SPOILERS AHEAD! STOP READING IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THE SECOND EPISODE!
What If...? Episode 2 features MCU's King of Wakanda, T'Challa, as the commander of the Ravagers, Star-Lord. A single mistake led the future King of Wakanda to be the explorer of the universe.
The Story-view
The episode starts with T'Challa, who is the Star-Lord, grabbing the Orb of Power Stone from Planet Morag. He meets with Korath who is in this universe, a Star-Lord fanboy. T'Challa recruits him and meets up outside with Yondu. We cut off to a flashback scene, 20 years ago, where T'Challa talks about exploring outside Wakanda with his father King T'Chaka. His father tells him about the dangers of the outside environment but that doesn't stop him from exploring. He goes out of the concealed barrier at the wrong time which results in abducting him instead of Peter Quill, son of Ego.
We return to the present where the Ravagers are having drinks at a club. But suddenly Thanos, the Mad Titan, appears near Korath, but now it seems he is a member of the Ravagers. I know it sounds weird but T'Challa changed the Mad Titan's mind by convincing a different way of reallocating resources. We also meet Drax who is now a bartender and a fanboy of T'Challa Star-Lord. Nebula appears with blonde beautiful hair to him with a mission.
Nebula reveals the plan is getting their hands to the Embers of Genesis, nutrient-rich cosmic dust from an ancient Supernova, from Tivan, The Collector. The dust has the power to terraform any dying planet, feeding billions of people from millions of worlds. Now, The Collector is said to be the most ruthless Kingpin in the intergalactic underworld, which was supposed to be Thanos. But he reveals that when he stepped down from his goal, Tivan filled his spot. It is also revealed that Tivan's security contains the Black Order, i.e Ebony Maw, Proxima Midnight, Cull Obsidian, Corvus Glaive, who were once under the Mad Titan. According to the plan, Nebula seemingly betrays the Ravagers but later on helps them to escape revealing that it was her plan all along.
T'Challa finds a Wakandan Spaceship where a recorded message from his father led him to realize that his birthplace was not destroyed but was a lie from Yondu. T'Challa is captured by Ebony Maw but Carina saves him by shooting him. He is met by Tivan who fights with him using his collection of weapons. But Yondu and T'Challa together fight with him while on the other side, Nebula and Thanos fight the Black Order. They return from Knowhere and goes to Wakanda, T'Challa's true birthplace. Then the episode ends with a reunion with his family. But, in another place, Peter Quill is seen meeting with his father, Ego, but the story was unexplored.
Major Details
In this alternate universe, Star-Lord is T'Challa who is a well-known Ravager, unlike Peter Quill who was an unknown. Besides, Yondu is a changed man and probably T'Challa is the one behind this, as we see a lot of character changes in unexpected characters.
Thanos is also a changed man, thanks to T'Challa and for that, Drax never lost his wife and daughter which consequently never led him to commit crimes and he never was in jail. So, now he is a bartender in the club. The same goes for Nebula, whose body was never changed with mechanical parts as Thanos went straight.
Korath is a Star-Lord fanboy and he starts to bow and kneel before him but T'Challa says it is not necessary, nodding to the scene from Avengers: Infinity War where Bruce goes on to bow but T'Challa says "We don't do that here".
The ship is named Milano, obviously named after Alyssa Milano, an actress Peter probably liked. But now, as T'Challa is the Star-Lord, the ship is named Mandela after Nelson Mandela who was the former president of South Africa and anti-apartheid revolutionary.
There are also mentions of Heist on Skrulls' capital Tarnax IV proving
that Skrulls do exist and will be a greater part in the universe. Nebula tells T'Challa not to reveal about the Orb of Power Stone to Thanos but T'Challa tries to defend Thanos by saying he has changed and he is into gardening now. This is what Thanos retired to to after the events of Avengers: Infinity War.
In Knowhere, in search of The Embers of Genesis, T'Challa meets with Howard the Duck. Howard trying to tell him the place where Embers of Genesis is kept revealed many details like Frost Giants and Kronans. Now, Frost Giants are from Thor movies and also we know that Loki also belongs to that species. Kronans are also seen in the franchise and Korg is also a member of that species. While going through the hangar, we also see many of the spaceships which appeared in the Infinity Saga like Benatar, Xandarian star ship, Grandmaster's party ship.
The Collector hits T'Challa with a Kronan arm, the same ones like Korg. Then he brings his weapon collection with several famously known weapons which includes Captain America Shield, Mjolnir. He also has Hela's horned head piece, partially proving that he might have conquered Asgard too.
The ending had Peter Quill working in the Dairy Queen which appeared at the start of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 and where Ego left his seed. Ego talks to him and will definitely say that he is part-god. Without the other guardians beside him, he will definitely fall upon his father's deadly goal which will bring the end of the world. The Watcher indicates this to be the end of the world but cuts off to end the episode. So, there's a high chance we get a connection of this episode in another one from this season or the next season. Whatever it is, there will definitely be a continuity of this Peter-Ego story-line.
Final Verdict
What if...? episode 2 made the best use of its unique premise. The episode completely flipped the script, by totally changing the dynamic between T'Challa and the rest of the well-known cosmic cast of the MCU, giving the audience an unexpected experience, perfectly serving the purpose of the show. The inclusion of Thanos in the ravagers alongside Nebula and their development in a father-daughter relationship is exactly what fans needed in a parallel universe story. Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa gives new life to Star-Lord offering a fresh perspective. The episode also provides a perfect closure to T'Challa as we see him return home and reunite with his family. An alternate but perfect ending.
The cosmic side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is beautifully presented in this unique animation from Marvel Studios. The animation sets life to the adventures throughout galaxies with its colorful visuals and perfect setup of the Marvel Universe.
Rating: 9/10
What If...? Episode 2 is streaming exclusively on Disney+ with more episodes airing every Wednesday.
Thank You, Chadwick Boseman, T'Challa, King of Wakanda, For Everything You Have Done!
Wakanda Forever!
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