I’m not sure how I feel about this comic. On the one hand, the concept is rather an interesting one. It chronicles Biff Tannen’s rise to power and wealth in the alternate 1985. On the other hand… is that really something we need a comic about?
We begin in Biff’s garage, as his older self hands him Grays Sports Almanac—with a verbatim recreation of their conversation in the second movie. From there, we flash forward to the next day and Biff’s attempts to place his first few bets.
Of course, Biff is only 18 and not yet old enough to gamble, so hijinks ensue. He’s reluctantly aided by his cranky grandmother, whose voice we heard just briefly in the second movie (played by Thomas F. Wilson, who also played Biff himself). He also meets a man named Uncle Lou, who looks like a sleazy used car salesman and offers to aid Biff on his lucky streak.
The story generally stays true to the events of the film. It kind of has to, considering how many people (myself included) have it practically memorized and would jump on any discrepancy. It does get pretty dark in places. That’s understandable, considering how dark the alternate 1985 timeline was, and how evil Biff Tannen had become by then, but even so, it can be a bit jarring in places.
In the end, though, I have to wonder what the point of this comic even is. The basic story of Biff’s rise to power is one we’ve covered before. Marty gets a brief video tour in the movie, and it tells us everything we need to know.
A more in-depth look at the sequence of events and the path Biff forges may seem like a good idea—until you remember that Biff is the villain of the story, and a completely unsympathetic one at that. This makes following him around as a protagonist an iffy proposition at best. We have no one to identify with in this story, and no one to root for. That makes it difficult to get invested.
The story they’re building up is certainly an interesting one. Some fans of the movies may enjoy it. I rather liked parts of it myself. Is it worth sticking with? Only time will tell.
