Awesome / What If…? (2021)

Captain Carter, One-Woman Army.

We already knew that the Marvel Cinematic Universe was awesome, but now, What If…? allows us to see what happens when certain events are altered into new realities. And the results are glorious.

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Episodes

Season One

Episode 1: What If… Captain Carter Were The First Avenger?

• When faced with the prospect of losing all the progress they have made on Erskine's formula, Peggy orders Howard to start the procedure on her in order to, at the very least, preserve the serum.
• When dismissed by the sexist Colonel Flynn, she and Steve are at the army barracks, the latter recuperating from being shot in the leg, the former letting her frustrations out on a heavy bag and free weights. When the camera pans around, it has revealed that she has thrown dozens of 20kg+ weights at the wall hard enough to embed them into it.
• Her first mission has her intercepting Dr. Zola as he delivers the Tesseract to Red Skull, easily battering her way through the small contingent of mooks. Then when a particularly large mook insults her for being a woman, she drops the shield on the floor, before utterly flattening him in three hits (the first of which bent his knee backward). The cherry on top is her slamming the Tesseract on Flynn's desk in triumph, and confidently saying to Stark that he knows exactly what to do with it.
  • Peggy's reaction to her super strength in the field is one of sheer and utter delight.
  • With the Mighty Shield (painted now as the Union Flag instead of the Stars and Stripes) she crushes the first truck in the convoy, bending backwards to have it flip over her. Her reaction? "That was brilliant! Let's do it again!" And she does, except the next truck, she stops cold. Just a vibranium shield, the super soldier serum, and the friction of feet on flagstones.
• The rescue of the 107th. Between her One-Woman Army tendencies in infiltrating the base, to the freeing of the prisoners. The highlight is when Captain Carter, pinned down by tanks, calls in air support. Rogers responds. As in, Rogers in a Tesseract-powered Iron Man suit which is given the affectionate callsign "HYDRA Stomper".
• Peggy succeeds where Steve failed and saves Bucky from falling into the ravine. No Winter Soldier in this timeline.
• Dr. Armin Zola declares that he won't spill a word of information to Peggy. One Gilligan Cut later, and it turns out that she made him spill all the beans about the Red Skull's plans.
• The final battle has Captain Carter and her Howling Commandoes assaulting the HYDRA fortress Castle de krake in order to defeat the Red Skull and save the world. Red Skull is able to use the regained Tesseract to open a portal and summon a Kraken to destroy the Earth, only for the kraken to immediately crush him.
• The Commandoes find the HYDRA Stomper (sans Tesseract) and Steve in the catacombs below the castle. They supercharge the Stomper with the castle's power supply, and Steve is able to give Peggy some much-needed backup.

  Dugan: I'm up for anything, but this is crazy.

  Bucky: Yeah. So is Steve Rogers.

• Peggy, having some difficulty in stopping the Kraken's tentacles, spots and grabs a sword propped against the wall, using it in conjunction with the shield to force the Kraken back, with or without its tentacles.
• The Stomper is out of power, and the Kraken is holding the portal open. Peggy forces it further back through the portal, at the cost of stranding herself on the other side.
• When Fury and Hawkeye reopen the portal 70 years later, chunks of tentacle fly through, before Captain Carter barrels out of it, coming to rest in the signature superhero pose. And just like Steve, her aging was 'frozen' in the interim while she fought the Kraken.

Episode 2: What If… T’Challa Became a Star-Lord?

• T’Challa Star-Lord is the awesome in-universe Memetic Badass that Peter Quill wanted to be seen as. He reformed the Ravagers into being Just Like Robin Hood, stopped the Kree from killing Drax’s family, and incredibly enough, convinced Thanos, the Big Bad of the entire Infinity Saga, to abandon his quest for the Infinity Stones and join the Ravagers as a force of good!
  • Simply because it bears reiterating, T'Challa managed to convince Thanos to give up his universal genocide…by talking to him.
    T'Challa: Sometimes, the best weapon in your arsenal is just a good argument.
  • Noticeably, Nebula is devoid of almost all of her cybernetic modifications in the Sacred Timeline and has a nearly completely organic body. This suggests that T'Challa got to Thanos so fast that he didn't even have the opportunity to torture Gamora and Nebula into what they became.
• T'Challa being raised as a humble prince led to him having an immense amount of humility. When Korath meets him on Morag, he is in awe of the guy, even asking to bow or kneel in front, showing T'Challa incredible respect and even apologising after landing a blow on him in their brief brawl.
• The relationship between T'Challa and Yondu is built upon this respect. While Yondu is the captain and ultimately makes the call, Star-Lord is the heart and soul of the crew. And when T'Challa makes his case, Yondu listens. It's a far cry from the relationship between Quill and Yondu.
• The reveal of the new Big Bad of the galaxy being the Collector, who in the Sacred Timeline was easily manhandled by Thanos. When T'Challa talked him down, Tivan stepped into the void, the Black Order following suit.
  • On Tivan, his collection of flora, fauna, and gear is a smorgasbord of Mythology Gags, including Cap's shield, a Wakandan ship, Mjolnir, and Hela's Helmet. Tivan is also ripped, which gives him a huge edge on the relatively normal Yondu and T'Challa.
• The Wakandan spacecraft shows that Wakanda managed to master interstellar travel before anyone on Earth. While Fury and Thor had previously contended that using the Tesseract to create weapons would announce Earth as a contender on the galactic stage, Wakanda outpaced the rest of the world (which even in the Sacred Timeline’s present still doesn’t have space travel) and is a contender in its’ own right.
• T'Challa's escape plan: Use his vibranium necklace to smash the glass cage. None of the bad guys saw that coming.
• Tivan getting his just desserts after T'Challa pulls a Stark and leaves him to Carina and his prisoners.

