Reed Richards' Darkest Kill Explains Why Not Every Reality Has Illuminati

Many realities throughout the Marvel multiverse have their own version of the Illuminati, but Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four is to blame for some universes going without. In particular, the Reed Richards of Earth-231 caused his universe’s Illuminati to disband nearly as soon as it began in one of the hero’s darkest acts to date.

The Illuminati stands as a cabal within the Marvel Universe, uniting leaders and heroes of extreme intelligence in secret for the greater good. In Brian Michael Bendis and Steve McNiven’s New Avengers #7, the Illuminati first forms by bringing together Iron Man of the Avengers; Black Bolt of the Inhumans; Doctor Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme; Namor, King of Atlantis; Professor X of the X-Men; and the aforementioned Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four. The Illuminati would later gain new members such as Captain America, Black Panther and Bruce Banner.

Following the catastrophic events of Civil War and Secret Invasion, the Richards of Marvel’s main universe (Earth-616) builds a device known as The Bridge that allows him to view alternate realities in the hopes of discovering where things went wrong. While scanning the different realities, Richards finds that many end in catastrophe, with the Illuminati seemingly doing more harm than good. In Jonathan Hickman and Sean Chen’s Dark Reign: Fantastic Four #3, the Reed Richards of Earth-231 comes to the same conclusion and disturbingly kills all other members of the Illuminati as soon as the group is formed, seeing it as the only way to prevent the danger the party poses.

While the concept of a murderous Reed Richards isn’t a new one, this culling shows the shocking measures the hero will take for what he perceives to be the greater good. It is, however, a moment that informs a lot of Reed’s decisions throughout that era. Reed’s status as one of the smartest people in the Marvel Universe often leads him to place major decisions – such as the killing of his friends and allies – on his own shoulders, as he sees himself as the only one able to solve the problem. Though he often makes these decisions to protect his family, this characteristically ironically led the Fantastic Four to momentarily split up due to Reed’s unwavering commitment to the Superhero Registration Act during Civil War.

Perhaps even more alarming, Hickman later implies that many members of the Illuminati could easily come to the same decision as the Richards of Earth-231. Hickman’s run on New Avengers focuses on the Illuminati attempting to stop Incursions, world-threatening collisions with parallel Earths, and taking some pretty drastic measures to do so. Members of the group erase Captain America’s memory, build an arsenal of world bombs and even blow up an occupied planet to save their world. This eventually culminates in a confrontation with Captain America, S.H.I.E.L.D., and many Avengers who believe the Illuminati should be tried for their history of controversial decisions. While all of this was done to save their world, these heinous acts show what darkness Reed Richards and the rest of the Illuminati can justify when they think it’s for the greater good.