Marvel’s What If…? on Disney+ returns for its third and final season with an average first episode. In “What If…The Hulk Fought the Mech Avengers?”, the scientist’s curse and loathing depression are compounded when he accidentally unleashes a new threat.
Viewers find themselves guided by Jeffery Wright’s The Watcher in a universe where Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) befriends Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo). Given Sam’s background in aiding veterans with PTSD, he connects Bruce with therapy and other resources to help him deal with his mental state and the monster within. But after an unexpected Hulk appearance, Bruce takes desperate measures to erase the creature.
Dr. Banner inflicts gamma radiation on himself to eradicate the monster. But instead of killing the beast, he creates a duplicate monster, an apex creature that grows in size and multiplies. Soon, these gamma monsters terrorize New York City and beyond. Luckily, Tony Stark and the team created Mech Avengers, Gundam-style bots modeled after themselves to defeat the threat. While victorious, they lose several comrades, and Banner goes into isolation.
Ten years later, after what was dubbed the Gamma Wars, Sam and the Avengers discover a mysterious spike in gamma activity in the Arctic. It appears the apex creature has awakened from his prison. And he isn’t alone. Knowing the Avengers can’t defeat this new gamma threat alone, Sam attempts to recruit Banner from his self-imprisonment. He finds him in the center of a volcano, content in his solitude. While Banner refuses to face his fear and become the Hulk again, he advises Sam on a secret weapon: the Mighty Avenger Protocol. It was devised to eliminate the Hulk.
With Sam’s Captain America leading the charge, Monica Rambeau, Moon Knight, Shang-Chi, Shuri, Bucky Barnes, the Red Guardian, and his wife, Melina, form the ultimate mech weapon; Marvel’s own Megazord. The battle commences with the odds against the Avengers’ favor. Luckily, Dr. Banner arrives to cement victory but at a great cost. He goes gamma-critical, transforming into a brooding gamma beast to compete against the apex creature. As they battle, the minions await to see which green monster will be victorious.
With Sam aiding him, Banner defeats the apex creature and becomes the new gamma beast leader. The team seeks to destroy him, but Sam orders them to stand down. In a touching moment, Sam pleads with the beast, his former friend, to let them be. The monster formerly known as Bruce leaves NYC with his hoard of monsters for solitude.
While the episode’s message of acceptance is nice, there isn’t anything quite interesting overall. The voice cast boasts most of the films’ talent including Oscar Isaac, Simu Liu, Sebastian Stan, Teyonah Parris, and David Harbour. However, the story fails to introduce anything particularly new from the MCU’s ties. We don’t get to explore the mechs and their powers, which are usually a much cooler commodity in other anime and properties. And the emotional ties we’re supposed to feel for Ruffalo’s Banner never materialize. This could be due to the character’s lack of solo exploration within the MCU.
Rating: 7/10