Episode 3: What If… The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?

• Natasha fighting her way out of a truck full of agents. She is even the last of the original Avengers (other than Captain America) to die, and at the very least she puts up a fight against Hank Pym.
• A villainous example, but the very fact that Hank kills almost all of the Avengers - including Hulk - barring Captain America deserves a mention. He wiped them all out with the efficiency and prejudice of Frank Castle. Considering his hatred for S.H.I.E.L.D. (most of all Howard Stark) in the first Ant-Man, it would be pretty satisfying for him to finally get one over on Howard by personally killing his son.
  • This also extends to the Yellowjacket tech/suit. The only time it was ever deployed by Darren Cross, it gave off a fight but ultimately fell against Scott's Ant-Man—despite its promoted applications in combat and wetwork. Here, we see the full extent of the Ant-Man technology coupled with the Yellowjacket's lethal design intent—and it more than earns its horrific reputation.
• While it's revealed to merely be one of Loki's illusions, Hank's fight against Nick Fury still deserves a mention. Especially since Loki as Fury was able to No-Sell Hank's shrinking technology and dish out a pretty swift Curb-Stomp Battle on the old man.
• With the Avengers out of the way and Asgard on his side, Loki doesn't even need to try to take over Earth. The world is essentially handed to him, with Fury unable to do anything about it.
• Though the Avengers are brought down, it's not over. Fury digs out Captain America and calls in Captain Marvel… and considering Marvel can hold her own against the Mad Titan himself, it's safe to say Loki will have a short reign. Combine that with the implication that S.H.I.E.L.D. is still operating despite Loki's takeover, and the knowledge that there are still other superheroes out there just waiting to be found and recruited into the fight, and it seems that Earth's Mightiest Heroes will still be able to avenge the planet they were created to fight for.

Episode 4: What If… Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead of His Hands?

• One for the animators of the episode. Where almost everything else is animated with 3D models, the magic performed by the sorcerers is done in a beautiful 2D, allowing the genuinely otherworldly magic to seem like it's not of this world.
• Strange summoning the countless books he needs from the library of Cagliostro using his magic.
• O'Bengh quietly but surely trying to advise Strange against his course of actions, even telling him that "life taught him" that Love Hurts. While it doesn't work, it's hard not to admire his spirit.
• In a very dark way, the sequence of Strange absorbing magical beings and their powers, growing stronger and stronger. This is most notably shown with the Kraken; when he first summons it, it thrashes Strange completely. Next time? Strange has no trouble with it whatsoever, even delightedly greeting it.
  Strange: Hello again… and goodbye.
• O'Bengh choosing to pass away, and quietly calling out Strange when he says he can't accept death.
• Wong not only takes the world's end and his own fading away very calmly, but spends his remaining time applying a protection spell to Stephen.
• The entire Wizard Duel between Stephen and Strange Supreme. While Doctor Strange (2016) showed off what sorcerers can do, this episode really goes all-in on showing what Masters of the Mystic Arts can do with their power. Highlights include:
  • Stephen starting the entire conflict by thoroughly deconstructing the logic Strange Supreme uses, calling him out for his arrogance, and making it clear that as much as he loved Christine, he'd much rather grieve than go completely mad as Strange Supreme has done.
  • Strange Supreme unleashing the countless magical powers he's absorbed, utterly and savagely attempting to kill Stephen. If not for Wong's protection spell, Stephen would have died immediately to Strange Supreme's barrage. The revelation of Strange Supreme's monstrous new form as a Humanoid Abomination is also incredible, showing off tentacles, monstrous appendages, and utterly horrifying, overwhelming strength.
  • Even though Supreme clearly has him outmatched in every capacity, Stephen continues fighting back, using his ingenuity to evade Supreme's blows and keeping on the defensive. Even as Strange Supreme wears him down, Stephen does his absolute best to ensure the madman can't destroy reality.
  • The two sorcerers' sentient capes split off and start having their own brawl in the midst of the action.
  • Stephen using a Sling-Ring to narrowly avoid death once he can no longer fly.
  • When Stephen is placed on the back foot, the Cloak of Levitation proves its worth by fearlessly rushing in to wrap around Supreme's hands and keep him from firing. Though it only takes a second for Strange Supreme to tear it in two and proves pointless in the end, the cape cements once and for all that it's just as heroic as Strange himself.
  • Stephen managing to escape Strange Supreme's illusion of Christine.
  • The Free-Fall Fight between the two Stranges, with them trading blows as they come closer and closer to the ground.
  • Finally, on a horrific note that closes off the fight, Strange Supreme possesses his counterpart's shadow and devours him, achieving his full power. Once and for all, Strange Supreme's raw power and clever, treacherous nature overcomes Stephen's genuine heroism and skill.
• Sure, it's the mother of all Pyrrhic Victories and leads directly into the most heartrending moment of the entire episode...but it's hard not to feel triumphant when Strange Supreme finally, FINALLY saves Christine, delivering a gigantic middle finger to his universe's stubborn enforcement of Stuffed in the Fridge to perform the heroic act he's spent centuries preparing himself for.
• As reality collapses in on itself from Strange Supreme's actions, all he can do is struggle to hold it back as he calls out to someone, begging them to help. For the first time, Uatu personally interacts with the rest of the show, giving Strange a "The Reason You Suck" Speech.
  Uatu: I'm not a god. And neither are you.
  • Further, The Watcher makes it clear he would love to be able to deal out punishment to him and save the rest of that reality, but it's just not an option. Jeffrey Wright's majestic voice fully sells the godlike power this figure holds and the superhuman restraint he must show in using it.
  • Let's not forget that Uatu is a Watcher, a species considered by reality at large to be omnipotent reality warpers. His race is about as close to Godhood as a being can get, and he certainly does have the power to help. What makes this awesome? Uatu knows the price of his actions - he might save this universe and put it right, but another will fall in its place. Where does he stop? By refusing to help anyone, and not interfering in anything, time takes its natural course without his interference. Strange Supreme is absolutely right that Uatu has the ability to fix it. He just fails to see the cost of it, just like he did for his own actions, which is exactly the lesson Uatu harshly teaches him.

