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Draft:What If... Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?

"What If... Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?"
What If...? episode
Episode no.Season 2
Episode 1
Directed byStephan Franck
Written byMatthew Chauncey
Editing byGraham Fisher
Original release dateDecember 22, 2023 (2023-12-22)
Running time30 minutes
Cast
Episode chronology
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"What If... Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?" is the first episode of the second season and tenth episode overall of the American animated television series What If...?, based on the Marvel Comics series of the same name. It explores what would happen if Nebula joined the Nova Corps to prove her detective skills while trying to escape her father Thanos's shadow after Ronan the Accuser deposed him before the events of Avengers: Infinity War (2018). The episode was written by Matthew Chauncey and directed by Stephan Franck.

Jeffrey Wright narrates the series as the Watcher, with this episode also starring the voices of Karen Gillan (Nebula), Jude Law, Michael Rooker, Seth Green, Taika Waititi, Peter Serafinowicz, Julianne Grossman, and Fred Tatasciore. Work on a second season of What If...? had begun by December 2019, with lead director Bryan Andrews and head writer A. C. Bradley returning from the first season. The episode is a detective story inspired by the film noir genre, being inspired from films such as Blade Runner (1982). Animation was provided by Flying Bark Productions, with serving as head of animation.

"What If... Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?" was released on Disney+ on December 22, 2023.

Plot

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Nebula is recruited to join the Nova Corps by Nova Prime following the demises of her adoptive father Thanos and surrogate sister Gamora at the hands of Ronan the Accuser.[a]

Five years after Xandar was sealed off from the universe to protect itself against an invasion by Ronan's forces, Nebula discovers the body of Yondu Udonta, after which Nova Prime orders her to investigate his murder.

While consulting casino owner Howard the Duck, Nebula learns that Yondu hid the codes for the shield around Xandar within his Yaka Arrow. Wanting to destroy the codes before they are leaked, she enlists the help of Kree soldier Yon-Rogg to infiltrate the Nova Corps mainframe, but Yon-Rogg ultimately betrays her and reveals that he and Nova Prime plan to give up Xandar to Ronan as society continues to crumble by opening the shield with the codes, while the latter will be rewarded for her collaboration by still keeping her position on the planet.

Nova Prime orders her men to execute Nebula, who escapes and is saved by Howard and his subordinates—Groot, Korg, and Miek—who join her to stop Nova Prime. During the battle, Nebula reveals she realized Nova Prime's defection when she assigned the mission to her and altered the code so that the shield would close again as the Dark Aster enters Xandar, destroying the ship and killing Ronan. Nova Prime tries to escape only to be stopped by Nebula and ultimately fall to her death despite Nebula trying to save her.

The shield reopens as Nebula prepares to continue to defend Xandar with her allies.

Production

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Development

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In December 2019, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige revealed that work had already begun on a second season of the animated anthology series What If...?, based on the Marvel Comics series of the same name.[1] It explores how the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films would be altered if certain events occurred differently.[2] A. C. Bradley and Bryan Andrews returned from the first season as head writer and lead director,[3][4] and they executive produce alongside Brad Winderbaum, Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, and Victoria Alonso.[4] Stephan Franck, who served as head of animation in the first season,[5] directed the first episode, which was written by Matthew Chauncey, titled "What If... Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?".[4] Andrews stated that Franck was brought in to direct the episode because he and the other creatives were busy working on the other episodes of the season.[6]: 6:10–6:18 

Writing

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The episodes explores if Nebula joined the Nova Corps to prove her detective skills while trying to escape her father Thanos's shadow after Ronan the Accuser deposed him before the events of Avengers: Infinity War (2018).[4] The episode is a detective story inspired by the film noir genre,[7] such as Blade Runner (1982). Chauncey explained they wanted to make an episode centered on Nebula after enjoying Karen Gillan's work with the character on the first season.[8] The first draft of the script, which was written during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, was "really dark" according to Bradley, noting that it "almost ended in a tragedy"; Chauncey eventually "lightened up" the story.[9] Franck noted that "very profound questions" were explored in the episodes, such as morality, and if those around you guide you in the right direction or if that has to come from within.[10]: 3 

Casting

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Jeffrey Wright narrates the episode as the Watcher,[11] with Marvel planning to have other characters in the series voiced by the actors who portrayed them in the MCU films.[12][13] The episode stars Karen Gillan as Nebula, Jude Law as Yon-Rogg, Michael Rooker as Yondu Udonta, Seth Green as Howard the Duck, Taika Waititi as Korg, Peter Serafinowicz as Garthan Saal, Julianne Grossman as Nova Prime / Irani Rael, and Fred Tatasciore as Groot.[14] Grossman and Tatasciore replace original actors Glenn Close and Vin Diesel, respectively.[15]

Animation

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Animation for the episode was provided by Flying Bark Productions,[16]: 27:48  with Scott Wright serving as animation supervisor.[16]: 26:41  Andrews developed the series' cel-shaded animation style with Ryan Meinerding, the head of visual development at Marvel Studios.[17][18] Though the series has a consistent art style, elements such as the camera and color palette differ between episodes.[19]: 4 

