Comic Book Review - Aliens: What If…?#1

Carter Burke should have died on LV-426. But what happened if he didn’t?

Marvel kicks off a new Alien miniseries this week as the Xenomorph gets the “What If…?” treatment. Focusing on Paul Reiser’s portrayal of Wayland-Yutani “yes man” Carter Burke, this 5-part miniseries deals with a future that sees Burke survive the events as seen in James Cameron’s ‘Aliens’. It’s also a story that’s been developed from an idea created by Reiser and his son Leon. 

It’s an interesting concept to focus on, and for the most this opening issue succeeds in making you feel something less than utter contempt towards the Carter Burke character. It also gives writers Hans Rodionoff and Adam F. Goldberg one heck of a sandbox to play in. 

The series opens up with a trip down memory lane as we revisit the pivotal moment in Aliens where things start to go pear shaped for Ripley and the Colonial Marines. Burke has just been caught attempting to impregnate Ripley or Newt with a Xenomorph embryo, and as the marines decide what to do with him the Xenomorph strikes. In the prime universe it’s here where Paul Reiser met his grizzly (and welcomed) end. However, it’s this point where history takes a somewhat different approach to what comes next. 

Once the timeline splits the narrative does a good job in portraying Burke as a company man who’s been caught up in the throws of his superiors. In the wake of the destruction of Hadley’s Hope, Burke is the fall guy. He’s left out to dry by Wayland-Yutani and soon finds himself in the same spot Ripley was at the beginning of Aliens in needing to justify why his mission failed. Rodionoff and Goldberg do a great job here in painting Burke as the good guy, which neatly seres up the issues third act, and the character going forward. 

Rounding the issue off and we then catch up with Burke 35 years later. Stuck on a rock floating in the arse-end of nowhere, Burke’s a shadow of his former self. Shunned by the entire human population for attempting to weaponise a dangerous life form, and even shunned by his own daughter, Burke wastes his days living the mundane life. That is until we’re introduced to the synthetic Cygnus who comes bearing a tantalising gift. 

Considering that the creative team had to make the character somewhat likeable, this first issue does a good job in doing so. Not only do we see Burke as the fall guy to Wayland-Yutani’s plans for the Xenomorph, we start to see a possible redemption for him through his growing hatred towards the company he once idolised. While Burke isn’t a rough and tumble action man, he does have brain power on his side, and even with his overall plan still in the shadows he’s working three steps ahead. There’s also a small touch to an even grander plan that involves the events of Alien3, however with Newt, Hicks, and Bishop dying in the crash, and Ripley sacrificing herself to kill the Queen, I can’t seen how these events could work any different. 

Giui Vilanova does a superb job with the art work across this issue. The whole opening act is a great trip down memory lane with the artist capturing the likeness of the movies actors, and their relevant moments with perfect precision. Environments reek of Wayland-Yutani’s influence, and even the three stages of Burke follow Paul Reiser’s own likeness. Yen Nitro compliments this further by using a colour palette that remains hooked into the real world, with some extra depth added to the Xenomorph to give it that “alien” feel. 

Overall, Alien: What If…?#1 sets off to a flying start. There’s a lot here to like and even the staunchest of Alien critics will get a kick out of what the creative team are doing with this standalone series. I absolutely hated Carter Burke across his big screen outing, but Reiser, Rodionoff, and Goldberg have given a new perspective that could just make you back whatever’s cooking up Burke’s corporate sleeves! 

Rating 9.5/10 

Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow us on X/Facebook @GeekCultureRev, TikTok/YouTube @Geekculturereviews, and BlueSky @geekculturereviews.bsky.social