Marvel fans were disappointed after watching the series conclusion of “What If?,” a Disney Plus exclusive. Over the three-season run, each episode follows an animated alternative story from different beloved Marvel characters narrated by the Watcher, a god who was assigned to watch and not intervene in the stories of these characters across the multiverse. The overall dialogue, plot, and character choice of the final season were overused from prior seasons.
The first few episodes of the last season were promising. Episode one, titled “What If… The Hulk Fought the Mech Avengers?” is almost like the Avengers turned to “Pacific Rim”-style robots to take down these Hulk-type Godzilla monsters.
Episode one also revives some major Marvel characters, such as Moon Knight and Shang-Chi, who haven’t been seen recently in the franchise. The overall pace and story flowed smoothly, promising a great start to the last season. My optimism slowly dwindled with the following episodes.
In episode two titled “What If… Agatha Went to Hollywood?” we see Kingo from “The Eternals” interact with Agatha Harkness from “Agatha All Along.” Throughout the episode, the dialogue didn’t feel like there was any emotion behind it. Both Agatha and Kingo’s body language just didn’t match their actual actors’ counterparts.
Kathryn Hahn plays and voices her character, Agatha. In the live-action series, Hahn personifies even her character’s most simple actions, like telling a story or interacting with other characters. Her eyes get more squinty and she talks with her hands. The animated version of Hahn’s character didn’t match the level of sarcasm and sass that her live-action counterpart is known for.
Kumail Nanjiani also plays and voices his character, Kingo. Nanjiani in “The Eternals” has more of a facial smirk and sort of charisma in his tone of voice. The voice acting that Nanjiani brought to the “What If?” series fell flat and felt monotone. Not to Nanjiani’s fault, but his animated version didn’t carry those similar facial features with the smirk and his eyes felt pushed out, unlike his live-action character.
In the third episode, “What If… The Red Guardian Stopped the Winter Solider?” my optimism was restored. The Red Guardian ruined the mission given to the Winter Solider to kill Howard Stark, which led to them eventually teaming up. The plot of this episode followed the creativity of exploring Marvel character’s potential timelines.
By episode four, “What If… Howard the Duck Got Hitched?” I was convinced that the producers were just out of ideas. The episode followed an old plot hole from season one, where Howard the Duck from Marvel comics and Darcy Lewis from the Thor film series married and had a baby together. The baby doesn’t make much of an appearance until the end of the episode because it is in an egg.
The way that they pulled every single big and bad character from all over the Marvel Cinematic Universe to try and catch the egg felt overused. How the baby hatching absolutely nerfed all of the enemies felt unrealistic. The live-action counterparts of the enemies seem a lot more powerful and tough than “What If?” made them out to be.
For episode five, “What If… The Emergence Destroyed the Earth?” After the Earth was broken to pieces from the birth of Celestial Tiamut, Riri Williams gives it her all to work against the Federation, the running world order led by Quinten Beck, otherwise known as Mysterio. According to the Watcher, there is no universe where the scenario goes in Riri’s favor. The Watcher went against his assignment and ensured the scenario went in Riri’s favor, which serves the remaining plot of the season.
Episode six also brought a promising story with a Wild West theme. Titled “What If… 1872?” viewers see Shang-Chi and Kate Bishop team up against a tyrannical group, The Hood. The unique character’s storyline is the last time we see any variation in characters play out.
The last two episodes of the series put the lack of creativity on full display. In episodes seven and eight titled “What If… The Watcher Disappeared?” and “What If… What If?” the Watcher is abducted by the gods that gave him his multiverse-observing powers. The team of four includes Captain Carter, Kahhori, Storm the Goddess of Thunder, and the grown-up version of The Ducks’ baby from episode four named Byrdie.
Captain Carter and Kahhori have been overused. Captain Carter has been the main focal point since season one, and Kahhori was a major part of season two. While both were great characters and their stories were compelling, I felt like there could have been more alternative storylines explored.
While the season ended on a peaceful note, producers left fans teased at storylines that won’t come to fruition. At the end of the last episode, viewers see alternative character versions, such as a Thanos version with Wolverine claws and a Samurai Ghost Rider. Seeing all these alternative stories left me wanting more compelling stories instead of meaningless cliffhangers, as this was the last season.
Ultimately, the last season was missing the creative depth that came with the first two seasons. The overuse of character lines and empty plot holes turned “What If?” into one of Marvel’s low-level projects.