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What If? The Complete Collection #1
WHAT IF? CLASSIC: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION VOL. 1
The first twelve awe-inspiring issues of the most awesomely off beat series off all time - collected in one sense-staggering volume. Twelve titanic tales of triumph and tragedy in the mighty Marvel tradition! Spanning from: What if Spider-Man Joined the Fantastic Four? to: What if the Fantastic Four had Diff erent Super-Powers? Daredevil's secret exposed? The identity of Thor passed down to another? A new Hulk? Multiple Spider-Men? Some of the ideas that shook Marvel's foundation got their start right in the realm of remote possibility overseen by the wondering Watcher! But can even Uatu believe his eyes when Jack "King" Kirby rewrites himself and his fellow legends as the Fantastic Four?
COLLECTING: WHAT IF? (1977) 1-12
COLLECTING: WHAT IF? (1977) 1-12
432 pages, Paperback
First published January 15, 2019
About the author
Roy Thomas
4,182 books257 followersRoy Thomas was the FIRST Editor-in-Chief at Marvel--After Stan Lee stepped down from the position. Roy is a longtime comic book writer and editor. Thomas has written comics for Archie, Charlton, DC, Heroic Publishing, Marvel, and Topps over the years. Thomas currently edits the fanzine Alter Ego for Twomorrow's Publishing. He was Editor for Marvel comics from 1972-1974. He wrote for several titles at Marvel, such as Avengers, Thor, Invaders, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and notably Conan the Barbarian. Thomas is also known for his championing of Golden Age comic-book heroes — particularly the 1940s superhero team the Justice Society of America — and for lengthy writing stints on Marvel's X-Men and Avengers, and DC Comics' All-Star Squadron, among other titles.
Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.
Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
January 10, 2024
I always find it pretty tedious to read these old-ass comic compilations.
And to be 100% honest, it took me a long while to wade through all of these, but it was completely worth it.
If you don't want to read my review of each individual issue (and god knows I wouldn't) then the short version is that this was fun. I really love how they took the time to make these all interesting and different, while still hanging on to some of the original pivotal moments for the characters. Overall, this was an incredible collection.
What If Spider-man Had Joined The Fantastic Four?
Hilariously, the crux of it is that Sue feels left out and leaves Reed for Namor. <--as she should!
Or not, because I'm not 100% sure it's healthy to run off with a guy that keeps kidnapping you, no matter how much better his abs are than your boyfriend's.
Then again, I'm petty enough to see how you could leave the stretchy nerd who left you behind to go explore with his boys because there weren't enough seats in the spaceship.
You get what you get, Richards!
What If Hulk Had The Brain Of Bruce Banner?
Everything comes up roses for Bruce but the Thing gets screwed. It's Clobberin Time, indeed.
This one actually has quite a few in-depth ramifications for everyone involved. Banner, Reed Richards, & Charles Xavier have to band together to save the world from Galactus and end up losing their powers in the process. Ben had already been cured of being Thing and was married to Alicia, but (because he was nosey) ended up getting his Thing powers back, but minus his mental abilities. So, in essence, he becomes the new Hulk.
General Ross, who adores his son-in-law, Bruce, takes off on his mission to hunt Thing Down.
What If The Avengers Had Never Been?
The band breaks up when Iron Man insists they go after Hulk. Tony goes after Hulk and Namor on his own and gets his tinman-ass fucked up.
Things do not end well for the Armored Avenger, so the moral of the story is to not make Hulk angry.
You really wouldn't like him when he's angry.
I'm so sorry. I tried not to say it but just couldn't help myself.
What If The Invaders Had Stayed Together After World War Two?
This one really isn't terribly relevant for today's readers, because who gives a shit about the Invaders nowadays. However, I thought it was kinda fun.
What If Captain America Hadn't Vanished During World War Two?
The premise is that Bucky doesn't get blown up and Steve doesn't become a Capsicle. This one actually went in a cool direction and told a pretty good What If.
The butterfly effect takes place and somehow Nick Fury dies in this world. Bucky steps into his shoes and becomes head of the newly-formed S.H.I.E.L.D. agency. Years later, Cap gets achy bones and he turns over his shield to Bucky, and takes over as the top S.H.I.E.L.D. dog.
All this culminates in Bucky biting the dust in a raid and (Bucky's lover/partner) Sharon Carter blaming Steve.
But we all know the truth, don't we, True Believers? <--at least this time around Bucky didn't go out a virgin!
What If The Fantastic Four Had Different Superpowers?
The best part of this is that everyone has a completely different power...except Sue.
She got Reed's power! Um, what?
Yeah! Ben has, like, these pterodactyl wings and can fly. Johnny turned into a metal dude they called a living robot. And Reed turned into a giant brain.
But poor Sue gets stuck with stretchy powers. I mean, yeah, it's a new-to-her power, but it still feels like she got a costume out of the Goodwill box.
Come on, guys!
But it was a fun issue that added some interesting twists to the story.
What If Someone Else Besides Spider-Man Had Been Bitten By The Radioactive Spider?
Flash Thompson, Betty Brant, and John Jameson (J. Jonah Jameson's son) all get their turn at web-slinging. Flash accidentally kills a guy and tries to atone by being the masked hero, Captain Spider, but Vulture (hilariously) drops him from the air and kills him.
Peter Weeps.
Young Jameson gets shoved into the spotlight by his attention-seeking father, and then gets squished under a space capsule that crash lands while trying to save it.
Thus, JJ reforms and tries to make superheroes look good in the media.
Betty gets help sewing her Amazing Spider Girl costume from Pete and he acts as her Alfred (but with kissing!) for the duration of her career. She hangs up her spandex when she fails to catch the guy who eventually goes on to kill Pete's uncle. Her costume is the worst. The weird webbing makes her look like she has not only chest hair at first glance, but also long armpit hair.
What If The Spider Had Been Bitten By A Radioactive Human?
This one was just fucking cute as hell.
Webster Weaver gets bit by a fucking human, survives, and becomes the crime fighter, The Man-Spider!
His rogues' gallery was great but his greatest enemy was a bottle of Raid.
Seriously, it was adorable.
I'd love to own this issue.
What If The World Knew Daredevil Was Blind?
This one ends well for ol' Matt and even better for Karen. <--unless she picks up a drug habit somewhere done the line. Maybe she starts eating their (as of yet unborn) children's Adderall?
Point is, those two crazy kids get a Happily Ever After because DD retires his horns and decides to ask the pretty Miss Page to be his wife.
Foggy gets fucked out of a girlfriend and the DA's office, but he's still a loyal chum who's happy for his pal.
What If The Avengers Had Fought Evil During The 1950's?
To be quite honest, I wasn't aware that they hadn't been fighting evil in the 1950s.
It makes sense when you think about it, but rarely have I thought about it.
This one was different because Tony called in Thor, Beast, Vision, and Captain America to look at what one of his pseudo-science machines picked up on tv.
