Review | Marvel’s What If…? (Episode 1-2-3)

“What If…? is the MCU’s version of The Twilight Zone. It’s wild, weird and so much fun with amazing visuals. This series is off to a fantastic start”

The season 1 finale of Loki opened up the Multiverse changing the MCU forever. With What If…?, we get to explore this Multiverse and the different possibilities it is bringing. It’s a retelling of classic MCU stories but with a twist.

I was able to watch the first three episodes. And I can tell you this series is off to a fantastic start! Indeed, telling alternative stories is so compelling because they can do anything. The sky is the limit. This show goes wild with its ideas. It really embraces the weird and that is so much fun. There are a lot of things, you don’t see coming. Each episode tells a self-contained story. In many ways, this is the MCU’s version of The Twilight Zone.

BOLD STORIES

Each episode has its own style while also having the MCU DNA. Which means you get fun, action, and heart. They run approximately for 30 minutes. It gives plenty of time to flesh out each story.

The first episode is a war episode with Peggy Carter as Captain Carter. I already loved the character but I like this new version of her even more. I want to see Captain Carter a lot more in future MCU stories. This episode reminded me of the Agent Carter series but on a bigger scale. This is my favorite episode so far.

The second episode is a space fantasy adventure with T’Challa as Star-Lord. It has the same level of fun as the Guardians of the Galaxy. It features a lot of references to these movies while telling a totally different story. It’s a great episode!

The third episode is a spy story with Nick Fury. It has some big twists worthy of the great spy movies.  This episode has made me even more excited for Secret Invasion because we always need more of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury.

CAST

What If…? has been able to bring back so many people – Hayley Atwell, Dominic Cooper, Josh Brolin, Chadwick Boseman, Sebastian Stan, Jeremy Renner, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Kurt Russell, and many more! It’s so good to hear all these actors voicing their characters again. Speaking of Chadwick Boseman, the second episode features his last performance. And I got to say I was teary hearing his voice again. It’s a beautiful goodbye to Boseman and T’Challa as we see him in a different light.

There are a few actors who are not reprising their roles. Instead, Marvel has picked up voice actors who did a rather good job at recreating similar voices. So it doesn’t look too weird. The show is narrated by Jeffrey Wright who voices The Watcher. And I couldn’t think of a better person to be the narrator. Indeed, Wright has the perfect voice for the job.

VISUALS

What If…? is the MCU’s first entry in animation. And it’s a glorious debut! The 2D animation style is different from what you usually see with American shows. I like that it has its own very distinct style. I was impressed by this animation, it’s really beautiful.  Throughout the three episodes, there are some astonishing shots. You can definitely recognize each character. The animation team has been able to capture the mimicking of the actors and bring that into animation. It’s great work!

VERDICT

What If…? is basically the MCU’s version of The Twilight Zone. It’s wild, weird and so much fun with amazing visuals. This series is off to a fantastic start.

Marvel’s What If…? launches on Disney Plus from Wednesday 11th August with new episodes released weekly. 

Thomas Storai

Collectables Editor at Future Of The Force.
Star Wars and Marvel specialist, anime expert