As the Watcher introduces the Fantastic Four, he notes that their powers were affected by their personalities: the flexible Reed became a Rubber Man, tough and dependable Ben Grimm became super-strong and Nigh-Invulnerable as The Thing, shy Sue Storm became the Invisible Woman, and hotheaded Johnny became the Human Torch. But the Four aren't all just defined by one personality trait. So what if they got Personality Powers from other aspects of their personalities?
In some alternate universe, Reed, the Multidisciplinary Scientist and probable smartest man in the world, becomes Big Brain, a superintelligent and psychic bodiless brain. Test pilot Ben Grimm gains draconic wings as Dragonfly. Sue Storm, The Heart of the team and adaptable enough to keep the Dysfunction Junction that is the Fantastic Four at 'somewhat stable' levels, becomes ultra-flexible as Ultra-Woman. And Johnny Storm, a mechanic who loved tinkering with cars, becomes the living robot Mandroid.
The team still become heroes, because this is still the Fantastic Four we're talking about, but they have their own issues to deal with. Reed pines after Sue, but since he's a disembodied brain, she instead grows closer to Ben Grimm. Dr. Doom takes advantage of this to manipulate Reed into helping him create a time machine, but the Fantastic Four intervene, and in the chaos the time machine explodes. Big Brain is destroyed, but he used his psychic powers to swap minds with Dr. Doom, so he's now the scarred armor guy, once again taking on the name Mr. Fantastic, and is happy that he can now romance Sue the normal way, if she can get past the facial scarring.
Hope he's up to ruling Latveria...
What If... The Fantastic Four Used Different Tropes?
- Blessed with Suck: Reed is mutated by cosmic rays into a giant disembodied brain. A brain with psychic powers, but still a totally exposed brain. He's capable of surviving in this state, but physically repulses Sue and needs a special apparatus to get around the Baxter Building.
- Grand Theft Me: Reed pulls one off on Dr. Doom, though to be fair, Doom was trying to kill him first.
- In Spite of a Nail: This version of the Fantastic Four face the same antagonists prior to Doctor Doom as in the main universe.
- My Brain Is Big: Reed as Big Brain.
- Personality Powers: The crux of this AU is the Four getting a different set of such powers. For example, Ben Grimm may be a tough guy, but he's also a pilot who loves flying. The first trait gave him powers in the main 'verse, the latter is behind his powers here.
- Powered by a Forsaken Child: Doom's scheme for Reed is to use him as a living battery for a time machine in a process that will also burn out his free will.
- Psychic Powers: Big Brain also has these.
- Rubber Man: Sue Storm as Ultra-Woman.
- Winged Humanoid: Ben Grimm as Dragonfly.
