What If...? Animation Overview What If...? is an American animated anthology television series produced by Marvel Studios for Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics series of the same name. The show explores alternate timelines in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), presenting scenarios where key moments from the films occur differently, all observed by the narrator, the Watcher (voiced by Jeffrey Wright)
. Animation Style and Production The series features a distinctive cel- shaded animation style designed to reflect the look and feel of the MCU films while drawing inspiration from classic American illustrators. This style was defined with the help of Marvel Studios' head of visual development, Ryan Meinerding. Animation work was provided by several studios including Flying Bark Productions, Stellar Creative Lab, Blue Spirit, Squeeze, and SDFX Studios across different seasons
. The cel-shaded approach allows the series to explore creative and "unbounded" storytelling possibilities that live-action cannot easily achieve. However, some viewers have expressed criticism regarding the animation quality, noting issues like low frame rates and mismatched mouth movements
. Series Context and Reception What If...? premiered its first season in August 2021 and has released subsequent seasons through 2024, with episodes varying in length and narrative style. The series has been praised for its voice acting, imaginative storylines, and creative use of animation to explore the MCU multiverse, although some criticism has been directed at episode length and writing
. Additional Content The franchise has expanded with an interactive augmented and virtual reality story for the Apple Vision Pro headset and a spin-off animated series titled Marvel Zombies , set to premiere in October 2025. The What If...? series itself has paved the way for potential live- action adaptations of variant characters introduced in the animation
. In summary, What If...? animation is a cel-shaded Marvel Studios production that creatively reimagines MCU events through alternate realities, using a stylized visual approach to complement its storytelling ambitions
