Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for What If…? Season 3, episode 6What If…?Season 3, episode 6 is the next best thing instead of an actualShang-Chisequel. Starring Simu Liu and the cowboy hero “The Ten Rings” and Hailee Steinfeld as the sharpshooting Kate Bishop aka Hawkeye, this new episode and alternateMCUreality is set in the year 1872. Likewise, the ending of this new episode sets up the major series finale on the horizon for Marvel’sWhat If…?as well.
Not unlike the previousWhat If…?Season 3, episode 5, this new MCU multiverse episode is a little more serious and focused compared to some ofWhat If…?‘swackier chapters (see Howard the Duck and Darcy Lewis’ egg). To that end, “What If…1872"features some very cool action sequences, as well as an exciting cliffhanger at its end. To that end,here’s our breakdown ofWhat If…?Season 3, episode 6, its ending explained, and the biggest Easter eggs and references we found.
How Shang-Chi Defeated The Hood And Their Identity Explained
(Also, What Happened To The Watcher?)
The end ofWhat If…?Season 3, episode 6 reveals thatXu Xialing killed the original Hoodbefore taking his presumably demon-possessed cloak as her own. Seeking to raise an army of immigrants against the West to “make it what they were promised”, Xialing can’t see that she’s enslaving the innocent and warping their minds.Unfortunately, Xialing was far too warped and corrupted by The Hood’s power to see any differently, resulting in her death by Hawkeye when Shang-Chi refuses to fight (and Xialing was moving in for the kill).
2025 will see the debut of the original Hood aka Parker Robbins, played by Anthony Ramos in the MCU’sIronheartseries. The live-action show was meant to release before What If…? Season 3 in 2023, but faced multiple delays.
What If Season 3 Cast & Character Guide
What If…? returns for its final season with an enormous cast of characters plucked from every disparate corner of the constantly expanding MCU.
The Watcher confirms the story ends better than it could have, seeing as how he himself dispatched one of Burch’s men who would have killed Jun-Fan. Instead, Jun-Fan lives to help save the day with Hawkeye and The Ten Rings.However, this proves to be one intervention too many for the trio of other Watchers first seen in earlier episodes,who have now come to see Uatu finally answering for the many times he’s broken his oath. As such, this final reckoning will likely be the focus of the series' final two episodes ofWhat If…?Season 3 still to come.
What If…? Season 3 Episode 5’s Biggest Easter Eggs and References
Featuring Cameos, Key MCU References, and More
There are several exciting and cool MCU Easter eggs, appearances, and references inWhat If…?Season 3, episode 6. Here are all the biggest ones we found:
New episodes ofWhat If…?Season 3 release daily at 3amET/12amPT on Disney+.
What If…?
Cast
What If… ? is an animated anthology series set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe which features fan-favorite characters, including Peggy Carter, T’Challa, Doctor Strange, Killmonger, Thor, and more. The new series, directed by Bryan Andrews with AC Bradley as head writer, features signature MCU action with a curious twist. The show sees Uatu the Watcher, an omnipotent being that observes the events of multiple universes from afar as they unfold, unable to interfere. However, things shift when an entity peers beyond the veil, jeopardizing the multiverse.
