# What If...? (2021)

> An animated anthology in which The Watcher narrates Marvel Cinematic moments rewritten by a single decisive change.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/77403

## Facts

- Seasons: 3
- Episodes: 26
- Episode runtime: 36 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: animation, science fiction, action, adventure
- Network: Disney+
- Cast: Jeffrey Wright, Dominic Cooper, Stanley Tucci, Neal McDonough, Darrell Hammond, Bradley Whitford, Andreas Beckett, David Cowgill
- TMDB rating: 7.3/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10168312/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: playful, wry, action-packed, mythic, melancholic

## What critics say

Audiences find the premise of reimagining Marvel Cinematic Universe moments inventive and the animation impressive, though the quality of the episodes is uneven and tends to fade in later seasons.

## Synopsis

What If...? (2021-2024) is an American animated anthology series created for Disney+ and produced by Marvel Studios, a multiverse spin on the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Jeffrey Wright voices The Watcher, the cosmic observer who narrates each episode and steps in when a single decisive change sends a familiar hero down a different path. Howard Stark (voice by Dominic Cooper) and Dr. Erskine (voice by Stanley Tucci) appear in the historical-style episodes, while Josh Brolin voices Thanos in the stories where his power reshapes the cosmos. The engine of each episode is a what-if question that rewrites a classic MCU moment, from a World War II super soldier experiment to a cosmic showdown, and the fun comes from watching familiar beats bend into unfamiliar shapes. The show runs for three seasons with twenty-six episodes, each self-contained, so viewers can dip in at any point. Its tone is playful and action-forward, with flashes of grief and dread when the alternate outcomes turn dark. Its sense of scale spans the whole multiverse, and its narration gives the stories a wry, mythic register. Fans of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Batman: The Animated Series and Black Mirror will find related pleasures in its branching realities and anthology structure.

## Shows like What If...?

- [Marvel's Avengers (2013)](https://ember.film/tv/53138)
- [Eyes of Wakanda (2025)](https://ember.film/tv/157736)
- [Marvel's 616 (2020)](https://ember.film/tv/86022)
- [The Incredible Hulk (1982)](https://ember.film/tv/10546)
- [Marvel's Agent Carter (2015)](https://ember.film/tv/54866)
- [Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (2025)](https://ember.film/tv/114430)
- [WandaVision (2021)](https://ember.film/tv/72487)
- [Marvel Studios Legends (2021)](https://ember.film/tv/95577)
- [The Super Hero Squad Show (2009)](https://ember.film/tv/20070)
- [Marvel Zombies (2025)](https://ember.film/tv/114432)

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