What If?: Classic - Volume 1

Just recently I started to read comics again and this series was on my to buy/read list. I ordered this book shortly after and it really was a good book. It consists of 6 what if stories that ask what if something different happened in the marvel Universe. This book has: What if Spiderman joined the Fantastic 4?: This based off an old issue of Spiderman where he almost joined the first family of Marvel but in the end he didnt. But what if he did. How much would be different? This story explains that the Fantastic 5 can be more affective the a Fantatic 4. This story has a great ending which I didnt see coming. In fact there is a sequel to this story out there, What if The Hulk had Bruce Banner's Brain?: As you know whenever Dr. Bruce Banner becomes the Hulk he becomes a different man with no control. But what if he did? This take follows what would have happened if The Hulk was smart and tried to be cured. With guest appearances by the Fantastic 4 and Galactus. Good story. Not as good as I thought but still enjoyable. What if The Avengers had never been?: In the early days of the Avengers there was a moment when the Hulk and Namor the Sub Mariner team up and the Avengers almost break up. But what if they did. Sadly this was a good story but in the end it almost had the same result if they stayed together with a couple of exceptions. The Avengers didnt really split up they just did something different as a team. What if Captain America and Bucky Survived World War II?: Ok you know the backstory. During WWII Capt. America and Bucky fell into freezing water. Capt. was frozen while Bucky died. The Avengers stumble apon Capt. and he awakes 20 of so years later. But if Capt. and Bucky didnt fall into the water. What would be differnet. So far this was one of my favorite stories so far because it didnt show a small time period, it went from WWII to the present (well when the comic was released) with what would have happened. Great story What if the Invaders stayed together after WWII?: Ok the Invaders were a Avenger like group during WWII that consisted of Captain America, Bucky, Human Torch (not the Fantastic 4 torch but the first one), Namor and I forgot who else. The group disband after Capts. and Bucky disaperred but what if the group went on without (and in a with) them. The story was confusing since I never heard of the group before and it was hard to tell if the story was at the point of the real moment or in the alternate time line plus it had too many stories in it. What if the Fantastic 4 had different Powers?: Ok as you know Reed Richards had the ability to stretch, Susan Storm could become invisible, Johnny Storm became the new Human Torch and Ben Grim became a rock like monster. But what if they got different powers (I wont say what). The story is very good. It didnt go on with a long plot but just one simple one like an origin story. Very good. This book had mostly good stories in it with a couple of exceptions. If you love marvel co

I agree this should have been an Essentials offering. But it's a fun read never the less and it paved the way for stronger stories in later issues. As far as expectations maybe we are too jaded in this new century to appreciate what Roy Thomas and other's were doing. These stories shake the foundations of Marvel legend and take them to another place. I agree that they don't all work but the ones that do are great to visit again.