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Marvel has been publishing comics for a long time and over time people sometimes want something different from them. The heroes of the Marvel Universe are amazing, but seeing them in a completely different way is a lot of fun. While Marvel has some of the greatest comic book stories of all time, stepping outside the beaten path of the Marvel Universe can be a change of pace for readers and this is where alternate reality stories come in.
Marvel has told amazing stories of alternate universes, whether they take place in the future or in the present. These stories give a different take on things and are worth tracking down.
ten Age Of Ultron Is An Example Of The Highs And Lows Of Alternate Universe Stories
Writer Brian Michael Bendis and artists Bryan Hitch, Brandon Peterson and Carlos Pacheco’s Age of Ultron is an interesting case with alternate universes. It begins in an alternate future led by Ultron, where he has forestalled all of his past terrible atrocities by destroying almost all of humanity. It’s a great alternative future and it’s much better than what comes next.
Wolverine and Invisible Woman travel back in time to stop this future but only manage to make matters worse. This is where the story takes a turn, as Bendis indulges his worst excesses and world-building weakens. That’s what makes it a must read – seeing a great idea for an alternate universe turned into a dull idea. It’s an interesting twist that shows just how great and bad this type of story can be.
9 What if … (Vol.2) # 32-33 answered the question of what would have happened if Dark Phoenix had survived
“The Dark Phoenix Saga†is one of the greatest Marvel stories of all time. However, an interesting question to ask is what would have happened if Dark Phoenix had lived. This question is answered in What if … (Vol. 2) # 32-33, by writers George Caragonne and Chris Claremont and artist Rod Ramos. What if… was full of good AU stories and this is one of the best.
Seeing Jean Gray battle his darker nature and how that affects the future of the mutantkind, this story is a classic and while it can be a little hard to find so many decades later, it is worth it to hunt down.
8 House Of M is one of the most important AU stories in recent years
House of M, by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Olivier Coipel, has a checkered legacy, but it’s still one of the AU’s most important stories in recent years. The alternate universe created by Scarlet Witch, in which the mutants are ascendant, is quite interesting, and while the Ties does a better job of fleshing it out than the main book, it’s still worth a read.
Although it hurts and spits in some places, it’s still one of the most important Marvel stories of the past twenty years and a must read for any fan of the publisher or alternate realities.
7 Spider-Man: Reign is better than he deserves
Spider-Man: Reign, by writer / artist Kaare Andrews, gets a lot of reviews for being “dark” but it’s actually a pretty good story. Set in an alternate future where Spider-Man must come out of retirement to save a New York City overwhelmed by fascism, it’s a The return of the dark knight pastiche that touches on many aspects of Spider-Man’s history.
It’s definitely a dark story but it’s still very good. Even his most ridiculed appearance – Spider-Man’s irradiated bodily fluids being responsible for Mary-Jane’s death from cancer – makes sense and works in Spider-Man’s character, because only that kind of guilt would push him to abandon his heroic deeds. Spider-Man: Reign works better than most think.
6 Old Man Logan is an unforgiven alternate future in the Marvel Universe
Old man Logan, by writer Mark Millar and artist Steve McNiven, is a classic Wolverine story that has improved with age. Set in a future where the bad guys have won, he sees a pacifist Logan helping his old friend Hawkeye with one final mission. Marvel has come back to it a few times with different characters but the original is still the best.
The comic is basically unforgiven with superheroes and has so many cool little touches, showing how different that future is. On top of that, it’s just a wonderful Wolverine story, with Millar and McNiven presenting an action-packed tale that hits in all the right places.
5 Earth X is a kingdom come for the Marvel universe
After his success on Kingdom come, Alex Ross turned to the Marvel Universe, creating an interesting alternate future that would be brought to life by writer Jim Krueger and artist John Paul Leon in Earth X. Touching every corner of the Marvel Universe, the story sees X-51 take over as Watcher for a blind Uatu as the Inhumans return from deep space with serious news and a new villain called the Skull Rises. his ugly head.
As much on Marvel’s past as on its future, this alternate future is richly imagined and full of great moments, while also giving a history lesson on the Marvel universe. It’s an incredible story.
4 Hulk: Future Imperfect is a classic UA story
Hulk: imperfect future, by writer Peter David and artist George Perez, sees the Hulk brought into another future to help fight the Maestro, an evil dictator who controls a terrible future. The Hulk and the Maestro have a lot in common – for example, they’re the same person.
This story has it all – Peter David is one of the greatest Hulk writers of all time and teaming him up with George Perez was a stroke of genius. It’s an amazing UA story full of everything people love about these tales – learning the fate of their favorite heroes and seeing epic battles between different versions of the same character.
3 House Of X / Powers Of X is full of all kinds of AU content
House of X / Powers of X, by writer Jonathan Hickman and artists Pepe Larraz and RB Silva, has revitalized the X-Men franchise but also contains a whole bunch of alternate universe goodness. Powers of X deals with several different alternate futures that see war between humans and mutants taken to spooky places and House of X presents the curious powers of Moira MacTaggert.
Moira’s newly revealed powers create alternate universes by their nature and the second issue of HoX is all about them. HoX / PoX is full of alternate universe content of all types and beyond, it’s just an amazing X-Men story that everyone should read.
2 “Days Of Future Past” is the big daddy of all Marvel AUs
Uncanny X-Men # 141-142, by writer Chris Claremont and artist John Byrne, is one of the most famous alternate universe scenarios of all time. “Days of Future Past” took the X-Men into a dark future, ruled by the Sentinels and saw the team desperate to stop the mechanical monsters by changing the past.
Alternate universes weren’t exactly Marvel’s strong suit when this story came out, so he’s a trailblazer. “Days of Future Past” popularized the concept and showed Marvel fans just how full of possibilities it is. He remains one of the best of all comics.
1 Age of Apocalypse is the best alternate Marvel story of all
Age of Apocalypse has stood the test of time. In an attempt to kill Magneto to improve his father’s life, Professor X’s son, Legion, travels back in time, but accidentally kills an earlier version of Xavier, creating an entirely different Marvel Universe. Set in an America ruled by Apocalypse, Magneto and his X-Men battle the genocidal mutant regime before learning what happened and how to change it.
Age of Apocalypse is one of the most beloved X-Men stories of the 90s and one of the best UA stories ever told. Spanning multiple titles, it does an amazing job of building the world and is full of amazing stories.
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