What If... Captain Carter Fought the HYDRA Stomper?

What If... Captain Carter Fought the HYDRA Stomper? is the fifth episode of the second season of What If...?.
==Synopsis==
Captain Carter's mission to save Steve Rogers sets her on a collision course with new enemies.
==Plot==
As the Chitauri invade New York City, Black Widow is fighting off the aliens when Captain Carter blocks shots meant for her. The Avengers of this universe are Captain Carter, Black Widow, Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye and Wasp. As Carter orders the Avengers to contain the fighting, she and Black Widow hitch rides on Chitauri skiffs to confront Loki atop Stark Tower.
As the Watcher mends the damage Ultron's attack has caused to the Nexus of All Realities, he remarked that he doesn't normally do sequels when there are infinite stories to be told. However, not every universe is home to a Captain Peggy Carter and the Carter he recruited to the Guardians of the Multiverse is one he considers a friend. When he returned her to the moment she left her universe, Carter believed her story to be at an end, but the Watcher knows it's only just beginning.
Carter drives up to Black Widow in Washington, D.C. and tells her Nick Fury had a mission for them. After taking the Lemurian Star from pirates, Black Widow reveals that the pirates sought the HYDRA Stomper Armor: Mark II, making Carter hopeful that Steve Rogers is alive. Suddenly, the HYDRA Stomper comes to life and attacks, sending both women running for their lives. Once they get above deck, Carter dislodges the armor's faceplate and catches a glimpse of Rogers' face. She and Black Widow then leap into the water as the HYDRA Stomper fires a barrage of missiles.
Upon their return to the Triskelion, Peggy confronts Fury, having been told that Rogers had died on a mission in Argentina in 1953 while hunting down the remaining HYDRA bases with Bucky Barnes. Fury admits that there have been rumors about the HYDRA Stomper's survival since the 1960s, causing mass acts of terror that killed multiple S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. They suspected that the Red Room was responsible for finding and housing the HYDRA Stomper; Black Widow withheld this information for fear of breaking Carter's heart twice. Determined to save Rogers, Carter insists on taking point on thwarting his next mission, despite Fury and Black Widow's insistence that the man she loved is gone.
Bucky, now U.S. Secretary of State on the World Security Council, pushes for more financial aid to Sokovia when Brock Rumlow and STRIKE burst in, announcing they believe his life to be in danger. Carter then intervenes as the HYDRA Stomper attacks the Triskelion, allowing Rumlow to move Bucky to safety. As Black Widow confronts Rogers in a Quinjet, Bucky interposes himself between them and attempts to appeal emotionally to his best friend. Carter intervenes, prompting the HYDRA Stomper to fly right into the sky. She manages to knock him out and Black Widow catches them both in mid-air.
They flee to a safehouse in St. Kilda Scotland. Analyzing the suit, they determine that it's the reason why his body has barely aged, but it is the only thing keeping him alive. Each activation increases the risk of him dying, which is why the Red Room used him sparingly. Predicting that world governments would be set on ensuring that Rogers is "frozen in carbonite" for the recent attack, Carter refuses to involve Tony Stark or Bruce Banner for help and instead resolve to find the Red Room for a way to save him. Black Widow admits to having killed the head of the Red Room but the organization had gone into hiding. Rogers then regains consciousness and offers to help them. Black Widow regards him with hostility, but Carter is willing to trust him.
Rogers leads them to a former Sokovian military base used by the Soviets. After Rogers sends a distress call to the Red Room, Black Widow excuses herself to allow Carter and Rogers some privacy. As they get caught up, Carter asks why he never moved on and started a family like Bucky, he admits that she was the only woman for him. The lost lovers come close to kissing when the entire town of automatons start attacking them with Widow Bites. The HYDRA Stomper shuts down in the middle of the fighting while Carter and Black Widow succumb to the electric attacks. The Red Room Academy soon appears overhead as Melina Vostokoff arrives, revealing that everything has happened since the Lemurian Star has been to lure Carter away from the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. When offered the chance to surrender, naturally, the two Avengers choose to fight. The HYDRA Stomper then tackles Carter while Black Widow flees from a squad of her Melina's assassins, leading to a chase throughout the town.
Melina's Widows come close to overpowering Black Widow before she disables them with a Widow Bite. However, Melina manages to pin her and begins to choke her. Meanwhile, Carter struggles to get through to Rogers as he viciously attacks her. Admitting that she's tired of fighting and that she just wants to be with him even if he kills her, it causes Rogers to break his brainwashing. However, as he looks up to the Red Room Academy, Carter quickly realizes what he intends and frantically begs him not to leave her. As he takes off, Black Widow spots him, headbutts Melina and shoots a cable, dragging Melina up with the HYDRA Stomper. Rogers then tears through the Red Room Academy, destroying it and killing Melina in the process. Carter and Black Widow then flee the area before the floating fortress comes crashing down. Observing all this, the Watcher remarks that while this may not be a happy ending, Carter's story is not yet over.
Black Widow later catches Carter stealing one of Stark's cars. Carter still believes Rogers is still out there and that he can be saved, even if her friend doesn't agree. Seeing that Carter is committed to this course, Black Widow volunteers to join her. The Watcher declares that he sees all, observes all and knows all, when suddenly, a portal opens beneath Carter and swallows her whole, leaving a confused Black Widow and Watcher behind. Carter wakes up to find herself being looked up by variants of Nick Fury and Scarlet Witch, who declare her to be the one to save their queen and their world. Annoyed at having been dragged from her own universe again, Carter tries calling out to the Watcher.
