What If...? Ep 8-9
"You are more than that to me... You, your stories, they are everything to me." - The Watcher
(Spoiler Warning!!)
The journey through the multiverse from the eyes of the Watcher comes to a close. In today’s newsletter, we will talk about the final two episodes of What If…? The last episode left us will a big cliffhanger. Ultron showed up with all six infinity stones and vision’s body. The Watcher was caught off guard by Ultron’s appearance, so it is safe to say he wasn’t expecting him to show up. How much chaos will Ultron produce? Well, first, we’ll have to ponder the question, what if…?
Episode 8 - What if… Ultron Won?
In the MCU, Ultron felt like a one-and-done character. He was defeated by the Avengers in one single film. In this universe, there was a different outcome. The Avengers lost because Ultron successfully made his vision’s body. The world was under his power. The remaining heroes in this universe were Natasha and Clint. They’ve been fighting with Sub-Ultrons for quite some time now. Black Widow knew that the key to defeating Ultron was in KGB files. Once Ultron believed he killed everyone on Earth, he thought he would be fulfilled. But someone showed up that changed his mind. Thanos appeared with his infinity gauntlet almost complete. Ultron took one look at it and sliced Thanos in half. That’s all it took? Wow. Ultron designed his new look like the one we saw at the end of episode seven. He could sense other worlds that needed him. He brought peace to worlds like Asgard, The Sovereign, Sakaar, Ego, and Xandar. On Xandar, Captain Marvel showed up. She tried her best to bring down Ultron, but he was very overpowered with the stones. He used all six infinity stones to kill her and destroy the Xandar. At that moment, his purpose was fulfilled until he sensed the Watcher just like Doctor Strange. Is the multiverse in danger? Back in Russia, Black Widow and Hawkeye haven’t found the file yet. Right before Clint gave up, Nat found Arim Zola’s file. The key to Ultron’s end. The Watcher felt relief, but it was too soon for that. Ultron found him.
Nat and Clint go to Siberia to access Zola’s A.I; they plan to hack Ultron’s system. They upload his A.I. to a hard drive attached to one of Hawkeye’s arrows. Thousands of Sub-Ultrons come for them after Black Widow tricks them. They use the arrow to connect Zola to a Sub-Ultron. Their plan didn’t work because of Ultron’s location. He has to be in their universe. Clint and Nat fight off as many Sub-Ultrons as they can; it is Hawkeye’s ultimate sacrifice that saves Black Widow and Zola; they flip the script of Endgame. What a shot it was, though. The only time I cared about Hawkeye. In another time, Ultron and the Watcher battle it out. The Watcher upgrades his suit and gives Ultron the work. Their fight breaks through different universes. Visually, it is stunning to see. Ultron is minutes away from defeating the Watcher. He has to go to his last resort. He disappears to a mirror dimension. A familiar one. Out of the shadows, steps out Strange Supreme, aka Doctor Strange. It is time for the Watcher to break his Oath to save the multiverse; it is time to intervene.
Episode 9 - What if… The Watcher Broke His Oath?
The episode starts in Captain Carter’s universe. Their version of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. As she is fighting Batroc, the Watcher is visible. He chooses her for the mission. The Watcher goes to everyone’s universe we visited through the series. T’Challa, Killmonger, Thor, and Gamora. Gamora is a new character who we haven’t seen it. Each one was pulled from their universe; T’Challa was fighting Ego and saving Peter Quill. Killmonger had conquered Wakanda and was seconds away from fighting Pepper and Shuri. Thor was fighting Sub-Ultrons in Vegas. Gamora was destroying the infinity stones after beating Thanos and taking his armor. The Guardians of the Multiverse’s job is to get the soul stone, so they can use the infinity crusher that Gamora used to destroy the stones. The Watcher sends them to a planet that Ultron can’t sense until they decide he can. On the planet, Gamora has doubts about Killmonger. I mean, why would the Watcher want him on the team if he is an awful person? Thor summons Ultron earlier than expected. Before the fight, Doctor Strange gives everyone a protection spell. Very cool. Thor being arrogant tries to bring down Ultron with a lightning strike. It obviously doesn’t work. Doctor Strange is the MVP at the moment. He is so badass. T’Challa is able to get the soul stone using Yondu’s sticky fingers tactic. Strange summons the zombies from episode five. One of them being Scarlet Witch. They have a little look like a love confusion look. They all return to Ultron’s original Earth. Before they can use the infinity crusher, Black Widow snatches the soul stone. She is prepared to fight them, but I mean, come on. That wouldn’t end well for her. She needs them, and they need her.