Release

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"What If... Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?" was released on Disney+ on December 22, 2023.[4][20] It had a premiere screening, along with the third episode "What If... Happy Hogan Saved Christmas?", at the Walt Disney Studios lot in Burbank, California on December 11, 2023, along with a Q&A with the creatives.[4][8]

Reception

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Critical response

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Arezou Amin at Collider said the first episode of the second season "kicks things off in very gritty fashion", calling it "a solid place to start" and was curious if the season would continue to use "the theme of hope and redemption as a jumping-off point".[14] IGN's Jesse Schedeen said "the story is somewhat constrained by its limited runtime" and that it "isn’t an episode that’s going to satisfy anyone hoping for more of the overarching narrative introduced in late season 1".[21]

Accolades

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For the 51st Annie Awards, Paul Lasaine, Kristina Vardazaryan, Cynthia Halley, Ryan Magno, and Simon Dunsdon were nominated for Outstanding Achievement for Production Design in an Animated Television / Broadcast Production for their work on the episode.[22]

Notes

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  1. ^ This choice is when the story diverges from the events of the film Guardians of the Galaxy (2014).

References

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  1. ^ Bonomolo, Cameron (December 19, 2019). "Kevin Feige Reveals What If...? Has More Episodes Than Marvel Studios' Other Disney+ Series". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on December 20, 2019. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  2. ^ Kroll, Justin (September 18, 2018). "Loki, Scarlet Witch, Other Marvel Heroes to Get Own TV Series on Disney Streaming Service (Exclusive)". Variety. Archived from the original on September 19, 2018. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  3. ^ Hipes, Patrick (November 12, 2021). "Disney+ Day: All The Streamer's Film & TV News From Premiere Dates To Series Orders". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 12, 2021. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Marvel Studios Celebrates New Season of 'What If...?'". Marvel.com. December 12, 2023. Archived from the original on December 12, 2023. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
  5. ^ Arrant, Chris (April 15, 2020). "Work on Marvel Studios' What If...? Continues During Coronavirus Pandemic". Newsarama. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  6. ^ What If..? Season 2 Live Q&A With Creative Team (A.C. Bradley, Matthew Chauncey, Bryan Andrews). Phase Zero. January 5, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2024 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ Johnston, Dais (December 12, 2023). "Jeff Goldblum Confirmed for What If Season 2 (And 5 More Things We Learned)". Inverse. Archived from the original on December 13, 2023. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
  8. ^ a b Bennett, Tara (December 12, 2023). "What If...? Season 2: New Avengers Lineups, a 'Lost' Episode Revived, and Other Things We Learned". IGN. Archived from the original on December 13, 2023. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
  9. ^ Bennett, Tara (December 31, 2023). "Marvel's What If...? Head Writer Breaks Down Every Episode of Season 2". IGN. Archived from the original on December 31, 2023. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
  10. ^ "What If 2 production brief Final with cast" (PDF). The Walt Disney Studios. December 21, 2023. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 23, 2023. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  11. ^ Kit, Borys (September 1, 2023). "Marvel Shuffles TV Calendar with New Dates for 'Agatha,' 'Echo,' X-Men '97' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on September 1, 2023. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  12. ^ Sciretta, Peter (March 12, 2019). "Exclusive: Marvel Studios Producing 'What If' TV Series For Disney+". /Film. Archived from the original on March 20, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  13. ^ Schreur, Brandon (December 22, 2023). "Disney Confirms Which MCU Stars Are Returning to Voice Characters in What If? Season 2". SuperHeroHype. Archived from the original on December 23, 2023. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  14. ^ a b Amin, Arezou (December 22, 2023). "'What If...?' Season 2 Episode 1 Recap: Nebula Leads a New Band of Misfits". Collider. Archived from the original on December 22, 2023. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  15. ^ Young, Kai (December 29, 2023). "Every MCU Actor Replaced In Marvel's What If...? Season 2". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on December 31, 2023. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
  16. ^ a b Chauncey, Matthew (December 22, 2023). "What If... Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?". What If...?. Season 2. Episode 1. Disney+. End credits begin at 26:25.
  17. ^ Jones, Marcus (August 23, 2019). "What If on Disney+ will feature voices from majority of Marvel Cinematic Universe cast". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on August 24, 2019. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
  18. ^ Salazar, Andrew J. (September 6, 2019). "'What If...?' Showrunner Ashley Bradley Talks 'Trollhunters', The Beginning Of 'What If...?', Captain Carter, The Watcher & Star-Lord T'Challa (Exclusive)". Discussing Film. Archived from the original on September 22, 2019. Retrieved September 27, 2019.
  19. ^ "What If..? Production Brief" (PDF). Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution. July 30, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 1, 2021. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
  20. ^ Burlingame, Russ (December 15, 2023). "What If...? Season 2 Episode Titles Revealed". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on December 15, 2023. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  21. ^ Schedeen, Jesse (December 21, 2023). "Marvel's What If...? Season 2 Premiere Review". IGN. Archived from the original on January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  22. ^ Giardina, Carolyn (January 11, 2024). "'Nimona' Leads Annie Awards Animated Feature Competition With Nine Noms; Snubs Include 'Wish,' Which Was Shut Out". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on January 12, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
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