What If? Dark Avengers

What If? (Publication Order) #196-200

by Marc Guggenheim, Stan Lee, Jason Henderson

Marvel once again asks WHAT IF...? This volume comes packed with the off-the-wall stories fans have come to expect from this series, including the historic 200th issue! What If? #200 offers two titanic tales - the main story is one with a different POV on Siege, "What If The Avengers Failed To Defeat The Sentry?" The second tale is one that will be talked about amongst the multiverse: the murder of Galactus at the hands of...the WATCHER!?! This one is written by none other than Stan "The Man" Lee, himself. Collecting: What If? #200, Dark Reign, Iron Man: Demon in an Armor, Spider-Man, Wolverine: Father

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Superheroes, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction

186 pages, Paperback

First published April 16, 2011

About the author

Marc Guggenheim grew up on Long Island, New York, and earned his law degree from Boston University. After over four years in practice, he left law to pursue a career in television.

Today, Guggenheim is an Emmy Award–winning writer who writes for multiple mediums including television, film, video games, comic books, and new media. His work includes projects for such popular franchises as Percy Jackson, Star Wars, Call of Duty, Star Trek, and Planet of the Apes.

His next book, In Any Lifetime, coming from Lake Union Publishing on August 1st.

Guggenheim currently lives in Encino, California, with his wife, two daughters, and a handful of pets.

Keep up to date on his latest projects with LegalDispatch, a weekly newsletter where he shares news and notes about writing, comics, and the entertainment industry.

Reviews

[Louis Skye · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decent collection of stories though nothing groundbreaking. The Deadpool story was god-awful though and of course it was the longest. The Hawkeye and Reynolds stories had gorgeous art. Love that style. Not the best set of stories honestly.

[tony dillard jr · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really think What If?, the alternate reality series from Marvel Comics, works better the more you're familiar with the subject content. There are 6 issues reprinted in this collection. Of those 6, the stories I liked the most was a switcheroo in which Tony Stark becomes the roommate of the dreaded Victor Von Doom instead of Reed Richards and a bloody romp in which Deadpool becomes the host of the symbiote Venom. Stories involving Spider-Man succumbing to some weird spider curse and Norman Osborn's reign of terror that comes about with the leader of SWORD conquering Asgard were my least favorite stories because I haven't read Grim Hunt or Reign. (Okay- who am I kidding, the Spider-Man: Grim Hunt one-shot was hot garbage.)

The remaining 2 stories were fair reads. Mostly because I am quite familiar with the characters and have a passing knowledge of the original stories. Wolverine: Father explores what would happen if Logan raised his illegitimate son Daken. This wasn't a story based on an established story. Instead, this truly was a What If? story that explores the conflict of nature vs. nurture. Tale #6 has Hawkeye succeeding in killing Norman Osborn preventing the madman from taking over the super-spy agency SHIELD and preventing the Dark Reign of super heroes from happening. This story was a thrilling manhunt as the superheroing world has to undo the damage Clint Barton caused and that means having to take down one of their own!

I want to own all of the What If? stories. But cost is something that is keeping me from owning some of those stories as individual first run issues. Thank goodness for collections such as these. That Deadpool/Venom issue is not cheap. I think the most affordable copies I have seen are being listed for $200 each. I got this traced paperback used for less than $10. I'll take affordability over authenticity any day!

This volume reprints what is considered the 200th overall What If issue printed over the Marvel properties vast print runs since it first debuted in 1977. That anniversary issue has a bunch of cool extras like a story that ponders what if the Watcher killed Galactus?, a reprint of a Daredevil story from the first series and overview of all 200 issues published from 1977-2011 (when this collection was first print). That database was actually a big help with some missing gaps in my collection.

I would assume that the quality of 5 of the 6 stories was really good. I just wasn't familiar with everything in order to get the most enjoyment of this read. That's okay. I saved a ton of cash on that Deadpool story.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this What If collection. Single issues about individual characters.

[Auriana · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel like the comics had potential but when it really came down to it I just didn’t find the stories interesting.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad. Marvel's What If series always had a tendency to veer in the direction of "Everybody Dies!" and this volume is no exception. Ultimately, few of the stories are very memorable, though that may have as much to do with my ignorance of post-90's Marvel history as with any failing of the stories themselves. I originally read Frank Miller's, "What If Elektra Had Lived?" back when it originally appeared, but it's always worth revisiting. I also enjoyed the Deadpool/Venom story as good silly fun. The Stan Lee-written Galactus story was interesting, but really wanted to be longer, and the ending was pretty obvious from the get-go. I really enjoyed the interview with Roy Thomas about the creation of the original What If series, and also the replies of the various comics creators who responded to the question, "What is your favorite What If? story?" The rest of the book is pretty forgettable. Over the years, there have been better What If stories (except, perhaps, the Frank Miller one) but this isn't a bad place to start exploring the concept if it's unfamiliar to you.

[Noah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty inconsistent and mostly weak collection. My favorite story was the last one by Stan Lee about the repercussions if Uatu the Watcher had killed Galactus. The ending is perfect, and the art is period-appropriate. Classic Stan. The others really could have been written and drawn much more effectively and enjoyably, but the one concerning Norman Osborne and the Sentry did have its charm, as did the Wolverine and Daken piece. How can you go wrong with Wolverine and Daken, though? However, therein lies the problem with 'What if?' collections. They are always a huge gamble, and the reader tends to lose. Still interesting to pick through on a boring afternoon stuck at home.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Venompool was actually interesting and was very close to being a satire. But it, as a story or allegory, could not keep its momentum. It is especially funny now that there are more "Secret Wars" coming down the pipe. (Pike?)

The rest of these stories are pretty blah. They're both too compressed and the "what if" results are unsurprising. (Contrast this to, for instance, the famous What If? #1.) Also, they're mostly just "What if the bad guy won a particular big Marvel event between 2004 and 2011?"

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

Haven't read any of the WHAT IF? since the 70s. Found a couple of them cheap enough to check out. Can't say I thought much of this one. Didn't like any of it, truth be told.