#192 – Marvel Zombies: What to Expect After What If…Zombies?!

Welcome back to Marvel Maniac MCU After Show. This is your host Eric Cicada, aka Mr. Honest, and we are here for a quick one today, a primer for Marvel's Zombies the Animated Series coming out this Wednesday. We'll be covering it this upcoming Friday. As in our usual slot, this episode is going to be short, sharp and full of what to watch for moments and a little bit of speculation. Let's go. So let's do a little previously on because the biggest thing for me is wondering in 2001's what if Zombies episode in the series, what if Is the base of this entire show. I think it's a yes and no answer. We'll talk a little bit about it. However, we'll do a recap now and even a little one before we watch on I review on Friday. However, you'll have seen it by then and you'll know, so I'm interested. This is kind of our theory slash recap episode. So here's a 90 second recap so you're not missing anything. A Contagion Hints Hits When Hank Pym goes into the Quantum realm to find his wife Janet Van Dyne. This all times out around the timing of the movie Infinity War. An infection from the quantum realm has taken over Janet in this timeline. I think if I'm wrong about her name, I'm sorry, but I'm pretty sure I'm right. The faction, it turns heroes into undead versions of themselves. They keep their powers, which is something that kind of confuses me. Like, are these all smarter zombies? Are the superhero zombies just a little bit smarter? Is it muscle memory? All stuff I hope maybe they'll address but probably won't. They keep some of their tactical brains, but the hunger does take over. Regardless. Chaos breaks out. There's a big train fight, lots of brutal losses. I'm thinking of Okoye saying Wakanda forever before she gets dragged down into the hole with Wanda. We never see her die, but there's a few of those too. And if this is going to be a continuation off of that episode, it'll be very interesting because it closes on a cliffhanger. We don't get neat on screen confirmations for some of our favorites. Hulk, he goes in on the Horde to fight Zombie Wanda himself. We don't see the end of that fight and we don't get another on screen confirmation for Bucky. Bucky is fighting the Horde and then he meets Wanda, the zombie version, and she like throws him over like a ton of feet into the air and out of shot and we don't see him again. So Bucky could still be alive. He's a super soldier. He'll probably land okay, maybe a little bit beat up, but I think he's all right. And he fights like a freaking maniac. And it's so good to see him with the shield. So we lose track of him and Hulk. And that unresolved ending is the seed. Marvel can either grow into a direct sequel or use as a springboard into multiversal set pieces. So I guess we are to see. Okay, now that we're all paddling in the same boat of dread, here's what I think they'll do and what you should watch for. First up, tonal promise. This is horror leaning on material masquerading as a Marvel event. Think real stakes, think visceral scenes. But also, and this matters, expect character beats. Marvel's not just showing gore for gore sake. This is the might be the farthest they've ever gone in an animated series. Though. The horror is used to put pressure on people we care about. So. So when a character cries or makes a choice, self sacrifice or just we lose them, that moment will land because you already know them. The main zombie thing I'm sure a lot of us are familiar with. Me, the most familiar with is the Walking Dead. Ironically, I never finished that show. There was too much filler. I don't think a four episode Marvel series on Marvel zombies will have too much filler. I think if anything, that's probably a pretty contained event. Or it could be a multiversal thing where every episode is just a different take. I don't know. But all I know is Zombie Thanos. We'll talk about him in a minute. These zombies remember how to fight, okay? Like that's the difference between the Walking Dead zombies and these zombies. Like the Walking Dead zombies won't man a gun and shoot the gun at you. But in the in this universe, apparently it can control repulsors like Tony Starks, you know, his gloves. It can have Dr. Strange make portals. Wanda is still the Scarlet Witch, but just a zombie, which is terrifying. So don't expect slow, aimless shamblers. These are competent threats. In the what if episode and in the comics, infected heroes use their training and powers. That changes everything. A zombified Strange who, like, let's emphasize who could still sling spells is not an enemy you want to punch. He's a tactical disaster. So watch. Watch the fights differently. Look for choreography