Like Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame before it, this movie does a great job of juggling all its characters, while also giving them a good amount of development. Past villains are humanized more and given their own arcs and their interactions with past Spider-Men is highly entertaining. Holland’s performance cements him as the best Spider of the bunch, so it’s a shame that he doesn’t want to return to the role anytime soon.

The brilliance in this creative strategy means What If can feel unimportant. In a franchise that has now created infinite universes, focusing on one singular universe that is not taking place on Earth-19999 can feel insignificant. While it is a spectacle to see Captain Carter punch Nazis, witness Hank Pym kill the Avengers, or see all the heroes as zombified versions of themselves, ultimately, they are one-offs.

The story doesn’t revolve around potential Armageddon (refreshing since most comic book movies have world-ending stakes these days), and we don’t get cameos from other Avengers. We also don’t get the immense creativity seen in the recent MCU TV series WandaVision, which – by the way – was also a better nod to female empowerment than Captain Marvel. But we do get an enjoyable picture that moves like lightning.

This is sold as a premium product for the retail price of $60. The big gimmick for the book is an included Kimoyo bead with a UV light inside that’s used to decode notes and messages left by Shuri. The bead itself is made of plastic and can be somewhat difficult to use because of its small size. The light is activated with a small button that has to be held down instead of working on a toggle. It makes reading notes and other messages more of a pain than it should be, but the notes do add a layer of context to what’s on the page. 

Director Alfonso Cuarón’s “Gravity” is tied with “American Hustle” as a No. 1 contender in this year’s Oscar race. Both films earned 10 nominations, including nods for best picture, best director and best actress. Sandra Bullock nabbed the latter honor for her memorable portrayal of Dr. Ryan Stone, a fledgling astronaut who is stranded in space when a fast-travelling band of debris disables the shuttle that she and her colleagues launched in. 

Comic companies are trying to diversify their superhero ranks. There have been non-white characters, and even a few Muslim heros. Marvel Comics announced a new superhero comic book series featuring Kamala Khan: a Muslim, Pakistani 16-year-old who lives in New Jersey. She'll be taking on the name of Ms. Marvel, after the former Ms. Marvel, who is now going by Captain Marvel. "We've had many diverse characters at Marvel," said Sana Amanat. "But nobody at the forefront, on this scale."