What if...? Episode 1 Spoiler Free Review!

What if…?

Episode One

The What If....? series, like most Marvel shows and movies, was highly anticipated and will probably be pretty well received. So, naturally, it will be all a lot of people will be talking about!

Which works out. Because it's a perfect little set up now that the multiverse is opening up. We get to see what might be happening in other realities. It's also possible that some of these things will make it into the movies. Probably an almost non-existent possibility.

But a possibility nonetheless.

The What ifs make for a good chance to explore all the different possibilities in Marvel. From the simplest details to the most outrageous, the Watcher is there to tell us about them all. And he acts as our guide as we are put into a world that is different from the one we've grown to know and love.

This last week's episode was about our Star-Spangled Hero, Captain Carter.... And Steve.

After the Super Soldier experiment goes a little sideways and Steve is injured just before getting into the machine, Peggy Carter jumps in to take his place. The end result? British Super Soldier. Perfect British Super Soldier.

Now I'll argue it doesn't deviate too far from the original source. Although Steve was used as almost a World War II mascot, Peggy ends up being pushed back as if she's some embarrassing secret. Like politics at a Christmas Eve party, everyone tries to pretend she doesn't exist so they can continue on with the status quo.

But Carter's not going to take that bull. With the help of Howard Stark as well as a few other not-so-surprising allies, she continues with her fight against Hydra and saves the day with an ultimate sacrifice.

Of course, no “First Avenger” story is complete without the soldier disappearing for the better part of a century and coming to the modern day. How else would the Avenger assemble?

It's a very similar heartbreaking story with a lot of the Woman in a Man's World context thrown in. In my personal opinion, Carter's approach to the powers is a tad more brutal than Steve's. But the shot for shot similarities are a nice way of showing just how similar they are, thus how much they were meant to be together.

The episode leaves a lot of room to approach this particular world again. Possibly somewhere down the line, we'll get to see Peggy Carter kick ass alongside Thor and Hulk. It would also be nice to see how this different timeline would affect other characters. Like Tony for instance. Although, I'm willing to bet that's not something they're considering just yet.

But I’ll be over here. Holding onto hope.