that shows skill, not just hunger. And if it's just A continuation off of the what if Zombies episode. They did throw a lot of really big characters away. I'm not sure if when they made that they planned on or knew about the series. I knew though very a long time ago they were making the Marvel Zombies series. And I think it was because this episode was a success. So that is the main question I have. Will they continue? The Peter Parker, Scott Lang and Legless t'. Challa. Them venturing into Wakanda thinking it's a safe haven and then running into Zombie Thanos. I think everyone who saw the what if episode in 2001 wants to see the payoff to that. So I sure hope there is even just a little bit of payoff. That's what makes me wonder how will this show hold the story? Different episodes, different stories, same universe. You know, that means we won't get Cap or Tony or Dr. Strange or Wong. All of them die in the first few minutes. But it was really cool. So if I can recommend anything, it will be if you have Disney plus, it's only like a 26 minute episode. Go watch what if Zombies. I believe it's like the fifth episode of the series. Right after my favorite of the whole series and one of my favorite Multiverse stories. What if Dr. Strange lost his heart and not his hands? I love what if and personally I'm sad that it's gone. But hopefully after the Multiverse saga they'll just make more. We'll see. And the worst kind of zombie is one with a PhD in murder, aka Dr. Strange. Maybe it's for the better that he's gone. Maybe we'll see him. I don't know. I have no idea. All I know is Shang Chi is going to be in this and it's voiced by Simu Liu. So I'm pretty excited for any more Shang Chi. He's definitely. If you haven't listened to my last episode, go listen. It's about how we need more Shangchi movies. There was a sequel that probably was supposed to happen by now. And how I don't think we should give up on him as a hero. I think he can be a cornerstone avenger and I think he was meant to be. Okay, so the big rumor everyone is whispering about is Zombie Thanos and that gauntlet cliffhanger. If Marvel does this right, it's spectacle with stakes. Not just a one liner joke. A gauntlet in the hands of a powered, cunning, undead Thanos. Zombie Thanos. That's not just a cheap snap gag, okay? He's not just going to Snap his fingers. I think he's going to use the Gauntlet like rage. Use it. How much control does he have over it? I don't know. Like we said, the heroes maintain ability. So there's somewhere in zombie Thanos's head that probably can control the gauntlet. But maybe in a more twisted way, just on Thanos in general. It always. You know, Infinity War is my favorite Marvel movie of all time. Say that a lot. But if I were Thanos, I just literally snap and order pizza for everybody. There wouldn't be no resources. We'd be able to bring pizza to the galaxy and there would be no mass half the universe, genocide deaths. Because Thanos has the Infinity Gauntlet and he can do whatever he wants with it, not just destroy half of all life. He is set on that. And I think that's a big tell of his character. I don't think he's stupid and, and thinking. I don't think he's stupid in like that he's missing the fact that he could probably feed the universe. I bet he thinks that'll go to more problems. So unless he knew about the giant celestial sitting in the middle of the Earth waiting to destroy our planet. And that's exactly why he came in and snapped everyone away. So there was less to feed on, hence pushing back the emergence. I don't know. I mean that's something to bite and chew on a little bit. I'm also seeing a lot of love for the Eternals. Finally it's coming back around. People are finally admitting they liked it like I did in theaters. And I think it's going from rumored to not be back to rumored to slightly coming back. I think they're going to revisit the Eternals after Secret Wars. It's a good. It's a good time for them to do it if that's the case. Cuz there won't be so much like build up to the RDJ and all that. Maybe there'll be too many heroes if they introduce the Eternals. Plus they're all, all off world and that could be technically for ages. We don't know how long they're going to be in space with Thanos's brother. But I want to know more about him. I think his name is Star Fox, played by Harry. Harry Childs. I think that's his name. No Google's here today folks. Just honest interpretation. So a lot of fates in what if were intentionally left fuzzy. Like I said, Hulk's fate, Bucky's fall. The ambiguity is a tool it lets writers surprise us. Maybe someone we thought dead pops back up. Or maybe those ghosts haunt the survivors emotionally. Keep your ears open for