"First Steps" promises to push the MCU out of its comfort zone, but the movie quickly retreats into a tired version of the same old story.

It’s box office clobberin’ time — or so Marvel hopes.

But it was a little odd to hear that Marvel also planned to make the Fantastic Four a major part of the MCU’s future. Even though the Fantastic Four have always been prominent in Marvel’s comics, the characters — created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee — had never translated well to the big screen.

Despite strong performances by Pedro Pascal and others – and for all its "breezy competence and flair" – this retro vision of the future from Marvel doesn't have enough suspense.

Title: The Fantastic Four: First Steps Director: Matt Shakman Screenwriters: Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan, Ian Springer Cast: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Paul Walter Hauser, Julia Garner, Ralph Ineson Distributor: Walt Disney Running time: 1 hr 55 mins

Fantastic Four meet-and-greet characters will make appearances in Tomorrowland at Disneyland starting on July 25.

Pedro Pascal got by with a little help from his friends. The Last of Us star tells Entertainment Weekly that he spoke "a lot" to former Fantastic Four stars Chris Evans and Miles Teller before taking on the role of Reed Richards, a.k.a. the stretchy hero Mister Fantastic, for his Marvel debut in The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

The 'Black Panther' actress previously shared that she had taught Quinn about "the Ten Commandments of Marvel"