It shows them all what would have happened if a group of heroes would have formed during the McCarthy Era. <--the government was not ready!
The goddess, Venus, with her Power of Loooove, is Thor's equal. <--riiiight
Gorilla- Man, a guy who killed the old Gorilla-Man and got cursed with being....well, a man that looks like a gorilla, is Beast's counterpart with his animalistic strength.
Marvel Boy, is apparently like Iron Man because has a laser-beam on his wrist. He has other stuff, like telepathy, that makes him a hell of a lot cooler than Stark. But the wrist laser is what bonds them through time.
3-D Man is actually two brothers that combine into one superhero that has the power of 3 men.
Not sure how that works? But he's the dude Captain America identified with the most.
The Human Robot - no explanation necessary, or so I would think - is Vision's predecessor.
They team up with Agent Woo of the FBI, fight the evil Yellow Claw, and save President Eisenhower from his nefarious clutches.
And then Ike tells them to disappear because American's aren't going to be able to handle spacemen, robots, talking monkeys, or goddesses! Goddammit! They can barely handle the existence of Commies, at this point!
What If Jane Foster Had Found The Hammer Of Thor?
First off, she calls herself, Thordis. Right off the bat, I'm giggling.
And his one was just unintentionally full of the belly laughs due to the phrasing of things.
The lame Doctor Blake.
I mean, nobody refers to someone with a bum knee as lame anymore and it confused my daughter (she's 13) as to why he was considered a loser for being a doctor.
And speaking of lame, after Thordis saves Asgard from Mangog and averts Ragnarok, Odin makes her give back Mjolnir to Donald Blake so he can get his memories of being Thor back. Oh, and Thor and Sif go off together for their Happily Ever After.
That's nice.
But poor Jane's heart is broken by the loss of lame Don.
But wait! There's more!
Odin, very grateful for what Thordis did, turns Jane into a goddess. <-awwww!
And then he proposes marriage. <--ewwww!
She accepts because he's the king of Asgard and a mother-fucking god. <--uh...?
Besides, he's a lot like his son! <--vomits in mouth
The End.
What If Tthe Marvel Bullpen Had Become The Fantastic Four?
There are probably a lot of inside jokes in this one that I just didn't get. And if I were able to put myself and 3 of my friends into a mainstream comic, I'd do it. So, while there are no hard feelings towards the old Marvel Bullpen, this one was the worst of the bunch.
What If Rick Jones Had Become The Hulk?
Starts off with a twist in Rick's origin, as he shoves Banner into the trench first and gets hit by the gamma rays. From there on out you go through Rick's story with his version of the Hulk coming in and out of his life as Banner works furiously to cure him. It does a good job of keeping some things the same. - he and Mar-vell team up with the Nega Bands, he becomes a musician, etc. - but also adding variations to the story to make it interesting.
The way Rick talks is pretty dorky. This sounds exactly like an adult trying to get the cool lingo of the day right and failing miserably. <--this is a cross we must all bear after a certain age.
What If Someone Made It All the Way To The End Of This Review?
That, True Believer, is the greatest What If of all.
And to be 100% honest, it took me a long while to wade through all of these, but it was completely worth it.
If you don't want to read my review of each individual issue (and god knows I wouldn't) then the short version is that this was fun. I really love how they took the time to make these all interesting and different, while still hanging on to some of the original pivotal moments for the characters. Overall, this was an incredible collection.
What If Spider-man Had Joined The Fantastic Four?
Hilariously, the crux of it is that Sue feels left out and leaves Reed for Namor. <--as she should!
Or not, because I'm not 100% sure it's healthy to run off with a guy that keeps kidnapping you, no matter how much better his abs are than your boyfriend's.
Then again, I'm petty enough to see how you could leave the stretchy nerd who left you behind to go explore with his boys because there weren't enough seats in the spaceship.
You get what you get, Richards!
What If Hulk Had The Brain Of Bruce Banner?
Everything comes up roses for Bruce but the Thing gets screwed. It's Clobberin Time, indeed.
This one actually has quite a few in-depth ramifications for everyone involved. Banner, Reed Richards, & Charles Xavier have to band together to save the world from Galactus and end up losing their powers in the process. Ben had already been cured of being Thing and was married to Alicia, but (because he was nosey) ended up getting his Thing powers back, but minus his mental abilities. So, in essence, he becomes the new Hulk.
General Ross, who adores his son-in-law, Bruce, takes off on his mission to hunt Thing Down.
What If The Avengers Had Never Been?
The band breaks up when Iron Man insists they go after Hulk. Tony goes after Hulk and Namor on his own and gets his tinman-ass fucked up.
Things do not end well for the Armored Avenger, so the moral of the story is to not make Hulk angry.
You really wouldn't like him when he's angry.
I'm so sorry. I tried not to say it but just couldn't help myself.
What If The Invaders Had Stayed Together After World War Two?
This one really isn't terribly relevant for today's readers, because who gives a shit about the Invaders nowadays. However, I thought it was kinda fun.
What If Captain America Hadn't Vanished During World War Two?
The premise is that Bucky doesn't get blown up and Steve doesn't become a Capsicle. This one actually went in a cool direction and told a pretty good What If.
The butterfly effect takes place and somehow Nick Fury dies in this world. Bucky steps into his shoes and becomes head of the newly-formed S.H.I.E.L.D. agency. Years later, Cap gets achy bones and he turns over his shield to Bucky, and takes over as the top S.H.I.E.L.D. dog.
All this culminates in Bucky biting the dust in a raid and (Bucky's lover/partner) Sharon Carter blaming Steve.
But we all know the truth, don't we, True Believers? <--at least this time around Bucky didn't go out a virgin!
What If The Fantastic Four Had Different Superpowers?
The best part of this is that everyone has a completely different power...except Sue.
She got Reed's power! Um, what?
Yeah! Ben has, like, these pterodactyl wings and can fly. Johnny turned into a metal dude they called a living robot. And Reed turned into a giant brain.
But poor Sue gets stuck with stretchy powers. I mean, yeah, it's a new-to-her power, but it still feels like she got a costume out of the Goodwill box.
Come on, guys!
But it was a fun issue that added some interesting twists to the story.
What If Someone Else Besides Spider-Man Had Been Bitten By The Radioactive Spider?
Flash Thompson, Betty Brant, and John Jameson (J. Jonah Jameson's son) all get their turn at web-slinging. Flash accidentally kills a guy and tries to atone by being the masked hero, Captain Spider, but Vulture (hilariously) drops him from the air and kills him.
Peter Weeps.
Young Jameson gets shoved into the spotlight by his attention-seeking father, and then gets squished under a space capsule that crash lands while trying to save it.
Thus, JJ reforms and tries to make superheroes look good in the media.
Betty gets help sewing her Amazing Spider Girl costume from Pete and he acts as her Alfred (but with kissing!) for the duration of her career. She hangs up her spandex when she fails to catch the guy who eventually goes on to kill Pete's uncle. Her costume is the worst. The weird webbing makes her look like she has not only chest hair at first glance, but also long armpit hair.
