Writers: Roy Thomas, Jim Shooter, and Don Glut
Pencillers: Jim Craig, Herb Trimpe, Gil Kane, Frank Robbins, Geoge Tuska, and Rick Hoberg
Inkers: Pablo Marcos, Tom Sutton, Klaus Janson, Frank Springer, Russ Jones, and Sam Grainger
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reprinting material from What If?, Vol. 1, #1-6
The first six issues of the first What If? series are collected in this color trade paperback. They present possible answers to the questions, “What if Spider-Man joined the Fantastic Four,” “What if the Hulk had always had Bruce Banner’s brain,” “What if the Avengers had never been," “What if the Invaders had stayed together after WWII,” and “What if the Fantastic Four had different super powers?” The stories are hosted by the all-seeing Watcher, who explains that these aren’t just imaginary tales. They are visions from alternate timelines and parallel Earths, each as real as anything you read in other Marvel comics.
The stated purpose of the What If? series was to explore story ideas that could not, for various reasons, be answered in other Marvel comics; Questions that required rewriting history or led to sweeping changes to the Marvel heroes. A secondary purpose of the series was to play off a popular storyline published in a regular series and ask “What if this happened instead?” What If? was also used for stories intended for the regular series, but for various reasons could not be used. The Invaders story is one such example. Basically, What If was the series for stories that couldn’t, wouldn’t, or shouldn’t be done in the Marvel Universe.
The creative team changed with every issue. Usually the issue was handled by the writer and/or artist working on the subject’s monthly series. Barring that, it would be another creator commonly associated with the character. So What If gave writers and artists a little more freedom with long-established characters. They could do things with them, (and to them), that couldn’t be done anywhere else.
It sounds like a nice idea. But think it over carefully, and you’ll recognize some major flaws. First and foremost, with a different writer and artist for every issue, the quality would vary wildly. The angular cartooning of Robbins and Springer is a letdown after the powerful pencils of Gil Kane and the gritty inking of Klaus Janson. Fortunately, you can wash out your eyes with the Kirby-esque style of George Tuska and Russ Jones in the following issue.
And a good idea doesn’t necessitate a good story. The first issue, written by Roy Thomas, is the weakest story of the six. Common sense and a passing knowledge of Spider-Man should tell you that Peter Parker’s life would change dramatically if he joined a prestigious, famous super team like the Fantastic Four. Indeed, we see his membership squelches J. Jonah Jameson’s anti-Spidey campaign before it starts. But after that, Spidey becomes a supporting character in yet another Fantastic Four story. Spidey’s presence pushes Sue Storm to the sidelines. She’s then captured by the Sub-Mariner, who’s under the control of the Puppet Master. After a long battle, where Spider-man holds his own against Namor, Sue chooses to be Namor’s bride and joins him in Atlantis. Honestly, take out Spider-Man and that's a typical issue of Fantastic Four. Of course, the story would continue into the next issue where Sue comes back to Reed, and that would inspire an issue of What If? about Sue staying with Namor.
No mention of how Parker’s life as a public super-hero affects his classmates, his future girlfriends, his Aunt May, (who still doesn’t know about his double life), or how Spidey expects to get paid in a team that declares bankruptcy every six months! Nope, it’s the “Fantastic Five” vs. Namor.
Slightly more interesting is the story of how The Invaders, Marvel's team of Golden Age heroes, could have stayed together after WWII. With Captain America and Bucky vanished and presumed dead, another patriotic hero and suicidal young boy take their places. They join the Invaders for the remainder of the war, and stick together to fight crime after it ends. Re-naming themselves “The All-Winners Squad,” they uncover an android’s plot to assassinate congressional candidate John F. Kennedy.
Please keep in mind writer Roy Thomas was a fanboy in the 1940s. He was writing The Invaders series in 1977 when he conceived of this story. He couldn’t use it in Marvel continuity because Captain America writer Steve Englehart had already created a substitute Captain America and Bucky, (and Red Skull), to fight Communists in postwar/pre-Silver Age Marvel continuity. But really, who cares about Golden Age Marvel heroes? It’s nice comic book trivia. If you ever wondered if Marvel had superheroes in the 1940s, you can check out the new Handbook of Golden Age Marvel Heroes and see for yourself how lame they were. Ever worse are the clumsy attempts to connect them to “official” Marvel continuity.
Fortunately, the other stories in this collection are much more interesting. A Hulk with Banner’s intelligence brings about the end of the Fantastic Four, and transforms Ben Grimm into a savage, angry Thing. The Avengers fall apart shortly after The Hulk joins forces with Namor. Tony Stark designs Iron Man armors for Rick Jones, Hank Pym, and Janet Van Dyne to combat them. After WWII, Steve Rogers becomes head of the newly formed S.H.I.E.L.D., and Bucky Barnes succeeds him as Captain America. And the Fantastic Four gain bizarre powers, including giant wings for Ben Grimm and Reed becoming a floating brain. Each of these stories takes a premise into an unexpected yet natural direction. They often conclude with a character’s death. These are the stories that What If was created to tell.
Looking back, it’s obvious why both What If? series were cancelled. Since each issue of What If? featured a different character or team, that issue would only attract fans of that character/team. That explains why A-list characters Spider-Man, Wolverine, X-men, and Fantastic Four were featured so often in the series. So with no consistent creative or regular characters, readership and sales would vary from month to month. It must have been difficult to gauge the books overall popularity. That must be why the format of What If? Vol. 2 changed from alternate universe stories to “darker” versions of Marvel characters.
And yet, I’d like to see the series return. Many changes have been made to the Marvel universe in the years since the last What If? ended. And the one-shot specials coming out this week show there are ideas yet to be explored. In fact, I’d like to see modern writers and artists re-interpret old What If? ideas. How would Brian Bendis and Mark Waid answer the question, "What if Spider-Man joined the Fantastic Four?" How would Peter David portray a Hulk that always had Banner’s intellect? Hell, get Mark Millar to re-work his Wanted mini-series as, “What if there were no super heroes; just super villains?”
This book is labeled "Vol. 1." Either the new specials will be collected as "Vol. 2," or more issues of the original series will be collected. I’d like to see that. Not a complete collection, mind you; just a series of “Best Of” books, or volumes featuring a single character. This collection doesn’t quite warrant the $25 price tag.
There’s a complete list of "What If?" stories in the back of this book. Track down the ones that look the most interesting. If there’s something you’ve always wondered about the Marvel Universe, you might find the answer in one of those issues. Reading the occasional issue is probably the best way to enjoy the series.
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