Date of release: October 27, 2021 (Disney Plus)
Written by: Meghan Leon
Directed by: Bradford Baruh
”We realized very quickly that you can come up with a cool idea like 'Oh, what if Peggy Carter got into the Project Rebirth chamber and became a supersoldier instead of Steve Rogers?' But that was only the beginning. It wasn't just 'What if?', it was also 'Then what?'”
It was to be expected that the making-of special of an animated project would have less about the actual production of the project, and more talking heads. It's something I have always disliked about some documentaries: showing archival footage and listening to talking heads explain what is happening on screen. Granted, it's the cheapest and quickest way to create a documentary about a certain topic (and it's easier to digest for audiences who are interested in such topics that are otherwise unattainable for them through other mediums), but documentaries for me are just another way to tell a narrative in a cinematic way, and talking-head documentaries aren't that. This episode isn't that, making it boring, and essentially just a “Best of” of WHAT IF...? You have seen the show, now rewatch certain clips from all nine episodes, with the head honchos of the production telling you why they have chosen those stories instead of the ones you thought would be interesting.
Here are things that could have made this behind-the-scenes special more interesting: showcasing early test footage, because I'm sure the animation style they ultimately came up with wasn't the first thing they came up with. Showcasing early character designs, before the producers decided to focus more on the designs of the characters as played by the actors in the live-action films. Alternate lines of dialogue during voiceover recording, as it was stated that Karen Gillan came up with T'Challa's nickname on the spot, which meant that the actors were free to develop their lines. And as someone generally interested in how VFX is created, I would have loved to see some of the animators working on an episode – a visual breakdown of sorts. This episode may have shown some concept art, but it wasn't nearly enough to satisfy my urges to know more about how WHAT IF...? came to be.
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| Jeffrey Wright could read the phone book and it would sound sexy. |
