What if…Zombies? includes zombies in the MCU and Danai Gurira is there

The zombie genre is nothing new, but the popularity of AMC’s The Walking Dead has brought a resurgence to the undead. The zombie comes in many shapes, sizes, speeds and forms, and now the MCU has introduced zombies into its universe. Perhaps it has before but not in this way.

Even before The Walking Dead was a series, many animated shows like the Simpsons and South Park included zombies in one or more episodes. There is now a crime drama, iZombie, starring a zombie as the main character. Santa Clarita Diet is a horror-comedy about a family whose mother is a zombie. The list of zombie comedies is extensive and includes the Zombieland films Shaun of the Dead and Warm Bodies. Someone has even tried to mash Jane Austen and zombies in Pride and Prejudice Zombies; the jury is still out on this one. There is even a zombie musical, Anna and the Apocalypse. 

Fans of the genre can be pretty harsh if the zombies don’t fit their idea of what a zombie should or shouldn’t be. But, as I see it, we have never truly encountered them, so they are only limited by the creator’s imagination.

What if…Zombies?

The most recent episode of the MCU’s What if…? is including zombies in that universe. Fans might ask Why? and I say, Why not? The whole idea of the What if…? series is to look at that universe from a whole new perspective.

I was only going to write this article to say that The Walking Dead’s Michonne, Danai Gurira, was featured in this episode, but I thought I would go ahead and watch it. I have watched Marvel movies, and I know who the characters are, but I have no clue about anything important in the MCU. But I really enjoyed the episode What if…Zombies?

I thought it was clever and enjoyed the zombies with superpowers. It is another avenue in the genre that hasn’t been explored before, and I found it quite interesting. I won’t spoil anything but as a fan of the zombie genre, there were things I questioned that were actually resolved, which doesn’t always happen.

Below is a clip of Dr. Bruce Banner discovering the existence of an Ironman zombie.

Danai Gurira’s Okoye is also featured in the film, which makes sense as Gurira is an expert in the art of killing zombies on The Walking Dead series. Many other Marvel characters are featured in this one, some as their superhero selves others as their zombie super here counterparts.

If you don’t watch any of the other What if…? episodes, be sure to check out this one, available to stream on Disney+.  You should also check out episode 2, What If… T’Challa Became a Star-Lord? as Walking Dead alum Michael Rooker appears in this one as his MCU character Yondu.