In the fictional
Marvel Comics
Multiverse,
Earth-717 or
Earth
717 is a designation used to identify a
continuity in which most of early
2006's
What If one-shot titles take place.
Origin of Earth-717
The designation of this fictional Earth originates from a
Newsarama article focused on an alternate Earth
whose time line diverged from our own during the era of Feudal
Japan. In this alternate time line a samurai known as "The Devil
Who Dares." emerges. The storyline is a counterpart to the
Daredevil of
Earth-616.
Each story begins when
Hector Espejo,
a computer hacker from Earth-616, discovers a way to hack into the
internet of a parallel universe known as "Earth-717." He discovers
the heroes of that Earth, and how they are similar to or different
from their Earth-616 counterparts.
This alternate Earth is seen only in six
What If one-shot comics released in
December 2005. It also features the appearance of
Captain America during the
Civil War,
Wolverine fighting Chicago mobsters in
the 1920s,
Namor the
Sub-Mariner, who was raised by his human father on the surface
rather than by his
Atlantean mother,
Thor as the herald of
Galactus, and the
Fantastic Four team re-imagined as Russian
cosmonauts rather than American astronauts.
What If: Captain America
This one-shot, titled "What If...Captain America Fought in the
Civil War," is written by
Tony Bedard
and penciled by Carmine Di Giandomenico (with cover by
Tony Harris). It focuses on the era
of the American Civil War, when Union Army Private Stephen Rogers
becomes the man who would be
Captain
America after being transformed by another soldier named Wilson
(a counterpart of Sam Wilson, also known as
The Falcon) using mystical Native American
means. He is involved in the terrible border conflict between
Kansas and Missouri -- the same conflict that spawned the outlaw
Josey Wales. He then fights enemies
including "The White Skull" (Colonel Buck "
Bucky" Barnes), an Earth-717 homage to the
Red Skull, who is an antagonist of Captain
America in normal continuity. This isn't the first time Captain
America has been re-imagined in a different era:
Jack Kirby, in his second run on
Captain
America, introduced the Earth-616 version's ancestor, Captain
Steven Rogers, as an in-continuity
Revolutionary War Captain America. This
ancestor was later revisited in an early issue of the spin-off book
Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty.
During the story, a computer hacker discovers research on the
General, a modern-day descendant of Civil War-era Captain America
who battles against a
HYDRA-like group known
as "The White Skulls". He also researches an alternate history of
Captain America's family tree.
What If: Daredevil
This one-shot, written by
Rick Veitch
and penciled by Tommy Lee Edwards, focuses on a blinded civilian in
feudal Japan who has special senses and is growing out of the
shadow of his father's failure. This unnamed civilian grows up to
become a samurai known as "The Devil Who Dares" and stands against
an evil controlling Shogun who is an Earth-717 homage to Wilson
Fisk, known to Marvel readers as
Kingpin. The character is based on the
famous Japanese samurai hero
Zatoichi.
Other Marvel characters who show up are versions of Elektra and
Bulls-Eye. This version of Bulls-Eye chronicles the events, and
they are passed down through the ages until they are used by
Matthew Murdock, a millionaire industrialist and bestselling
author.
What If: Fantastic Four
This one-shot, written by
Mike Carey and
penciled by Marshall Roger, re-imagines the
Fantastic Four as if they were Russian
cosmonauts instead of American astronauts.
In this alternate timeline, the Fantastic Four are known as "The
Ultimate Federalist Freedom Fighters." They include Piotr Rasputin
(presumably an Earth-717 version of
Colossus, member of the
X-Men), Illyana Rasputin (an Earth-717 version of
Illyana Rasputin, sister of
Colossus), Natasha Romanoff (an
Earth-717 version of the
Black
Widow) and
Mr. Fantastic, who
lived in Russia after World War II. The team is involved in the
Cold War and other historical events. A similar tone can be found
in an
Elseworlds mini-series
called
Superman: Red Son,
which features
Superman succeeding
Joseph Stalin as
Premier of the Soviet
Union.
The story actually dates back to when Nathaniel Richards (father of
Reed Richards) ends up staying in Russia after the
First World War and grows up as a scientist for
the Soviet Union. Reed ends up in space with his best friend Piotr
Rasputin, Piotr's sister Illyana, and ex-KGB agent Natasha
Romanoff.
What If: Sub-Mariner
This one-shot, written by Greg Pak and penciled by David Lopez with
a cover by Carlo Pagulayan, tells the alternate history of Namor,
who is raised by his human father on the surface instead of going
to
Atlantis with his mother
because she died instead of his father. Namor then battles Nazis in
World War II alongside this universe's version of the Torch. Later
he discovers the Nazis have found Atlantis, enslaving the people
there, and he goes to save his forsaken people.
What If: Thor
This one-shot, written by
Robert
Kirkman with pencils and cover by
Michael Avon Oeming, features Thor
transformed as the herald of
Galactus. When
this universe's version of Galactus and the Silver Surfer attack
Asgard, the Norse Gods and all the warriors of Valhalla put up a
brave yet losing battle. However, when Thor defeats the Silver
Surfer, Galactus is impressed and offers him a deal. If Thor serves
as his herald, he shall spare Asgard. Seeing that there is no other
choice to save his world Thor concedes. He becomes the herald of
Galactus and leads him through the universe in search of planets to
consume.
What If: Wolverine
This one-shot, also titled "Public Enemy Number One," was written
by
Daniel Way with pencils by
Jon Proctor and cover by
Tony Harris.
It features a story
involving Wolverine going to the
mob-ruled city of Chicago
on a matter
of revenge against the Crimelord known as Scarface. As
Wolverine discovers just how much power Scarface holds over the
city and how many city officials and police are corrupt, he decides
that it is up to him to make sure that they are all "Punished." Way
and Proctor are best known for their work on
Gun Theory, which is published under
Marvel's
Epic Comics imprint.
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