WHAT IF...? "The Red Guardian Stopped The Winter Soldier?" Spoiler Recap: Goliath, CIVIL WAR Undone, And More

WHAT IF...? "The Red Guardian Stopped The Winter Soldier?" Spoiler Recap: Goliath, CIVIL WAR Undone, And More

The third episode of What If...? season 3 pairs up two fan-favourite characters for a mission which ensures Captain America: Civil War will never come to pass! You can find our full recap right here...

By JoshWilding - Dec 24, 2024 03:12 AM EST
Filed Under: What If

The third episode of What If...? season 3 begins by showing us some familiar security footage from Captain America: Civil War in which The Winter Soldier murdered Howard and Maria Stark. However, in this reality, Bucky Barnes is busy fighting...Red Guardian?!

Exploring how we reached that point, it's revealed that Dreykov wants to send Red Guardian to Ohio where he'll be forced to go undercover as a data analyst. He's not keen on the idea and wishes to prove himself, especially with the Red Room relying on The Winter Soldier more often. 

They both travel to America; Alexei Shostakov is in economy class and Bucky is dropped into the country by his superiors. Red Guardian interrupts The Winter Soldier's mission and stops him from killing the Starks; as the police close in, both men are forced to flee but with only one dose of Super Soldier Serum left, Bucky has failed his mission. 

Bill Foster, Head of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Science Division, is tasked with investigating the case and is joined by Ranger Morales. Alexei and Bucky, meanwhile, steal a car and travel to Las Vegas in the hope that the mysterious Red Room sleeper agent "Rook" can help extract them. 

Bill stops them at the roadside and a chase ensues which sees him transform into Goliath. Red Guardian defeats the hero and the two Russian agents escape, growing close in the process (Alexei helps Bucky remember some of his past; specifically, Coney Island). 

Unfortunately, The Winter Soldier is told to kill Red Guardian because he's a liability; he's reluctant and when the duo finds "Rook," the sleeper is revealed to be Obadiah Stane. It turns out he leaked the intel to the Russians not because he's loyal to them but because he wanted Howard dead. 

Red Guardian is devastated and a fight ensues which ends with Bucky throwing Stane to his death. After holding off the Red Room Task Force, our leads are once again pursued by Goliath and, having become friends, it looks like they might get a happy ending after outrunning him...until their superiors, and a small army, close in.

Despite managing to overcome the code words that force him to comply, Bucky was recaptured and Alexei escaped. Returned to Dreykov, the former is forced to continue being their assassin but, who knows, perhaps he'll manage to shake off their brainwashing thanks to his bond with Red Guardian. 

As for Alexei, he's become a gym teacher but, after being enlisted by Bill to join S.H.I.E.L.D., he's later shown alongside the original six Avengers at the Battle of New York! Plus, by saving the Starks and destroying the last lot of serum, Civil War will never come to pass...

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It is 1991, and the Red Guardian takes it upon himself to join a high-profile mission and prove himself to his Red Room superiors. When his antics interfere with the Winter Soldier’s own mission to kill Howard Stark, the two Soviet supersoldiers must form an alliance to escape the United States.

The cast in episode 3 includes Jeffrey Wright, David Harbour, Sebastian Stan, Laurence Fishburne, America Ferrera, and Piotr Michael. The episode is directed by Bryan Andrews and written by A.C. Bradley.

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Spike101
Spike101 - 12/24/2024, 3:28 AM
I just can’t bring myself to watch the MCU animation content, does anyone feel the same?
JustAWaffle
JustAWaffle - 12/24/2024, 3:48 AM
@Spike101 - Right there with you. The animation looks AI and the stories are 98% hollow. I watched the first two seasons out of a sense of curiosity, but I think I’ve seen enough.
AgentofSH1ELD
AgentofSH1ELD - 12/24/2024, 5:50 AM
@JustAWaffle - Waffle time
agreeeeeeeeeed. Something about it looks so... fake.
So far ive only enjoyed the Marvel Zombies (obvious) and Ultron return. the rest are stinkers
marvel72
marvel72 - 12/24/2024, 6:48 AM
@Spike101 - I watched X-Men 97 and all of What If? Season 1.

