What If...?: Why Not #[nn]

In this alternate take from *What If...?: Why Not #*, Karen Page survives the attack that would have killed her, but her survival sets off a chain of events that changes everything. When Daredevil, seeking justice for her, strikes back at the Kingpin and accidentally kills him, the fallout sends shockwaves through New York—and into the courtroom, where Matt Murdock faces trial for murder. With Foggy Nelson by his side and familiar faces from the Marvel Universe watching from the sidelines, the question becomes: how far can one man go when the cost of justice is measured in lives?

In a world where Thunderbolt Ross, not Bruce Banner, is caught in a gamma explosion, he awakens as a hulking grey monster—powerful, intelligent, but trapped in a body that can only roar. Shunned by his daughter Betty and hunted by his own forces, Ross struggles to reclaim control as the weight of his new form threatens to destroy everything he loves. When tragedy strikes, the line between soldier and monster blurs, and a desperate Bruce Banner must decide how far he’ll go to stop the very weapon Ross has become.

In "Ascension," Professor X and Magneto set aside their differences to awaken Jean Grey from a deep coma, their combined efforts proving crucial just as a wave of Sentinels—orchestrated by the Hellfire Club—threatens to overwhelm the X-Men. With the team fractured and enemies closing in, Jean’s return may be the only hope to stop the coming storm.

In a twist of fate, Victor Von Doom’s ambition leads not to conquest, but to transformation—when a failed rocket experiment bathes him in cosmic rays, he emerges as the Thing, his body fused with stone and rage. Now a monstrous force of nature, Doom hunts down Reed Richards, his former friend and the only one who can undo the change, while a desperate Ben Grimm—once cast aside—rises in a new form when a gamma bomb test ignites his dormant power. As the two former rivals collide in a world remade by accident, the line between villain and savior blurs, and the fate of the Fantastic Four hangs in the balance.

In this poignant alternate take from *What If...?: Why Not #*, Peter Parker’s life takes a devastating turn when the burglar who evades him at the start of his superhero journey returns to kill Aunt May. With her death and Uncle Ben imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit, Peter struggles to find his footing as Spider-Man, torn between vengeance and the weight of responsibility. The story explores how the absence of May’s warmth and Ben’s guidance reshapes Peter’s path, pushing him toward a darker, more isolated version of heroism—where the cost of power is measured in loss and sacrifice.