The very premise of What If…? opens doors for various characters across the MCU multiverse to find themselves in the same spot as others audiences have already watched, and this was the case for Iron Man's visit to Sakaar in the series fourth episode. In what effectively becomes Iron Man: Ragnarok, the episode is also the latest to take some of its creative cues from a notable franchise not under the Marvel Studios banner.

*Warning: This article contains spoilers for What If…? Season 2, Episode 4*

Recap

The episode opens with an alternate version of the Battle of New York from 2012's The Avengers, but in this one, the portal over the city closes before Iron Man falls back through it. Tony Stark instead finds himself sent flying across the galaxy before finally crash landing in the home of the Grandmaster on the planet of Sakaar, where he learns he's become something of a celebrity. To celebrate Stark's arrival, and his birthday, the Grandmaster brings the hero to “enjoy” a death race involving some familiar faces, including Korg and Valkyrie.

As the chaos ensues on the race track, Stark decides to interfere to save Korg when he encounters a vengeful Gamora who has come to Sakaar for the Avenger. Both are ultimately captured by the Grandmaster's enforcer, Topaz, and imprisoned in the Grandmaster's tower along with other gladiators. It is here Gamora reveals her mission to Stark, given to her by Thanos directly, which inspires Stark to escape and free Sakaar from the Grandmaster.

Stark meets and recruits the aid of Valkyrie and Korg, who help the hero build a new suit, before challenging the Grandmaster to a race for Sakaar's freedom. The Grandmaster accepts Stark's offer, and recruits Gamora to help his chances of beating Stark at his own game.

The race kicks off in chaotic fashion as the Grandmaster does everything he can to thin the field of racers to ensure he wins. It eventually thins down to Grandmaster, Topaz, Gamora, Stark, Valkyrie, and Korg as Stark begins to gain on the Grandmaster while also convincing Gamora to give up her mission and help.

While Stark wins the race, Grandmaster attempts to weasel out of the agreement with the help of Topaz. A timely intervention by Valkyrie, though, ends with Topaz's melt-stick hitting the Grandmaster and reducing him to nothing more than a puddle. In turn, Valkyrie is appointed Sakaar's new ruler, with Korg as her top advisor, and Stark departs the planet with Gamora to take down Thanos.

What If...? kicks off its second season by exploring an alternate life that could have come to Nebula.

Review

The fourth episode of What If…? delivers another fun episode on the heels of the series' Christmas episode that saw Happy Hogan channel his inner John McClane. Instead of Die Hard, though, this episode sees Iron Man channel his inner Max Rockatansky for the Mad Max-style death races that serve as the episode's action centerpieces once Stark is on Sakaar.

It adds an extra element beyond what was, otherwise, Iron Man: Ragnarok. This is by no means an insult, as the episode manages to channel the charm that made Thor: Ragnarok arguably Thor's best stand-alone entry within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

A big part of this is thanks to returning stars Tessa Thompson, Taika Waititi, and Jeff Goldblum as Valkyrie, Korg, and the Grandmaster. While Waititi has already gotten his proverbial feet wet in season two of What If…?, Thompson and Goldblum slip right back into their roles for the animated series. Goldblum, in particular, doesn't hold back when it comes to injecting plenty of his unique charm and charisma into the animated version of a character he has, otherwise, only played once in live-action.

Ending Explained

As for the episode's ending, there ultimately is not much more to say on it. The episode, as The Watcher explains at the start, serves as an origin story for the Gamora recruited for the Guardians of the Multiverse from season one who battled the Infinity Gauntlet-powered Ultron.

It does show, though, that it wasn't just Gamora who took down this universe's version of Thanos much earlier than the Avengers did in the MCU's primary universe. The only other piece worth noting is that, despite being touched by the melt-stick, the Grandmaster is still alive as a puddle of his former-self and still relying on Topaz.

Should you stream What If…? season 2 episode 4?

The episode is worth the watch, but isn't one viewers need to necessarily rush to see compared to some of the preceding episodes. It feels like one of the more isolated stories within the series beyond its connections to the first season, though new connections could always emerge as season two rolls on.

What If…? season two is available to stream on Disney+.