Marvel's ‘What If..?’ Episode 6: “What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?” Recap and Review
Tony Stark’s origin story takes a dark turn when a chance encounter with Erik Killmonger sparks a dangerous conflict with Wakanda.
WARNING: Contains Spoilers
Tony Stark is obviously a character that many have come to know and love since his cinematic debut in 2008 - we’ve followed his journey from the enigmatic playboy, to the valliant superhero, and eventually his ultimate sacrifice on the battlefield. This week’s episode of What If..?, however, imagines a world where none of this ever happened. A world where Tony Stark is rescued from the terrorist cell which drove him to become Iron Man in the first place, and where the villainous Erik Killmonger is appointed as the COO of Stark Industries. It’s not hard to predict that things won’t go to plan here, but the story that ensues is a bold reimagining of exactly what this would mean for Tony, and those around him.
The Recap
The episode opens on an all too familiar scene from the original Iron Man movie - Tony Stark’s journey through Afghanistan on his way to demonstrate his new Stark weaponry. Anybody who’s seen the film will recognise this as the exact moment that things turn south for Tony, but in this episode, luck appears to be on his side. As the bullets begin to rain down, Wakandan soldier Erik Killmonger emerges from the crossfire and eliminates the terrorist group, saving Tony Stark’s life. The pair walk off into the distance, and Stark’s story is irrevocably altered. Upon returning to Stark Industries, Killmonger reveals that he came to save Tony after hearing about the assassination attempt whilst he was undercover in the terrorist cell - and also exposes Obediah Stane’s involvement in the ambush. As thanks, Tony appoints Killmonger to Chief Security Officer of his company, and agrees to work with him in the construction of a humanoid drone that Erik developed as part of his doctoral thesis. However, not everybody at Stark Industries is quite so trusting of Killmonger. Upon learning of his dangerous past with the SEALS, Rhodey warns Pepper to keep an eye on the mysterious new addition to the company, and to watch Tony’s back. Meanwhile, Stark and Killmonger begin work on ‘Project Liberator’, but have trouble finding a power source capable of fuelling such a dangerous machine.
When the suggestion of Vibranium is aired, Tony decides to send Colonel Rhodes to bargain with notorious arms dealer Ulysses Klaue in search of the precious material. However, the transaction quickly grows dangerous as Black Panther arrives, takes down Klaue’s men and attempts to stop the deal taking place. It’s at this point that Killmonger makes his true intentions clear, killing both T’Challa and Rhodes and framing it to appear as though they killed each other, sparking an international conflict between the two nations. When he returns to America, however, Killmonger releases that Tony Stark isn’t quite as gullible as he once thought. As vengeance for the murder of his best friend, he unleases Project Liberator (powered by a molten Vibranium ring) upon the Wakandan soldier, but it still isn’t strong enough. Killmonger defeats the machine, and uses his newly aquired Wakandan spear to secretly murder Stark.
Now with the backing of the American government, Killmonger transports thousands of improved droids just outside Wakanda, ready for battle. Upon arrival he meets with Klaue, who agrees to drive Killmonger closer to the border in hopes of finding more Vibranium that he can sell. But this is just the next step of Erik’s plan, as he executes Klaue and delivers his body to the Wakandan royalty as a sign of peace and revenge for the stolen goods. He is greeted by King T’Chaka, who welcomes him as a member of the family and heeds his warning of the encroaching American army. Surely enough, the American military arrive with Stark’s drones and enter battle with the Wakandan soldiers, led by Killmonger. After a long period of battle, and several fallen fighters, the Wakandan army emerges victorious and all the drones are destroyed. Killmonger is embraced by his family, and offered the chance to become the next Black Panther in T’Challa’s wake - his complex plan has finally paid off, and he got exactly what he wanted. Meanwhile, back at Stark Industries, Shuri approaches Pepper Potts with her discoveries that Killmonger is responsible for the entire conflict, and they vow to take him down.
The Review
There’s certainly an element of personal preference to this, but What If..? seems to work best for me when it focuses on the characters involved, rather than just blindly exploring the outlandish concepts. That’s part of the reason why the Doctor Strange episode held such emotional weight, and why the zombies episode felt a little underwhelming. This week, we get a great mix of those two ideas. The episode is still conceptually focused, with the Wakandan conflict and story-focused structure, but it also acts as a character study for Killmonger, a character that we haven’t seen that much of in the MCU until now. The episode does a good job of deconstructing his thoughts and motives, whilst still providing an entertaining narrative that stays true to what we already know about this world. It might not quite reach the same emotional highs that we’ve seen before, and the story may be a little too reminiscent of the stories from which it draws inspiration, but it’s a perfectly effective examination of the effects that these two large personalities have on each other. It’s a lot of fun to see these two worlds drawn together, bringing the Iron Man characters into conflict with those from Black Panther, deconstructing how they might interact with each other and how their cultures clash. The episode is also an effective analysis of the American military system, and the way we perceive foreign threats. Killmonger is easily able to sway the minds of the American government into a violent war with a small African nation, and it raises the question of whether or not this may be a social commentary on our psychology towards foreign countries.
From a technical standpoint, the episode features some of the more natural and thoughtful dialogue of the series so far, with the character of Killmonger often acting as a vehicle for discussion about black culture and its perception within society, Even with a character as charismatic and witty as Tony Stark, the episode doesn’t rely on quips or jokes to keep itself entertaining, but rather uses its story to captivate and hold your attention, which is much more effective. The visuals are great as always, even if this episode doesn’t contain the same beautiful landscapes and vibrant locations as some other instalments, but the fight sequences and action choreography is just as exciting as it always has been. Overall, the episode may be one of the less thrilling and outlandish instalments so far, but there’s a lot to appreciate with its thoughtful character moments and subtle social commentary to please most audiences.