Warning! Contains a preview for Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher
When Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds, arrived on Earth for the first time, the planet wasn't saved by the Fantastic Four as is commonly believed, but by the intervention of Uatu, a member of the powerful race of the Watchers. Despite their immense powers, the Watchers have sworn to never interfere with the affairs of other races, only to observe, but Uatu has broken this sacred oath an astonishing number of times. Now, it is finally time for him to pay, as his fellow Watchers put Uatu on trial for his crimes in Marvel's Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher.
Uatu is one of Marvel's oldest characters, debuting in 1963 the pages of Fantastic Four #13 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Just like his role in the Marvel Universe is to watch over important events, Uatu has accompanied the history of the House of Ideas, becoming one of its most recognizable characters. What makes him different from his fellow Watchers, however, is that Uatu is unable to maintain his position as a pure observer, and has influenced the development of Marvel history more than once, starting from the legendary first appearance of Galactus. When the Devourer set his sights on Earth, Uatu tried to hide the planet with a curtain of flames and then, when this proved to be ineffective, even confronted him on top of the Baxter Building in one of the most memorable panels in Marvel history. It was Uatu who revealed to the Fantastic Four the existence of the Ultimate Nullifier, thus ending the Galactus crisis.
That wasn't the first time that Uatu broke his oath, however, and it would not be the last. His violations became so frequent that his fellow Watchers had to step in and place him on trial. Uatu got out of that predicament by promising he would not interfere anymore, but clearly, he could not help himself as in a 2008 story it was revealed that he broke his oath more than 300 times. Now the Watchers have been forced to confront their past due to their involvement in the Reckoning War, as revealed in Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher by Dan Slott and Javier Rodriguez. A preview of the issue shared by Marvel shows that Uatu is once again called to answer for his actions, and this time he cannot escape his punishment. The presence of Galactus and the Fantastic Four suggests that, among Uatu's many violations, his confrontation with the Devourer holds special meaning.
Marvel also revealed in a press release that Trial of the Watcher will show the one What If...? world in the multiverse that Uatu has avoided watching for an unknown reason (Uatu's observation of parallel worlds was the basis for the What If...? series that ran from 1976, which inspired the recent Disney+ show). While there are still no clues to what that would be, the preview shows that Uatu will be given a Clockwork Orange-esque treatment by his peers, forced to look at all his violations on a screen. The panel is also a nice callback at Marvel's past history and a treat for readers, showing Uatu's interference at various points: when the Fantastic Four fought the Red Ghost and when they traveled back in time to stop Kang, at Reed and Sue's wedding, when Adam Warlock was reborn for the first time, and many more.
It is interesting to note that the original Trial of the Watcher story from 1975, which ran in Captain Marvel vol. 1#38-#39, is what gave a then 8-years old Dan Slott the inspiration he would use for the plot of Reckoning War. With such a premise, Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher, which will be released on March 16, will surely bring readers on a rollercoaster throughout Marvel's history. As the issue sees the Watchers grapple with Uatu's interference in major events like the invasion of Galactus, hopefully it will deliver on its promise of revealing a secret that could change everything in the Marvel Universe.