What If….? (Vol. 1) # 30
What If Spider-Man’s Clone Lived?
Writer: Bill Flanagan
Artists: Rich Buckler, Jim Mooney & Pablo Marcus
Letterer: Rick Parker
Colorist: George Roussos
Cover Date: December 1981
Rating: 
This week, I’ll start things off by looking at “What If…? # 30” from the first volume that asks the question What If Spider-Man’s clone had lived.
In the reality that we knew, Professor Miles Warren, who took up the mantle of The Jackal, succeded in not only cloning Gwen Stacy but Peter Parker as well; A fight between Spider-Man and his clone ensued but Spidey took his unconscious clone in a bodybag and dumped it in a smokestack until it woke up and wandered the world for the next few years or so. In this new reality, the clone took an unconscious Peter Parker and locked him on a cryogenic tube so that he can go off and try to live as Peter Parker but that turned out to be an epic fail on his part as he’s completely lost in how to navigate Peter’s life but things go from bad to worst as he runs into The Kingpin as Spider-Man, and I like how the clone decides to get Peter out of the cryogenic tube and together, takedown The Kingpin.
This issue of “What If…?” is a very rare one, because of how it takes the lighthearted factor and runs with it; The story never felt like it would slip into a depressing mode that most “What If…?” issues tend to do. I enjoyed the fact that this story can take The Clone Saga (An storyline that gets little to no acknowledgment from any comic book fan) and take the good and the bad of that event and make it very pleasurable for the readers. On the artistic side of things, Rich Buckler is by far one of the most underappreciated artists of any decade and during the time this issue was made, he can produce some really excellent art, even though I can see some Steve Ditko homages in his stuff, and Jim Mooney and Pablo Marcus complemented his art very well with their inks, never making his art look rough but instead, giving it a sleek look that will appease the readers.
Well, that’s it for me. I’ll be back next week with another review of “What If…?” and I’ll stick to the first volume again. Thanks for sticking around and I will see you all next time.
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