What If Episode 1: Every Change To The MCU Timeline & Future

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for What If...? episode 1.

The first episode of Marvel's What If...? introduced viewers to a timeline in which Peggy Carter became a super-soldier instead of Steve Rogers - and it would have caused massive changes to events in the MCU. Marvel's Disney+ TV shows have transformed the MCU, with Loki officially unleashing a Multiverse of Madness. Marvel's latest TV series, What If...?, explores that idea, revealing alternate dimensions where a single different decision created a branching timeline.

Take, for example, the case of Peggy Carter. In the What If...? premiere, Peggy Carter chose to stay in the Project Rebirth chamber rather than watch from the observation booth. As a result, when Hydra agents attacked and Steve Rogers injured, she was in the position to become the Allies' first super-soldier instead of Steve Rogers. Despite the opposition of General Flynn over a woman receiving the serum, she proved herself a force to be reckoned with. The episode shows how this one alteration transformed the lives of all the characters seen in Captain America: The First Avenger, but it only hints at far greater impacts on the timeline.

Some of those impacts are difficult to evaluate. It's unclear how society would have reacted to the idea of the greatest hero of World War II being a woman. Another question is whether or not Peggy Carter would have achieved more for the cause of gender equality had she gone on to become SHIELD's first director, as she did in the main timeline. Such societal changes are impossible to predict, but here are the elements of the MCU timeline that have certainly been transformed as a result of Captain Carter's heroism.

Iron Man Technology Was Created During World War II

In contrast with the main MCU timeline, Captain Carter recovered the Tesseract from the Red Skull and took it to Howard Stark while it was still active. Marvel's What If...? episode 1 revealed Stark figured out how to use the Tesseract as a power source, and he created a first-generation Iron Man armor for Steve Rogers that was used during the Second World War. This means the prototype Iron Man was developed in 1943 rather than in 2008 - so technology in Captain Carter's timeline is almost 70 years ahead. It's reasonable to assume the so-called "Hydra Stomper" would have led to an arms race, similar to the one seen in Iron Man 2 but decades earlier, with all the world's powers attempting to create their own armored warriors. The United States would have had the advantage of Tesseract technology, but it would only have been a matter of time before alternative power sources - perhaps even Arc Reactors - were created.

More Super-Soldiers Legitimately Exist In The MCU

Captain Carter holding the shield in What If

In Captain Carter's timeline, John Flynn took charge of the SSR before the end of World War II. Although Flynn was initially dismissive of Carter, believing women weren't made to be soldiers, he did nonetheless recognize the potential of taking blood samples to figure out how to reproduce Abraham Erskine's super-soldier serum. Consequently, the programs would have been more advanced, and there would be more super-soldiers out there than in the main MCU timeline. It's unlikely Isaiah Bradley would ever have become a super-soldier, although some of the experiments Flynn signed off on may have been just as unethical.

SHIELD's Founding Is Completely Different

The founding of SHIELD would, of course, have been completely changed. Peggy Carter became the first director of SHIELD in the main MCU timeline; she ran the organization for decades, leaving a lasting impression. But Peggy's role in the What If...? episode 1 timeline is very different, and SHIELD's first director would have been somebody else - perhaps even Flynn, who was carefully positioning himself to take credit for Captain Carter's successes, which may very well have set back advancements for women in this timeline, ironically. It's possible Peggy still helped co-found SHIELD, but with her duties as Captain Carter, it's unlikely she would have been as intimately involved.

Hydra May Still Infiltrate SHIELD - But They Wouldn't Have The Winter Soldier

Arnim Zola grasps his hand in What If...?

In the main MCU timeline, Hydra responded to their World War II defeat by taking advantage of Operation: Paperclip and infiltrating U.S. governmental organizations like SHIELD. It's impossible to say for certain whether they would have done the same in the timeline seen in What If...? season 1, but the odds are good they would have done - especially if they were dealing with a SHIELD run by Flynn rather than by Peggy Carter. Still, the Hydra of Captain Carter's reality would at least have been denied one of their greatest assets as Bucky Barnes never became the Winter Soldier in Carter's timeline.

Steve Rogers Lived Through The 20th Century - Without Peggy

Tragically, Marvel's What If...? episode 1 inverted the stories of Steve and Peggy. In this timeline, Captain Carter's heroism saw her banished into a portal through time and space, and she only emerged from it 70 years later. Steve Rogers lived through the 20th century without the love of his life, but his precise role in world history is unclear. It's possible he remained in action as the Hydra Stomper, perhaps even teaching the next generation of armored soldiers how to operate their equipment. He may well have been involved with SHIELD; it would be fittingly poetic if Steve Rogers were to have become the first director of SHIELD instead of Peggy in this timeline.

