads of time with Ben Grimm, making an attempt to indicate him his interior magnificence regardless of Ben’s ongoing despair over his transformation right into a strolling blue-eyed boulder. Her lack of sight allowed her to see past what her imaginative and prescient would enable, and the place others noticed a creature, Alicia acknowledged a form soul beneath all of the stone, a person deserving of affection and acceptance. Extra importantly, her kindness wasn’t born of pity however of real admiration and understanding that the measure of an individual isn’t discovered of their look.
Making her a sculptor is a very sensible metaphor; she carves stone and clay to disclose hidden beauties, which additionally permits her to attract out Ben’s humanity and vulnerability from inside his powerful exterior, even when he struggles to be weak himself. In fact, their relationship had its ups and downs, however it has endured by comedian e book historical past, proving that their love isn’t one in every of fleeting attraction however of deep and abiding care and admiration.
The character made her technique to the silver display; Kerry Washington’s portrayal within the 2005 and 2007 Incredible 4 films — although restricted — captured the essence of Alicia’s admiration and her love of Ben. These movies may not be essentially the most beloved variations of the Incredible 4 (although they’re stellar in comparison with 2015’s Incredible 4), however they did efficiently painting the fantastic thing about Alicia and Ben’s relationship, highlighting how love and understanding flourish even in essentially the most surprising locations.
In the end, what makes Alicia Masters exceptional isn’t that she loves Ben regardless of his look, however that she by no means noticed it as an impediment to start with. Right here’s hoping The Incredible 4: First Steps does her justice — assuming Marvel see’s match to incorporate her in any respect.