The First Reactions To Marvel’s ‘What If…?’ Are In, And Critics Love The Heavy ‘Twilight Zone’ Vibes

With less than two weeks to go until its premiere, the first reactions to Marvel’s What If… are rolling in, and critics are loving this unique multiversal spin on the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The animated Disney+ takes classic moments from the films and spins them on their head by basically asking “what if” the iconic events took a dramatically different turn.

While not every hypothetical scenario is known, trailers and promotional materials have revealed a few of them. Marvel’s What If… will explore Hayley Atwell’s Peggy Carter taking the super-soldier serum instead of Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers, Chadwick Boseman‘s T’Challa becoming Star-Lord instead of Chris Pratt’s Peter Quill, Tony Stark getting saved by Killmonger in the opening minutes of the first Iron Man, Spider-Man becoming a Sorcerer Supreme, and some version of the Marvel Zombies. Also, there seems to be some sort of crazy action happening with Vision and the Infinity Stones, but it’s anyone’s guess as to what’s happening there.

Here’s what the critics are saying about the first three episodes:

— Steven Weintraub (@colliderfrosty) August 1, 2021

Marvel throws us head first into the MULTIVERSE with What If… & it's INCREDIBLE! There's STUNNING animation & SHOCKING twists! One choice can change EVERYTHING & the possibilities are ENDLESS! If the first 3 episodes are any indication, this show is gonna be WILD! #WhatIf pic.twitter.com/5MX4MH46mN

— Tessa Smith – Mama's Geeky (@MamasGeeky) August 1, 2021

Got to watch the first 3 episodes of #WhatIf and it is incredible!

Each story for each episode is fantastic and bolstered by a strong voice cast and splendid animation.

I couldn’t be more happy with how this series has turned out, one of the best animated TV shows this year. pic.twitter.com/mIbdoK78lD

— Jacob (@JacobDFilm) August 1, 2021

I’ve watched the first three episodes of Marvel’s #WhatIf and I’m hooked. Each episode is better than the last w/ the third being my favorite. Love how they take a story we know by heart & twist it in all kinds of ways. It’s like the MCU’s Twilight Zone – weird, wild, good fun pic.twitter.com/PQ9deD1Yyl

— Erik Davis (@ErikDavis) August 1, 2021

While the consensus is in that the show is essentially Marvel’s version of The Twilight Zone and the animated series is a fun experiment, not every episode was for everybody:

First episode didn't grab me. Second is super entertaining & filled with heart. Third is dark, surprising, and hands down my favorite!

Got better as it went by a lot, each episode! Ambitious new style. Loads of MCU nods! pic.twitter.com/yWx8CdTR64

— BD (@BrandonDavisBD) August 1, 2021

Seen the first three episodes of #WhatIf. The first episode is fun though a fairly basic “something you know with a swap” scenario. But episode two and three really grabbed me as they go into some very interesting and fun places and dive deep into MCU history in surprising ways.

— Eric Goldman (@TheEricGoldman) August 1, 2021

Watched the first 3 eps of Marvel's #WhatIf. It gets better w/ each episode.

Premiere's ok. Ep 2 will tug at you. Ep 3 starts off SO unexpectedly dark & doesn't let up. Wasn't expecting Marvel to go there, but it's exactly what you want to see here. Intrigued to see more. pic.twitter.com/YL1WGbGhg3

— Kirsten (@KirstenAcuna) August 1, 2021

But overwhelmingly critics had a blast with What If… even if every scenario wasn’t their cup of tea:

I watched the first 3 episodes and I enjoyed them all. So many callbacks and references to the previous films. There’s also surprise characters that appear that’ll leave you speechless.