Is There A Reason Behind Captain Carter's Prominence in 'What If..?'

Season two of Marvel's multiverse-hopping animated series What If..? has received mostly positive reviews from both fans and critics, with particular praise on the show's animation, unique scenarios, and the introduction of Kahhori, a young Mohawk woman and the Marvel Cinematic Universe's first fully original superhero. However, some have questioned, and even frowned upon, the focus given to the character of Captain Carter, an alternate universe version of Peggy Carter who received the Super Soldier serum in place of Steve Rogers.

Captain Carter appeared in two episodes of What If's first season, first in the series opener, and again in the finale, where she is chosen as one of The Watcher's Guardians of the Multiverse. In season two, Carter stars in three episodes. First a sequel to the character's first adventure in which she battles against the Hydra Stomper and the Red Room, and then the season' final two episodes, during which she helps prevent an Incursion in 1602, and reluctantly does battle with her former ally Supreme Strange, who is stealing powerful beings from the Multiverse as part of a new plot to resurrect his own universe.

The premise of What If..? is supposed to be exploring other universes and the variant characters who live within them. The Watcher himself claims not to be fond of sequels, so why is Captain Carter the exception. A new theory proposes that there is possibly a very good reason, one that, if true, makes What If..? a much more important show than most fans realise.

The Premise of Secret Wars

The core of the theory lies in what is expected to be Marvel Studios' next Endgame level event, Avengers: Secret Wars, currently scheduled for release in 2027. Kang The Conqueror has been the major villain of The Multiverse Saga so far, and was expected by most fans to be the villain of both Avengers 5 (Previously The Kang Dynasty) and Secret Wars, before Jonathan Majors conviction on assault charges derailed these plans. However, recent reports suggest that Marvel is set to pull a late-saga twist, and that even before the Majors debacle, the villain of Secret Wars was set to be The Beyonder.

The Beyonder, the villain/central figure of the original 1984 Secret Wars and it's two sequels, is a cosmically powered being who, in the original story, wanting to study the nature of human desire, transports a large group of the Marvel Universe's greatest heroes and villains to a realm known as Battleworld, with the promise that whoever defeats their enemies will have their greatest wish granted.

Some rumours, paired with events in recent MCU projects such as The Marvels and Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness, suggest that the MCU's Secret Wars film will be an amalgamation of both the original and the 2015 Secret Wars event, which began with a series of incursions threatening the Multiverse. The rumours state heroes from the various universes are transported to Battleworld, but rather than fighting to have a wish granted, everyone will be fighting for the preservation of their own world, in a sort of multiversal Hunger Games. Each universe will have a special Champion who will lead that universe into battle.

Further reports on these rumours have stated that the Champion of the core MCU universe, Earth-616, will be Tom Holland's Spider-Man, and the Champion of Fox's X-Men universe will be Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, with his selection for this role possibly taking place or teased in the upcoming Deadpool 3.

The Champion of her Universe?

With the above rumours in mind, some theorise that the extra focus on Captain Carter in What If..? could be because she will be chosen as her Universe's Champion. Marvel is letting viewers get to know the character on a deeper level in preparation for her having a major role in Secret Wars. It seems a perfect fit. Captain Carter has been well established as a warrior for the greater good, even if it comes at her own expense. Plus, as someone who has friends in other universes due to her time as a Guardian of the Multiverse, she would be willing to abandon the battle if there was a chance to save more worlds than just her own, and possibly form an alliance with the 616 heroes.

A few have even taken the theory beyond Captain Carter, proposing that What If..? as a whole may even exist to introduce fans to characters who will appear as Champions in Secret Wars. This means characters such as Party Thor, Nova Corps Nebula, or Happy 'The Freak' Hogan could potentially make the jump to live action.

If any of the above theory is true, What If..? could be a surprisingly important show in the MCU. We can't wait for season three.