Episode 5: What If… Zombies?!

• The entire premise of the episode: A group of plucky survivors in the Zombie Apocalypse go on a mission to find the cure when the world's superheroes and population are infected by a Quantum virus. Along the way, they take on zombified Avengers, a crazed survivor, and all the classic zombie tropes are in full force.
  • Bonus points to Kurt and Happy surviving as long as they did with no powers or much of any training.
• The Wasp makes her grand entrance by sending a swarm of ants to give the zombies a taste of their own medicine.
• The Cloak of Levitation saving Bruce Banner, and later Spider-man (twice), fighting off zombies itself. If the previous episode didn't show how it was a literal Badass Cape, this one definitely does, as the Cloak is pretty much the MVP of the episode.
• Sure, what comes next is pure Nightmare Fuel, but it's hard not to pretend seeing the zombified Avengers Curb-Stomp Battle Ebony Maw and Cull Obsidian isn't awesome. The entire thing starts with a Boom, Headshot! via Tony, using a Sling-Ring; expert teamwork from the undead leads Thanos's lieutenants to a swift end. This establishes that the zombies retain their skills from life.
• Sharon manages to survive the attack of a zombified Happy by turning his own repulsor on him, killing him instantly.
• Okoye mentions that Wakanda is the last human sanctuary, a reminder of the ingenuity and bravery of its people. Even when the world crumbled, they stood strong for much longer than everywhere else.
• Sharon survives a zombified Hawkeye's attack on her, no small feat considering Hawkeye's archery skills are still ingrained into him.
• Okoye splitting a zombified Falcon down the middle. The Dora Milaje do not mess around.
• A zombified Captain America somehow managed to land on a moving train that was already out of the station. Steve Rogers' tenacity is unstoppable, even when he's a flesh-eating monster.
• The brief fight between Bucky and Cap. During the brawl, the undead Cap hurls his shield at Bucky. Bucky catches Cap's shield just as he did in Captain America: The Winter Soldier… only this time, he gives it back. Lethally.
• An infected Hope turning giant and lifting the entire crew, letting them safely avoid the clambering crowd of vicious zombies outside Camp Lehigh, even though it costs her life.
• A dismembered T'Challa's first words to Bucky aren't pleas or lamentations, but a warning. T'Challa remains strong, even without his armor. He remains stoic and calm, no matter the horrors that he faces.
• The revelation of Vision's dark secret: A zombified Wanda Maximoff, still at full power. The moment that Bucky wakes her up, she breaks free. From there on out, it's not a question of whether or not the heroes can kill her… it's whether they can escape.
• When Vision is convinced to atone, he brings the entire building down on Wanda. While it doesn't keep her down for long, it's definitely an effective and brutal method.
• Okoye and Bucky both going out calmly against the zombie invasion and Wanda's power. Doubly so since both of them are comparatively normal, yet neither freaks out when confronted with Wanda.
• Having found out that the Hulk's skin can't be penetrated by Zombie Wanda, Bruce opts to stay on the ground in Camp Lehigh to clear the path for T'Challa, Peter, and Scott to take off in the Quadjet. As he runs out into the crowd of zombies, he tells The Hulk it's time to be the heroic one. He's soon overrun by zombies, and for a horrible moment it looks like Bruce is doomed… but then Hulk comes through and fights the horde off. And since his skin is impenetrable, it's very safe to assume that Hulk actually survives. Until confirmed otherwise, of course.
  Bruce Banner: Okay, big guy. Kinda counting on you here. Things are pretty bad. It'd be nice for you to be the hero. I mean, wouldn't it be kinda cool for you to be the nice one for a change?
  • The Incredible Hulk vs a Zombified Scarlet Witch.
• Against all odds, the heroes make it out of Camp Lehigh and are heading to Wakanda, the last human sanctuary on the planet, with the Mind Stone and complete faith that they can fix the world… unfortunately, the awesomeness is undercut because Wakanda has fallen, and all that's waiting for them is a zombified Thanos (with the rest of the Stones) and his infected army.
• While it's part of the Cruel Twist Ending, Thanos is standing above the horde in Wakanda, the Infinity Stones glowing as he closes his fist. The implication is that despite being zombified, Thanos managed to become an Elite Zombie who still plans to use the Stones to enact his plan… and this time, with most of the heroes destroyed, it seems bleak that anybody can stop the Mad Titan.