half answers, weird references, and all those small visual nods that that shout. We saved this for a reveal. My hot take I want Bucky to reappear. I also want Hulk to reappear. And I think we can get a satisfying oh, they survived moment. And I'm ready to be wrong or vindicated even. Okoye. I'd like to see her make her way out alive from where we left her and that trio. Bucky, Bruce Banner and Okoye band and then show up at Wakanda to help with the fight. Whoever. Whoever's left. Hopefully we can portal in some people to take down Zombie Thanos. I will be most disappointed if they don't do the Zombie Thanos story. I'd even be happy if they remade the what if episode into something different leading to Zombie Thanos. It's. It's something I really want to see. So will it follow the same survivors or be a multiversal anthology? My money is on a mix. Expect connective tissue to what if. Obviously the show won't ignore the cliffhanger, but also expect episodes that flex different tones. One episode might be a slow burn survival story, another a frenetic set piece of that mix keeps everything from going stale. Think of it like a mixtape with different flavors, different zombies, and the same late night vibe. So practical. Note Marvel should give a quick recap and if they don't, I will. I already did, but I'll do it again. That's my that's my job technically as a host. But realistically, even if you didn't see what if that episode, you can just still jump in. The show will likely drop a Previously on if it is going into the events of that episode or give a fast context. Either way, watch day one and don't worry about being behind. Okay, so here's some quick hot takes before we close. Six mini call outs that we could see or want to see obviously. Spectacle Thanos used for drama, not a joke. Zombies equaled skilled threats. Fights will be tactical and savage as we've seen from some of the trailers. Savage indeed. Survivor Surprise Someone we thought gone might return betting on a Bucky Hulk or even someone we haven't seen yet in that episode that could be in the universe ready to help. Like the Guardians of the Galaxy. They're probably unaffected in space. They were probably on Titan and there was no snap. I don't know how this universe played out in that story because Tony Stark in that episode died at the beginning and it was brutal tone swings so expect almost like black comedy installment. It's similar to the what if episode had some dark humor in there and another episode that's just pure dread. I think there's going to be a shock factor for sure. The cameos short and meaningful. Don't expect long arcs for every face. Also comic nods, small easter eggs, think lines or visuals you can google later etc like non nods to like the Marvel Zombies comics run. Not necessarily to not necessarily to enjoy the show but just something that's in there for old time readers. Old time readers, comic book readers. Just because you read comic books doesn't make you old time. I I kind of want to get into reading comic books. As a side note, those are the checks I'm cashing in on as of today and I'm very curious and very excited to see what they do with the show. We've been waiting it waiting for for a long time. All right, that's your short guide. When I watch the whole thing, I'll record the reaction and do a deeper breakdown for anybody who wants the receipts. We won't be doing episode by episode. We will just cover the whole series in one episode this Friday so you have a little time to chew on that meat. That is disgusting and I'm sorry and I hope I didn't offend any zombies or humans out there. Also, if you got bit, you need to you needed to tell the people around you. So if you're enjoying the show and want more, check out our Patreon link is in the bio under our link tree. Very easy to access. You'll get over 20 exclusive five minute minisodes and we drop a new one every Saturday at 6am Central Time. It's a great way to support the show and get extra content at the same time. I hope to see you there be a part of our community. You are more than welcome. And while you're at it, hit that rating button on your podcast app. It helps more people find us and it keeps the community growing, which I would love. So we're going to walk through this together, speculate, freak out, and maybe wince a little when somebody you love gets spoiled, snacked or bitten by a Marvel zombie. I appreciate your time in listening. I'm looking forward to Friday's Marvel Zombies review. Marvelmaniacpod Gmail.com for predictions or reactions. Especially when you watch it, send some reactions. Marvelmaniacpod Gmail.com thank you again for listening. It means the entire world. Zombie infected Avengers disassemble.