Marvel’s ‘What If…?’ released its sixth episode, titled – “What If… Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?” This episode of the animated anthology series revolves around one main MCU character – Erik Stevens AKA N’Jadaka AKA Killmonger. Like all other episodes in this web series, Killmonger takes a different path compared to his “Black Panther” journey – and he still manages to achieve his dream of ruling Wakanda. While this episode is filled with a lot of call-backs and references, it is sparse in the Easter Eggs department. Still, we managed to put together 7 noticeable Easter Eggs, references and call backs in the sixth episode of What If…? – so check it out:
No More Iron Man
Tony Stark didn’t get captured by the Ten Rings this time around, which meant that he didn’t meet Dr. Yinsen or face any hardships while in captivity. He never understood the meaning of getting his hands dirty to save another person’s life (and failing) – and that meant no more Iron Man. He also doesn’t shut down his weapons manufacturing company – instead going on to create an army of “Gundams”. Which is a nice anime reference.
Pepper & Rhodey
We didn’t get to see much of the brash Tony – the Tony before he got captured by the Ten Rings. It looks like many people went in and out of his life & it was Pepper and Rhodey who had to stop them from taking advantage of him. Pepper and Rhodey working together to protect Tony is nothing new, but it is rarely shown. A decent, forgotten nugget of MCU info.
Arc Reactor Diss
Nothing much to say. Tony disses his own arc reactor idea. Which is quite funny.
Klaue & The Ultron Call-back
Since Killmonger was involved, that meant Klaue was going to make an appearance in this episode too. And we were right. But we also get a look at one of his hideouts/warehouses which was featured in Avengers: Age of Ultron – the one where Ultron, Wanda and Pietro met with Klaue to buy Vibranium.
General Ross’s Consistency
The General we all love to hate makes his appearance here as well. Ross usually turns up when things are looking bad – and usually makes it even worse. Like he did in this episode as well. Glad to see some consistency. How is he still a general again?
Killmonger’s Wakanda
Killmonger takes over Wakanda again, this time through deceit, instead of challenging T’Challa. There are also many parts in the episode which was seen in the original Black Panther movie – Erik kills Klaue to gain an audience with the royal family, he climbs on top of the mountain to see the sun set (or was it the sunrise?), he meets the ghosts of his past when he ingested the fluid of the Heart-Shaped Herb, etc. His final destination has always been the same – just the way he got there changed. It is implied that he takes the throne by force from T’Chaka, in the end though.
Heroes Never Stop Fighting
This has been a running theme throughout this series (which is also a running theme within the MCU as well). From the first episode to the last, we have seen that heroes will never stop fighting, even if they have lost everything – for the sake of the better good. At the end of this episode, we see an unlikely teamup – Pepper Potts and Princess Shuri of Wakanda.
Check out the first six episodes of Marvel’s ‘What If…?’ on Disney+ Hotstar.
We’re hiring!
We are hiring two full-time junior to mid-level writers with the option to work remotely. You need to work a 5-hour shift and be available to write. Interested candidates should email their sample articles to [email protected]. Applications without a sample article will not be considered.
