Image Source: Marvel Digital Comics
“What if” stories Marvel should add to Disney Plus.
Disney Plus has been announced and will launch on Nov. 12, 2019. One of the most anticipated parts of the service will be the Marvel Comics projects. Already announced were Loki’s solo series, Falcon and Winter Soldier, and WandaVision. There was also an animated series that Marvel Comics fans will be excited to watch. The fun and sometimes weird What If? comic books will be getting an animated series.
What If is a series that shows exactly that, what if. There were stories that answered questions like what if Wolverine had become Lord of the Vampires, what if General Ross had become the Hulk or what if Jane Foster had become Thor (we recently found out how that would work thanks to Jason Aaron). The first one to be announced was What if Peggy Carter had taken the Super Soldier Serum instead of Steve Rogers. A phenomenal way to begin by imagining what would have happened if the popular Peggy Carter had been Captain America. Especially in a time where women weren’t exactly looked at as strong. There have been a plethora of What If comics, but here are the ones that fans would enjoy.
Spider-Man vs. Wolverine
This is a personal favorite. Spider-Man prides himself on not killing. What if he did? This series shows what would have happened if Peter Parker never left Russia during a mission with Wolverine. In this case, he becomes a more dangerous Spider-Man. He becomes a highly skilled fighter who has no issues killing. He and Wolverine become an incredibly dangerous duo who never go back to the United States.
This series would show a lot of Spider-Man’s potential and side of him we’re not used to seeing. Seeing Spider-Man shoot people would be the biggest shock. However, his Spider-Sense would be the coolest part of this. It becomes so powerful that he can sense attacks well before they occur. He even saw what would happen to Wolverine before it did.
Jessica Jones joined the Avengers
Jessica Jones has had a pretty messed up life. One of the more tragic moments was when she stopped being a superhero after an incident involving a beat down from the Avengers. After she healed up, Nick Fury offered her a place on S.H.I.E.L.D., but Jessica declines. This series shows what would have happened if she said yes.
This may be the epitome of how one moment can change the course of history. With Jessica joining the Avengers, she caught Wanda before she went crazy and destroyed the Avengers. This means the Avengers never broke up. Also, since Wanda got the help she needed there was no House of M and the mutant community was never depowered. The shocking part is who she ended up marrying instead of Luke Cage.
Image Source Marvel Digital Comics
What if Wolverine was never deprogrammed
Wolverine was killed, resurrected, and turned into a villain. In the original comic series Enemy of the State, Wolverine was deprogrammed in went back to being a hero. In this What If series, the world wasn’t so lucky. Wolverine killed a ton of heroes. The Thing, Spider-Man, and Luke Cage were among his friends that died by his hands. In the world’s last effort to stop him, Wolverine killed the Invisible Woman, Magneto, and Captain America. He was eventually stopped by Kitty Pryde who lost her arm in the process.
This won’t be the deepest of stories. It’s violent, bloody, but it shows how dangerous Wolverine really is. We’ve seen him kill, but not like this. Without any morality to hold him back nothing could stop him. It also didn’t hurt that he had a short-range teleporter to get him out of situations where he was trapped.
What if Spider-Man joined the Fantastic Four
Peter Parker needed money and had no idea how to get it. He decides to go to the Fantastic Four to see if they’d employ him as Spider-Man. Instead of talking, they end up getting into a fight. Originally, this ended with Spider-Man leaving. This time, Sue Storm spoke up and Reed Richards ended up making him a member and changing their name to the Fantastic Five. The partnership works out until the end when Sue Storm leaves the team in favor of Namor.
This was the first What If comic book. It would make sense to do this story. Besides nostalgia, it has two of the premier Marvel Comics comic book franchises. Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. We’d get to see how much each of them helped each other along the way and the ending, while sad, would be memorable.
Image Source Marvel Digital Comics
What if Wanda said, “No more powers”?
During House of M, Wanda Maximoff said three words that changed the course of history in Marvel Comics. “No more mutants.” In this universe, she said, “No more powers.” The ramifications were intergalactic. Steve Rogers aged decades in seconds, Wolverine couldn’t lift his body, the Skrulls couldn’t shape-shift, and Black Bolt could speak. The only person left to defend the world was Iron Man who was running himself ragged. Red Skull used this as an opportunity to take over the world using the Cosmic Cube. In the end, Peter Parker saved the day. He rallied a group of normal people and thwarted Red Skulls plans.
This story was special. First, we get to see what would really happen if no one had powers. Which heroes would step up, who’d retire, and what villains would take advantage of this golden opportunity. It wasn’t shocking that the X-Men and Peter Parker refused to sit back and do nothing despite not having their extraordinary abilities.
What if Thor was raised by Frost Giants?
The original story goes that Odin kills Laufey leaving his son Loki fatherless. Feeling guilty, Odin takes Loki in and raises him as an Asgardian. Things go different in this world. This time, it’s Odin who’s killed and Laufey raises Thor as one of his own. At first, this was a joke by Laufey. As time went on, Laufey began to look at Thor as one of his own. Especially since Loki was smaller and weaker than the other Frost Giants. He even gave Thor a hammer of his own (Some things were just meant to be). Thor almost killed Loki over a secret he kept, but let him escape.
This was one of the newer What If comics. It may not have been one of the best, but it would translate well if it was animated. The story itself is a great idea. Thor being raised like Loki was in the original comics would be a welcomed twist. While Loki became a different person than he was in the comics and Thor seemed to be exactly the same. In this universe, there is no Loki and Thor rivalry. They were more like brothers in this world than any other we’ve seen.