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The fourth MCU-Disney Plus show, "What If…?" adds to the efforts of its predecessors to explore the multiverse further. The long-awaited animated anthology will deal with alternate "what if" realities and events where familiar characters return in unexpected roles. The first episode showcases an alternate reality where Peggy Carter takes the super-soldier serum instead of Steve Rogers.
Almost all the main characters in the show are voiced by actors who portrayed the original roles in live-action films and T.V. shows. Meanwhile, Jeffrey Wright voices 'The Watcher,' who acts as the narrator in "What If...?".
The ending scene of Marvel's What If…? Episode 1 mirrored the end of Captain America: The First Avenger. This also spawned off a few theories about the future of Captain Carter in the MCU.
Here's a list of Easter eggs and theories from Episode 1 of Marvel's What If…?
The Watcher
In Episode 1 of Marvel's What If…?, "The Watcher," voiced by Jeffrey Wright (Westworld and Batman fame). He says,
"I'm the Watcher. I observe all that transpires here. But I do not, cannot, will not interfere."
This establishes that Uatu (The Watcher) is aware of what happened with the MCU multiverse. In the comics, "the Watchers" were introduced as one of the oldest beings in the universe who observed every reality in the multiverse without interference.
The alien race was introduced in Fantastic Four #13 (April 1963) comics. One of the primary "Watchers" is Uatu, whom Wright is voicing in the series.
Previously, "the Watchers" were seen in 2016's Guardians of the Galaxy. In the movie, director James Gunn also established that Stan Lee's cameos throughout the Marvel movies could have been because he was an agent of the "Watchers."
Chester Philips' Death
General (or Colonel) Chester Phillips was played by Tommy Lee Jones in 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger. In the movie's event, Philips was alive beyond the end of the movie, whereas in Marvel's What If…? Episode 1, the character is killed off initially.
Phillips was responsible for the Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR), which was now taken over by Colonel John Flynn, who was last seen in "Agent Carter."
"Lucky to be in the room"
In Marvel's What If…? Episode 1, Colonel Flynn states this phrase to Peggy Carter multiple times. This was a callback to the beginning of the episode when Peggy chose to remain in the room where Steve was supposed to be injected with the serum.
Her remaining in the room was the turning point as opposed to in the 2011 movie. This enabled her to kill the Hydra agent, who killed Dr. Erskine and ultimately injected Peggy with the super-soldier serum.
Tonsberg village in Marvel's What If…? Episode 1
The village of Tonsberg in Norway was where Allfather Odin fought the Frost Giants of Jotunheim thousands of years ago. The battle took place in 965 A.D. as King Laufey (Loki's biological father) tried to conquer Midgard (Earth).
Tonsberg has also been safeguarding the Tesseract (which withholds the infinity gem known as 'Space-stone') for centuries. However, Johann Schmidt (AKA "Red Skull") ends up obtaining the Tesseract.
The village is also where Odin was awaiting his death in Thor: Ragnarok (2017). Furthermore, In Tonsberg, Thor decides to build "New Asgard" with the survivors of "Ragnarok" and Thanos' attack on the Asgardian ship in Avengers: Infinity War (2018).
Shuma Gorath
At the episode's climax, an alien with tentacles is brought to the Hydra base by "Red Skull," who opens a portal to another dimension. The alien could potentially be Shuma-Gorath in the MCU.
Shuma-Gorath is one of the oldest inter-dimensional villains, who first appeared in a similar form in the comic Marvel Premiere #10 (September 1973).
Furthermore, Marvel's What If…? Episode 1 ends with Peggy Carter returning from the dimension where she is trapped while forcing the alien into the wormhole. She appears not to have aged when she comes out of the portal in the modern world. This establishes that the dimension existed out of time, like Kang's citadel from the Loki series.
"Avengers" reference
The first Episode of Marvel's What If…? establishes Captain Carter as the "First Avenger." In one scene, Peggy Carter says to Steve Rogers,
"You're more than the suit. The suit is nothing without the man inside."
This is a callback to 2012's The Avengers, where Steve Rogers asks Tony Stark,
"Big man in a suit of armour. Take that off, what are you?"
Furthermore, the end of the What If…? episode 1 showcases Nick Fury and Clint Barton (AKA Hawkeye) greeting Peggy as she gets out of the portal where she was trapped for around 70 years in the modern world.
This mimics Steve's fate at the end of the 2011 movie, which ultimately led to him being a core member of The Avengers. This hints at Captain Carter being a part of the Avengers in this "What If…?" reality.
Hydra Stomper
In Iron Man 2 (2010), Tony finds a recorded clip from his father, Howard, where he says,
"I'm limited by the technology of my time, but one day you'll figure this out."
Here, Howard refers to the arc reactor, which Tony uses to power his Iron Man armor.
In Episode 1, Howard uses the Tesseract to power Steve's "Hydra Stomper" suit.
Furthermore, the armor suit is based on the "Iron Monger" armor and the "Mark I" armor from Iron Man (2008).
"Bucky stole a Jeep"
In another scene from the first episode of What If…?, Howard interrupts a sweet moment between Peggy and Steve by asking them to join a joyride in a Jeep stolen by Bucky. This could be another callback to Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), where Steve is seen stealing a car to go to Camp Lehigh in Virginia.
Excalibur Sword?
Marvel's What If…? Episode 1's climax showed "Captain Carter" combating the alien with a sword. While the sword she finds in the Hydra base looks normal, it showcased surprising durability.
This leads many fans to believe that the sword might be Marvel's version of the Excalibur sword from the comic representation of King Arthur folklore. Furthermore, if the sword is 'Excalibur,' it could also reference "Black Knight."
In the comics, the Black Knight (Dane Whitman) was also known to have briefly wielded the Excalibur sword. MCU's Black Knight (played by Kit Harington) is confirmed in the upcoming Eternals movie.
Peggy may return as "Captain Carter" or "Captain Britain"
In an interview with Inverse, executive producer Brad Winderbaum said:
"I hope that one day we do get to see more adventures in some of these alternate timelines."
Brad's response, combined with the "Avengers" tease at the end of the What If episode 1, may hint at Hayley Atwell's return as Captain Carter.
This article reflects the opinions of the writer.
