Marvel's What if ...?: The 5 best episodes of the series

Marvel's What if ...?

We have to admit that What if ...? has been the series we had the least expectations of ever since it was announced alongside all of Marvel Studios' other Disney + productions - so far we've seen WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Loki, all of which have gone on to pave the way for so-called Phase 4 which began in cinemas with considerable delay due to the pandemic. Our mistrust was based on the fact that the What if ...? they have always left the time they found: the homonymous series that made its debut in 1977 started from a simple premise ("what if ...") to tell alternative stories that could not affect the official editorial continuity. Divertissement ends in itself, so to speak. For this reason, the animated series announced with great fanfare by Kevin Feige seemed negligible to us in the same way.

What if ...?, Captain Carter and the Howling Commandos in one scene Instead we really enjoyed them and, now that it has concluded with the ninth episode of this first season - but another has already been in the works for 2022 -, we can sum up a series that, after what happened at the end of Loki, has even more sense. Not only that: it could potentially influence the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the flesh. For Marvel Studios it was a very interesting test of creativity, between many highs and some lows, mostly technical, but we also had the luck of one of the best locations in the world, as they were called to lend voices to the characters. all the professionals who have dubbed the films of the so-called Infinity Saga in Italian.

So let's see which are the five episodes that we liked the most of the nine that make up this first season: for the avoidance of doubt, we recommend that you watch them all, and you will find out why by reading this article which, for obvious reasons , contains SPOILERS.

5. What if ... Doctor Strange had lost his heart instead of his hands?

What if ...?, Doctor Strange in a scene from the series Episode 4 of What if ...? is presumably a small taste of what Doctor Strange will be in the Multiverse of Madness, the next film focusing on the character played by Benedict Cumberbatch who will see none other than Sam Raimi at the helm. The director of The House and Spider-Man 2 was very clear: Doctor Strange 2 will be a horror film, despite the Disney brand. After all, Strange comics often lead to psychological or Lovecraftian horror, and in this sense What if ...? returns a half hour with distressing implications.

The premise is simple: in this universe, Strange survives unscathed the accident that should have destroyed his hands, in which, however, Christine Palmer's flame dies. To bring her back to life, the surgeon reaches the Ancient and learns the mystical arts, but opens doors to unspeakable worlds and forces that will change him and his reality forever. Some visual solutions and the dramatic inevitability of the story make this episode one of the most memorable.

4. What if ... the Watcher had broken his oath?

What if .. .?, Ultron with the Infinity Stones in a scene from the What if ...? introduces into the Marvel Cinematic Universe a character that has existed in comics since 1963: the Observer. This alien species, of which the most famous representative is certainly Uatu, exists to observe, record and comment on everything that happens in the universe, without ever intervening. Created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee themselves, the Watcher has rarely interacted with Marvel heroes, but every time he did it was to help or support them, especially in the adventures of the Fantastic Four.

L'Osservatore - who in the American version is voiced by Jeffrey Wright and in the Italian version by Paolo Marchese - breaks his vow of non-interference in the season finale of What if ...? to prevent Ultron from destroying the Multiverse with the Infinity Stones: for this purpose he puts together a team, the Guardians of the Multiverse, taking the most important characters that appeared in the previous episodes and becoming the leitmotif of the series. The episode is a titanic battle reminiscent of anime in the execution, unfortunately undermined by some slips in writing and by references to an episode - the one focused on Gamora - which unfortunately Marvel Studios was unable to finish due to the pandemic and that we will see. only in the next year.

3. What if ... the world had lost its most powerful heroes?

What if ...?, Nick Fury and Hawkeye in one scene The third episode of the series immediately frames the "mature" turning point of this cartoon series. Even What if ...? comics allowed themselves to dare in terms of violence and drama: these stories rarely end well, also because the meaning is often to show us how things would have been worse if the heroes had made different decisions. In short, it should not be surprising that almost all the episodes of What if ...? they are real massacres: this one, in particular, is a kind of thriller in which the Avengers begin to die one after the other without an apparent explanation. Thor's death leads Loki to Earth in search of revenge, and it's up to Nick Fury, the true protagonist of this animated half hour, to find out what is really going on. It's a memorable episode because watching the heroes fall like flies and throw the cast into utter despair is hilarious, not to mention that the final twist will catch many viewers by surprise.

2. What if ... the zombies invaded the Earth?

What if ...?, Captain America zombies in a scene You may not know it, but there is a real editorial line called Marvel Zombies that comes from a cycle of stories of Ultimate Fantastic Four from 2005 written by Mark Millar and drawn by Greg Land. Marvel later entrusted a first miniseries to Robert Kirkman and Sean Philips: the success of this crazy idea was such that over the years this experiment has been repeated several times, also inspiring episode 5 of What if ...? in which Bruce Banner returns to Earth to discover that his Avengers friends have become zombies.

To justify the contagion, writer Matthew Chauncey inconveniences the Pym spouses and the Quantum Realm, but the episode is a dark comedy inspired by zombie cinematography in which a motley band of heroes and shoulders desperately tries to find a potential cure: The team includes Sharon Carter, Happy Hogan, Spider-Man, Bucky and others. If it weren't for some not always successful gags, this would be the most gruesome, violent and bloody episode of the series, especially for the hilarious splatter scenes in which most of our favorite characters die.

1. What if ... Thor was an only child?

What if ...?, Thor in a scene from the series. Taika Waititi. Absolutely divisive film, for heaven's sake: we know very well that for many the comedy turn of the films centered on the God of Thunder did not go to genius, but we belong to that segment of the public that has found the way in which Marvel Studios has reinvented the character brilliant. played by Chris Hemsworth, finding it a new dimension. Episode 7 of What if ...? is the spiritual heir of that film. In this universe, Odin returns little Loki to Laufey, and in doing so establishes peace between Asgard and Jotunheim, but Thor grows up alone without his stepbrother to contain his outbursts.

The God of Thunder thus becomes a reckless who wreaks havoc throughout the galaxy to the sound of parties, alcohol and fist fights. It's a hilarious episode, a riot of quotes to watch and relate to to capture the many details and references to all the films in the Infinity Saga, with an absurd and creative battle between Thor and Captain Marvel that takes a good part of the episode and ridicules both to the delight of their detractors.

Have you noticed any mistakes?