What If…? Season 3 Episode 8 Review
The final episode of ‘What If…?’ is full of action, to the point where it’s overbearing and drags away from the episode. The moral debate, while interesting, isn’t explored beyond the thinnest layer, making the resolution feel unsatisfying.
First audiences get a flashback to when the Watcher was trained by The Eminence, with the two sharing a friendly but serious conversation. Jason Isaacs’ voice for The Eminence here is soft, showing this. It also introduces the concept of the oath that the Order of the Watchers must take, something that will be important later.
The Eminence then shows the Watcher the audience knows down the observation deck, with him correcting the new Watcher that it isn’t beautiful, and that it just is. The Eminence strives for an objective stance on the multiverse, though it’s very easy for that objectivity to turn into apathy.
This all reaffirms the philosophical debate the Watchers are having, and is one that will cause audiences to think. Objectivity means everyone will be treated the same, and the Watcher chooses who to help and how, leading to his picks being biased. Of course, audiences know that the Watcher is kind, compassionate, and moral but what if he wasn’t. It’s a difficult and nuanced debate.
In the present audiences get a list of the Watcher’s transgressions, with a humorous call out to the annoying character of Madisynn from ‘She-Hulk’. What she did to deserve saving would be interesting to see. But of course, the biggest transgression would be Captain Carter, a character Marvel Studios has made the mascot for the show. That has a negative effect on the finale, as ‘What If…?’ rarely has done anything to set her apart from Captain America.
The Watcher is surprised that Carter is present, and she responds with the played out joke of “I’m here to save you but I’ve also been captured!” The three elder Watchers plan to kill Carter and the other Watcher, but they’re of course interrupted by the other Guardians of the Multiverse arriving with Infinity Ultron.
Ultron holds the trio off as Carter and her friend escape, and the Guardians of the Multiverse desperately form a plan to get the trio to Stephen Strange’s world, where he is in control. But, in an impressive display of power, The Eminence glides through Ultron’s beams, crushes the robot, and yanks the Guardians of the Multiverse into a few universes before Strange’s universe, destroying it in the process.
The team lament their failure, and try to fight The Eminence, kicking off an action sequence that lasts for the most of the remainder of the episode. This becomes exhausting, as there is no break. The episode too has to keep escalating the action to justify its length, making the Guardians Watchers, though never following up on the consequences of that (even though Storm says they will). It just results in more beams being fired and punches thrown, until The Eminence decides to use a power that he probably ought to have led with, which is erasing Captain Carter and her friends from the multiverse.
Carter sacrifices herself to stop this and transport everyone to Strange’s universe, which would have felt more impactful had she been more than gender swapped Captain America. Strange in the stars does look impressive. Anyway, from here, Uatu can resolve the moral argument with The Eminence. From here, they agree Uatu will teach The Eminence about the universe, starting with the difference between what things are, and what they mean. A short funeral for Carter is held, leading into a montage where several well-known Marvel characters are mashed up with each other.
Overall, this is a bit of a disappointing end to ‘What If…?’, with the episode being overstuffed with action. While the moral debate was an interesting premise, there wasn’t a lot of exploration into it, just beating the other side into submission. The series as a whole though has produced some compelling scenarios, which will be remembered long after this finale.