What If The Spider Had Been Bitten By A Radioactive Human?
This one was just fucking cute as hell.
Webster Weaver gets bit by a fucking human, survives, and becomes the crime fighter, The Man-Spider!
His rogues' gallery was great but his greatest enemy was a bottle of Raid.
Seriously, it was adorable.
I'd love to own this issue.
What If The World Knew Daredevil Was Blind?
This one ends well for ol' Matt and even better for Karen. <--unless she picks up a drug habit somewhere done the line. Maybe she starts eating their (as of yet unborn) children's Adderall?
Point is, those two crazy kids get a Happily Ever After because DD retires his horns and decides to ask the pretty Miss Page to be his wife.
Foggy gets fucked out of a girlfriend and the DA's office, but he's still a loyal chum who's happy for his pal.
What If The Avengers Had Fought Evil During The 1950's?
To be quite honest, I wasn't aware that they hadn't been fighting evil in the 1950s.
It makes sense when you think about it, but rarely have I thought about it.
This one was different because Tony called in Thor, Beast, Vision, and Captain America to look at what one of his pseudo-science machines picked up on tv.
It shows them all what would have happened if a group of heroes would have formed during the McCarthy Era. <--the government was not ready!
The goddess, Venus, with her Power of Loooove, is Thor's equal. <--riiiight
Gorilla- Man, a guy who killed the old Gorilla-Man and got cursed with being....well, a man that looks like a gorilla, is Beast's counterpart with his animalistic strength.
Marvel Boy, is apparently like Iron Man because has a laser-beam on his wrist. He has other stuff, like telepathy, that makes him a hell of a lot cooler than Stark. But the wrist laser is what bonds them through time.
3-D Man is actually two brothers that combine into one superhero that has the power of 3 men.
Not sure how that works? But he's the dude Captain America identified with the most.
The Human Robot - no explanation necessary, or so I would think - is Vision's predecessor.
They team up with Agent Woo of the FBI, fight the evil Yellow Claw, and save President Eisenhower from his nefarious clutches.
And then Ike tells them to disappear because American's aren't going to be able to handle spacemen, robots, talking monkeys, or goddesses! Goddammit! They can barely handle the existence of Commies, at this point!
What If Jane Foster Had Found The Hammer Of Thor?
First off, she calls herself, Thordis. Right off the bat, I'm giggling.
And his one was just unintentionally full of the belly laughs due to the phrasing of things.
The lame Doctor Blake.
I mean, nobody refers to someone with a bum knee as lame anymore and it confused my daughter (she's 13) as to why he was considered a loser for being a doctor.
And speaking of lame, after Thordis saves Asgard from Mangog and averts Ragnarok, Odin makes her give back Mjolnir to Donald Blake so he can get his memories of being Thor back. Oh, and Thor and Sif go off together for their Happily Ever After.
That's nice.
But poor Jane's heart is broken by the loss of lame Don.
But wait! There's more!
Odin, very grateful for what Thordis did, turns Jane into a goddess. <-awwww!
And then he proposes marriage. <--ewwww!
She accepts because he's the king of Asgard and a mother-fucking god. <--uh...?
Besides, he's a lot like his son! <--vomits in mouth
The End.
What If Tthe Marvel Bullpen Had Become The Fantastic Four?
There are probably a lot of inside jokes in this one that I just didn't get. And if I were able to put myself and 3 of my friends into a mainstream comic, I'd do it. So, while there are no hard feelings towards the old Marvel Bullpen, this one was the worst of the bunch.
What If Rick Jones Had Become The Hulk?
Starts off with a twist in Rick's origin, as he shoves Banner into the trench first and gets hit by the gamma rays. From there on out you go through Rick's story with his version of the Hulk coming in and out of his life as Banner works furiously to cure him. It does a good job of keeping some things the same. - he and Mar-vell team up with the Nega Bands, he becomes a musician, etc. - but also adding variations to the story to make it interesting.
The way Rick talks is pretty dorky. This sounds exactly like an adult trying to get the cool lingo of the day right and failing miserably. <--this is a cross we must all bear after a certain age.
What If Someone Made It All the Way To The End Of This Review?
That, True Believer, is the greatest What If of all.
August 17, 2021
Full disclosure: I read the 12 issues this contains on the Marvel Unlimited app, not the actual book.
What if way back in the ‘70s Marvel Comics started a title that explored alternate versions of its stories? And then 4 decades later the company was now owned by Disney who was planning on bringing this idea back as an animated TV series on its new streaming service to capitalize on their string of blockbuster movies?
Nah…couldn’t happen.
So we’ve got a set of stories where the Watcher is used as an on-going framing device to show us ‘alternate worlds’ in which changes to the events of Marvel comics play out differently. I remember seeing this advertised a lot as a kid, but never really ran across too many of the actual issues. And frankly I found this a bit disappointing. It’s not terrible stuff, but it seems awfully limited at times.
That’s because most of these are set-ups that go back to the origins of the characters, and then they played those scenarios out in terms of some events in those early issues instead of taking a bigger view of how that would impact the whole Marvel universe. The most interesting ones for me were when Captain America doesn’t become a Popsicle at the end of World War II and when Jane Foster found the hammer of Thor instead of Don Blake. Those are the two that take a long view as to the implications instead of just looking at a few issues after the change is made.
The wackiest one is about what if the original Marvel bullpen had gained the powers of the Fantastic Four. So you’ve got real life Marvel employees Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Sol Brodsky, and Flo Steinberg becoming superheroes. It’s silly and stupid, but it was also Jack Kirby writing and drawing a book that sorta looks like the old FF for the first time in years so it’s worth a look as a curiosity.
What if way back in the ‘70s Marvel Comics started a title that explored alternate versions of its stories? And then 4 decades later the company was now owned by Disney who was planning on bringing this idea back as an animated TV series on its new streaming service to capitalize on their string of blockbuster movies?
Nah…couldn’t happen.
So we’ve got a set of stories where the Watcher is used as an on-going framing device to show us ‘alternate worlds’ in which changes to the events of Marvel comics play out differently. I remember seeing this advertised a lot as a kid, but never really ran across too many of the actual issues. And frankly I found this a bit disappointing. It’s not terrible stuff, but it seems awfully limited at times.
That’s because most of these are set-ups that go back to the origins of the characters, and then they played those scenarios out in terms of some events in those early issues instead of taking a bigger view of how that would impact the whole Marvel universe. The most interesting ones for me were when Captain America doesn’t become a Popsicle at the end of World War II and when Jane Foster found the hammer of Thor instead of Don Blake. Those are the two that take a long view as to the implications instead of just looking at a few issues after the change is made.
The wackiest one is about what if the original Marvel bullpen had gained the powers of the Fantastic Four. So you’ve got real life Marvel employees Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Sol Brodsky, and Flo Steinberg becoming superheroes. It’s silly and stupid, but it was also Jack Kirby writing and drawing a book that sorta looks like the old FF for the first time in years so it’s worth a look as a curiosity.
