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Marvel What If…? Episode 3 Review

We all know the story of the Avengers by now. A group of remarkable people come together to become Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and fight the battles others never could. That’s how it goes in most of the comics, and how it went in the MCU.

At least, in the main MCU timeline. But in the Multirverse, anything is possible. Like, for example, a timeline where someone offs the Avengers before they even have a chance to assemble. This week, What If…? asks the question of what would happen if Earth’s Mightiest Heroes never got off the ground.

Fury’s Worst Week Ever

Fun fact: in the MCU, the events of Thor, The Incredible Hulk, and a good part of Iron Man 2 all took place in the span of a single week. That week wound up proving key to the creation of the Avengers, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Or, it was supposed to.

In this week’s dive into the Multiverse, the Watcher shows us a universe where that never happened. Instead, Tony Stark suddenly croaks in the donut shop while talking to Fury and Black Widow. Thor gets shot by an arrow that Hawkeye supposedly misfired. And then Hawkeye’s found dead, too!

It soon becomes clear that someone’s going around targeting all the names on Fury’s list for the Avengers Initiative, and the timing couldn’t be worse. Loki shows up with an army demanding justice for his brother’s death and wants Earth to either pay up, or burn!

Who is killing the heroes, though? The answer…will be told right here and now. It’s Hank Pym.

Why Hank Killed Earth’s Mightiest Heroes

There’s a reason why I just spoiled who the killer is, but we’ll get to that in a moment. For now, I think it’s worth talking about why Hank went nuts like this, and how it’s not as jarring as you might think.

In this universe, Hank’s daughter, Hope Van Dyne, wound up becoming a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, only to die on a mission. Coupled with the seeming loss of his wife, this was enough to send Hank over the edge. And instead of getting revenge on Fury himself, he just went around killing people who had nothing to do with his daughter’s death. Hank claims it’s because he wanted Fury to suffer like he did, but in truth, it’s nothing more than a jerk move. He’s spitefully robbing Earth of its mightiest heroes and risking everyone, a fact made all the more clear when, after all’s said and done, Loki conquers the planet.

Again, this is not surprising when you look at Hank’s comic book history. He’s had years of mental instability. He even hit his wife at one point. So, him being a serial killer here is, ironically, bringing him more in line with his comic book history.

Weakest Episode To Date

Whereas the two previous episodes were fun and imaginative, this episode was, in a word, dark. Everything that could go wrong for Nick Fury did go wrong, with him losing most of the Avengers roster before they ever meet up. If it had ended like that, then it might have been slightly better. However, Disney then reminds us of the fact that the Avengers were just a few heroes in a universe that would soon be sprawling with them. Captain America was still on ice, Captain Marvel returns from deep space, and I’m pretty sure War Machine could fill in for Iron Man at this point. Bottom line, the Avengers would assemble, albeit with different members.

It doesn’t change the fact that this was my least favorite episode of the series to date. Then again, in the Multiverse, we were bound to find versions that would suck like this. Regardless, this is one branching timeline I don’t think I’ll want to re-visit anytime soon.

I Give “What If… the World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?” a 2/5

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Marvel What If…? Episode 2 Review

Like so many others, I was left stunned by Chadwick Boseman’s sudden passing last year. The fact that he spent his entire time as T’Challa fighting cancer, and letting almost one know about it, serves as a testament to that man’s will. He knew how important T’Challa was, and he tried to see it through to the end. And while we will likely not see T’Challa again in the main MCU, Marvel What if…? offers a chance to see Chadwick have one last hurrah as the iconic character.

Since his passing makes it very hard not to have a bias regarding his episode of What if…?, I won’t bother hiding it. This series will posthumously include Chadwick in at least four episodes, each with a different version of the character. As of now, though, I think this was my favorite, as well as my favorite episode of the show.

What If… T’Challa Became A Star Lord

Whereas the first episode of What if…? started out with a relatively safe story, the second episode goes all in, showing us just how crazy these stories can, and will, be.

In the main MCU, Peter Quill was abducted by Yondu, who got hired to take him to his Dad. However, here he had Kraglin and Taserface do it instead. They grab T’Challa by accident, and Yondu decides to just keep him around.

Flashforward two decades, and T’Challa’s become Star-Lord. And unlike Peter, he’s every bit as legendary as Peter wanted people to believe. He doesn’t just steal from others: he takes the wealth of the powerful and gives it to those who can’t help themselves. In other words, he’s an intergalactic Robin Hood with admirers across the universe.

T’Challa at His Most Free

Given how serious and responsible T’Challa is in the MCU, one would think that What If…? took some liberties with this version’s personality. However, once the show gets a few minutes in, you’ll see that Chadwick’s playing T’Challa as essentially the same person from the MCU. The difference here is that this T’Challa does not have the burden of the Black Panther to weigh on him.

The T’Challa we get in this episode is light-hearted, charismatic, and free-spirited with an insatiable curiosity to explore the universe. He loves being Star Lord. However, at his core, he’s still the same noble and just person who fights injustice. When he steals, he does it to help people, and a lot of characters are in a better place than when we found them in the MCU. Drax never lost his family and is a happy bartender. Yondu and his Ravagers now help people through their thieving activities. Thanos works alongside them.

Wait, what?

This Version of Thanos is a Hero

Yes, you read that right: Thanos is not only a hero, he works alongside T’Challa and the Ravagers. Apparently, T’Challa reached out to him and made him realize that his plan to use the Infinity Stones wasn’t the right answer. Now he focuses on gardening and trying to atone for what he did to Nebula (who flirtatiously calls T’Challa “Cha Cha”.)

Seeing the man who served as the overarching villain for the MCU fighting as a good guy may seem unsettling to some. However, his prescence serves a purpose in the show’s narrative. Infinite number of universes means infinite versions of a character. And some of them can turn out to be heroes instead of villains. Or villains instead of heroes. The possibilities are infinite.

Farewell to Chadwick Boseman

This episode won’t be the last time that we see T’Challa in Marvel What if…? There will be at least three other versions of him in future episodes. However, for all intents and purposes, this episode serves as a send-off to the character, and to Chadwick Boseman.

Looking back, I honestly cannot imagine anyone other than Chadwick playing the role of the Black Panther. He brought the perfect amount of charisma, inspiration, and physical prowess that the character needed. There may not be another actor like him for a long, long time. So, while we say goodbye to Chadwick as T’Challa, let’s remember the impact he had on the world. And this episode’s essentially a love letter to everything he did to bring the Black Panther to life.

I Give “What If… T’Challa Became a Star-Lord?” A 5/5

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