Marvel Just Answered The Oldest Captain America Mystery & Closed A Huge MCU Plot Hole
In the latest episode of What If...? Season 2, Marvel has finally addressed the long-standing mystery of Captain America's shield and the source of its Vibranium. The revelation not only answers a major question but also closes a significant plot hole in the MCU timeline. Here's a detailed look at how the mystery was solved and the implications of this revelation.
The Long-Standing Mystery
12 years after Captain America: The First Avenger introduced Chris Evans’ Captain America, the MCU has finally officially answered its last glaring question. There have been several mysteries around Steve Rogers, but most focus on Avengers: Endgame’s ending and the fallout of Cap’s return to the past. Beyond that, questions of his longevity, the limit of his powers, and whether he was a virgin have all mostly been answered. Whether we asked or not.
What if season 2 Howard Stark meets King T'Chaka
Despite how long Captain America was active in the MCU, one First Avenger detail was never answered in a satisfying way. The non-canon First Avenger prequel comic sees Howard claim he sent explorers to “deepest Africa” and they returned with the precious metal. Meanwhile, Chadwick Boseman told EW that he believed the Vibranium was taken by force and not with consent. Age Of Ultron establishes that the metal did come from Wakanda, but no official backstory was ever offered. Now, the mystery has been solved.
What if Season 2 Project Pegasus HQ
What If Confirms Howard Stark Didn't Steal Cap's Vibranium
In What If…? season 2 episode 2, a fledgling Avengers team is assembled by Howard Stark and Peggy Carter when a young Peter Quill returns to Earth seemingly waging war at his father’s request. The episode asks what would have happened if Star-Lord was actually delivered to Ego (Kurt Russell) rather than Yondu raising him himself, leading to a global threat that forms the Avengers. The team Stark and Carter assemble includes Hank Pym, Mar-Vell, Goliath, The Winter Soldier, Thor, and King T’Chaka.
What If season 2 King T'Chaka
During an early exchange, T’Chaka (Antandwa Kani) reveals that the Americans and Wakanda had previously worked together. More crucially, he says that his father King T’Chanda had gifted Howard Stark some Vibranium to help the war effort in the 1940s. In other words, Captain America’s shield was made from Vibranium the secretive African nation freely gave to the Americans.
What If season 2 Howard Stark and Peggy Carter
Cap’s Vibranium Reveal Avoids A Major Plot-Hole
What if Season 2 1988 Avengers meet T'Chaka
Implications and Retcon
Howard Stark’s claim that he sent explorers to Africa and they returned with Vibranium isn’t necessarily a plot hole. The inventor could have been covering for T’Chaka to preserve Wakanda’s hidden status. But there were some concerns from the original story of how Vibranium was first brought to the US that the new official explanation avoids. Instead, What If…? Cleverly filling in the gap in the Marvel timeline to reveal T’Chanda’s gift to Stark addresses all previous concerns. On top of that, the revelation that Wakanda did help the world with global threats makes their heroism feel less like self-serving ignorance that would have led to threats eventually coming to their door. All-in-all, a very smart retcon.
Implications and Retcon