September 29, 2019
So I’ll give it to the savvy marketing heads over at Marvel Comics for bringing out new editions of previously published material for us fanboys and fangirls to slather over while they make plans to saturate the media markets even more in the upcoming years. “What If?” has always been one of my favorite Marvel titles ever since the debut of the series back in 1977. The first print run covered 47 issues, the first twelve of which are reproduced in awesome full-color glory in this omnibus edition. This re-release of the series is a direct tie-in with the announcement that the Marvel Cinematic Universe will be producing a web-based animated show based on the “What If?” format that plans to begin airing in 2021.
So what’s the big deal? Well, Bucky, glad you asked. “What If?” was a hot property for Marvel, even after the initial print run was canceled. It would end up being the proverbial “title that Marvel couldn’t kill” as it has now managed to go thorough THIRTEEN different volumes all the way up into 2018. The basic premise is pretty simple: Marvel takes one of its staple plot lines and monkeys around with the whole thing until all sorts of neat ideas come spinning out like confetti from a top. You can look at the titles below to get an idea of what the concept looks like, but it was always fun for both the fans AND the folks at Marvel to change things around a little bit and see how history might have been changed if this ONE LITTLE DETAIL had been altered along the way.
Marvel was also smart to have The Watcher narrate these little off world tales, as it IS his job to monitor and record the history of our little corner of the universe called the Marvel Media Cash Printing Office, otherwise known as Earth-616 for you Marvelous acolytes out there. I’ll link you to the Wiki article if you want or need any more detail before I get around to slapping down my thoughts about each of the issues included in Volume One.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_If...
ISSUE # 1 : “What If Spider-Man Had Joined The Fantastic Four?” - A great introduction to the format and basic idea behind the entire “What If?” concept. In an alternate universe, Spidey manages to fast-talk his way into membership in the premier superteam of the Marvel Universe. After a bit of a rocky start, the newly minted Fantastic Five hit their stride and become the talk of the town. Ahhhh….but then that sneaky Namor, The Sub-Mariner shows up and pops a conch shell between the spokes…..
ISSUE # 2 : “What If The Hulk Had Always Had Bruce Banner’s Brain?” - A story that hadn’t been utilized in the regular Marvel Universe up to that point in time. Of course, the “intelligent Hulk” would make an appearance in our normal timeline soon enough, but it turns out that there are some pretty big repercussions of a big-brained Big Green Guy.
ISSUE # 3: “What If The Avengers Had Never Been?” - A story that echoes both the previous issue AND the finale of “Endgame.” Tight storytelling, but a reminder of why I didn’t find the original set of Avengers all that engaging in the first place.
ISSUE # 4: “What If The Invaders Had Stayed Together After World War Two?” - “The Invaders” is a bit of a blind spot for me in terms of Marvel Comics Universe continuity. I am peripherally aware of their importance in the greater scheme of things only through information gleaned from other comics. Thus this was kind of all-new material for me. First introduced in 1969, The Invaders had an association of sorts with the Avengers, through the lens of Captain America. This issue presupposes that the original team didn’t break up after WWII but instead renamed themselves the “All-Winners Squad” and continued to fight with a variety of different members. Interesting because you get not one, but TWO full units of Captain America death in this issue. A bit confusing, but still mighty fun.
ISSUE # 5: “What If Captain America Hadn’t Vanished After World War Two?” - Another Cap-based story that seems a bit similar in some ways to the previous issue, but with a few more twists and turns that affect a fairly large swath of the MCU. Interesting to see how influential and connected Captain America was in the greater Marvel milieu.
ISSUE # 6: “What If The Fantastic Four Had Different Super-Powers?” - One of the stranger volumes in the series. I’m now stuck with the image of Reed Richards reduced to the level of being an enormous brain using air tubes to travel through the Baxter Building. Odd stuff, but this is one of the prime reasons that “What If?” was developed in the first place. You can tell the writers just went all crazy with this idea.
ISSUE # 7: “What If Someone Else Had Become The Amazing Spider-Man?” - Three different characters gain the vaunted Spider-Powers in place of poor Peter Parker, who is now forever reduced to being a bit player nerd in this timeline. Or is he? Read the stories and see!!
ISSUE # 8: “What If The World Knew Daredevil Was Blind?” - OOPS! The Man Without Fear becomes known as the Man Without Eyesight, which puts him at a distinct disadvantage against his many foes. It pretty much takes a star turn by Spider-Man to save the day, but all is well as ends well as Matt Murdock gets the girl AND the D.A. position he always craved. And maybe one more thing that I won’t spoil here.
ISSUE # 9: “What If The Avengers Had Fought Evil In The 1950s?"- Man, the Day-Glo fifties were a swingin’ time for sure. And if you are looking for slightly off-kilter versions of your familiar faces like Thor and Captain America, boy are YOU in for a surprise. Big time fun I didn’t expect at all.
ISSUE # 10: “What If Jane Foster Had Found The Hammer Of Thor?” - Possibly my favorite tale of the alternate MCU in the omnibus. It’s a huge tribute to how iconic the first appearance of Thor was that the writers and artists go out of their way to virtually recreate scenes from “Journey Into Mystery #83.” Huge repercussions in this one, and totally fun.
ISSUE # 11: “What If The Original Marvel Bullpen Had Become The Fantastic Four?” - Jack Kirby was one insane dude. ‘Nuff said.
ISSUE # 12: “What If Rick Jones Had Become The Hulk?” - Yet another Hulk origin episode that changes the whole picture of Mean Green. Probably not the most satisfying issue to be found here, but still interesting and compelling.
So there you have it. This isn’t the first time that Marvel has released “What If” in collectible editions, but it is the first time that you are going to get complete issues, letters and editorial pages included. This edition also has ridiculously sharp coloring that makes owning this a no-brainer all by itself. I know that the first omnibus runs were marred by the fact that the set wasn’t truly complete. There were apparently copyright issues with the initial print run that kept at least two of the original stories from seeing reprint. I have no idea if those copyright issues have been resolved or if this updated omnibus will encounter the same problems. I also have no clue if Marvel plans to expand beyond the original 47 issues or if they are planning to extend the effort to the many volumes that appeared after the first time that the title was temporarily retired. Either way, this is still a way worthwhile collection to have in your home, especially given the renewed interest generated by the announcement of the new animated series. Five stars because I am an unapologetic fanboy. Can’t recommend this one enough, True Believers. Excelsior!!!
So what’s the big deal? Well, Bucky, glad you asked. “What If?” was a hot property for Marvel, even after the initial print run was canceled. It would end up being the proverbial “title that Marvel couldn’t kill” as it has now managed to go thorough THIRTEEN different volumes all the way up into 2018. The basic premise is pretty simple: Marvel takes one of its staple plot lines and monkeys around with the whole thing until all sorts of neat ideas come spinning out like confetti from a top. You can look at the titles below to get an idea of what the concept looks like, but it was always fun for both the fans AND the folks at Marvel to change things around a little bit and see how history might have been changed if this ONE LITTLE DETAIL had been altered along the way.
