Major spoilers below for the final episode of Marvel’s What If…?, so be warned if you haven’t yet streamed it with a Disney+ subscription.
Of all the TV shows ending in 2024, or any year, nothing was quite comparable to Marvel’s multiverse-exploding anthology What If…?, which wrapped up its third and final season mere days before the 2025 TV schedule kicks off. The final episode surprisingly killed off a major character in Captain Carter, while also giving fans the (presumably non-canonical) elimination of the Council of Kangs. And it also sparked a ton of similar complaints from viewers who were left disappointed by both the final season and the series as a whole.
Some of the biggest What If…? complaints voiced on social media in the wake of the finale’s arrival are all tied to the second half of the ep, where we’re shown a wide assortment of awesome variant characters who, much to everyone’s disgust, weren’t actually utilized in the show itself. Let’s dig into some of what was shown, and then how fans reacted to it all.
Some Standout Variants That Were Teased in What If...?'s Finale
Much of the What If…? finale centers on Uatu attempting to convince the Eminence, the Incarnate and the Executioner that his universe-changing foibles were for the greater good, and the battle that ensues when his efforts are unsuccessful. The Watcher trio eventually comes together as one mega-force and threatens to erase every multiversal iteration of Peggy, Byrdie, Storm and Kahhori from existence, which kicks off the first round of surprise variants.
The rest of the previously unseen alt-heroes pop up just before the end credits, as Jeffrey Wright’s Uatu is sharing his closing thoughts. Combined, it makes for a wild lineup of combo characters that would have been extremely fun to explore in any capacity. Here’s a smattering of A+ options:
- Black Panther Storm
- Wolverine Peggy Carter and Sabretooth Peggy Carter
- Riri WIlliams' Punisher
- Weapon X Thanos
- Scarlet Witch Duck
- Samurai Ghost Rider
- Old West Loki
- Maestro's Dr. Strange
That's only around a fourth of the total characters that flashed across the screen during the What If...? finale, but that group alone would justify a Season 4 order, or an entirely different spinoff dedicated to just these particular variants. Seriously, Scarlet Witch Duck teaming up with Samurai Ghost Rider is a dream beyond dreams. But for all the positive feelings embedded in that kind of speculation, there also exists a ton of negativity.
How Fans Reacted To What If...?'s Final Episode
By and large, the comments directed at What If...?'s final season ranged from somewhat negative to extremely harsh, and anyone who searched up the series around the holidays likely ran into much confusion over a full episode devoted to Howard the Duck and Darcy having a species-mashing baby together. (We love seeing Kat Dennings return to the MCU, but what a weird arc.)
When it came to the finale itself, it seems like Marvel would have been better off scrapping all of the variant-related animation, since that's largely what the comments were focused on. We'll kick off with this post before diving into more detailed comments.
#WhatIf What if focused on interesting variants? pic.twitter.com/NsjpJXkC6mDecember 29, 2024
- The funniest thing about #WhatIf is that it ends with a montage of variants who look infinitely more interesting than the ones the show was about. - @therealsupes
- MAESTRO SUPREME?! That would have been so much cooler than saying "what if Peggy Carter was really important" for the thousandth time lol. Marvel needs to stop this kind of bullshit and focus more on those they showed at the end - @TonystarsR2011
- I'm crying literally all their ideas are "What if this character was this character instead" So glad this shitfest ass show is over - @celestialdevils
- WHAT IF we gave you a glimpse of these cool variants and never do anything with them - @MyTimeToShineH
- The ending of what if I shows how they fumble a show Basically the ending is: yeahs here what we COULD’VE done” 😭 BOI I GOT HEATED - @qCandywing
- You gotta give it to #WhatIfSeason3 for ending the series with a montage that was basically “What If… we did any of these more interesting variants instead of what we did for Season Three.” - @mktoon
It's rough out there for a What If...? creative team member, even if most of the naysayers were still inherently highly positive about all of the art and designs for the unused variants, even while taking shots at the show itself.
Of course, not everyone had such a foul time watching the animated anthology's last outing, though the balance seemed to be tipped in the more dour direction. But let's end this particular story with more positivity.
Watcher ending on a high note literally shown us the vast marvel characters in every universe was so awesome and gave goosebumps
@sandeep_sanmeyo
We know that What If...? wasn't able to use Hugh Jackman as Wolverine despite one director's desire to make that happen. But there's always the future, even if it doesn't involve Deadpool.
What If…? is now a done deal, at least in its current capacity. It’s unclear whether or not Marvel will opt to continue on with new animated adventures centering on The Exiles, or if we’ll get standalone specials akin to the One Shots of years past.
