What If...? #28

Issue Details

Synopsis

"What If... Captain America Were Not the Only Super Soldier in World War II?" An interview with Ted Koppel and Captain America establishes to the reader the origins of Captain America. Prof. Abraham Erskine created a Super-Soldier serum to give the Allies an edge during World War II. The first test subject is Steve Rogers, a frail 4F recruit willing to die for his country if the experiment fails. To his luck, the experiment was a success, giving Rogers super-human strength, speed and reflexes. However, a Nazi spy, unseen to all, comes out of hiding and assassinates Erskine, who dedicated the secret formula to memory so the Nazis wouldn't steal it. Thus, the serum dies with Erskine, leaving Rogers the only super-soldier during the War. But Uatu the Watcher then explains to the reader the possibility of an alternative universe in which Rogers was not the only Super Soldier during World War II, leading to the same interview, but now Steve Rogers is the President of the United States and out of costume. Rogers explains to Koppel that on the day he gained his powers, his eye caught the Nazi spy entering the room and reacted fast enough to save Erskine from the fatal bullet. As a result, Erskine is able to live on and create more Super-Soldier Serum for soldiers as Steve Rogers continues his campaign to taking down Nazism until he is given orders from higher-ups to join in a secret military attack, forcing Rogers to leave behind Bucky. Because of this, Bucky does not die from the rocket explosion. At a secret army base, Rogers finds an entire army of Super Soldiers, including the likes of Nick Fury, Dum-Dum Dugan, Gabriel Jones and the other Howling Commandos among them. Rogers learns the Army plans to parachute him and all the other Super-Soldiers into the heart of the Nazi Capital of Berlin, expecting on the Germans not expecting the Allies to launch such an attack. Suiting up, Rogers and his Super-Soldier Army parachutes into Berlin and fight through the SS with ease, Cap himself killing The Red Skull before he and his Howling Commandos bust into Hitler's office and arrest him to stand trial, winning the war by 1941. After the attack on Berlin, Captain America and the other Super-Soldiers come across a concentration camp where Cap meets with a young Jew named Magnus, giving him words of kindness that the young Jew takes to heart as he grows up to be the mutant known as Magneto, however, Captain America's words remain with him and he does not seek to destroy humanity. On the way back to America, a stray U-Boat sinks the USS Queen Mary, with Captain America being the only survivor. After receiving a hero's welcome, Rogers is congratulated by President Roosevelt and requests Captain America to head the safety organization Supreme High-Command International Echelon for Liberty and Defense (S.H.E.I.L.D.). Accepting the President's proposition, Captain America reveals his identity and runs SHIELD until he runs for President, winning by a landslide, taking total control of the Super-Soldiers. During Rogers' multiple terms as President, Rogers distributes the Super-Soldier Serum amongst the populace, however, due to a "slight genetic defect," the Serum only works for white, blonde-hair 30-something males. This causes accusation of segregation that causes African American protests, which are put down quickly by the Super-Soldiers and the protestors are rounded up and held in internment camps. Over the decades, events that would create famed heroes are drastically changed. A Super-Soldier security guard near a rocket launch base shoots down four trespassers attempting to fly the rocket into a cosmic storm, their bodies revealed to be Reed Richards, Ben Grimm, Susan and Johnny Storm. As a result, there will be no Fantastic Four. Elsewhere, scientist Bruce Banner begins experiments on gamma radiation, these experiments, however, are banned under the Rogers administration, resulting in Bruce Banner being shot down in his laboratory, ensuring the existence of the Incredible Hulk never comes. Elsewhere, Peter Parker, too young to take the Super-Soldier serum, is bitten by a radioactive spider and gains super-powers, becoming a television sensation. However, upon returning home, Peter finds his Aunt May and Uncle Ben killed. Grieving, Peter is too distraught to pay attention to his Spider-Sense warning as he is shot from behind by Frank Castle, a Super-Soldier under orders by President Rogers to exterminate any threats to the country. Years later, an amnesiac Namor is attacked by Super-Soldiers, forcing him to flee into the ocean where he re-gains his memory and swims back to his underwater kingdom, only to find it completely destroyed by Rogers' Super-Soldiers. Vengeful, Namor flies back to the surface and attacks the Super-Soldiers, bringing them all down. As he wanders the ice lands, Namor comes across a group of Eskimos praising a man trapped in a block of ice. Taking a closer look, Namor realizes the man in the ice is Captain America. The final page asks if this is Captain America, then who is the president? The answers promised in the next story "What if Captain America formed The Avengers?"