Marvel was also smart to have The Watcher narrate these little off world tales, as it IS his job to monitor and record the history of our little corner of the universe called the Marvel Media Cash Printing Office, otherwise known as Earth-616 for you Marvelous acolytes out there. I’ll link you to the Wiki article if you want or need any more detail before I get around to slapping down my thoughts about each of the issues included in Volume One.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_If...
ISSUE # 1 : “What If Spider-Man Had Joined The Fantastic Four?” - A great introduction to the format and basic idea behind the entire “What If?” concept. In an alternate universe, Spidey manages to fast-talk his way into membership in the premier superteam of the Marvel Universe. After a bit of a rocky start, the newly minted Fantastic Five hit their stride and become the talk of the town. Ahhhh….but then that sneaky Namor, The Sub-Mariner shows up and pops a conch shell between the spokes…..
ISSUE # 2 : “What If The Hulk Had Always Had Bruce Banner’s Brain?” - A story that hadn’t been utilized in the regular Marvel Universe up to that point in time. Of course, the “intelligent Hulk” would make an appearance in our normal timeline soon enough, but it turns out that there are some pretty big repercussions of a big-brained Big Green Guy.
ISSUE # 3: “What If The Avengers Had Never Been?” - A story that echoes both the previous issue AND the finale of “Endgame.” Tight storytelling, but a reminder of why I didn’t find the original set of Avengers all that engaging in the first place.
ISSUE # 4: “What If The Invaders Had Stayed Together After World War Two?” - “The Invaders” is a bit of a blind spot for me in terms of Marvel Comics Universe continuity. I am peripherally aware of their importance in the greater scheme of things only through information gleaned from other comics. Thus this was kind of all-new material for me. First introduced in 1969, The Invaders had an association of sorts with the Avengers, through the lens of Captain America. This issue presupposes that the original team didn’t break up after WWII but instead renamed themselves the “All-Winners Squad” and continued to fight with a variety of different members. Interesting because you get not one, but TWO full units of Captain America death in this issue. A bit confusing, but still mighty fun.
ISSUE # 5: “What If Captain America Hadn’t Vanished After World War Two?” - Another Cap-based story that seems a bit similar in some ways to the previous issue, but with a few more twists and turns that affect a fairly large swath of the MCU. Interesting to see how influential and connected Captain America was in the greater Marvel milieu.
ISSUE # 6: “What If The Fantastic Four Had Different Super-Powers?” - One of the stranger volumes in the series. I’m now stuck with the image of Reed Richards reduced to the level of being an enormous brain using air tubes to travel through the Baxter Building. Odd stuff, but this is one of the prime reasons that “What If?” was developed in the first place. You can tell the writers just went all crazy with this idea.
ISSUE # 7: “What If Someone Else Had Become The Amazing Spider-Man?” - Three different characters gain the vaunted Spider-Powers in place of poor Peter Parker, who is now forever reduced to being a bit player nerd in this timeline. Or is he? Read the stories and see!!
ISSUE # 8: “What If The World Knew Daredevil Was Blind?” - OOPS! The Man Without Fear becomes known as the Man Without Eyesight, which puts him at a distinct disadvantage against his many foes. It pretty much takes a star turn by Spider-Man to save the day, but all is well as ends well as Matt Murdock gets the girl AND the D.A. position he always craved. And maybe one more thing that I won’t spoil here.
ISSUE # 9: “What If The Avengers Had Fought Evil In The 1950s?"- Man, the Day-Glo fifties were a swingin’ time for sure. And if you are looking for slightly off-kilter versions of your familiar faces like Thor and Captain America, boy are YOU in for a surprise. Big time fun I didn’t expect at all.
ISSUE # 10: “What If Jane Foster Had Found The Hammer Of Thor?” - Possibly my favorite tale of the alternate MCU in the omnibus. It’s a huge tribute to how iconic the first appearance of Thor was that the writers and artists go out of their way to virtually recreate scenes from “Journey Into Mystery #83.” Huge repercussions in this one, and totally fun.
ISSUE # 11: “What If The Original Marvel Bullpen Had Become The Fantastic Four?” - Jack Kirby was one insane dude. ‘Nuff said.
ISSUE # 12: “What If Rick Jones Had Become The Hulk?” - Yet another Hulk origin episode that changes the whole picture of Mean Green. Probably not the most satisfying issue to be found here, but still interesting and compelling.
So there you have it. This isn’t the first time that Marvel has released “What If” in collectible editions, but it is the first time that you are going to get complete issues, letters and editorial pages included. This edition also has ridiculously sharp coloring that makes owning this a no-brainer all by itself. I know that the first omnibus runs were marred by the fact that the set wasn’t truly complete. There were apparently copyright issues with the initial print run that kept at least two of the original stories from seeing reprint. I have no idea if those copyright issues have been resolved or if this updated omnibus will encounter the same problems. I also have no clue if Marvel plans to expand beyond the original 47 issues or if they are planning to extend the effort to the many volumes that appeared after the first time that the title was temporarily retired. Either way, this is still a way worthwhile collection to have in your home, especially given the renewed interest generated by the announcement of the new animated series. Five stars because I am an unapologetic fanboy. Can’t recommend this one enough, True Believers. Excelsior!!!
January 31, 2022
This was a lot of fun, but the early chapters were too verbose, like the writer was being paid by the letter. However, it got its stride once it got going, and when it did, you got a classic Kirby issue, and a prophetic Jane Foster as Thor story.
March 18, 2022
Ah, late 70's collection of Marvel's polarizing first series of "What If?" with the first 12 issues in one trade and the promising at the end of a few of the issues with my favorite "What if Conan was here in modern times ?" but never published in this collection. Weird.
The stories are for the most part nice twists and turns on the classic early Marvel comics from Spider-man joining the FF to Rick Jones becoming the Hulk.
I really enjoyed the one with Bruce Banner retaining his intelligence and the one with Jane finding Mjolnir and becoming "Thordis" instead of lame physician Donald Blake finding it and becoming Thor. A story that actually does come to pass in modern Marvel anyway.
I guess now all these tales aren't a matter of "If" but more like "when". Enjoyable for what they are though the first 12 stories do not feature many mutants.
The stories are for the most part nice twists and turns on the classic early Marvel comics from Spider-man joining the FF to Rick Jones becoming the Hulk.
I really enjoyed the one with Bruce Banner retaining his intelligence and the one with Jane finding Mjolnir and becoming "Thordis" instead of lame physician Donald Blake finding it and becoming Thor. A story that actually does come to pass in modern Marvel anyway.
I guess now all these tales aren't a matter of "If" but more like "when". Enjoyable for what they are though the first 12 stories do not feature many mutants.
June 1, 2019
Really, a three star ... with a fourth tagged on only for my own childhood nostalgia ... the writing is often clunky but alternative storylines always intrigued me .... I collected this series as a kid ...
