Marvel's What If...? (Ep. 6)

This article was originally published on December 7, 2021

Written by Thomas Salerno

An episode of What If…? centered on Wakanda and no M’Baku? Worst episode ever!

Wait, I’m just kidding! In all seriousness though, I was genuinely disappointed by the conspicuous absence of M’Baku from this story. Since his first appearance in Black Panther I thought he was an intriguing character. But never mind that for now. What about this episode? Episode 6 has some interesting themes to unpack, so let’s get right down to it!

What If… Killmonger rescued Tony Stark?

The plot is a bit convoluted but I’ll try to summarize it here as best I can. As in the movie Iron Man, Tony Stark is attacked by the Ten Rings in Afghanistan, but in this timeline, events swiftly diverge. Tony is saved in dramatic fashion by US Navy SEAL Lt. Erik “Killmonger” Stevens (secretly the exiled Prince N’Jadaka of Wakanda). Killmonger gains the billionaire’s trust, rising to become a key player in Stark Industries. All the while, Killmonger manipulates everything and everyone around him to further his goal of inciting a war between the US and Wakanda.

As always, as the episode opens we get some analysis from The Watcher, who intones, “Heroes are not born, they’re forged in darkness, shaped by battle, defined by sacrifice.” For centuries, theologians, philosophers, and ordinary people have wrestled with the problem of evil: If God is all-powerful and all-loving, why does He allow evil to exist? This question is too complex to do it full justice here, but, in brief, Christians believe that when God permits evil to occur, He always brings about a greater good. Tony Stark’s imprisonment at the hands of terrorists provides a good fictional example of this principle: Although Tony experienced much pain, loss, and suffering due to his capture in Afghanistan, this event was the catalyst for much good, not least saving the universe from Thanos in the events of Avengers: Endgame.

The Watcher concludes that, “Though the man was saved, a hero was lost and a villain was given a new chance.” Now seems like a good point to shift our discussion to that villain, because really it is Killmonger rather than Stark who is the focus of this episode.

At a critical point in the story, Killmonger murders T’Challa and Lt. Colonel James Rhodes in a staged incident to further his plans for war. As Rhodes dies, Killmonger scoffs at his military service: “Why wear the uniform of your own oppressors? Fight for them? Die for them?” He then declares his intention to burn “the system” down. If this sounds familiar, that should be no surprise. Killmonger is giving voice to an ideology held by many in our world today. To these people, past and present injustices deserve retribution and anything, even violence, can be justified in pursuing it.

But Killmonger is a selfish hypocrite. When he asked Rhodes why he wore the uniform of the US military, he should have taken a look in the mirror. After all, Killmonger is himself a Navy SEAL. When you get right down to it, what makes Killmonger a villain is that he doesn’t really care about the oppressed and the downtrodden. All his self-righteous rhetoric belies the fact that he just wants power and glory for himself by any means.

As Christians, we must obey the command of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount: “I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” (Matthew 5:44, Revised Standard Version) Jesus shows this teaching in action in the Parable of the Good Samaritan. (cf. Luke 10:25-37) In first century Palestine, the Samaritans and Jews despised one another, in part due to a sad history of persecution and injustice on both sides. Yet this mutual prejudice doesn’t stop the Samaritan man from helping his Jewish neighbor who had been robbed and left for dead on the roadside. This parable is rich in symbolic and allegorical significance and among its key lessons is that despite our many differences, we are all one human family.

But Killmonger doesn’t understand this, as is clear from the scene where he murders Tony Stark. As Tony lies dying of his wounds, he makes a final appeal to Killmonger’s humanity, to the things that they share in common. But Killmonger’s rejoinder is revealing: “The difference between you and me is that you can’t see the difference between you and me.” In Killmonger’s ideology, differences between people are more significant than commonalities.

Christians acknowledge the real differences between human beings that make life diverse and interesting. Yet we still insist on the fundamental truth that all people are united by the common dignity we share in being made in God’s image. (cf. Genesis 1:26-28) Without this Christian anthropology, all human interactions devolve into conflicts about the dynamics of power. In the pursuit of power by any means and at any cost, Killmonger has no genuine relationships with anyone. He has no friends. Even his own family are merely tools in his quest for the power to enact revenge on a world he blames for his misfortunes. 

When Killmonger finally consumes the Heart-Shaped Herb and becomes the new Black Panther, he has a vision of the afterlife and speaks with the spirit of the cousin he murdered. T’Challa observes that Killmonger believes that “the cure for human suffering is more suffering.” But Killmonger retorts that he believes “the cure is power.” Power is seductive, and as every bloody revolution across the last couple of centuries has shown us, putting power in the hands of people with a skewed or broken moral compass eventually leads to carnage. Like Killmonger, Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, and bin Laden all saw human beings as expendable in the furtherance of their agendas. “Power unearned can be a very volatile force,” T’Challa warns. “It’ll get the best of you eventually.”

I like the basic premise of this episode: two nations being propelled towards an unnecessary war due to misunderstandings and hatreds being inflamed by a few dishonest and power hungry people on both sides. It’s a good story but, in my opinion, it never crosses the threshold into being a great episode. I can’t quite put my finger on why. Perhaps I just wanted Killmonger’s treachery to be exposed. If that’s the case, the story ends on an encouraging note: T’Challa’s sister Shuri forms an alliance with Pepper Potts to do just that.

Once again, I asked Brainy Pixel COO and Creative Director Brannon Hollingsworth for his thoughts.

Is there anything from a story or character perspective that you would change about this episode?

No, I thought it was an intriguing twist on both of the backstories. Honestly, I was expecting Killmonger to become a hero, so I was pleasantly surprised...

In the MCU, both Steven Strange and Tony Stark surmount tragedy and suffering to become forces for good in the world: “Heroes are defined by sacrifice.” Would you like to see What If…? continue to explore this answer to the problem of evil?

Oh, absolutely. I do not think you can effectively tell these kind of hero stories without peering into the dark face of evil--not to glorify or exalt it, of course--but rather to properly define and prescribe it. You cannot truly know light without having at least a passing brush with darkness.

In many ways, Killmonger is the inverse of his cousin. T’Challa works for peace and reconciliation, while N’Jadaka exploits hatred and division. Do you think that’s a reason why he’s such an effective villain? 

No, I think it is the proper construction and handling of N'Jadaka's background that makes him an effective villain, actually. Think about it - we've seen TONS of villains who are bent on division, destruction, and domination - TONS of them, most of them, not really done well. The reason those villains do not affect us and do not stay with us is because we do not care anything about them. They're faceless, heartless, and often, utterly relatable engines of evil. Killmonger is different, we relate to him. We get it. We've all been rejected, or at least felt like we were rejected, at some point in our lives. This is the engine that drives N'Jadaka and DEFINES Killmonger...and that's why he's effective as a villain.

Systemic injustice is part of the national and global conversation right now. Do you think this episode addressed this controversial topic in the right way? 

Considering my general ignorance of this topic, sadly, I could not answer this question in any meaningful way. :(

If Killmonger/Black Panther returns in the future, what direction would you like to see the series take his character?

If we are talking about within the vein of this particular story and this particular version of Killmonger, I think it would be cool to see him become an "anti-Tony Stark" and become the head of a Wakandan-based Anti-Avenger's team. He has the power of Black Panther now, and he has the tech and the means, and of course, he has the drive and the desire (read: lust) for power. It seems like it would be a natural and logical progression. I'd certainly tune in.