Episode 6: What If… Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?

• Right before the missile that would launch metal fragments into Tony's heart explodes, Killmonger of all people shows up, grabs the missile, and throws it high into the air like a nerf rocket without missing a beat. Tony is justifiably in awe at this spectacle.
• Killmonger's plan is perhaps even more clever than the one that he employed in the movie: he uses a sonic weapon to murder T'Challa and the Black Panther claws to murder Rhodes, then kills Tony with a Wakandan spear, using these incidents as false flag attacks to inflame tensions between Wakanda and America. Then he enters Wakanda, staging a battle against an army of Liberator drones in which he impresses the royal family enough to be made the Black Panther, thus convincing the Wakandan government to play into his goal of destroying America and taking over the world using Wakanda's might. His suave, manipulative charm only adds to the impressiveness of his scheme. Cersei Lannister would be impressed.
  • He also gets a few awesome offscreen actions, such as easily resolving Obadiah Stane's scheme to kill Tony, or how at MIT he designed a blueprint for a combat drone, making him enough of a Genius Bruiser to work side-by-side with Tony Stark, one of the most brilliant inventors in the MCU.
  • At the end, Shuri and Pepper both get points for being rightly skeptical of Killmonger and resisting the enticements towards warmongering behaviour, not even letting the loss of their loved ones corrupt their judgement.
• T'Challa tearing his way through Klaue's mooks without a scratch. He even pauses in front of Rhodey to let him unload a clip into his bulletproof costume before telling him that the only reason he hasn't killed him is that his quarrel isn't with him or the United States.
• Rhodey gets one when Killmonger calls him a traitor for wearing the uniform of his oppressors:
  Rhodey: Kid, you've got to be part of the system to change the system.
• Credit where it's due, Tony easily figures out that Killmonger murdered T'Challa and Rhodey (with a little help from J.A.R.V.I.S., natch) and comes closer than anyone in the episode to derailing the villain’s plan. Tony may not have become a hero or even a good person in this timeline… but he's still a genius. As a bit of poetic justice, he even uses Killmonger’s ring to power the drone that he uses to try to avenge his friend.
• Killmonger's rebuke to Tony after Tony tells him that there's no difference between the two of them.
  Killmonger: The difference between you and me… is that you can't see the difference between you and me.
• Killmonger versus the Liberator drone at Stark headquarters. The Liberator drone is a fully armed and operational war machine that has his moves mo-capped and is designed specifically for military use. Killmonger is a guy with a Vibranium spear. Killmonger brings it down.
• General (and Queen) Ramonda leading the Dora Milaje into battle against the Stark drones:
  Ramonda: For T'Challa!
  • As a bonus, she's just as badass as the soldiers that she's leading into battle, at one point throwing a spear so hard that it manages to pierce through two drones at once. These are the same drones that Okoye and Killmonger, both of them among the most dangerous fighters in the world, can only take down one at a time.
• Killmonger leading a cavalry charge into the drones atop a rhino, with the rhino itself even wrecking a few drones.
• Killmonger, Okoye, and Ramonda fighting together against the drones, tearing through them.
• Even T'Challa himself is able to give Killmonger a "The Reason You Suck" Speech during the Black Panther ceremony, warning him that power taken the way he did will likely not end up the way he thinks, made all the more powerful by coming from a real deceased actor.
  • After an episode of Killmonger getting everything he wanted, T'Challa effectively undercuts his whole victory by pointing out that no matter what he gains in life, he'll eventually end up in the Wakandan afterlife, where T'Challa and all the Black Panthers of the past will be waiting.
    T'Challa: Power unearned is a volatile force, cousin. It will get the best of you eventually, on your plane, or on ours.
  • That's essentially the polite, spiritual, Wakandan way of saying See You in Hell.
• As Stane tries to make his escape, Happy of all people sends him to the floor with a single punch, declaring that he never liked the guy anyway.
• Shuri recruits Pepper at the end to help her expose Killmonger and prevent the war between Wakanda and the US.
  Shuri: Tony Stark was a genius, but he was not the only genius.

