Marvel & Disney: What If...? Donald Duck Became Wolverine #1 - Marvel Comics

MARVEL & DISNEY: WHAT IF...? DONALD DUCK BECAME WOLVERINE No. 1, September 2024

Announced in April 2024 at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in Italy, it was pretty clear straight from the start that Issue One of “Marvel & Disney: What If....? Donald Duck Became Wolverine” would very much be a tongue-in-cheek celebration of the two titular character’s impressively-long anniversaries. But whilst few fans were likely to take Luca Barbieri’s script even slightly seriously, this twenty-five page periodical’s plot still probably didn’t land with its audience quite as well as Senior Editor Mark Paniccia had imagined; “I want to sleep some more… A couple of hours… Even better, a couple of days!”

For openers, it’s never explained just how Pete-Skull has managed to rid Duckburg of both its super-heroes and their various “invincible weapons”, nor how he evidently missed Mickey-Hawkeye, Donald-Wolverine or (Lord help us) Goofy-Hulk during his unstoppable conquest. Instead, the narration simply states it as a fact and then subjects the reader to a long-winded sequence depicting Dick Lundy’s co-creation as a lazy loafer who simply wants to slob in a swinging hammock and eat copious slices of his Granma’s apple pie.

Such a scene is certainly endearing, and simultaneously emphasizes the duck’s ‘fowl’ temper which is at the very heart of the tale. However, it is so long-winded that many a bibliophile will surely have preferred a bit more backstory as to how Pete-Skull and his minions took over the fictional U.S. state of Calisota, rather than witness Donald perform a series of gruelling chores on an idyllic farm.

Furthermore, once the protagonists eventually do arrive at their red-faced foe’s headquarters, they appear to quite literally drive straight up to the Beagle Boys and immediately surrender without the slightest sign of opposition. Of course, this tactic is later shown to be a ruse by Mickey so as to get his feathered friend right beside their arch-nemesis before he bops him with a giant green paint bomb. Yet it also appears to have been another missed opportunity to inject the comic with some much needed action, even if the likes of a grey-skinned Goofy-Hulk were soon defeated.

What does seem clear, and is in many ways this book’s biggest draw, is that all the ‘heavy-lifting’ falls upon the shoulders of artist Giada Perissinotto, who repeatedly pencils Donald performing many of Wolverine’s more iconic poses via flashback sequences. Donning the mutant X-Man’s most famous costumes and guises, these sketches of the adamantium-clawed duck’s greatest moments are just superb and truly wonderful to behold. Though as aforementioned, appear to have been included in this “unexpected mashup adventure” at the expense of any particularly thought-provoking plot or storyline.

The regular cover art of "MARVEL & DISNEY: WHAT IF...? DONALD DUCK BECAME WOLVERINE" #1 by Giada Perissinotto & Lucio Ruvidotti