Review: Marvel’s What If…? “What If…The Watcher Broke His Oath?”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

The Watcher is forced to do the unthinkable to save the multiverse from Ultron’s wrath.

Our Take:

It has been one heck of a trip through the multiverse. We revisited our favorite characters in different universes, and we’ve experienced them taking on their alternative destinies. Now it’s time to unite those multiverse heroes for the biggest clash of all time. This week’s episode sees Marvel’s What If bringing its successful first season to a close by uniting the characters from the previous episodes in a fight to save their universes and The Watcher’s job.

The episode serves as the second half of the two-part finale, with The Watcher (Jeffrey Wright) teaming up with Strange Supreme (Benedict Cumberbatch) to recruit the heroes from different universes. The members consist of Captain Carter (Hayley Atwell), Star-Lord T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), Party Thor (Chris Hemsworth), King Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan), and a variant of Gamora (Cynthia McWilliams), who assumed the role of Thanos. Known as the Guardians of the Multiverse, the variants must work together to save their worlds from Ultron (Ross Marquand) and destroy his Infinity Stones.

The story breaks away from the anthology formula in favor of an epic 35-minute showdown that resembles a CGI-filled finale from every Marvel Cinematic Universe film in existence. It’s an element that works well in those films, and it works well here. Despite a couple of moments that could’ve been explored further, such as Strange’s redemption arc, the episode offered enough non-stop thrills and anime-like sequences to deliver an explosive finale.

The actors who returned to reprise their roles from the previous episodes were suitable in voicing their characters, ranging from Hayley Atwell as Captain Carter to Jeffrey Wright as The Watcher. The main highlight of the cast was Chris Hemsworth as Thor regarding the humor. His “Viva Las Vegas” battle cry cracked me up so much.  

Gamora is the latest character to get a voice change in the show. Instead of Zoe Saldana, they got Cynthia McWilliams, known for her roles in other shows like Prison Break and Nashville. While it would be nice to see Saldana return to voice the Thanos version of Gamora, I thought McWilliams did a solid job voicing the fearless warrior. I also thought the interactions between Captain Carter and Natasha Romanoff (Lake Bell) were pretty charismatic. They reminded me a lot of the chemistry between Steve and Natasha in the Captain America films. I loved it when they took what worked in the MCU films and added a different spin to them.

The battle between the Guardians of the Multiverse and Ultron was as chaotic and intense as one would expect from a Marvel team-up event. This was mainly due to Bryan Andrews’s direction and the stunning animation. It may not reach the same heart-pounding heights as the Avengers’ attempt to retrieve the Infinity Stones from Thanos in Avengers: Endgame, but it was very entertaining to watch regardless.

Overall, the season finale of Marvel’s What If is an eye-opening and captivating conclusion to its consistently enjoyable first season. It did follow the same footsteps as 2012’s The Avengers, and Strange’s redemption arc felt rushed. Nonetheless, its voice cast, direction, and animation successfully brought closure to its first set of multiverse stories. Also, make sure you stay for a mid-credit scene that features a potential reunion between Carter and her loved one.