Episode 7: What If… Thor Were an Only Child?

• When Thor won't stop partying, Maria Hill calls in Carol Danvers to deal with him. Their confrontation escalates into a continent-hopping brawl between two of the strongest characters in the universe.
  • Though Thor walks away from their battle, Carol makes it clear that she could have beaten him, but would have risked splitting the planet in half doing it.
• Carol introduces herself to Frigga, who simply says "I know who you are." Whatever she's been up to since becoming Captain Marvel, it got the attention of the co-ruler of Asgard.
• Frigga is so terrifying that just saying her name makes everyone in Thor's entourage want to clean up their act. Yes, even the likes of Surtur are scared of her!
• As Uatu details how Jane and Thor will get their Happily Ever After, he suddenly exclaims "Wait, what?" That's right, folks; something Uatu the Watcher couldn't foresee. What is it? Ultron drones exiting a portal, alongside a Vision body in Ultron armor… with six Infinity Stones. The multiversal threat? It's here, out of absolutely nowhere.

Episode 8: What If… Ultron Won?

• Thanos arrives on Earth with five of the Infinity Stones already collected and his sights on the Mind Stone. Ultron immediately cuts him in half, proving just how powerful he is now.
• A villainous example in that Ultron's rampage across the universe awesomely shows the sheer power that he displays beyond instant-hit killing Thanos. Asgard? Decimated in an instant. The Sovereign and the Guardians of the Galaxy? Completely overwhelmed. Sakaar? Never stood a chance, with the Grandmaster being forced to watch in horror as his planet falls before his eyes. Ego, the Living Planet and also a Celestial? Obliterated just like that. Xandar? The Nova Corps can't hope to protect it, and when Captain Marvel tries to stop Ultron's rampage, he is already too powerful and he kills both her and the entire population of Xandar, with Xandar's entire solar system getting destroyed as well. In this montage, Infinity Ultron manages to amass the highest body count of anyone in the entire MCU (aside from Strange Supreme destroying his own reality, and the countless individuals that the TVA pruned), even exceeding Sacred Timeline Thanos when he wiped out a mere half of the universe with the snap of his fingers.
• The last moments of post-apocalyptic Clint Barton, where he plunges into a swarm of sentries, explosive arrow at the ready, and dies heroically.
• Ultron breaks through the barrier of his universe and confronts Uatu for watching and not intervening to help people. This leads to a massive fight with the two breaking into multiple alternate universes. Uatu puts up a hell of a good fight but Ultron proves too much for him.
• Ultron has the power to manipulate the universe at his fingertips. It says a lot that with all that power at his command, he's at best slightly stronger than the Watcher. It gives you a sense of how powerful the Watcher is, if command of the fundamental forces of the universe is needed just to face him as an equal.
• One of the universes briefly glimpsed during the fight shows Steve Rogers apparently being sworn in as President of the United States.
• Black Widow kicking ass and pulling off Steve-like ricochets with Red Guardian's old shield.
• During the fight with the Watcher, Ultron grows to massive size and takes a bite out of a galaxy, looking eerily similar to Galactus. Doubles as Nightmare Fuel.
• Uatu's Pre Ass Kicking One Liner as he dons his Instant Armor to fight Ultron.
  Uatu: You cannot compute the power of my will.
• Strange Supreme smugly lets the cold irony fall upon Uatu as the latter begs him for help with the Ultron situation as payback for letting his world fall to ruination.

Episode 9: What If… The Watcher Broke His Oath?