==Cast==
Starring Cast
*Jeffrey Wright as Uatu/The Watcher
*Samuel L. Jackson as Director Nick Fury / Nick Fury
*Hayley Atwell as Peggy Carter/Captain Carter
*Lake Bell as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow
*Frank Grillo as Brock Rumlow
*Josh Keaton as Steve Rogers/HYDRA Stomper
*Sebastian Stan as Secretary Bucky Barnes
*Rachel Weisz as Melina Vostokoff
*Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch
Guest Stars
*Bernard White as Councilman Singh
*Kimberly Bailey as Additional Voices
*Jon Bailey as Additional Voices
*Terri Douglas as Additional Voices
*Kim Mai Guest as Additional Voices
*Scott Menville as Additional Voices
*Piotr Michael as Additional Voices
*Salli Saffioti as Additional Voices
*Shondalia White as Additional Voices
*Matthew Wood as Additional Voices
*Shelby Young as Additional Voices
Non-Speaking Characters
*Tony Stark/Iron Man
*Clint Barton/Hawkeye
*Thor
*Hope van Dyne/Wasp
*Loki
*Councilwoman Hawley
*Councilman Rockwell
*Helen
*Ingrid
*Agnesa
*N'Jadaka/Erik Killmonger (flashback)
*Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (flashback)
*Gamora (flashback)
*T'Challa/Star-Lord (flashback)
*Thor (flashback)
*Stephen Strange/Doctor Strange (flashback)
*Nebula (depiction)
*Loki (depiction)
*Taneleer Tivan/Collector (depiction)
*Thanos (depiction)
*Tony Stark/Iron Man (depiction)
*Howard Stark (depiction)
*Clint Barton/Hawkeye (depiction)
*Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel (depiction)
*Loki (depiction)
*Hope van Dyne/Wasp (depiction)
*Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier (depiction)
*Peter Parker/Spider-Man (depiction)
==Appearances==
===Locations===
*Earth
**New York City, New York
***Grand Central Terminal
***Stark Tower
**Washington, D.C.
***Washington Monument
***Triskelion
**Outer Hebrides, Scotland
**Sokovia
***KGB Sokovian Base
**Red Room Academy
**London, England (illusion; flashback)
***Whip & Fiddle (illusion; flashback)
**Berlin, Germany (flashback)
**Moscow, Russia (mentioned)
***Kremlin (mentioned)
**Argentina (mentioned)
**Hungary (mentioned)
*Nexus of All Realities
*Moon
===Events===
*Chitauri Invasion
**Battle of New York
*Hijacking and Retaking of the Lemurian Star
*Attack on Bucky Barnes
*Destruction of the Red Room
*World War II (flashback)
**Capture of Arnim Zola (flashback)
**Attack on Castle de Krake (mentioned)
*Ultron Offensive (flashback)
**Battle for the Multiverse (flashback)
*Destruction of HYDRA (mentioned)
*Budapest Operation (mentioned)
===Items===
*Vibranium
**Captain Carter's Shield
**Panther Habit (flashback)
*Captain Carter's Uniform
*Black Widow's Bite
*HYDRA Stomper Armor: Mark II
*Hawkeye's Bow and Quiver
*Iron Man Armors
**Mark VII Armor
**Mark IV Armor (depiction)
*Arc Reactor
*Uru
**Mjølnir
*Asgardian Armor
*Wasp Suit
*Pym Particles
*Chitauri Helmet
*Chitauri Staff
*Tesseract
*Tesseract Accelerator
*Scepter
*Infinity Stones
**Space Stone
**Mind Stone
*Horned Helmet
*Grappling Hook Gun
*Thanos' Armor (flashback)
*Double-Edged Sword (flashback)
*Star-Lord's Helmet (flashback)
*Quad Blasters (flashback)
===Concepts===
*Time Travel
===Vehicles===
*Lemurian Star
*Quinjets
*Chitauri Chariots
===Sentient Species===
*Watchers
*Humans
*Asgardians
*Frost Giants
*Chitauri
*Zehoberei (flashback)
*Luphomoids (depiction)
*Titans (depiction)
===Creatures===
*Leviathans
*Big Foot (mentioned)
*Champion of HYDRA (mentioned)
* (mentioned)
* (head)
===Organizations===
*S.H.I.E.L.D.
**STRIKE
*Red Room
**Black Widows
*Avengers
*Asgardian Royal Family
*Stark Industries
*World Security Council
*United States Department of State
*HYDRA (flashback)
*Guardians of the Multiverse (flashback)
*United States Armed Forces (mentioned)
*KGB (mentioned)
*Ravagers (depiction)
*Tivan Group (depiction)
===Mentioned===
*Batroc the Leaper (indirectly)
*Bruce Banner
*Dreykov
*Bucky Barnes' Wife
*Bucky Barnes' Children
*Hela
*
*
**
*
*
==Music==
Song title 	Artist 	Location(s)
Black Widow Theme 	Alan Silvestri 	
*
Captain America Theme	Alan Silvestri 	
*
The Avengers Theme 	Alan Silvestri 	
*
 	Harry James and Kitty Kallen	
*
==Videos==
===Clips===
What If…Captain Carter Fought The Hydra Stomper?
"Watch This" Official Clip - Marvel Studios' What if... ? - Disney+
==Behind the Scenes==
*According to A.C. Bradley, the working title for the episode was "The Winter Widow".A.C. Bradley on X - December 26, 2023
==References==
==External Links==
*
*
*
*
C