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What If... Thor Were an Only Child?

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For other uses, see What If... Thor Were an Only Child? (disambiguation)
"He discovered that there were universes stacked on top of his own..."
The subject of this article comes from an alternate universe connecting to the main timeline of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

"Thor and Loki, a brotherhood so strong and pivotal, it would change the fate of a universe. Their childhood taught Thor many lessons. But in another universe, instead of raising the Jotunheim prince, Loki, as his own son, Odin returned him to his people. Without his trickster brother to keep things, let's say, lively, Thor grew into a very different prince."
―Watcher

What If... Thor Were an Only Child? is the seventh episode of the first season of What If...?

Synopsis[]

Thor, who never learned to be a good hero, throws an out of control intergalactic party on Earth.

Plot[]

What If...Ep7–Odin returns Loki

Instead of adopting Loki, Odin returns him to the Frost Giants, leaving Thor to grow up as his only child. As he became of age, Thor began to travel among the cosmos as the self-dubbed "party prince". In modern times, as Odin enters the Odinsleep, Frigga assigns her son to study up on the Nine Realms in preparation to become King of Asgard. Although she disallows Thor from partying, he gathers Sif and the Warriors Three to travel to Earth and perform the contrary, as Heimdall barely pays attention to the humans.

Party Thor First Look

In New Mexico, Jane Foster and Darcy Lewis track Thor's arrival on Earth. They contact S.H.I.E.L.D. to inform them of an alien invasion, believing that it was the same force that decimated Alpha Star two years prior. Meanwhile, Thor and his crew land in Las Vegas and move the crowd into partying. As other-worldly lifeforms join in, Foster and Lewis also arrive and find Thor. Foster talks to the Norse God of Thunder about Alpha Star, and they begin to fall for each other. While the party goes on, Howard the Duck asks Lewis out only to get engaged soon after. S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury attempts to reach Thor, but is accidentally knocked into a coma by Korg, leading Maria Hill to be named Acting Director.

Jane meets Hill

The next morning, Foster and Lewis are summoned by Brock Rumlow and Hill to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier to have them help eliminate the alien threat. Phil Coulson reveals that the party atmosphere has begun spreading to other corners of the world, Thor himself having left for France. As Foster objects to any sort of S.H.I.E.L.D. intervention, Rumlow brings forth Fury's pager, which Hill uses to summon Captain Marvel.

Captain Marvel vs. Thor

As Loki and his fellow Frost Giants arrive to join his "brother from another mother" in France, Captain Marvel arrives and demands Thor to leave Earth. When he refuses, the two engage in a globe-spanning fight, which ends back in France in Thor's favor. He leaves Captain Marvel to be humiliated as a "party pooper". Back at the Helicarrier, Hill scolds Captain Marvel for her defeat, but Captain Marvel explains if she exert her full power she will blow a crater in this planet which will cause lots of fatalities. After a romantic phone call with Thor, Foster attempts to stop S.H.I.E.L.D.'s plan to drop a nuclear bomb on the Asgardian, but she and Lewis are dismissed by Hill.

Jane meets Frigga

Jane Foster warns Frigga

The party begins to grow destructive as various landmarks are either damaged or vandalized. Foster calls Thor again, but it is picked up by Loki, who accidentally breaks the phone. Lewis gives Foster the idea to contact Frigga through Heimdall, which successfully gets her summoned to Asgard. She tells Frigga that her son was on Earth. Meanwhile, in Sydney, Thor is abducted by Captain Marvel and taken to Siberia. As S.H.I.E.L.D. prepares to drop the nuke there, Frigga appears in front of Thor. The Party Prince nervously tells her that he was studying as part of an exchange group, but Frigga decides to find out for herself. This turn of events greatly amuses Captain Marvel, as well as Hill, who decides to drop their attack.

Thor (What If)

Fearful of Frigga's impending arrival, Thor decides to end the party, which angers his audience. However, when Thor announces his mother's imminent arrival to them, they become so alarmed by this news that they agree to help clean up after themselves. Once she lands on Earth, Frigga finds Thor and his party crew studying, with Captain Marvel lending him a tablet loaded with information on human civilizations. As the Asgardians prepare to leave, Thor retrieves Mjølnir, but he finds it covered with party material.

Vision-Ultron (What If)

Back in New Mexico, Thor and Foster arrange for a date. As Thor leaves, Watcher forwards a saying of the two "living happily ever after". However, much to his surprise and Thor's shock, a portal appears in front of Thor, in which Ultron and his army of Ultron Sentries emerge, who had assumed a synthezoid body and now brandishes the six Infinity Stones.