• Even before we get to the big fight, the Watcher rounding up the Guardians of the Multiverse has some choice moments.
  • Captain Carter has reached the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and actually fares a good deal better against Batroc than Steve did, only taking a hit because she was distracted by the fight with Ultron.
  • Star-Lord T'Challa saves Peter from having his power taken by Ego, seemingly just after the episode ended. Peter ends up teaming up with the Ravagers afterwards.
  • While we lost the episode with Gamora defeating Thanos this season thanks to COVID, we get a tantalizing glimpse of her having teamed up with Tony in a Hulkbuster suit. Bring on Season 2! In addition, she not only destroyed the Stones but is melting the Infinity Gauntlet when we catch up with her.
  • Shuri and Pepper were able to expose Killmonger's scheme, and are leading the Dora Milaje in a rebellion against him. Pepper is even charging in with a big-ass gun in her work dress!
  • Party Thor escaped from Ultron, and is kicking so much ass against his drones that Uatu can't get his attention and has to just grab him out of his universe.
• Verbal example. When Uatu recruits the Guardians, he refers to each of them by their titles and deeds. In Killmonger’s case, Uatu directly names him as Tony Stark’s protege and killer.
• Party Thor and Strange Supreme’s combo attack. Thor throws his hammer at the mad A.I., then Strange casts a spell that multiplies the hammer into hundreds of copies that swarm Ultron. Then he converges them all into Ultron as a ball that Thor casts a massive lightning bolt onto.
• Star-Lord T'Challa swiping the Soul Stone right out from under Ultron's nose without him even realizing it. Bonus points for the former being able to do it whilst also holding his blasters. This weakens Ultron enough to make the fight far more fair and prevents him from summoning his army to Zerg Rush the heroes, due to him needing all the Stones to operate at full strength.
• While it was previously implied that Strange Supreme could be on par with Infinity Ultron, this episode confirms it. Strange's protection spell lets the other heroes shrug off planet-destroying blasts, while he unleashes dimensional horrors on the genocidal AI, and proves that his skill with the time stone is far beyond anything that Ultron can reach out of sheer experience. When Ultron freezes the heroes in time, Strange effortlessly avoids it and dispels the time-stop. When Ultron attempts the tried-and-true "create a cosmic explosion" that worked on Carol and Zombie Wanda, Strange not only survives,^note It's unclear, but the rest of the Guardians appear to also be alright during this, which would be another testament to the protection spells but reverses time and fucking eats the explosion to contain it. Ultron is utterly baffled at this.
  Ultron: Wait, w-w-wha-? [gets tackled and pile-drived into a building by Star-Lord]
• Captain Carter and Natasha using their shields to perform combos on Infinity Ultron and keep him pinned down, and then the entire group joining in, all striking a blow.
• Strange Supreme unleashing his full demonic force on Infinity Ultron multiple times. Most notably when he opens the Zombies dimension and dumps a metric crapton of the undead right on top of the bastard; as he notes, though, there's only one that he thinks might slow Ultron down. Cue Zombie Wanda… who Ultron proves utterly resistant to.
  • Ultron uses the stones to make himself giant-sized. Strange Supreme answers by unleashing the massive tentacled-beast stored with him to crush Ultron back into normal size.
• With help from Captain Carter, Black Widow shooting Ultron in the eyeball with the virus arrow. On a motorcycle. In midair.
• A villainous example from Dr. Arnim Zola, whose computerized mind is more than enough to overwhelm Ultron's A.I., effectively killing him and taking over his body in the process. As this is how Ultron destroyed J.A.R.V.I.S. in Avengers: Age of Ultron, it's fitting that Ultron suffers the same fate, from a former organic being no less. Even better, Zola converts the Ultron-Vision body into his android body from the comics and is actually powerful enough to draw the Infinity Stones away from Killmonger, giving Strange Supreme the opening to end the multiuniversal threat once and for all.
  Zola: This is a fascinating change of pace, ja? It has been a long time since I have had legs. I'd like to make this a permanent condition!
  Ultron: This body is occupied!
  Zola: For now…but not for long.
  Ultron: What? Who are you? What is your objective?
  Zola: [chuckles softly] Once upon a time, it was to bring forth HYDRA's domination. But you ended that. So now I suppose… my objective is to end you! [stabs Ultron with tendrils, overwriting him with Zola's consciousness]
• Whenever Strange Supreme gets the upper hand, a few chords of his movie theme plays. The good doctor? He's Back!.
• From the second Killmonger saw the Ultron drone's head, he planned out his own scheme to get his hands on the Infinity Stones, and nearly succeeds. Talk about Xanatos Speed Chess, and it's another example of why this more patient Killmonger is more effective than his mainline counterpart. Even after gaining the Stones, he tries to talk things out with the rest of the Guardians; it's only thanks to Zola and Strange Supreme that Killmonger fails at all.
  • Considering how other, more powerful characters in the sacred timeline have struggled to wield just one of the Infinity Stones, while weaker ones have outright been killed in the attempt, the fact that Killmonger managed to casually manipulate five of them just goes to show how strong he truly was.
• Uatu fully lives up to his previous line "You cannot compute the power of my will." Everything about how the fight proceeds is exactly how he intended, including bringing in Killmonger to be the Token Evil Teammate who tries to get the Infinity Stones himself, so that both he and Infinity Ultron (now replaced by Zola) can be distracted and Strange Supreme can trap them both. Strange's realization of the entire plan is tinged with profound respect after his previous dismissive attitude.
• Strange Supreme locking Killmonger and Ultron-Zola away, then vowing to watch them forever since he has "nothing but time."
• Crossing over with Heartwarming, the Watcher uses the crisis to repair or avert some of the seemingly doomed timelines that we've seen. A staggering amount of the zombies from the zombie apocalypse episode - including the supremely dangerous Scarlet Witch zombie - are summoned, only to be disposed of by Infinity Ultron, giving that timeline a chance to recover. ^note  Although we don’t see Zombie Thanos in that group The Killmonger who murdered Tony Stark and instigated a war between America and Wakanda is locked away, as is the Zola of Infinity Ultron's homeworld, while Strange Supreme is given a new purpose watching over the two villains. And the Black Widow whose world was destroyed by Infinity Ultron is transplanted to the timeline where she and most of the other initial Avengers were assassinated, allowing her to fight to liberate that world from Crown Prince Loki of Asgard. Uatu nullifies several dire threats by setting them against each other, and gives some heroes second chances to save their worlds.
• When Uatu delivers Natasha to the King Loki timeline, it's in the middle of a battle between Asgard's army and Fury's resistance. There is Captain America, throwing his mighty shield, there's Captain Marvel, zapping the Einherjar as she flies around, but most of the resistance is SHIELD, flying quinjets against asgard's flying longships and agents fighting the einherjar, hand-to-hand.