January 12, 2020
It was okay. Some stories were better than others
July 11, 2021
Cheesy, dated (even for the 70s-80s) dialogue and nonstop exposition on every panel make this read exhausting, but the imagination and commitment to even the battiest ideas infuse some much-needed fun, and a surprising attention to character works better than it probably should.
May 22, 2022
Unfortunately, this one didn't do it for me. Because this is what if based on classic Marvel stories, you really have to be a Marvel fan and know the original stories to know what's different. I am not as well versed in the Marvel Universe as I thought and the language is old and dated and I just couldn't get with this one. If you're a hard core Marvel fan and you know all the old stories, you may enjoy it. Best of luck.
October 30, 2021
A hodge-podge of stories, some solid, some pointless..., many just sorta "meh". Here's a breakdown, IMO:
(1) What if Spider-Man had joined the Fantastic Four? aka 'What Would make Sue Richards Leave The FF?' Meh, 2 stars.
(2) What if the Hulk had the brain of Bruce Banner? Started out strong, then had to get Charles Xavier and Reed Richards involved for some reason. When all of the Marvel Universe smarties literally and physically merged into one super-powered dude ("The X-Man") to then fight and somehow defeat Galactus, this went all to shit. Thankfully, when the situation of "The Hulk w/ Bruce's Brain" was realized in the main Marvel Universe (and the MCU, for that matter)..., it was handled far smarter than this phoned-in turd of a story. 1 star.
(3) What if the Avengers had never been? Meh, 2 stars.
(4) What if the Invaders stayed together after World War II? A rather wonky story with art that seems to look a bit rushed, but not horrible. 2 stars.
(5) What if Captain America had not vanished during World War II? Basically a different take on the what-if premise of the previous issue. Not bad, overall. 3 stars.
(6) What if the Fantastic Four had different super-powers? This was about 31 flavors of stupid, topped off by Reed Richards reduced down to just a brain floating around like some sort toy helicopter. 0 stars.
(7) What if someone else besides Spider-Man had been bitten by the radioactive spider? Meh. 1.5 stars.
(8) What if the world knew Daredevil was blind? I have never been a fan of Daredevil. That plus the dumb "yuk yuk funny?" page-filler "What if the spider had been bitten by a radioactive human?". 1 star.
(9) What if the Avengers fought evil in the 1950s? This was later referenced as canon in the likes of "Avengers Forever" and "Paradise X". Well done. As such, it gets 3 stars for me.
(10) What if Jane Foster had found the hammer of Thor? This of course did come true in the Marvel Universe later on, but this take is pretty solid, too. 4 stars.
(11) What if the original Marvel Bullpen had become the Fantastic Four? Flat-out garbage. Most readers even back when this was first published didn't know or care about these people. It's like being invited to a drunken office party full of inside jokes, and you only sorta know one person (i.e. Stan Lee). 0 stars.
(12) What if Rick Jones had become the Hulk? A mushed up story that has Rick Jones take up the role of Hulk, Bucky, *and* Captain Marvel's sidekick, all basically at the same time. I always did hate how Marvel only created one token teenager as a side kick for all of their heavy hitters back then (remember, he was also closely tied to The Avengers too). How did he spend his time? Did he have a timeshare schedule? "Monday, I hang out with the Hulk. Tuesday The Avengers. Wednesday and Thursday I'll be Captain Marvel's homeboy. Friday back to the Hulk...", and so on. Here, he's all that and now also Captain America's new sidekick. It's all kinda dumb, but that's the way it is. Here, he winds up loving the Hulk lifestyle in The Neutral Zone. Yippee. Hooray for Rick "Token Marvel Teenager Sidekick" Jones lol. Meh. 2 stars.
Overall score: 2 stars, fwiw.
(1) What if Spider-Man had joined the Fantastic Four? aka 'What Would make Sue Richards Leave The FF?' Meh, 2 stars.
(2) What if the Hulk had the brain of Bruce Banner? Started out strong, then had to get Charles Xavier and Reed Richards involved for some reason. When all of the Marvel Universe smarties literally and physically merged into one super-powered dude ("The X-Man") to then fight and somehow defeat Galactus, this went all to shit. Thankfully, when the situation of "The Hulk w/ Bruce's Brain" was realized in the main Marvel Universe (and the MCU, for that matter)..., it was handled far smarter than this phoned-in turd of a story. 1 star.
(3) What if the Avengers had never been? Meh, 2 stars.
(4) What if the Invaders stayed together after World War II? A rather wonky story with art that seems to look a bit rushed, but not horrible. 2 stars.
(5) What if Captain America had not vanished during World War II? Basically a different take on the what-if premise of the previous issue. Not bad, overall. 3 stars.
(6) What if the Fantastic Four had different super-powers? This was about 31 flavors of stupid, topped off by Reed Richards reduced down to just a brain floating around like some sort toy helicopter. 0 stars.
(7) What if someone else besides Spider-Man had been bitten by the radioactive spider? Meh. 1.5 stars.
(8) What if the world knew Daredevil was blind? I have never been a fan of Daredevil. That plus the dumb "yuk yuk funny?" page-filler "What if the spider had been bitten by a radioactive human?". 1 star.
(9) What if the Avengers fought evil in the 1950s? This was later referenced as canon in the likes of "Avengers Forever" and "Paradise X". Well done. As such, it gets 3 stars for me.
(10) What if Jane Foster had found the hammer of Thor? This of course did come true in the Marvel Universe later on, but this take is pretty solid, too. 4 stars.
(11) What if the original Marvel Bullpen had become the Fantastic Four? Flat-out garbage. Most readers even back when this was first published didn't know or care about these people. It's like being invited to a drunken office party full of inside jokes, and you only sorta know one person (i.e. Stan Lee). 0 stars.
(12) What if Rick Jones had become the Hulk? A mushed up story that has Rick Jones take up the role of Hulk, Bucky, *and* Captain Marvel's sidekick, all basically at the same time. I always did hate how Marvel only created one token teenager as a side kick for all of their heavy hitters back then (remember, he was also closely tied to The Avengers too). How did he spend his time? Did he have a timeshare schedule? "Monday, I hang out with the Hulk. Tuesday The Avengers. Wednesday and Thursday I'll be Captain Marvel's homeboy. Friday back to the Hulk...", and so on. Here, he's all that and now also Captain America's new sidekick. It's all kinda dumb, but that's the way it is. Here, he winds up loving the Hulk lifestyle in The Neutral Zone. Yippee. Hooray for Rick "Token Marvel Teenager Sidekick" Jones lol. Meh. 2 stars.
Overall score: 2 stars, fwiw.
November 1, 2021
What If? wasn’t a comic I read as a lad…actually, I may have mostly given up comics by the time it came out, moving onto football and girls and other such pursuits. But when I used to see it on the rack, I dismissed it as goofy silliness, a little like Mr. Rogers in the Land of Make Believe. And so when Disney announced the new What If? television series, I wasn’t that excited. I even might have rolled my eyes.
