There is hardly any doubt that What If...?'s Infinity Ultron is the most dangerous villain we have seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe till now. Not only content in destroying all living inhabitants of his universe, Ultron-Vision realised the existence of the multiverse and proceeded to destroy other universes, even bringing The Watcher out of his inert witness stance and get him into a fight. For if there is nothing left in the multiverse, what will he watch thereon? The finale of What If? is about The Watcher turning into a multiversal Nick Fury and making his own band of Avengers. Or rather, the Guardians of the Multiverse. What if…? Episode 9 Recap: From Guardians of the Multiverse to Mid-Credit Surprise, 13 Twists That Happened in the Season Finale of Marvel’s Animated Disney+ Show.

(SPOILERS) In order to take down Infinity Ultron, The Watcher teams up with Doctor Strange from the universe where he doomed his world's existence for the sake of love. He also brings the motley group of heroes and even villains from other worlds, while also dissing Iron Man in the process. So we have Captain Carter (from Episode 1), 'Star-Lord' T'Challa (from Episode 2), Erik Killmonger (from Episode 6), Party Thor (from Episode 7) and Gamora with Thanos' armour and an Infinity Crusher (from an episode that never was shown, wonder why?).

In the course of the episode, they are also joined by Black Widow (from episode 8), as the climactic fight now takes place in her destroyed planet.

In the end, the finale episode does have the heroes win over the villain, though not without some sacrifices and losses, and not the outcome that you would expect. In doing so, the finale even paid tribute to episodes whose characters weren't brought in, like the zombies from Episode 5, along with Zombie Scarlet Witch, that Strange brings to distract Infinity Ultron, and also the suspenseful Episode 3 that closes the tragic but hopeful arc of Episode 8 Black Widow. More on that ahead.

Without further ado, let's discuss the intense climax of What If? finale and what it means for its surviving characters and the season arriving next.

Killmonger's Purpose and Doctor Strange's Sacrifice

Although Black Widow-Captain Carter teamup manage to infect Ultron with Zola virus using Hawkeye's arrow and destroy him, things were far from over. Now Zola wanted the Stones for himself, and so does Killmonger, leading to a bizarre Mexican standoff.

Doctor Strange realises then that The Watcher didn't bring the 'Guardians of the Multiverse' to win against Infinity Ultron, or any villain who takes over the Infinity Stones. He realises that there was a purpose that Killmonger, a villain, who like Ultron wanted to cleanse his world but through wrong ideas, was added in the team so that he could engage in a fight for Stones with Ultron. Which is why Strange trapped Zola-controlled Ultron and powered-Killmonger in a mirror dimension, with the stones hanging in a limbo. Marvel’s What if…? Episode 8 Ending Explained: Decoding the ‘Strange’ Climax, Iron Man’s Multiple Deaths and Other Mysteries of Disney+ Series’ Latest Episode.

But Strange can't escape the tragic, dark fate that he befell upon himself and his universe. He knows that his future is to keep a watch on the trapped villains for infinity and beyond, all alone and desolate, but it is a fate that he is willing to take over to repent for what he did in the universe. Pretty sure The Watcher would come to check on his new friend from time to time.

Captain Carter's Happy Ending

It's nice to see that Captain Carter, or should we call her Captain Britain)?, was BFF with Black Widow in her universe. But like how Captain America we know in the live-action MCU yearned for that last dance with Peggy, Captain Carter also pines for her lover Steve Rogers. So when she was returned to her timeline by The Watcher, back to Batroc's ship (from Captain America: The Winter Soldier), she did get her happy ending.

Oh wait, some of you might not know what I am talking about. For the first time in the series, What If? had a mid-credit scene for Episode 9, where Carter and Black Widow discover that one of the boxes in Batroc's ship contains the Hydra Stomper from Episode 1. If you remember the first episode, it was operated by the non-serum Steve Rogers. And what's more, Widow says someone is inside that armour, which is most likely to infer that Rogers is still alive.

While Carter's eyes light up - The Watcher did tell her that she is needed in this time - we are curious as to how Rogers survived the passage of time, despite not having taken the serum. Like his buddy Bucky in another universe, did he also fall in the hands of Hydra and was experimented into and turned into an assassin? The season 2 might need to answer that, considering what we saw here was an alteration to Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Will Steve be the new Winter Soldier?

The God Complex

If you haven't guessed that till now, The Watcher is MCU's representation of the Almighty here, where even actual gods like Thor and Loki are mere super-powered and eternal living beings. Like with the idea of God, he is all powerful, all-pervasive and ever-watchful, choosing not to interfere with the events that are happening in these universes - whether good or bad. He chooses to converse with those who finally get to hear him, and is forced into action, when his very existence is about to be shattered. The laments and accusation that Black Widow hurls at him, felt like laments of a devotee anguised with his or her Protector for not helping them in their time of crises. Yet they, and their stories, mean everything to him. Who thought Marvel could go into spirituo-contextual mode, bringing the very existence of God's purpose to discussion in a sly manner!

Black Widow Goes To Another Universe!

The Episode 8 Black Widow couldn't return to her universe, where nothing exists for her. Instead of putting her through a 'Last (Wo)Man on Earth' mode, The Watcher springs a surprise on her, by erasing the tavern they were in and she finds right in the midst of a battle happening on a Helicarrier with The Avengers fighting with the Asgardians, led by Loki. The Watcher tells her that this is a universe that has lost Black Widow, and Natasha, happy to be among humans, gets into the fight and takes down Loki.

If you found the setting familiar, it's because The Watcher has taken us back to aftermath of Episode 3, where Hank Pym had killed the Avengers, including Black Widow, and Loki took over Earth. Nick Fury then was inferred to bring Captain America from the ice, and the final scene sees Captain Marvel also returning to him. Both were seen fighting in the battle, along with Fury, and now Widow gets her new universe to stay, albeit one that is still without Hawkeye!

The Rest...

Maybe in season 2, we will see what happens with T'Challa (who won't be voiced by Chadwick Boseman anymore) and Peter Quill teamed up. Or what happens to Party Thor and Jane Foster's romance after they are reunited. Or the lost episode of Gamora making a tag team with Tony Stark in a Hulkbuster. Or maybe we have more newer, universes to explore, when What If...? returns for season 2 early 2022.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 06, 2021 03:44 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).