What If…? Heads to 1602 In This Exclusive Clip Featuring Captain Carter

Disney+ and Marvel Studios have provided ComicBook.com with an exclusive first look at a scene from tomorrow’s episode of What If…?, set in the world of Marvel’s 1602. Marvel has published a number of stories set in the pre-colonial era, with alternative-universe versions of popular Marvel superheroes wearing period-appropriate clothing rather than capes and tights. The original comics were released from November 2003 to June 2004, and were written by Neil Gaiman. Andy Kubert provided interior art, with cover art by Scott McKowen and colors by Richard Isanove. The What If…? version won’t be a 1:1 translation of the comics — first, because it will incorporate 1602 versions of MCU characters rather than comics ones…and second because, as the clip suggests, it seems history itself will hang in the balance if the 1602 timeline is allowed to survive.

The episode, titled “What If… the Avenger Assembled in 1602?”, will air tomorrow. In it, when Captain Carter is transported to an Elizabethan-era locale that’s populated by modern-day MCU figures, she’ll have to uncover the cause of the temporal anomaly that’s mysteriously stranded so many familiar heroes and villains in the year 1602. 

“I’ll always remember the first time I read Neil Gaiman’s original 1602 [Marvel comics] series in high school,” writer Ryan Little told ComicBook.com in a statement. “We filled this episode with 1602 iterations of characters from across the MCU to share with everyone that same fun Neil created when first exploring Elizabethan Marvel in his original run.” 

According to director Bryan Andrews, the episode has been in the works for a while. 

“[We] needed to find the right time to do it,” Adams told us. “It’s so fun to see such different versions of these characters—Loki and Happy are true highlights in this episode.” 

“All storytelling, from the first cave drawings to the modern cinematic universes, is about connection, asking your audience: ‘Is this your story, too?’” executive producer AC Bradley told ComicBook.com in a statement. “The same holds true when adapting beloved storylines and IP. I first seek out the human story—the heart. The world of 1602 is one of chaos and confusion with our MCU heroes trapped in an alternate history. The burning questions are: How did they end up here? How can they restore their world?”

Season 2 of Marvel’s What If…?, which premieres episodes daily on Disney+ beginning on December 22nd, continues the journey as The Watcher guides viewers through the vast multiverse, introducing brand new and familiar faces throughout the MCU. The series questions, revisits and twists classic Marvel Cinematic moments with an incredible voice cast that includes a host of stars who reprise their iconic roles.

The series is led by Jeffrey Wright as The Watcher, with returning appearances that include Hayley Atwell as Captain Carter, Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis, Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner / Hulk, and Cate Blanchett as Hela. Devery Jacobs joins the cast as Kahhori, a new Native American character created specifically for the show. What If…? Season 2 is directed by Bryan Andrews, and executive produced by Andrews and AC Bradley.