Nonetheless, as a True Believer, I’m happy to report today that I was wrong back then. There is far more to What If? than just silly adventures in Imaginationland. From the first page of the first issue (“What If Spider-Man Joined the Fantastic Four”), the comic book connects to the realm of quantum mechanics as the Watcher, who functions as the narrator for each story, gives readers a basic primer on the Many-Worlds Theory, essentially introducing the multiverse to readers of the Marvel-verse. Each story begins as a familiar one to readers of Marvel comics, each initially set squarely in the familiar world of Earth-616 but then with a choice or an accident causing the familiar to veer into previously unknown storylines of the many worlds which only the Watcher is privy to.
Therefore, and perhaps most fascinating to me as a reader today in 2021 compared to, say, the reader I might have been in a different universe on a different timeline in 1979 had I been buying these comics at my local Drug Fair and then riding home on my bike to read them in the basement, I understand the foundational role they play in the massive entertainment industry which is the MCU today. By kicking off this imaginative series exploring the diverging timelines of the many worlds of the Marvel multiverse, editor/writer Roy Thomas puts into play the ideas which we are now seeing culminate not only in the current Disney Plus What If? series, but in the fantastic Loki series which has recently wrapped up, as well as in the upcoming Spider-man and Dr. Strange movies.
To be entirely honest, the stories in this first volume aren’t great, but they’re interesting, especially the tales which have gone from “What if?” to Marvel canon, such as Issue 10 which asks, “What If Jane Foster Had Found the Hammer of Thor?” And now, soon enough, we’ll have the movie Thor: Love and Thunder playing at a multiplex near you. Another great feature of this volume is the way they have opted to keep the original letters pages in each comic, not something you usually see in reprinted volumes. The response from the True Believers is pretty enjoyable to read on its own, and Roy Thomas does a pretty remarkable job interacting with those readers and asking them to help brainstorm possible What If? storylines, although Thomas’s promised Conan the Barbarian in 20th Century New York City never materializes in this first volume.
My favorite story is Issue 11, “What If the Fantastic Four Were the Original Marvel Bullpen?” with Stan Lee becoming Mr. Fantastic, Jack Kirby the Thing, Sol Brodsky the Human Torch, and Flo Steinberg Invisible Girl. Kirby wrote and illustrated the issue, too. And it is goofy silliness. In fact, it’s goofier than hell. But there’s room for that, too, in the multiverse.
Nonetheless, as a True Believer, I’m happy to report today that I was wrong back then. There is far more to What If? than just silly adventures in Imaginationland. From the first page of the first issue (“What If Spider-Man Joined the Fantastic Four”), the comic book connects to the realm of quantum mechanics as the Watcher, who functions as the narrator for each story, gives readers a basic primer on the Many-Worlds Theory, essentially introducing the multiverse to readers of the Marvel-verse. Each story begins as a familiar one to readers of Marvel comics, each initially set squarely in the familiar world of Earth-616 but then with a choice or an accident causing the familiar to veer into previously unknown storylines of the many worlds which only the Watcher is privy to.
Therefore, and perhaps most fascinating to me as a reader today in 2021 compared to, say, the reader I might have been in a different universe on a different timeline in 1979 had I been buying these comics at my local Drug Fair and then riding home on my bike to read them in the basement, I understand the foundational role they play in the massive entertainment industry which is the MCU today. By kicking off this imaginative series exploring the diverging timelines of the many worlds of the Marvel multiverse, editor/writer Roy Thomas puts into play the ideas which we are now seeing culminate not only in the current Disney Plus What If? series, but in the fantastic Loki series which has recently wrapped up, as well as in the upcoming Spider-man and Dr. Strange movies.
To be entirely honest, the stories in this first volume aren’t great, but they’re interesting, especially the tales which have gone from “What if?” to Marvel canon, such as Issue 10 which asks, “What If Jane Foster Had Found the Hammer of Thor?” And now, soon enough, we’ll have the movie Thor: Love and Thunder playing at a multiplex near you. Another great feature of this volume is the way they have opted to keep the original letters pages in each comic, not something you usually see in reprinted volumes. The response from the True Believers is pretty enjoyable to read on its own, and Roy Thomas does a pretty remarkable job interacting with those readers and asking them to help brainstorm possible What If? storylines, although Thomas’s promised Conan the Barbarian in 20th Century New York City never materializes in this first volume.
My favorite story is Issue 11, “What If the Fantastic Four Were the Original Marvel Bullpen?” with Stan Lee becoming Mr. Fantastic, Jack Kirby the Thing, Sol Brodsky the Human Torch, and Flo Steinberg Invisible Girl. Kirby wrote and illustrated the issue, too. And it is goofy silliness. In fact, it’s goofier than hell. But there’s room for that, too, in the multiverse.
August 7, 2023
The first 12 issues of the original What If? series were amazing fun. Each issue took a key moment in the history of the Marvel Universe and changed it, then created a story in which this causes a falling of cause-and-effect dominoes that changes the universe in unexpected ways.
The first issue, for instance, keys off of Spider Man #1, where he unsuccessfully tries to join the Fantastic Four. In this version, he succeeds. This leads to the villains from the early issues of Spider Man being foiled a lot more easily, but changes the direction of the FF even more drastically.
Another issue has Bruce Banner retain his own personality and intelligence when he is turned into the Hulk. This, in turn, leads to him curing Ben Grimm of being the Thing, which in turn leads to the FF breaking up, which in turn leads Bruce, Reed Richards and Professor X coming up with a desperate plan to stop Galactus when the planet-eating big guy comes to Earth.
In each case, the events play out in a logical manner. The writers (in this issues, Roy Thomas and Donald Glut) do sometimes lean towards tragic or bittersweet endings, but these endings are dramatically appropriate to the stories being told. And we do get a few clear happy endings mixed in.
The first issue, for instance, keys off of Spider Man #1, where he unsuccessfully tries to join the Fantastic Four. In this version, he succeeds. This leads to the villains from the early issues of Spider Man being foiled a lot more easily, but changes the direction of the FF even more drastically.
Another issue has Bruce Banner retain his own personality and intelligence when he is turned into the Hulk. This, in turn, leads to him curing Ben Grimm of being the Thing, which in turn leads to the FF breaking up, which in turn leads Bruce, Reed Richards and Professor X coming up with a desperate plan to stop Galactus when the planet-eating big guy comes to Earth.
In each case, the events play out in a logical manner. The writers (in this issues, Roy Thomas and Donald Glut) do sometimes lean towards tragic or bittersweet endings, but these endings are dramatically appropriate to the stories being told. And we do get a few clear happy endings mixed in.
March 26, 2024
I would do a 3.5 if GR would allow it.
