WARNING: The following contains spoilers for What If…? Season 1, Episode 9, “What If… The Watcher Broke His Oath?,” streaming now on Disney+.
One of the most intriguing aspects of What If…? is that while it tells unique stories never encountered in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it also takes key scenes that were shown, as well as certain arcs, and puts a new spin on them. As Season 1 wound down, fans got the ultimate Captain America team-up the movies never provided. Well, sort of.
It comes from Peggy Carter/Captain Carter and Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow as they’re plucked from their realities by The Watcher to serve as his Guardians of the Multiverse in the fight against an Infinity Stones-wielding Ultron.
Peggy comes off like Captain America with her shield, resolve and optimism, which makes sense considering the What If…? episode takes her from the opening scene of The Winter Soldier, in which she serves in place of Steve Rogers, and then pitches her into the war to save the multiverse. Confronted by the Black Widow from the world of “What If… Ultron Won?,” Captain Carter quickly warms to his Natasha, who’s lost everyone, including Hawkeye and Captain America. Nat finds Red Guardian’s shield and takes it, effectively becoming the new Russian counterpart to Captain America. And make no mistake, she’s every bit as dangerous as Peggy; it culminates in a brutal brawl against Ultron.
They’re both chopping, flinging and deflecting with their shields, with Nat serving as a pastiche of Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, except she’s not brainwashed, as she tries to avenge her Mother Russia too in this war. It actually homages the Captain America and Bucky beatdown of Tony Stark in Captain America: Civil War, as the women work smoothly and in tandem against the android. It’s a badass team-up that the MCU couldn’t do, as there were never two Captain Americas active at the same time. When Steve Rogers had the shield, Sam was Falcon, and when Sam became Cap, Bucky was just a field operative in the present.
Sure, John Walker/US Agent was around as a Cap, but he didn’t work with Sam like this to show a united front. Interestingly, it’s something the comics have done, using two Caps working together on many occasions as liberators, but it’s understandable why the movies didn’t go this route.
However, in What If…?, it’s badass to see Peggy and Nat living up to this partnership spiritually, which eventually allows them to plug Zola into Ultron and bring the A.I. down with his Hydra virus. They come off as true Sentinels of Liberty and wow fans with their display of feminist power, reminding audiences of what they missed out on on the big screen.
To Peggy and Natasha team up like Captain Americas, Episode 9 of What If…? is now on Disney +.
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