Why MCU Phase 4 Needs To Fix Captain Marvel After Her Appearance in What If…?
As Captain Marvel returns live in-action in What If…?, MCU Phase 4 has to reaffirm why Danvers is special, because the animated series has made her ineffectual.
MCU phase 4 will have to process damage control for whatever happened to Captain Marvel in Marvel’s What If…?. Voiced by Alexandra Daniels, this animated version of Carol Danvers will return in The Marvels (2022). Played by Brie Larson, Carol Danvers also had a cameo role in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. But as far as Captain Marvel’s appearance in What If…? is considered, MCU phase 4 has to work really hard to redeem the damages.
Kevin Feige, the president of Marvel Studios, hailed Carol Danvers as the most powerful superhero of the Marvel Cinematic Universe when she made her debut with 2019’s Captain Marvel. The story explained how she got her cosmic powers and how her heroic event in 1995 motivated and inspired Nick Fury to create Avengers. Fans expected Captain Marvel to show up against Thanos to make a difference. But her role in Avengers: Endgame was extremely limited. She remained off-screen for most of her time and only appeared at the beginning and end of the film. When Captain Marvel stood up against Thanos, she was not the one who put an end to the Mad Titan, but she helped the Avengers thrive towards their ultimate victory.
In Marvel’s What If…? Captain Marvel was called for her powers but she failed to perform her job. But apparently, her limits got exposed as Thor proved that Captain Marvel is not worthy to pick his hammer, even if he keeps the Mjolnir on Carol’s chest. This proved that it’d take some mere second for Ultron to defeat her utterly. Neither the animated series showed Captain Marvel’s experiences or wisdom, nor it highlighted how powerful she could be against a villain like Ultron.
In the upcoming The Marvels (2022), Captain Marvel will be joined by Ms. Marvel. With that said, it’d be completely upon the makers and writers of the MCU phase 4 to rehab Captain Marvel’s reputation and image. Even the main MCU timeline will need to fix Captain Marvel’s image as What If…? had apparently turned the first female MCU superhero into a bit of a joke.
