Warning! Spoilers for Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher #1 by Marvel Comics
Uatu the Watcher is under trial by the Watchers for trying to get the ancient cosmic race to break their vow of non-interference, and one of his punishments will be seeing his own the worst-case scenario for his most tragic What If? unfold. In a new preview for Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher #1, Uatu is forced to relive his most notable encounter with the Fantastic Four, but this time, he doesn't interfere and warn Reed Richards about Galactus and the imminent danger they are about to face.
One of Marvel's most iconic comic arcs is The Coming of Galactus by Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Joe Sinnott, Art Simek, and Sam Rosen, which took place in Fantastic Four #48-50. The comic saw the introduction of two key players in the cosmic side of the Marvel Universe, Silver Surfer and Galactus. In the story, Uatu the Watcher breaks his vow to never interfere with those he observed to stop Silver Surfer from leading the Devourer of Worlds to Earth to feed on the planet. Once his plan fails, Uatu ends up helping the Fantastic Four acquire the Ultimate Nullifier to stop Galactus, which ends his threat. Now, Marvel is imagining 'What If Uatu the Watcher Never Intervened?.'
In a new preview for Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher (@H/T Monkey Fighting Robots), by Dan Slott, Javier Rodriguez, and VC's Joe Carmagna, an imprisoned Uatu is shown a What If reality, where he never intervened between the Fantastic Four and Earth during Galactus' first arrival. The comic shows the Fantastic Four utterly oblivious of the threat coming their way as they go on with their lives without any warning from Uatu.
A fellow Watcher tells Uatu that his interference seemed unnecessary, as Reed Richards would have been alerted by Silver Surfer's arrival. However, he counters by saying they are blissfully unaware of the true scope of the threat coming to Earth. The preview ends with Reed discovering Silver Surfer, not realizing that he was scouting the planet for the eventual arrival of Galactus.
The Watchers are about to learn whether Uatu's interference with Galactus mattered, as it seems certain without his warning and help to find the Ultimate Nullifier, Galactus would have never been stopped. The Watchers want Uatu, who's broken his vow of non-interference one too many times, to pay for his crimes. However, will seeing the alternate reality work in Uatu's favor, as the Watchers could learn that Galactus' terror would have been so much worse without his intervention? Readers will learn more when the What If? scenario unfolds in Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher #1, which is in comic book stores on Wednesday.
Source: Monkey Fighting Robots