What If…?
Warning : This clause contains spoilers for What If … ? season 2 .
Summary
A majorMCUtheory may explicate the Brobdingnagian alteration made in one alternative reality boast in Marvel Studios’What If … ?season 2.What If … ?season 2 premier on December 22 , 2023 , and introduced several new universe and exciting variant characters to the MCU , but also score the tax return of Hayley Atwell’sPeggy Carter , a.k.a . the super soldier Captain Carter , who debut inWhat If … ?season 1 . Captain Carter has become the cornerstone of Marvel Studios’What If … ? , building a strong kinship with Jeffrey Wright ’s Watcher , while also crossing timelines and reality to ship on multiple risky venture outside of her home macrocosm .
Hayley Atwell has portrayedPeggy Carter in the MCUsince 2011’sCaptain America : The First Avenger , butWhat If … ?season 1 ’s premier episode , " What If … Captain Carter Were the First Avenger ? , " saw her supercede Steve Rogers as the world ’s first super soldier . Carter later became a penis of the Guardians of the Multiverse , the loss leader of her universe ’s Avengers , combat the HYDRA Stomper and the Red Room and fought alongside Kahhoriagainst Strange Supreme and a passel of iconic Marvel villains . Her life has been very different toSteve Rogers ' journey as Captain America , and herWhat If … ?timeline has made many change to the known continuity of the MCU .
Captain Carter could have a promising future in the MCU after her appearances as Multiverse variant of Peggy Carter in What If … ? and Doctor Strange 2 .
Captain Carter’s Avengers Team Includes Hope Van Dyne’s Wasp Instead Of Hulk
What If … ?season 2 , sequence 5 , " What If … Captain Carter Fought the HYDRA Stomper ? , " acted as the direct continuation to Captain Carter ’s plot line throughoutWhat If … ?season 1.After Carter was returned to her original timeline inWhat If … ?season 1 ’s stopping point , she apparently give way back to her superhero aliveness , with nobody around her being any the wise as to her risky venture as a Guardian of the Multiverse . Shortly before Captain Carter ’s multiversal escapades , she led her timeline ’s Avengers into struggle against Loki , the God of Mischief , emulate the events of 2012’sThe Avengers . However , Captain Carter ’s Avengers teamhad one significant variety from the MCU ’s main continuity .
In a recentXreveal , What If … ?creator A.C. Bradley corroborate that , or else of Bruce Banner ’s Hulk , Hope Van Dyne ’s Wasp was featured in the original Avengers squad in Captain Carter ’s timeline . Bradley revealed that , since Captain Carter - a woman - cease World War II , the feminist front go on much rather , give up more distaff superheroes and SHIELD agents to emerge . Without Carter to found SHIELD , Hank Pym , Janet Van Dyne , Howard Stark and Bucky Barnes led the organization , leading toHope Van Dyne becoming the Waspmuch earlier than in the MCU ’s hot - activity timeline . While this was a great addition , it entrust the Hulk ’s destiny in this timeline indecipherable .
Captain Carter ’s Avengers squad inWhat If … ?season 2 , instalment 5 , include Carter , Tony Stark ’s Iron Man , Thor , Clint Barton ’s Hawkeye , Natasha Romanoff ’s Black Widow and Hope Van Dyne ’s Wasp , making Bruce Banner ’s Hulk the only scatty member from the original live - military action Avengers team .
Why The Hulk Was Never Created In Captain Carter’s What If…? Timeline
While Bruce Banner ’s whereabouts inWhat If … ?season 2 , episode 5 , have n’t been officially revealed , it ’s possible that the very same thing that allowed Hope Van Dyne to become a superhero earlier could have terminate Banner from becoming the Hulk altogether . Captain Carter win WWII may have prompted the feminist movement to speed up , but this for sure would n’t have played out too well within the United States government of the forties . What If … ?season 1 ’s premier installment proved that the government and military were n’t best proud of with a woman becoming the humans ’s first super soldier , which suggests they probably would n’t have been happy about her succeeding in her delegation .
Marvel ’s last 2023 release has brought yet another Hulk genetic mutation from the funnies to living and made it MCU canon , with a playfulness , vacation - themed twist .
It ’s possible that , in Captain Carter ’s originalWhat If … ?timeline , the United States government never attempt to embolden the super - soldier serum , perhaps out of fear that more powerful women would emerge . In the live - natural action MCU persistence , General Ross andBruce Banner ’s experiments inThe Incredible Hulkwere a unmediated attempt to quicken this serum . This means that , if plans to recreate the topnotch - soldier blood serum had been postponed or canceled altogether , Banner ’s original experiment would have never gone ahead . This would perfectly explain why the Hulk was missing from Captain Carter ’s Avengers squad , and why he was replaced by the Wasp .
Why Scarlet Witch And Quicksilver Also Don’t Exist In This Timeline
Several other heroes from the MCU ’s main persistence are also missing from Captain Carter ’s reality , including Wanda Maximoff ’s Scarlet Witch , Pietro Maximoff ’s Quicksilver and Bucky Barnes ' Winter Soldier . Barnes became SHIELD ’s beginner in this timeline , and subsequently the Secretary of State , having never become the Winter Soldier . Wanda and Pietro ’s destiny , however , are more dire , as it ’s possible their powers never would have been awoken . The twins ' power were enhance by HYDRA experiments with the Mind Stone , but in thisWhat If … ?timeline , HYDRA was obviate in the 1950s , suggest they would have merely live their life history as veritable humanity , go to even greater divergences from the MCU ’s chief timeline .
