What If...?

Recap
The Watcher guides us through the infinite possibilities of the Marvel Multiverse.
Review
Time. Space. Reality. It’s more than a linear path, It’s a prism of endless possibility. I am the Watcher. I am your guide through these vast new realities. Follow me and dare to face the unknown, and ponder the question What If…?
What if…? Is an American Animated series based on the Marvel Comic book of the same name that looks at alternative timelines and how one small change could have affected the outcome of stories that have already been told. The third and final season premiered on Disney + on December 22, 2024 with one new episode being released each consecutive day for eight days with the series finale streaming on December 29. Jeffrey Wright returns as the voice of The Watcher, the narrator and audience guide with many of the actors from the live action movies reprising their roles within the episodes.
What If… Howard the Duck Got Hitched?
Meeting at “Party Thor’s” party in Las Vegas, Howard the Duck (Seth Green) and Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings) fall in love, get married and have a baby…wait strike that…an egg. Darcy lays an egg. But soon afterwards, they discover that most of the universe is after the egg as it was born during a convergence of the nine realms and is thought to be destined for great things. The Grandmaster (Matthew Friend) hires Yondu (Michael Rooker) to steal it, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) wants it thinking that Howard and Darcy aren’t prepared to protect it, Zeus (Darin De Paul) wants it because of a prophecy, and Thanos (Josh Brolin), originally didn’t know about it, but after accidentally finding out about it, now he wants it too. Darcy and Howard just want to find a safe place to call home and raise their child.
This is another of the more comical episodes, but still very well done. I was surprised by how entertaining it was, because at first I thought it would be a bit too corny and a disappointment. And it was corny, but just the right amount of corny, fun and adventurous!
What If… the Emergence Destroyed the Earth?
The emergence of Tiamut, the Celestial who gestated in the Earth, destroys the planet, but not civilization. The Earth is literally in pieces, but society exists and has been overtaken by Mysterio also known as Quentin Beck (Alejandro Saab) now the CEO of Stark Industries who created drones and established the Iron Federation to subjugate the survivors. Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) a.k.a. Ironheart, who is trying to create a weapon that could nullify the evil White Vision reprogrammed by Beck as his ultimate enforcer. She joins forces with Ying Nan (Michelle Wong), Okoye (Kenna Ramsey), Wong (Daved Chen), and Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson). In order to defeat Mysterio, Ironheart must be willing to give up everything including herself.
This was a much more serious and darker episode than the last few. There was not a lot of humor and the dystopian world this takes place in is lacking hope. It was definitely a strong episode with a good message, but also sad and a bit depressing.
What If… 1872?
In the wild west of the 1860s, Xu Xialing (Meng’er Zhang), Shang-Chi’s (Simu Liu) sister comes to America looking for the American Dream, but is taken by The Hood who is trying to blame Chinese Immigrants as a way to gain control and power of the nation. Shang-Chi, travels to America and teams up with Kate Bishop’s Hawkeye (Hailee Steinfeld) and a young Kwai Jun-Fan (Allen Deng), who would eventually become Iron Fist. After being attacked by John Walker (Wyatt Russell) and obtaining needed information, the two head out to confront the hood who is using advanced technology and weapons to control the minds of the immigrants. The final showdown between Shang-Chi and The Hood does not turn out the way they planned, and they must make a difficult decision
This was again a more serious episode, but not quite as hopeless as the previous one and did interject some humor through the banter between Kate and Shang and the kid-like energy brought in by Jun-Fan. Overall, a good episode with a very timely message about the state of the United States of America.
Episodes four, five and six were entertaining with a good mixture of humor and drama and I found to be more in line with the quality we have seen in the episodes of other seasons. The sub-plot with the Watcher is also fun, leading up to the final two episodes that will wrap up the series. I had mentioned in the review of the first three episodes that I saw a common theme between all the episodes and was wondering if it was purposeful or coincidence, and I am still not sure. Each episode contains an unlikely pairing and this continues in this second set although episode 5 it was far more subtle. We got Howard and Darcy, Riri and Ying-Nan and Shang-Chi and Kate Bishop. In the first episode of the season, The Watcher talks a bit about how a friendship can change the course of history, and I am curious if that was foreshadowing and that these unlikely couplings will somehow tie into the conclusion, or if it is all in my imagination and I am looking too hard for meaning that isn’t there? Well, two more episodes and we shall find out.
Final Thoughts
The episodes picked up the pace and improved the quality matching the episodes from earlier seasons.
What If…?: Season 3 Eposodes 4, 5 and 6
- Writing - 8/108/10
- Storyline - 8/108/10
- Acting - 9/109/10
- Music - 8/108/10
- Production - 9/109/10