Review: Marvel’s What If…? “What If…Ultron Won?”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton seek to destroy killer-robot Ultron following a cataclysmic event.

Our Take:

We’re one step closer to the season finale of Marvel’s latest animated series. But, unfortunately, our celebration is far from glowing. The second-to-last episode of Marvel’s What If explores another dark scenario in which the villainous Ultron from Avengers: Age of Ultron became victorious over Earth’s mightiest heroes. What’s even worse is that he finally gains control over Vision’s body and the Infinity Stones. Man, the Avengers couldn’t catch a break this season. Luckily, the remaining two survivors are not going down without a fight.

Last week, we saw Ultron (Ross Marquand) and his army invading Thor’s happily-ever-after. This week’s episode explores how Tony’s creation became the most dangerous threat in the multiverse. After gaining control of Vision’s body and the Mind Stone, Ultron defeated the Avengers and launched a global nuclear holocaust. He then instantly acquires possession of the remaining five Infinity Stones after slicing Thanos in half. While the remaining survivors, Natasha (Lake Bell) and Clint (Jeremy Renner), seek the key to destroying Ultron for good, the mighty robot completes his mission to bring “peace” to the galaxy, leaving him without a purpose. That is until he noticed The Watcher’s (Jeffrey Wright) presence and discovered the multiverse.

This episode sees the show breaking its anthology formula in the previous episodes in favor of a story where everything comes full circle. More importantly, it represents a more prominent role for The Watcher, who spent the first seven episodes on the sidelines watching the alternate events unfold. It sees his role being threatened by a presence that he alone couldn’t face. Even Captain Marvel isn’t powerful enough to defeat it. These elements are enough to deliver another satisfying and intense first half of its two-part storyline.

Like The Watcher, Jeffrey Wright remains a massive highlight of the show regarding his compelling narrative and irresistible vocal talent. While the episode also focused on Natasha and Clint’s quest to defeat Ultron, its eyes were only set on The Watcher and his attempt to fight off the robot. This direction made the formula and its story both fresh and exciting, in my opinion. I was very disappointed that they couldn’t get James Spader to reprise his role as Ultron in this episode since he was one of the best parts of Age of Ultron. Fortunately, Ross Marquand managed to provide enough effort in his vocal performance to fill in the character’s robotic shoes.

The episode is also where the animation shines the most. Not only did it succeed in providing some excellent imagery in the settings, but it also delivered some splendid visuals in the action scenes. The best part of the episode would have to be the fight between The Watcher and Ultron, hands down. It resembled something out of a Dragon Ball Z episode and showed that The Watcher could do more than just watch, which to me was pretty damn cool to witness.

Overall, the Ultron episode is a near-perfect start to the show’s two-part finale. Regarding its intense story and fantastic animation, this is one of my favorite episodes that the show had to offer. Although, it still couldn’t top the Doctor Strange episode as the best part of What If, in my opinion. Speaking of which, it looks like Strange Supreme (Benedict Cumberbatch) may have a shot of redemption, as seen in the episode’s final moments, but will it be too late?