Ever since Disney announced its own streaming service, Marvel Studios has been significantly expanding its upcoming slate of projects. One of those projects is What If…?, an animated series based on the non-canonical comic book of the same name. Each episode will explore an alternate scenario within the events of the Infinity Saga.
What if the super soldier serum was given to someone other than Steve Rogers? What if Thor was never given his hammer? What if Tony Stark wasn’t the one who snapped his fingers in Endgame? There are all kinds of possibilities for where this series could go.
What If Tony Stark Was Killed By The Ten Rings?
![MCU’s What If…?: 10 Alternative Scenarios Fans Would Love To See](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Opening-scene-of-Iron-Man.jpg)
Tony Stark was arguably the main character in the MCU. He was the guiding light of the overarching story and we saw a lot of the major plot points through his eyes.
If he was killed by the Ten Rings in the opening terrorist attack in Iron Man, or died later in the cave before he was able to escape, then the Infinity Saga would’ve been completely different. It would be fascinating to see what the MCU would be like without Tony’s presence.
What If Mjolnir Was Given To Loki?
![Odin walks with young Loki and Thor](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Young-Thor-and-Loki-with-Odin.jpg)
Odin gave Mjolnir and the right of king to his biological son Thor, leaving his adopted son Loki to become the black sheep of the family and eventually, a supervillain that threatened the Nine Realms.
But what if Odin had given Mjolnir and the right of king to Loki instead? The tail end of Loki’s character arc showed his capacity for good, so maybe his life of mischief could’ve been avoided if his father had just believed in him.
What If Captain Marvel Helped During The Battle Of New York?
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When Captain Marvel revealed that Carol Danvers gave Nick Fury a pager to call her in for any Earth-based emergencies, a lot of Marvel fans’ first question was: why didn’t he call her sooner?
There were several world-ending threats that the Avengers faced before Thanos and they often came dangerously close to losing. What if Carol had joined the Avengers sooner?
What If Ultron Worked?
![Ultron Age of Ultron MCU](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Ultron.jpg)
Tony Stark and Bruce Banner’s plan with Ultron was to design a suit of armor to put around the world and protect Earth from cosmic threats like Thanos. Unfortunately, it didn’t work and Ultron decided that the only way to protect the planet was to wipe out humanity.
If Ultron had worked according to the Science Bros.’ plan, it would’ve had a major ripple effect on the rest of the MCU. There would’ve been no Battle of Sokovia, which means no Sokovia Accords. Thanos might’ve been stopped before reaching the Earth’s surface.
What If Vision Was Evil?
![Paul Bettany as Vision in Captain America Civil War](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Paul-Bettany-as-Vision-in-Captain-America-Civil-War.jpg)
On the flip side of the previous suggestion, what if Vision was evil? After Tony and Bruce made one evil A.I., the A.I. they created to destroy that A.I. could’ve turned out evil, too.
If Vision joined forces with Ultron, then Ultron would have the power of the Mind Stone like he wanted and might have succeeded in wiping out humanity.
What If Captain America Signed The Sokovia Accords?
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Iron Man and Captain America’s intersecting character arcs reached a crossroads in Captain America: Civil War, as the world government pushing the Sokovia Accords on the Avengers led to Tony Stark taking more responsibility for his actions and Steve Rogers standing on his own two feet. This put them at odds and led to a falling-out that wouldn’t be resolved for years. If Cap had signed the Accords from the beginning, then he and Tony would’ve been on speaking terms when Thanos arrived.
The Russo brothers have said that if Tony and Steve were working together in Infinity War, they could’ve stopped Thanos. However, under those circumstances, the government regulations on superheroes might’ve prevented them from stopping the Mad Titan in time.
What If Cap’s Side Recruited Spider-Man In Civil War?
![Spider-Man holding Captain America's shield in the MCU](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Spider-Man-Captain-America-Shield.jpg)
In Captain America: Civil War, when Tony and Steve are both bringing in ringers ahead of the airport battle, Tony recruits Spider-Man to join his team and Steve recruits Ant-Man. This led to Tony becoming a sort of father figure to Peter Parker for the rest of the Infinity Saga.
If Cap had discovered Peter first and headed to Queens to recruit him, then he would’ve been Peter’s father figure instead and Spidey’s MCU arc would’ve played out rather differently.
What If Killmonger Was Raised In Wakanda?
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When T’Chaka came to Oakland in the opening prologue of Black Panther and killed N’Jobu in front of his son Erik Stevens, he left Erik behind. Years later, Erik arrived in Wakanda to seize the throne from T’Challa and begin using the nation’s resources to colonize the world.
But what would’ve happened if T’Chaka had taken Erik back to Wakanda and raised him there? Would he still grow up to want to take the throne and dominate the globe?
What If The Other Half Got Snapped Away?
![Thanos snaps his fingers in front of Thor in Avengers Infinity War](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Thor-v-Thanos-1.jpg)
A popular fan theory about the upcoming What If…? series is that it will explore what would happen if the other half got snapped away by Thanos. The ones that did get snapped were chosen so that Endgame could focus on the main six Avengers, which makes sense, but it meant that some great characters weren’t involved in saving the world.
If the other half got snapped, then Tony Stark and Bruce Banner wouldn’t have been there to figure out a solution, but Shuri would, and she already proved she’s smarter than Banner.
What If Somebody Else Did The Final Snap?
![Iron Man snapping his fingers in Avengers: Endgame](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Iron-Man-Snapping-Infinity-Gauntlet.jpg)
In the months since Avengers: Endgame hit theaters, there have been reams of fan art reimagining the final snap with different characters, like Captain America, Thor, and Black Widow. It would be exciting to see how Endgame would play out if a different Avenger snapped Thanos and his armies out of existence.
Tony’s death cast a shadow over Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Far From Home. If someone else had made the sacrifice, then different characters would’ve grieved the loss.