Cast[]

Starring Cast

Guest Stars

Non-Speaking Characters

Appearances[]

Locations[]

Events[]

Items[]

Concepts[]

Vehicles[]

Sentient Species[]

Creatures[]

Organizations[]

Mentioned[]

Music[]

Song title Artist Location(s)
Themes from Thor: Ragnarok Mark Mothersbaugh
Themes from Thor Patrick Doyle
How Bout U (Instrumental) Chick Norris
William Tell Overture Extreme Music
French Flavors APM Music
Captain Marvel Theme Pinar Toprak
Aloha Malihini Extreme Music
Paris Swing A APM Music

Videos[]

Trivia[]

  • This is the first episode of What If...? with no character deaths.
  • The universe depicted in this episode has several differences with the main universe:
    • In the opening recap, which shows what happened in the original universe, Loki uses the Casket of Ancient Winters against Thor as a child. However, as a Frost Giant, touching the Casket would turn Loki back into his original blue appearance, and thus should have alerted Loki to his difference as a child.
    • The Fake Infinity Gauntlet, unlike the main universe version, is left-handed and has all the "Infinity Stones" with the right colors and in the place that Thanos put them in Avengers: Infinity War.
    • Although Mjølnir should not have Odin's worthy enchantment, Captain Marvel can't get up when Thor puts the hammer on top of her.
    • Loki was abandoned as a baby in this universe, but with Odin returning him to Laufey rather than raising him as his own. However, adult Loki is tall as all other Frost Giants, when in the original universe Odin said that he was small for a Frost Giant.
  • The way in which Darcy Lewis says "They're here" when Thor, Sif, Volstagg, Fandral and Hogun arrive on Earth is a reference to a famous line spoken by the character Carol Anne Freeling (Heather O'Rourke) in the 1982 horror film Poltergeist. It was previously spoken by Quake in the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episode The Force of Gravity.
  • The man who marries Darcy Lewis and Howard the Duck is an impersonator of Elvis Presley, which is common in Las Vegas. Las Vegas is known for its marriages due to the minimal costs and ease of acquiring a licence to do so. The Bible that he holds is embroidered with the words "Love Me Tender", which is the name of one of Presley's most famous songs.
  • A.C. Bradley referred to the lighthearted natured episode as a way to "be silly and have some fun, and kind of take a breath myself" following the depressing nature of the preceding episodes. Bradley went on to say that she was "very surprised and supported that Kevin and Bradley were like, 'Let's do it.'" She cited 80s and 90s party movies and romantic comedies, as well as The Hangover, as inspirations for the episode.[1]
  • A.C. Bradley and Matthew Chauncey tried to find a way to include Hela in the episode, but could not. Chauncey then suggested that if Cate Blanchett was willing to return, then she deserved her own episode, leading to the development of What If... Hela Found the Ten Rings? in Season 2.[2]

References[]

The Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki has a collection of images and media related to What If... Thor Were an Only Child?.
  1. ↑ Hero Nation Podcast: ‘What If?’ EP A.C. Bradley Teases Marvel Animated Series’ Season 2 + The Captain America & ‘West Wing’ Crossover That Never Happened
  2. ↑ A.C. Bradley on X - December 28, 2023

External Links[]

Season One What If... Captain Carter Were The First Avenger? • What If... T'Challa Became a Star-Lord? • What If... The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes? • What If... Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead of His Hands? • What If... Zombies?! • What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark? • What If... Thor Were an Only Child? • What If... Ultron Won? • What If... The Watcher Broke His Oath?
Season Two What If... Nebula Joined the Nova Corps? • What If... Peter Quill Attacked Earth's Mightiest Heroes? • What If... Happy Hogan Saved Christmas? • What If... Iron Man Crashed Into the Grandmaster? • What If... Captain Carter Fought the HYDRA Stomper? • What If... Kahhori Reshaped the World? • What If... Hela Found the Ten Rings? • What If... The Avengers Assembled in 1602? • What If... Strange Supreme Intervened?
Season Three What If... The Hulk Fought the Mech Avengers? • What If... Agatha Went to Hollywood? • What If... The Red Guardian Stopped the Winter Soldier? • What If... Howard the Duck Got Hitched? • What If... The Emergence Destroyed the Earth? • What If... 1872? • What If... The Watcher Disappeared? • What If... What If?
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