Marvel's What If...? deftly avoids the three biggest issues previous MCU TV shows have all faced on Disney+. By any measure, diversifying from big screen into streaming has proved a wise move on Kevin Feige's part. WandaVision, Falcon & The Winter Soldier and Loki all enjoyed significant popularity and widespread acclaim, giving the likes of Scarlet Witch, Vision, Bucky, Sam Wilson and Loki more opportunity to shine than their movies could ever afford, while introducing fascinating newcomers such as Val, Sylvie, and Agatha Harkness.
The latest release in Marvel's (very) long line of incoming projects is What If...? - an animated anthology series exploring alternate versions of MCU history. The opening gambit changes the timeline by having Peggy Carter replace Steve Rogers as the franchise's first Avenger, transforming into the super-soldier Captain Carter, and leaving Steve to adopt a completely new persona as the HYDRA Stomper. Riffing heavily on Captain America: The First Avenger, reaction to the What If...? premiere has been positive thus far, leaving audiences excited as to how else the series might twist MCU continuity.
While WandaVision, Falcon & The Winter Soldier and Loki all enjoyed sizable success, all three also shared similar drawbacks. Each of the MCU's Disney+ shows suffered pacing problems, divisive endings, and struggled to coexist alongside existing MCU continuity. But What If...? Marvel could avoid all three of those issues?
What If...? Fixes The MCU's Disney+ Pacing Issue
The MCU's Disney+ releases have thus far all been blessed/cursed with short episode counts, with WandaVision the longest at 9, and the others clocking in at a slender 6. This has led to some measured pacing, which even WandaVision creator Jac Schaeffer has acknowledged. The first MCU series on Disney+ set up many mysteries in its opening episodes, then gradually dropped more and more clues as the decades passed by. This approach was refreshingly different from the MCU's traditional gung-ho formula, but WandaVision still faced criticism for progressing too slowly, drip-feeding answers to the many questions surrounding Westview. Falcon & The Winter Soldier faced similar accusations of front-loading its exposition and starting too slowly, but was then also criticized for blistering through key moments too quickly when the narrative eventually did pick up. Loki arguably struck the best pacing balance of the three, but still endured a barrage of "too slow" accusations, especially following Loki and Sylvie's train journey episode, which some regarded as outright filler.
With a checkered pacing record, What If...? was already facing an uphill battle, but Captain Carter happily bucks the trend. As an anthology show, there's simply no room for What If...? to ease off the throttle, with each episodic adventure afforded a tight sub-30-minute time slot. The What If...? set up has no opportunity to indulge in Loki's filler or WandaVision's slow-burn mysteries, and moves far more smoothly (and quickly) than Bucky and Sam's Disney+ take. As different episodes cover different scenarios, What If...?'s pacing should remain jammed in top gear until the very end.
What If...? Fixes The MCU's Phase 4 Ending Problem
Another area where MCU Disney+ shows have sparked debate is in their collective struggle to stick the landing, with all three finales creating division among fans. In WandaVision's case, some were left dissatisfied by the various red herrings that amounted to nothing (Dottie, the Cicada, the "aerospace engineer") and felt let down by the Ralph Bohner non-reveal. WandaVision also left too many story threads dangling, with Scarlet Witch's powers, Agatha's fate, Tommy and Billy, and White Vision all frustratingly unresolved. With no sign of season 2 on the horizon, fans must simply hope these points get addressed elsewhere.
Falcon & The Winter Soldier's finale proved more conclusive, but no less controversial. Many viewers bemoaned how the ending sidelined Bucky Barnes and left Karli Morgenthou's villain crying out for a third dimension to her character. The focus remained squarely on Sam Wilson's evolution into Captain America, but the uneven pacing couldn't do justice to the meaty themes at play, and Sharon Carter as the Power Broker still makes no sense. Lastly, Loki's season 1 finale was essentially a 60-minute slab of MCU exposition, as the Gods of Mischief sat down for a nice, long chat with He Who Remains. The episode did more to set up future MCU projects than it did bring resolution to the past 6 installments.
What If...? evades the same pitfall, since every episode gets its own tailor-made ending. Where the MCU's Disney+ shows have previously struggled to pay off a season's worth of build, each What If...? tale is neatly resolved and tied off with a bow by the time the credits roll. In Captain Carter's case, HYDRA's plan is stopped, the Red Skull is defeated, and Steve Rogers is left leading Bucky and the Howling Commandos as the HYDRA Stomper. There's a thread of long-term storytelling as Carter moves into a new era, but compared to WandaVision and Loki, What If...? is nicely positioned to begin afresh in week 2. Some episodes will inevitably end stronger than others, but the beauty of episodic storytelling is that one disappointing conclusion doesn't define the entire season, which is exactly what some claim happened with Falcon & The Winter Soldier.
What If...? Means Marvel Doesn't Have To Hold Anything Back
The unfortunate drawback of Marvel's sprawling cinematic universe is that the larger said cinematic universe becomes, the more filmmakers must tread on eggshells around existing canon. This is especially true on Disney+, where Marvel clearly holds back on doing anything major in order to avoid confusing casual fans who only watch the MCU's movie releases. WandaVision already felt odd after Scarlet Witch's grief-free appearance in Avengers: Endgame, but the show also retconned the source of Wanda's powers, designating the character a "Nexus" being who wields a special type of chaos magic. The true ramifications are obviously being saved for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Falcon & The Winter Soldier largely ignored its Steve Rogers-shaped elephant in the room, as the old man from Avengers: Endgame failed to appear, while the finale featured a major battle in New York where Spider-Man (and the city's various other heroes) were suspiciously absent. Supporting characters such as Baron Zemo and Sharon Carter were changed entirely from their former selves - with Zemo becoming Batman and Carter a master crime lord - even though neither development fits the timeline. Loki, meanwhile, rewrote the MCU's time travel rules yet again, and redefined the multiverse layout of the franchise.
What If...? enjoys complete freedom of doing absolutely whatever it likes (apart from putting Luke Skywalker in The Avengers, apparently). As each episode takes place within its own universe and sits in an effectively non-canon corner of the MCU, there are very few restrictions in place. Putting Steve Rogers in an Iron Man suit? Go ahead. Turning Tony Stark into a zombie? Do it. Sending Black Panther into space? Knock yourselves out. There are no rules, no canon, and no limits with What If...?, meaning episodes can adapt existing stories (like Captain Carter changing Captain America: The First Avenger), or spin out into a completely new MCU landscape (like a zombie apocalypse) as the writers see fit. Nothing, therefore, needs to be saved for the big screen.
For those who emerged from WandaVision, Falcon & The Winter Soldier and Loki feeling that the MCU's Disney+ output was too slow, too restrictive and didn't end properly, What If...? presents the perfect solution.