Spoilers follow for Episode 7 of Marvel’s What If…? For more, see our review of the previous episode of What If.
It’s taken this long into What If’s first season to get an episode that’s just plain fun (and no, I don’t count the zombie episode). Even the series’ better episodes so far have been relatively self-serious, so this week’s gleeful energy and momentum was an excellent change of pace. Chris Hemsworth has made Thor one of the MCU’s most reliably funny heroes, and Episode 7 cements that with a so-dumb-he’s-evil version of the character that soars on the actor’s enthusiasm. While it doesn’t have a deep moral to impart, it does delight with some good old fashioned silly fun times.
Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and Darcy (Kat Dennings) observe a cosmological anomaly, last detected at the sudden death of a distant star, happening in Earth’s atmosphere that turns out to be the God of Thunder himself, Thor (Hemsworth). But this week’s spin on what we know of MCU history is that this Thor grew up with his trickster brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) to keep him in check. The resultant doofus is an exponentially more destructive bull in the galactic china shop, which positions Thor as both villain and comic relief. What If has had mixed results making villains into heroes and vice versa, but Thor’s turn as an ‘80s movie bully who parties so hard he burns out stars was excellent.
It’s an open secret at this point that Hemsworth, for his considerable action cred, is really a comedic ace, and Party Thor exploits that strength at every turn. Hemsworth has little ego and revels in undercutting the gravitas expected of him. Of course, he’s no less charming, and that’s borne out by Jane’s persistent belief in his potential. She’s ever the straight woman to the Asgardian antics at hand, but Portman delivers a lighter, feistier Jane here than we’ve seen up to this point (fingers crossed for more of this in Love and Thunder.) Heck, even Loki — amusingly giant and blue after his upbringing as a giant on Jotunheim — loves this version of Thor. Their shockingly close relationship (“like brothers!”) here is a subtle reminder of just how heavy the conflict over Asgard’s throne weighed on the siblings in the early days of the MCU. And multiverse be damned, Darcy’s still gonna be snarky and weird! But, like, hooking up with and marrying Howard the Duck (Seth Green) weird. I wish Mr. and Mrs. The Duck all the best as the new undisputed power couple of the MCU.
A rogue god is no easy foe to neutralize, as Nick Fury confirmed when he finally used Captain Marvel’s beeper to call her back to Earth after the Snap. What If pulls this development way forward by having acting SHIELD director Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) summon Carol Danvers back to deal with a blonde terror instead of a purple one. Danvers’ appearance feels a little forced — after all, there are only so many who can counter Thor’s strength — but as a catalyst for a fight scene Episode 7 felt obligated to include, she does bring some flash.
To this point, What If has really relied on animation as a way of executing action that may be impossible (or at least very, very difficult) in its live-action counterparts. This week shakes up that dynamic in a big way, featuring numerous nods to Golden Age tropes. Yes, Captain Marvel’s extended beatdown of the hapless “Party Prince” was grand in scale (a further reminder of Binary form’s power!), but seeing “FRANCE” printed in huge letters across the countryside as Thor is punched into the sky is what put a smile on my face. Likewise, there’s still time for random cutaways to fire demon Surtur (Clancy Brown) brazenly trying to woo the Statue of Liberty. Borrowing one of Ragnarok’s greatest strengths, Episode 7 is not afraid to get bizarre. And like Ragnarok, Episode 7 weaves in and out of these tonal shifts with nimbleness.
As we near the end of the season, the breadcrumbs leading toward the inevitable crossover endgame are becoming more important. This week’s wild appearance of an Ultron — successfully inhabiting Vision’s body, as was his original plan — wielding a complete set of Infinity Stones was a complete swerve, and it’s going to be interesting to see whether What If can pay off this new thread. We’ve still got Ego out there with a likely corrupted Peter Quill and a super pissed evil Doctor Strange in a collapsed pocket universe, which seems like a lot of disparate storylines to reconcile closer to the finale. Of course, the greatest question this episode raises is this: what is up with Fandral and goats? No, seriously, what is up with Fandral and goats?
