We Saw the First Episode of 'What If...?' Season 2 — When Does it Premiere on Disney Plus?

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Season 2 of Marvel's What If...? on Disney Plus.

"I don't like sequels," the Watcher (Jeffrey Wright) declares in the opening moments of Marvel's What If...? Season 2.

Distractify was onsite when the first episode of the second season was revealed exclusively at San Diego Comic-Con. Who did the episode focus on, and when's the Season 2 release date of the hit animated series? Here's what we know.

Captain Carter (Hayley Atwell) took center stage in the first episode of What If...? Season 2. The series itself is scheduled to debut on Disney Plus in early 2023. Keep reading for more details about the action-packed first episode!

Season 2, Episode 1 of What If...? is titled "What If Captain Carter Fought the Hydra Stomper?" Although the episode centers around Captain Carter, Black Widow (Lake Bell) also makes a welcome return. If we had our way, we'd greenlight an entire season of the duo kicking butt and taking names while dishing out snarky commentary.

All Captain Carter/Black Widow goals aside, the central conflict of the episode lies solely on Steve Rogers' tiny shoulders. To say that Steve serves as Captain Carter's Winter Soldier would be an understatement. Captain Carter is determined to save Steve, but the reality is that he's been brainwashed as the Hydra Stomper (though he does demonstrate the ability to fight the brainwashing on occasion).

Captain Carter's determination to save Steve echoes Steve's determination to rescue Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. At one point in the episode, we hear the melody for "It's Been a Long, Long, Time." You know, the same song Steve and Peggy danced to in the finale of Avengers: Endgame. We won't judge you for grabbing a box of tissues!

Do Captain Carter and Steve get a similar happy ending in Season 2 of What If...? We won't spoil that just yet, but we can certainly say that things don't exactly go as Captain Carter anticipated.

The ending of the first episode was so surprising, it even threw the Watcher off-guard. Let's just say that Captain Carter ends up in an undisclosed location and meets two familiar, slightly chaotic faces, who want to recruit Captain Carter to their cause.

It looks like Steve will have to be put on the backburner for the moment, because Captain Carter has a long new journey ahead of her, and we can't wait to see where it leads!