Secret Invasion Fantastic Four #2 (OF 3)

The second installment in yet another Secret Invasion peripheral story, this FF mini gives us details into what's happening to the FF following the moments of the initial skrull attack  depicted in Secret Invasion 1.  As we begin part two, Johnny Storm, Ben Grimm and Reed and Sue's kids Val and Franklin are stuck in the negative zone thanks to skrull Lyla, who just happens to be a former love of Johnny.  And after a recap of the Human Torch's many failed romances, we get to see that there is still a spark between the Human Torch and his...well...old flame.  They fight it out a bit, but clearly skrull Lyla is torn...so much so that they end up kissing.  Thus, the problem becomes one of figuring out how to fight off the plethora of creepy crawlies inhabiting the negative zone and getting home. Where this one seems to get into a bit of trouble is when it involves the kids, who seem determined to use their youthful exhuberance to help Torch and the Thing.  Admittedly, it's a comic book, but there's a certain gravity to the "invasion" itself, so having the kids in the mix tends to undermine any sense of realism.  Simply put, it feels cartoon-ish...and not in the right way.  It's in keeping with the general tone of the Fantastic Four books, but I just sort of hate it when young characters take the lead in solving big time problems (watch "Phantom Menace" if you want a vomit-inducing example of this sort of thing." In the end, it's decent filler for the big event, but the kid component ultimately puts this one in a negative zone.