The final battle is about to begin. Ultron shows up angry. He can’t stand the fact that they won’t die. He lets out an attack to blow Earth up, but Doctor Strange reverses time and swallows the explosion. Incredible. They go after Ultron. Black Widow and Captain Carter use their shields in the most badassery way possible, sheesh! The fight feels like the fight in the MCU main timeline against Thanos on Titans. It is pretty cool. Ultron has enough and freezes time. The only person it doesn't work on is Strange since he has the time stone too. Honestly, Doctor Strange just keeps outdoing himself each time he attacks Ultron. I need this Strange in live-action. He ties down Ultron, which allows them to use the infinity crusher. But there is a problem. The infinity crusher only works on Gamora’s universe. Ultron uses the infinity stones to attack everyone except Black Widow and Captain Carter. Widow finds the arrow that has Zola on it. She takes the shot at Ultron, and with the help of Cap, she gets him right in the eye. Zola overtakes Ultron’s system. He defeats him. It isn’t the end, though. Killmonger uses one of the heads of a Sub-Ultron to transfer Ultron’s armor to him. He wants to use the stones for good, but we don’t always get our way. Zola wants his armor back. The two somewhat use the force for the stones. Doctor Strange realizes they weren’t meant to win; they just had to separate the stones from Ultron’s body. Strange puts the two inside a pocket dimension. His job is to oversee them in case that they break out of it. I guess you can say he is a watcher now. Everyone else goes back to their universe at the moment they left. Black Widow is the only one who doesn’t have a world to go to. The Watcher sends her to a universe where they lost Black Widow; more specifically, episode three. There is a post-credit scene! Black Widow shows Captain Carter what the pirates were after. It was a Hydra-Stomper, but someone was in it. Steve Rogers, maybe? Was this a tease for a season two? Guess we will have to ponder the question once again!
Final Thoughts
I appreciated the eighth episode because it showed how evil Ultron could get. I was disappointed with Avengers: Age of Ultron because Ultron didn’t feel menacing enough. He was a carbon copy of Iron Man, and I get that's what they wanted since he made him with Jarvis. It wasn’t great, though. Ultron wanted nothing but destruction around the universe and that is what he did. His fight with the Watcher was grand and visually pleasing. I felt like the Watcher was going to break his Oath at some point in the season because we kept getting closer and closer to him. Black Widow was great too. It is crazy to think that two humans were able to survive against Ultron and his Sub-Ultrons. But they got the job done. Hawkeye's sacrifice was emotional since it gave a twist to Avengers: Endgame. Episode nine was superb since it gave us an Avenger-type team. It also tied in so many things from the previous episodes. We got different characters across the multiverse to fight against Ultron. I liked Captain Carter, T’Challa Star-Lord, sometimes Thor, and especially Doctor Strange. I didn’t like Killmonger, and I am glad he was put in a pocket dimension with Zola. Gamora felt out of place because we never saw her story. I didn’t have any emotions towards her. I was happy that Tony was thrown away again. He was killed in almost every episode of this series, and I loved it. I like Tony and Iron Man, but I got tired of how much involved he was in the MCU. So many things were caused or connected to him, which was tiring. Doctor Strange was extraordinary. Every time he was on screen, it was magical, no pun intended. Without him, it would have been over in a second. I’m telling you, I need him in live-action! Fingers crossed for him to make an appearance in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. It sucks that he has to stay in the mirror dimension, but at least he isn’t alone anymore. I’m also glad that Peggy has a potential reunion with Steve. I don’t know why, but I have a soft spot for Steve and Peggy. Hopefully, we get a season two, and I hope I enjoy it more than I did this season. I wanted stuff that was way out there, like episode two. Overall, this series was okay. My least favorite from the Disney+ shows. Episode four is still the best. Episodes eight and nine are right behind it then the rest of the episodes are basically at the same level. Well, that is a wrap with the What If…? series! Next up is Hawkeye. I don’t care much about him, but I am excited to see Kate Bishop. Maybe the series will change my mind. The rumors around the show also got me hype, but we can talk about that later.
Hello there! I’m happy you took the time out of your day to read my post, though. Remember if you have any questions or want to have a discussion, leave a comment! I’m not sure what I will talk about before Hawkeye, but it will either be about comics, movies, or shows. Stick around and find out! Happy days and take care!