But only the odd episode of season 2 that interested me.

As for Season 3,I watched the first episode because I love The Hulk(my favourite comic book character) but don't like how Marvel are currently using the movie version.

Not interested in Agatha at all but I may watch Episode 3.
Reginator
Reginator - 12/24/2024, 7:48 AM
@Spike101 - I’m with you. Loved the what if comics but really dislike the animated show.
J0RELLC00LJ
J0RELLC00LJ - 12/24/2024, 10:46 AM
@Spike101 - Yeah, like I said before, I've seen more emotional range from a Team America marionette.
harryba11zack
harryba11zack - 12/24/2024, 4:25 PM
@Spike101 - yes, it sucks.
Gambito
Gambito - 12/24/2024, 3:38 AM
Guys I honestly tried hard with the mechas episode but holy [frick] they picked the most boring what if’s imaginable. Looking forward to the Storm episode and that’s it
Ironnick
Ironnick - 12/24/2024, 4:41 AM
This was a fun episode! Loved seeing the dynamic between the Bucky and Alexi. This season has been good so far! The Mech episode was a bit underwhelming, but I genuinely liked the relationship between Sam and Bruce & Sam and Monica. Loved the Agatha/Kingo episode, I also loved Eternals so I really dug what they did with mixing Agatha into the lore from that movie.
SpaceAgent
SpaceAgent - 12/24/2024, 5:02 AM
With Obediah Stane dying in 1991.... how would Iron Man exist in 2012?

The ending doesn't add up.
CLTMAN29
CLTMAN29 - 12/24/2024, 5:30 AM
@SpaceAgent - Exactly this! Just came here to comment the exact same thing. With Stark alive, and Stane dead, there would be no fight for the company, Tony wouldn't have been abducted etc and therefore no motivation to be iron man. Hell, he may not have even been running Stark Industries with Howard still around.

This is why this show always falls flat for me, because they don't sit and think out the consequences of the changed events, or really pay attention to the status of the MCU at the time of the episodes. It's been the same since day one. T'Challa was a Starlord, Mecha Avengers, Nebula Nova Core - are just some of the ones with glaring plot issues that just showcase lazy writing and a disregard for established canon
cubrn
cubrn - 12/24/2024, 10:27 AM
@SpaceAgent - Also the ending how Red Guardian just casually wedges himself beside Black Widow
newhire13
newhire13 - 12/24/2024, 10:53 AM
@SpaceAgent - Because something else happened that led to him becoming Iron Man.
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 12/24/2024, 2:22 PM
@newhire13 @CLTMAN29 @SpaceAgent - didn't even think about that, but that is odd. Guess it could be Stark becoming Iron Man is an absolute point (or whatever it's called), and it indeed happens no matter what
Mrnorth1921
Mrnorth1921 - 12/24/2024, 5:06 AM
This was a fun episode.
ptick
ptick - 12/24/2024, 5:55 AM
I actually really enjoyed this one, corny and forced ending shot aside.

Bucky punching through two moving cars to grab the steering wheel and the dialogue after he kills Stane are two highlights. I really would have enjoyed this in live action (assuming they could make Harbour look like he's in his prime).

Makes me look forward to Thunderbolts* even more than I already was.
Corruptor
Corruptor - 12/24/2024, 10:06 AM
Black Goliath, cool.
bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 12/24/2024, 2:14 PM
Now this feels more like a What If in that's it plays with a fairly important MCU moment, and even adds some cool lore to it through Stane being behind the Starks' deaths.
tb86
tb86 - 12/24/2024, 3:26 PM
This episode was kind of annoying, at least the first half. It did get a little better when they arrived in Vegas. Red Guardian was getting on my nerves a lot of the time that I was begging for the car scene from Deadpool & Wolverine. Basically everything Wolverine was saying to Deadpool just before their fight but directed at Red Guardian.

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