Marvel’s “What If…?” was definitely an interesting entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. An animated anthology series, “What If…?” took us through the multiverse created at the end of the “Loki” series. It offered different perspectives for various films in the series touching on and even revising iconic characters. And while not all of them were masterpieces, I would say, overall, this showed how creative the MCU can be. Here’s my ranking of all 9 episodes:
9) What If… Captain Carter Was The First Avenger?
The first episode of the show was not an amazing start for the series. This episode follows the storyline of Captain America: The First Avenger, but instead of Steve Rogers getting the serum, an accident forces fan-favorite Peggy Carter to step in for him. What follows is essentially just a retelling of Captain America’s first film, except with Captain Carter. Creatively, it’s not doing anything new, just giving us a less-detailed and rushed version of the events. Fortunately, the episodes following improved.
8) What If… The Watcher Broke His Oath?
Surprisingly, the two worst episodes were the premiere and the finale. The Watcher (brilliantly portrayed by Jeffrey Wright), acted as the narrator throughout the series, keeping his eye on the various events of the multiverse. He vows to never interfere, no matter how bad it gets. But in the penultimate episode, “What If Ultron Won,” James Spader’s robotic character gains power never seen before, even having an epic battle with the inter-dimensional Watcher himself. This forces the Watcher’s hand to collect all the various protagonists of previous episodes, creating the “Guardians of the Multiverse,” destined to defeat Ultron.
While creative, I just didn’t buy how a couple of superhumans could defeat a being who literally ate an entire galaxy in the last episode. Not to mention that the team dynamic was extremely lackluster. Pretty much the whole episode was a fight, and it just wasn’t that engaging. The finale had the potential to link all the universes to the live-action films, and just failed to do so, bringing all the protagonists back to where they were, essentially changing nothing.
7) What If… T’Challa Became a Star-Lord?
Now we get to the episodes that weren’t bad, but just failed to be better than the others. This episode saw T’Challa (Black Panther) being abducted by Yondu and his Ravagers instead of Peter Quill. This causes him to become Star-Lord. It was touching to see Chadwick Boseman’s character on screen for one last time. This episode is essentially a tribute to him, even though it was made before he died. It shows all his positive effects on the universe he caused, including even talking to Thanos and turning him into a good guy. The episode itself was pretty good, revolving around an “Ocean’s-11” heist scenario. There’s nothing outright wrong with it that puts it so low, it just wasn’t that strong comparatively.
6) What If… Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?
This episode follows Killmonger, the villain of “Black Panther,” as he rises to power after rescuing Tony Stark in Afghanistan. He got increasingly more powerful in Stark Industries after saving his life, until he ultimately kills Tony and wages a war between the US and his home country of Wakanda.
It’s an interesting concept, and I’m a huge fan of political intrigue. Killmonger is such a compelling character and it’s great to see him explored more. Still, a lot of the moments didn’t make a lot of sense, and they dumbed down many characters such as Black Panther and Tony just so this specific scenario could happen. The ending was super abrupt as well. Overall, it was a very solid episode, but the plot holes and character decisions are what slightly bring it down.
5) What If… Thor Were An Only Child?
Following a four week run of depressing “What If…?” scenarios, the seventh episode gives us one of the most lighthearted entries of the show. This episode is about Thor if he grew up without Loki, therefore keeping his ego and carelessness. He travels to Earth, much like in his first film, and hosts an interdimensional party in Las Vegas. This party, while epic, might destroy the very world as we know it, so Nick Fury pulls out all the stops to bring Thor’s party to an end.
While this episode didn’t do all that much narratively, it’s easily one of the most fun episodes of the series. Chris Hemsworth’s Thor is at his goofiest, and one of the best fights of the entire season occurs when Captain Marvel has to put Thor’s party to a stop. The battle between Marvel and Thor is just as visually pleasing as it is satisfying, as the confirmation of the winner between the two is just fantastic. While not the most influential, this episode was simply a good time.
4) What If… The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?
This episode is a complete murder mystery, following Nick Fury and Black Widow as all of the Avengers are getting brutally murdered one by one. It’s pretty intense, and delivers one of the best mysteries in Marvel. It also took us back through Phase 1 of the MCU, showing us alternative scenes from the likes of “The Incredible Hulk,” “Iron Man 2,” and “Thor.” Black Widow’s performance is notable here too, as she’s portrayed brilliantly by Lake Bell instead of Scarlett Johannsen. She’s not trying to mimic Widow’s live-action counterpart, and is instead creating her own take on the character. The reveal of the killer was a little lackluster, but it didn’t take away from the enjoyment of the episode at all. It was great to see a new genre being explored by the MCU, in the form of a whodunnit.
3) What If… Zombies?!
The name is pretty apt here: This is just a straightforward take on what superheroes would be like in a zombie apocalypse. It follows the last remaining group of superheroes (Spider-Man, Hulk, Wasp, Bucky, and more) as they race to find a cure for the disease. It’s pretty familiar, but damn if it isn’t fun to see the zombie versions of our favorite heroes. At the center of it is also a very interesting Wanda and Vision arc, that’s just insanely dark. My only complaint was the comedy: some of our hero’s best friends would be killed and they’d crack a joke the next second. Still, this episode delivers a wonderful adaptation of the Marvel Zombies story.
2) What If… Ultron Won?
Marvel has been known to take poorly-received characters and reintroduce them a number of years later in a completely better state. When the fake Mandarin twist in “Iron Man 3” left fans upset, they gave us the real Mandarin in “Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings.” And now, when Ultron’s film was a miss back in 2015, they made him perhaps the most powerful character in the MCU with this episode.
This episode asks what would happen if Ultron successfully took over Vision’s body. First, he kills almost all the Avengers, then he destroys Earth. After that, he kills Thanos in one blow, taking all of his Infinity Stones, and becomes the most powerful being the multiverse has ever seen. It’s so cool to see Ultron become as powerful as he is, consuming and destroying entire universes. His fight with The Watcher is insane, knowing that he can come toe-to-toe with the overseer of the whole multiverse. Not to mention that the cinematography of this episode is spectacular. This is a true treat for all Marvel fans, and is a must watch.
1) What If… Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead Of His Hands?
No question about it, this episode delivered one of the most heartfelt and intense experiences of not only the series, but the MCU as a whole. In the original timeline, Strange loses his hands in a car accident, but in this one, it’s his girlfriend, Christine. Just like his original story, this causes him to become Doctor Strange and go through all the story beats of his film. But after using the Time Stone to view her death over and over again, he decides to plunge into dark magic to do whatever it takes to bring her back.
The best part about Marvel is its characters. Any story that dives deep into the psyche of a character is bound to be phenomenal, and this is a prime example of that. Strange eventually collapses the entire universe with his power and grief, and it’s just heartbreaking to see. This remains one of the most stellar entries of the MCU, and the most notable of the entire “What If…?” series.
