One of the most curious series from Marvel Studios coming to Disney+ is its first animated series, What If...? , but surely not the last .
What if...? appears to be based upon the classic anthology series published by Marvel Comics that offers radically different scenarios that never happened in the comics. The same will be done for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, such as posing the question of what if T'Challa became Star-Lord or what if Steve Rogers was revived as a zombie .
It was recently reassured that the series will still release this summer , and new merchandise seems to point to this being the case.
FIRST MERCHANDISE FOR WHAT IF...?
An official poster for Marvel Studios' What If...? animated show on Disney+, originally discovered and posted by @AnneComics on Twitter , has surfaced online, showcasing many of the characters that will likely be a focus of the first ten episodes.
From top to bottom, left to right, the characters shown are Uatu The Watcher, Doctor Strange, Thor, Gamora, Killmonger, Peggy Carter, T'Challa, and Black Widow. Under all these characters is the subtitle “Guardians of the Multiverse.”
WHO ARE THE GUARDIANS OF THE MULTIVERSE?
It's uncertain whether this subtitle is meant to be taken literally; it's likely either that these characters will all be part of a team that's responsible for protecting the multiverse or the tagline is simply a marketing gimmick for What If...? .
There is a team in the comics called The Exiles , composed of a constantly changing roster of characters from various realities that hop from one reality to the next, fixing them. It's possible then that Uatu The Watcher could have put this team together, but, traditionally, Watchers are not meant to interfere. However, Uatu has always been a bit of an outlier among his kind.
What's interesting to note on this poster is the inclusion of a new variation of Thor, who distinctly lacks a beard, Gamora sporting a brand-new outfit, Killmonger looking as angry as he did in Black Panther , and Black Widow wearing sleeveless new combat gear. None of these characters have been prominently shown in released footage, so it's interesting whether some may be part of the same episodes or new ones.
For example, will T'Challa's Star-Lord encounter the Gamora seen on this poster, or will T'Challa appear as he did in the MCU in another episode, but his encounter with Killmonger ending differently. This could also mean that there will be episodes that focus on Gamora or Killmonger.
Still, regardless, it will certainly be interesting to see how each episode could potentially lead into the other. There might even be crossovers between episodes that culminate into this potential “Guardians of the Multiverse” team.
What If...? is currently planned to release on Disney+ this coming summer .