These are the first 12 What If? issues from 1977. They are sprinkled with the things that everything was sprinkled with in 1977--sexism being the most prevalent. Most of the female characters are just so lame, and the male characters treat them accordingly. (At one point, Hank Pym introduces Janet Dyne as "the airhead heiress" and Janet worries that her supersuit clashes with her eyeshadow. Yeesh.) However, there are some decent ladies featured: Jane Foster/Thordis, Lady Sif, Miss Liberty, Betty Brandt/Spider-Girl...all pretty cool.
This collection feels weighted heavily by lots of Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, and Hulk. That grew tedious. The most enjoyable issue for me was "What If Jane Foster Had Found the Hammer of Thor?" The worst was "What If the Marvel Bullpen Had Become the Fantastic Four?" (Literally Stan Lee & pals become the Fantastic Four. I cannot imagine anyone was ever excited about this issue. Except Stan & pals.) The absolute weirdest was "What If the Spider Had Been Bitten by a Radioactive Human?" That one had me going "wut?"
So much of this was tedious reading, but I think overall I would rate it as "fun." And I do want to read the later issues to see changes in art, etc.
These are the first 12 What If? issues from 1977. They are sprinkled with the things that everything was sprinkled with in 1977--sexism being the most prevalent. Most of the female characters are just so lame, and the male characters treat them accordingly. (At one point, Hank Pym introduces Janet Dyne as "the airhead heiress" and Janet worries that her supersuit clashes with her eyeshadow. Yeesh.) However, there are some decent ladies featured: Jane Foster/Thordis, Lady Sif, Miss Liberty, Betty Brandt/Spider-Girl...all pretty cool.
This collection feels weighted heavily by lots of Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, and Hulk. That grew tedious. The most enjoyable issue for me was "What If Jane Foster Had Found the Hammer of Thor?" The worst was "What If the Marvel Bullpen Had Become the Fantastic Four?" (Literally Stan Lee & pals become the Fantastic Four. I cannot imagine anyone was ever excited about this issue. Except Stan & pals.) The absolute weirdest was "What If the Spider Had Been Bitten by a Radioactive Human?" That one had me going "wut?"
So much of this was tedious reading, but I think overall I would rate it as "fun." And I do want to read the later issues to see changes in art, etc.
March 11, 2020
The fact that I dragged my feet while reading this complete collection of What If? comics #1-#12 should in no way reflect the marvelous content of these Marvel tales.
Though some of the artwork is not as good as Marvel comics produced at that same time, particularly noteworthy are
What If? #2: What if the Hulk had always had Bruce Banner's brain? (Forerunner of the late 80's/early 90's story line.)
What If? #7: What if someone else besides Spider-Man had been bitten by the radioactive spider? (Forerunner of the Spider-verse series.)
What If: #8: What if the spider had been bitten by a radioactive human? (Forerunner of Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham.)
What If: #9 What if Jane Foster had found the hammer of Thor? (Forerunner of a female Thor.)
What If: #10 What if the original Marvel Bullpen had become the Fantastic Four? (Drawn by Jack "The King" Kirby!)
Though some of the artwork is not as good as Marvel comics produced at that same time, particularly noteworthy are
What If? #2: What if the Hulk had always had Bruce Banner's brain? (Forerunner of the late 80's/early 90's story line.)
What If? #7: What if someone else besides Spider-Man had been bitten by the radioactive spider? (Forerunner of the Spider-verse series.)
What If: #8: What if the spider had been bitten by a radioactive human? (Forerunner of Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham.)
What If: #9 What if Jane Foster had found the hammer of Thor? (Forerunner of a female Thor.)
What If: #10 What if the original Marvel Bullpen had become the Fantastic Four? (Drawn by Jack "The King" Kirby!)
August 14, 2021
This classic collection seems to mainly include the Fantastic Four. Heck, even Stan Lee and Jack Kirby get their chance to join the team. I guess the 'what if' I enjoyed the most was the Spider-Man thread where other people were bitten by the radioactive spider. (Even the story of the spider bitten by a radioactive man was entertaining.) The low point, at least for me, was the one where Bruce Banner became The Hulk but still kept his mind, like the Hulk we got in Endgame. Instead of Hulk Smash! we get Hulk Talk! Let's be honest, Hulk is boring when he's not destroying something. Oh yeah, then there's the What If where Rick Jones is turned into The Hulk and spouts Seventies teen talk. Can you dig it, you jive turkey? I didn't. I quickly missed the days when Hulk didn't talk in complete sentences.
August 18, 2021
This short story collection of What If? issues is incredibly fascinating for readers who are well acquainted with the history of Marvel publishing. Here readers can find examples of meta-fiction, such as the issue where the Marvel Bullpen receives the powers of the Fantastic Four, and test ideas that eventually became canon, such as the Invaders staying together past World War 2, the 1950s era Avengers, and Jane Foster becoming Thor. Writers may in turn garner experience from looking at these stories in comparison to their more popular incarnations as exercises in narrative regarding plot and intent. These are a testament to the kinds of storytelling that may emerge when canon is disregarded in favor of story, though some of these stories may be longer than they necessarily need to be.
June 30, 2021
I probably would have enjoyed this more if I were a Fantastic Four fan. The stories were hit-or-miss, and the Bullpen one was the ultimate Marvel inside joke (that just kept going and going and going).
January 2, 2024
Not really for me. A bit too old school, they are old so that's normal, but still... and the What If aspect of it wasn't that much interesting, the concept didn't take it far away or weird enough. Not really worth it.
March 2, 2024
Classic What If, a series I have loved since I was a kid. Not all the stories appeal to me at the same level but the various and huge amounts of what ufs are great. Some small changes to huge redos of the Marvel heroes and villains.
July 28, 2024
What If? may be one of my favorite comics, as it takes classic stories and provides interesting rewrites, I.e what if the Avengers Had Never Been? and inspires new ones. As I recall, one issue inspired the Agents of Atlas.
April 11, 2021
What if
What if. A fantastic series before alternate realities and multiple timelines. Just a old bald headed guy on the moon wondering what would happen if things were a
What if. A fantastic series before alternate realities and multiple timelines. Just a old bald headed guy on the moon wondering what would happen if things were a
August 29, 2021
Loved these.
September 2, 2021
Whoever put this collection together picked the worst What If issues to include.
September 18, 2021
4.5 stars.
October 28, 2021
Really a 3.5
Good stories, but What if really hasn't got is stride yet. The stories felt like they were afraid of deviating too much from the known Marvel Universe.
Good stories, but What if really hasn't got is stride yet. The stories felt like they were afraid of deviating too much from the known Marvel Universe.
January 28, 2022
It's probably really about 3.5 -3 3/4 , basically I read it for the nostalgia, as I've got a copy of Jane Foster becoming Thor . I did like some of them must of them are ok.
May 22, 2022
I could read these stories over and over again--and I have. Nice to have them all in one place rather than trying to hunt and peck. What-If was one of the few single issues I kept in my collection.
November 28, 2023
A brilliant idea, a blast to read, and a great way to revisit those early Marvel stories.
February 14, 2024
3.5 out of 5.
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