Season Two

Episode 1: What If… Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?

• Just when it seems all hope is lost, the shield closes on Ronan's ship, crushing the ship and killing him in the ensuing explosion. It turns out Nebula had actually realized Yon-Rogg was going to betray her and that Nova Prime had become corrupt, and planned ahead for it by putting a twist on the codes to open the shields and then close them again.
• Howard gets to show that he means business when he prepares the guns for himself, Korg, Miek, and Groot to use to mow down the Nova Corps. Even if it's only because he wants to keep his liquor licence.
• Korg does a double Metronomic Man Mashing with ease, even with a stiff back.

Episode 2: What If... Peter Quill Attacked Earth's Mightiest Heroes?

• The Avengers are formed earlier in the 80s to combat Ego the Living Planet: Hank Pym as Ant Man, King T'Chaka who takes on the role of Black Panther, Bill Foster who becomes Goliath, Wendy Lawson as Mar-Vell, and finally, The Winter Soldier. Thor arrives as well as a Sixth Ranger to the group.
• During the battle, Thor recalls Mjölnir and catches it... which is all he needs to creates a shockwave that decimates the forces around him.
• The fact that it is love and kindness that ends up defeating Ego. Peter's love for his mother is what gives him the strength to escape the living planet, Hope bonds with Peter over how they miss their mothers, Hank opens his heart to Peter to have them join their family, and it is Howard Stark who brings up Steve Rogers to Bucky just before he puts a bullet in Peter's brain that convinces the Winter Soldier to leave Hydra.

Episode 3: What If... Happy Hogan Saved Christmas?

• Happy accidentally gets injected with a gamma serum, turning him into a purple Hulk. He gets to wail on the Iron Sentries without trouble in a glorious display of violence.

Episode 4: What If... Iron Man Crashed Into the Grandmaster?

• Stuck on Sakaar, Tony seems to be out of options and materials. He doesn't let it stop him, and, with help from his new buddies Korg and Valkyrie, makes a new Iron Man suit from some of the metal junk on the planet. Once the suit is done, it's bulky and brute enough to take on threats... and it can split itself into parts before reassembling themselves into a TRON-like race car for Tony to drive in!
  • Well, considering that he made the MK I armor in a cave with a box of scraps, the random tech lying around Sakaar gives him much better "scraps" to work from.
• An understated bit of awesome is the ease with which Tony escapes the Grandmaster's prison once in there— casually disabling his Restraining Bolt and hacking the door lock while snarking at Gamora (not even the least bit intimidated by her) and figuring out the situation he's in. It feels like he just barely considered himself imprisoned in that room in the first place.
• Despite his wisecracks and pop culture quips to everyone around him, Tony is determined to make a change for everyone and everything he sees on Sakaar, even if it means risking his life in a deadly race with the Grandmaster. Despite the odds stacked against him, the billionaire manages to defeat the Grandmaster and his sneaky cheats with his technology, his genius, and determination to set things right.
• Gamora killing Thanos with the melt stick, thus becoming the "Slayer of Thanos."

Episode 5: What If... Captain Carter Fought the HYDRA Stomper?

• Among Captain Carter's Avengers is The Wasp
• An elderly Bucky standing in front of Steve to prevent him from being shot.
• Peggy and Nat working together to fight the androids and the Black Widows.
• Steve sacrificing himself by flying into the Red Room with Melina tied to his suit.

Episode 6: What If... Kahhori Reshaped the World?

• Kahhori capturing more fruit than any other member of the tribe on her first hunt.
• Kahhori taking on the Conquistadors herself before the Sky World tribe shows up to help.
• Kahhori and the other Mohawk portal into Queen Isabella's court, humiliate her in front of her subjects, destroy her throne, and pressure her into making peace.
• Strange Supreme's appearance at the end, hinting at far greater things to come.
  Strange: I've been looking for you for a very long time.
• Huge props to the creators for making a character unique to the What If...? storyline that is not only very interesting but also Native American, giving them some sorely needed representation. It is also even better in that this episode - bar Uatu's narration and Strange's dialogue - is completely in foreign languages (Native American and Spanish), adding to its authenticity.

Episode 7: What If... Hela Found the Ten Rings?

