6. What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?
In an alternate universe, Tony Stark is rescued in Afghanistan by Erik Stevens, resulting in Iron Man not being born and Killmonger manipulating everyone around him in pursuit of power. First, he gets rid of Obadiah Stane to gain a valuable position at Stark Industries. Next, he convinces Tony to build the Liberator drone machines he conceptualized in his thesis, equipping them with vibranium care of Ulysses Klaue’s illegal trade. There he manages to murder both his cousin T’Challa and James Rhodes as well as Stark himself eventually after his schemes are unveiled. What follows is a game of passing the blame: T’Challa’s death in the hands of the Americans; Stark’s assassination by Wakanda. A war ensues between the two nations, cleverly orchestrated by Stevens, earning him the admiration and loyalty of his countrymen. In the end, he is awarded the serum to assume the Black Panther mantel, but his triumph is short-lived as both Shuri and Pepper Potts catch up and put two and two together, promising to take him down.
Yet another brilliant team-up, this time between two characters who never got to meet in the first three phases but get to bond in this what-if scenario no thanks to their common daddy issues. The best thing about this episode is how it brings back one of the MCU’s many villains with wasted potential to give him a more convincing story arc. What might seem contrived, though, is how everything just conveniently falls into place for him. The ending does promise some repercussions and is left open-ended, but the way Killmonger gets what he wants so fast and easily is not really that convincing. Or should we blame the condensed 30-minute runtime? Have I mentioned that he gets to kill three Avengers in the span of less than half an hour? Oh well, two of them are actually not superpowered in this alternate universe so perhaps that is the clincher there. These cons aside, it is still a brilliant episode marrying two distinct MCU properties. This series has not had a misfire yet as far as these combinations are concerned.
“Every journey has a beginning, but change one step along the way, and you could end up at a very different destination.” –Uatu
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