President Kennedy May Never Have Been Assassinated

American President John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Captain America: The Winter Soldier blamed Hydra for the JFK assassination, with the brainwashed Bucky Barnes committing the deed. That means it's quite possible President Kennedy was never killed in Captain Carter's timeline. Had he not been assassinated, the Civil Rights Act may well have cost Kennedy the 1964 election, because the Democrats had begun to fracture over it and Kennedy's Republican opponent Barry Goldwater was proving popular in the southern states. Kennedy's death changed the whole ball game, with the Civil Rights Act passed in part to honor the fallen president. Curiously, then, this is another case where the cause of equality and inclusion may actually have been delayed in the Captain Carter timeline.

Tesseract Experiments Were More Advanced - Would Captain Marvel Exist?

Tesseract technology was far more advanced in Captain Carter's timeline, meaning Howard Stark would have unlocked more of its secrets a lot sooner. Moving forward through the decades, this may well have meant the Kree scientist Mar-Vell would be unable to infiltrate Earth and take charge of the Tesseract for her own purposes, meaning that Captain Marvel would never have been created. While it's possible there were explosions of Tesseract energy during Stark's experiments or on missions in the field, they probably wouldn't result in the creation of more superhumans, simply because Carol Danvers only survived her own exposure to Tesseract energy thanks to a Kree blood transfusion.

Tony Stark's Parents Weren't Killed By The Winter Soldier

Iron Man Howard Maria Stark Winter Soldier Newspaper

In the main MCU timeline, the Winter Soldier assassinated Howard and Maria Stark on December 16, 1991. But the Winter Soldier didn't exist in Captain Carter's reality; even if Hydra still existed, super-soldier serums would have been more plentiful, and they would therefore have had no reason to target the Starks at that point. Thus one of the pivotal events in the history of the MCU never happened as Tony Stark would not have been orphaned while he was still a teenager.

Tony Stark Would Have Been Unrecognizable (And Wouldn't Have Been Iron Man)

All this means Tony Stark would have been unrecognizable - and he certainly wouldn't have become Iron Man. Stark's childhood trauma and his repressed grief for his parents' deaths lay at the heart of his character in the MCU; it's impossible to know what he'd have been like as a person without that experience of loss. He certainly wouldn't have become Iron Man, if only because in this timeline there would have been nothing special about a man wearing a suit of armor - the technology was pioneered in the 1940s, after all.

The Hulk May Never Have Been Created

The main MCU timeline saw General "Thunderbolt" Ross pursue methods of creating new super-soldiers, inspired by, but unable to duplicate, Captain America. But super-soldiers would likely be a lot more common in Captain Carter's timeline. With the serum cracked decades ago, Ross would have had no reason to pursue such projects. It's thus unlikely Bruce Banner's ill-advised experiments with Gamma radiation would ever create the Hulk.

Nick Fury & Hawkeye Learned To Control The Tesseract's Portals

The final scenes in Marvel's What If...? episode 1 saw Captain Carter emerge in the present day. This in itself was remarkable, because it was clear SHIELD scientists had figured out how to open the Tesseract's portals, proving their experiments were far in advance of those conducted by Project PEGASUS in the main timeline. Carter was greeted by Nick Fury and Hawkeye, both of whom were presumably involved with this reality's SHIELD; the episode seemed to imply Fury was director.

The Avengers May Never Have Existed

The Avengers standing together for the first time during the battle of New York

Captain Carter may have become this timeline's own "Living Legend of World War II," but she probably wasn't the "First Avenger," because the Avengers would probably never be formed. Nick Fury was inspired to pursue his Avengers Initiative in the main timeline because of his experiences with Captain Marvel (a somewhat heavy-handed retcon), but Carol Danvers most likely never gained superpowers in this timeline.

The Avengers may not have ever been necessary, however. Given this timeline's advanced understanding of the Tesseract, it's unlikely Dr. Selvig was ever called in to work on it, which means Loki will never have learned Earth possessed the Infinity Stone. Thus the Chitauri invasion of New York, which necessitated the formation of the Avengers, is erased from the timeline - with Loki presumably killed by Thanos years early because he had no knowledge to bargain with.

The Red Skull Was Never Transported To Vormir

There were, therefore, even cosmic impacts from the creation of Captain Carter; certainly, the history of Asgard will have been different, and Thanos' quest for the Infinity Stones will have played out differently if he did not know where the Tesseract was. But perhaps the most interesting change is that the Soul Stone would not have had a guardian, for the Red Skull was killed by a creature analogous to Shuma-Gorath in this timeline rather than banished to Vormir. The ripple effects really are quite remarkable.

More: What If…? Episode 1 Cast Guide: Every New & Returning MCU Character

Marvel's What If...? releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.