• Hela is in command of Mjolnir and hurls it at Odin, who promptly catches it with ease and shatters it just as she did in Thor: Ragnarok.
• This line from Odin seconds before banishing Hela:
  No god should have dominion over death who has so little appreciation for life!
• Hela taking well to the teachings of the people of Ta Lo and mastering their special air manipulation techniques.
• Wenwu displays that he's very much the Empowered Badass Normal he was in the sacred timeline, not only standing up to Hela without a shred of fear, but single-handedly taking on the Asgardian army and nearly winning until the arrival of Odin himself.
• Hela and Wenwu vs. the All-Father! It's got some gorgeous animation, some brilliant choreography, and some seriously epic and slick teamwork between the two as they work to repel Odin and separate him from his legendary spear Gungnir.
• The glorious final shot of the people of Ta Lo and the Asgardians racing across a gorgeous gigantic rainbow bridge towards Thanos before he can destroy Gamora's homeworld. The charge is led by Wenwu and Hela, now both renowned heroes and liberators riding together as equals. Bonus points for the former sprinting across the air using the Ten Rings as platforms while the latter rides a grown Fenrir, with Gungnir firmly in hand and ready for battle!

Episode 8: What If... The Avengers Assembled in 1602?

• Peggy easily escaping from her dungeon cell and going through the guards with ease. What one-ups this? Peggy getting an imprisoned Bruce Banner to transform into the Hulk and then mounting in his back as he smashes through the guards and out of the dungeon.
  • The build-up to Hulk's transformation is awesome in and of itself. When the guards realize that they've accidentally awakened the monster, one of them can only utter "Dear lord" before they all flee for their lives.
• Finally seeing Captain Carter and, as we later find out, Captain America fighting side-by-side.

Episode 9: What If... Strange Supreme Intervened?

• Peggy breaking open the seals and unleashing the countless variants of villains and anti-heroes, leading to an intense battle in the Sanctum Infinitum.
  • Strange easily repelling and imprisoning a fair few of them only mere moments after their escape. This is the man who captured them, after all.
• Kahhori easily outrunning and charging through the battlefield to the Forge, slowed down only by Zombie-Scarlet Witch and Thanos.
• Kahhori effortlessly breaking a newly freed Killmonger from his infinity armour and sending him to fight alternate villains. And when he realizes what's happened, does he flinch? Nope. He simply dons his Black Jaguar suit and begins the fight like it's nothing.
  • While both are dealt with rather quickly, you will feel the dread of Zombie Wanda and King Killmonger when they show up again.
• When confronted by a version of Hela who tells them to kneel Kahhori only has this to say to the Godess of Death...
  Kahhori: The last person who demanded that of me regretted it!
• The entire sequence of Strange Supreme vs. Captain Carter and Kahhori. Strange's smugness over his victory is slowly but surely chipped away, especially when Peggy usurps the Infinity Stones and claims them her own to even the odds. If you thought she was badass before, just wait until you see her use the Inifinity Stones in collaboration with her fighting skills to utterly stupefy the (currently) strongest variant of Doctor Strange we know of.
  • Kahhori managing to reverse-engineer Strange's portals and sending all the villains and powerful opponents back to their original timelines. Even Strange is dazzled (and enraged) she was able to accomplish that.
  • When Strange begins feeding the heroes and villains to the Forge, all of them, knowing they cannot be saved, instead opt to hurl their weapons, from the Ten Rings to Odin's spear Gungnir, to Carter and Kahhori, knowing the two will avenge them. Hela even screams "give him hell!" before she dies.
  • Props to Strange Supreme; while he did lose to the two, his confidence was not unjustified. With his experience and raw power, he was able to give both of them a huge challenge, likely even more so than Infinity Ultron, not making it easy for them for a second. It's very telling that it took the combined forces of the Infinity Stones, the Ten Rings, the Necrosword and Mjolnir to actually squarely defeat him (and even then he wasn't down and out, just winded).
  • Just when Carter and Kahhori thought they had him down for the count, Strange Supreme transforms into the ultimate manifestation of his rage and grief over Christine's death: A massive demonic entity that makes Chernabog look like a chibi. In this state, Strange puts the two heroines on the backfoot with his full unbridled power and their attempts to stop him with their weapons fail: He easily breaks free of Kahhori binding him with the Ten Rings, uses his outstretched hand to swallow up a thrown Gungnir like it was nothing, and catches and crushes Mjolnir into oblivion with his jaws. In the end, it took Captain Carter delivering a punch clenching all six Infinity Stones at once to exorcise all the demons out of Strange, and even then, it was only a temporary fix.
• Uatu stepping in once again and rescuing both Kahhori and Captain Carter. He then takes Carter on the "scenic route" back home at her request, asking if there's anything else worth seeing in the Multiverse. Uatu then shows her a very familiar World-Tree resting in the endless cosmos.
  Uatu: Are you ready - finally - to return home?
  Carter: I am... but perhaps we could take the scenic route home? Surely, there's something worth seeing on the way.
  Uatu: Oh, Captain... just you watch.

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