Marvel’s new What If story undoes Fantastic Four’s greatest triumph

Reckoning War is the current big todo of writer Dan Slott’s run on Fantastic Four — full of cosmic battles across the galactic vastness — but the real reason I opened up Reckoning War: The Trial of the Watcher was Javier Rodríguez’s art.

Surprised, I discovered a short story about Uatu, the Watcher, who continues to break his oath to noninterference in helping out Marvel heroes. He was forced by other Watchers to see the results of the timeline, which he had never contributed to. Any Marvel superheroes. Also known as: Imagine… What if…

It was an unexpected twist that led to the end! Without the Watcher’s help, the FF would have emerged from the ordeal horribly scarred — but they would have triumphed over Galactus for all time AndInventing a source of renewable energy that would make Earth an abundant resource rich utopia, was a great idea. How does this impact the Marvel Universe’s true history? It was an interesting comic, but who cares?

Were there other things happening within the pages of comics we love? We’ll tell you. Welcome to Monday Funnies, Polygon’s weekly list of the books that our comics editor enjoyed this past week. It’s part society pages of superhero lives, part reading recommendations, part “look at this cool art.” There may be some spoilers. You may not have enough context. There will still be some great comics. You can also read the previous edition if you haven’t seen it yet.

A spread of characters represents possibilities from other timelines of the Marvel Universe: Doctor Doom as the Sorcerer Supreme, President Steve Rogers, the Fantastic Five, Frank Castle as Venom, and more in Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher #1 (2022).

Also can I just say that as I was looking across this splash page of “What If…?” possibilities, I didn’t notice the Punisher skull and thought “Venom, but with guns” was being presented as on a level with “Spider-Man joined the FF” and “Captain America became president” and I agreed to it.

Catwoman and Onyx walk through a bustling street in Gotham’s Little Tokyo, carrying street food. Selina is thinking about how Onyx is like Batman, “big biceps and big opinions. I have a type,” in Catwoman #41 (2022).

Tini Howard the author and Nico Leon the artist are providing me with everything I need from anti-hero books: Queer vigilantes wearing tight, revealing costumes.

A severed shark head is chained to the front grill of a speeding car. The head is still alive and furiously chomping, in Refrigerator Full of Heads #5 (2022).

I’m just going to leave this no-context image, from Rio Youers and Tom Fowler’s A Refrigerator with HeadsHere is a story about an axe which keeps head alive even after it cuts them.

“You killed half the universe, boy,” says the Eternal Uranos, from his prison throne. “Fifty percent? What a lack of commitment. Do something or don’t do it,” in Eternals: The Heretic #1 (2022).

Would love to be included in your next event. EternalsContinue with the story about Thanos and older, more sinister Eternals. He immediately dunked on it all.

Alfred Pennyworth listens to a voice male recording, replaying the part where it says “I love you, Alfred,” as he sits alone in Wayne Manor in Batman: The Knight #3 (2022).

I’m a sucker for an Alfred is Sad and Loves his Son panel and were the character not dead in current continuity I would look forward to seeing many more in writer Batman: The Knight Chip puts many more features in his next book Batman run.

#Marvels #story #undoes #Fantastic #Fours #greatest #triumph