The third and final season of the animated Marvel series What If...? recently concluded drawing diverse reactions from audiences and critics alike despite the prior seasons receiving much praise. Former X-Men '97 showrunner Beau DeMayo who was let go from Marvel Studios shared criticisms about What If...? Season 3 on X expressing disappointment. Beau DeMayo mentioned "yikes" while also commenting on improvements that could have been made demonstrating his disapproval for this Marvel project. The season three has been released in daily format by Disney Plus starting from December 22nd.
Beau DeMayo Critiques 'What If...?' Season 3 While Season Scores Significantly Decline From Previous Titles
Beau DeMayo continued to mock What If...? stating he could easily have improved upon this production however would choose to boil water instead creating more conversations within Marvel and Animation social media circles. What If...? Season 3 includes several episodes with unusual storylines, including Howard the Duck’s return referencing a very peculiar part of the live action movie from 1986 which has proven to be a sticking point for certain viewers. Rotten Tomatoes shows What If...? Season 3 scoring at 75% compared to higher scores at 89% for season 1 and 90% for season 2 showing that viewership has noticeably dropped for this production on the MCU's platform. The general audience score of What If…? Season 3 has taken a noticeable decrease with a recorded 54% which is lower than the previous seasons by a considerable amount.
Series Finale's Storylines and Connection to the Broader MCU Narrative and Overall Theme
The various storylines concluding the animated series include the Hulk’s battle against Mech Avengers Agatha Harkness in Hollywood Red Guardian taking on Winter Soldier Howard the Duck's wedding plus the Emergence causing mass destruction and these storylines have concluded the series run. Marvel’s upcoming Marvel Zombies spinoff show has currently been greenlit for production. Marvel studios hinted during the final season there are reasons to end the show that will be revealed within the greater MCU during upcoming shows. Brad Winderbaum a Marvel executive discussed the connection that What If...? and series Loki create together in that timeline events led to emergence of a multiverse. The Watcher’s viewing of the multiverse at the end of What If...? Season 2 mimics the world tree that was introduced at the end of Loki Season 2 that has a significant tie in with the Marvel Comic lore
Marvel's What If...? Concludes While Show Connections Within MCU Take Form as Explained By Production Executive
The culmination of What If...? season 3 fits into greater MCU continuity demonstrating cohesion for Marvel storytelling with many underlying connections across different properties on MCU’s streaming platform. Brad Winderbaum said “there's infinite stories to tell with What If...?” leaving possible future projects however for now this ending signifies a clear wrap for this current storytelling with all prior connections to all prior marvel films and properties to be highlighted. What If...? is a Disney plus streaming exclusive that was meant to provide interesting alternate possibilities for characters that are much loved by fans across the MCU banner. Beau DeMayo who recently was let go from marvel production has a unique insight on What If…? series with his critique posted via the social media platform called X, but this critique may not mean very much as an outsider looking in.
'What If...?' Season 3 Drops in Rotten Tomatoes Ranking for MCU Television Shows On Disney+
What If...? Season 3’s Rotten Tomatoes ratings show a lower ranking among all Marvel TV shows released in the Disney Plus era with She-Hulk: Attorney at Law rising from the bottom in those rankings for 2024. Tatiana Maslany’s 2022 production of She-Hulk has remained the lowest ranking Marvel title on audience rating scale on Rotten Tomatoes with a low of 32%. Despite the low audience scores She Hulk still scored 79% with critics amid talks of review bombing on social media that has a very negative impact. What If...? season 3 landed in MCU’s bottom three for TV shows with a critic rating of 75% a similar trend has followed from early audience ratings being lower at only 56%. Secret Invasion remains lowest rated critic score at 52% and Echo at 70% in early review data and She Hulk also comes below this production on audience score data.
Critics and Audience Division on 'What If...?' Season 3 Due to Release Format And Creative Choices Made
Due to the time of the year with holidays or a change of format by releasing daily episodes there were only 12 critics who shared reviews on Rotten Tomatoes yet user scores were over 100 during this data collection which will show how viewership is split overall regarding audience impressions. Rotten Tomato score results show an MCU trend of an average 84% for critic scores with 75% audience scores demonstrating how poorly What If…? has performed against prior releases. What If...? season 3 sits below all averages even below popular scores on similar productions like X-Men ‘97 at 99% and Ms. Marvel’s 98%. The show’s audience scores followed a downward trend with a 92% score for season 1 falling to 65% for season 2 and finally the current low of 56% for the final season. Critics show a somewhat higher regard for second season than for the first in terms of review ratings on Rotten Tomatoes.
Diverse Critical and Fan Opinions Showcase Strengths and Weaknesses of Disney+ Production
Several publications like ComingSoon call the season outright ‘bad’ while ComicBookMovie labels the production ‘disappointing’ and the reviewer from ScreenRant says that the experience is "frustrating" showing the diversity of critic impressions with publications such as Empire noting a "strong outing" or JoBlo hailing it a "thrilling conclusion". Collider MovieWeb have all given the series a rating of 7/10 whereas CBR awarded a series score around 8/10 with their collective episodic reviews which also reflects many different perspectives depending on publication. Audience scores indicate concerns with "less interesting" character choices or not fully utilizing ideas of What If…?’s core design while positive scoring mostly indicates high entertainment values or connections with upcoming secret wars content for overall MCU. Marvel is always looking for fan opinions and impressions of all productions and feedback is of great importance for improvement and fan appreciation of MCU productions.
Analysis of Diverging Views and Potential Factors in Disappointing Fan and Critic Feedback for What If Series
What If…? Season 3 absolutely does deliver on its unique concept within MCU but many find its bold decision to ignore actual MCU fan questions are hurting its long term viability as a unique concept which could be affecting reviewer feedback negatively and the overall final scores. Returning character cameos with Moon Knight and Shang-Chi did provide fans with great nostalgic feelings while presenting new and unique takes to characters they know and enjoy. The existing Rotten Tomatoes scores may still change following the release of the final episode but as it stands right now this provides a clear picture as to how current data is viewed regarding Marvel content. The MCU and Marvel production as a whole are known to listen closely to fan base comments and are always looking to deliver exciting and original productions for worldwide viewers.