WARNING: The following contains spoilers for What If...? Season 1, Episode 2, "What If... T'Challa Became a Star-Lord," streaming now on Disney+.
The second episode of Marvel Studios' What If...? not only sees T'Challa taking on the role of Star-Lord but also features a very different version of The Collector. In the episode, The Collector manages to acquire many artifacts from various Marvel heroes and villains, including Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, and Hela's helmet and Necrosword. But for all intents and purposes, The Collector is just a man with no way to take on a god and kill them. So naturally, this has raised the question of how he could obtain Hela's items and survive. However, there is one theory that puts it all into a logical perspective.
In the What If...? episode, it's clear how the power The Collector has accumulated affected his character. In the Sacred Timeline, he's a man of average size with an obsession for collecting items he believes are priceless, whether alive or inanimate. However, in What If...?, while his obsession remains, his body has gone through a change as he is now massively muscular. But even with his physical change, he should still have no way of stopping Hela. However, one theorist on Quora believes that Hela's defeat came from her location and his massive and deadly collection.
In Thor: Ragnarok, Odin explains to Thor and Loki that his death will bring about the return of their sister Hela, Goddess of Death. However, according to the All-Father, she will not be at full power until she steps foot on Asgard. This is later proven when she returns to her home realm, and her wounds slowly begin to heal. But even in her weakened state, she can still destroy Mjolnir and overpower Loki and Thor at the same time. Logically, The Collector would be unable to kill someone of that power, but the hint to her defeat may be found within his collection.
Before his final fight with T'Challa, The Collector briefly shows his weapons, including Mjolnir and Captain America's shield. This leads fans to assume that he could beat two of the strongest Avengers and take their most prized weapons. Plus, by killing a God of Asgard, The Collector would also be calling down the wrath of Odin and his army. But because he has already amassed such a powerful array of weapons, even Odin would stand no chance. At this point, they could have learned of Hela and her inevitable return through an explanation from Odin, as Thor would have been their only hope to stop her once he died. However, The Collector's obsession could have led him to kill Odin, take his weapons and awaken Hela.
Since Hela's arrival wouldn't be on Asgard, she would be weaker. With an Asgard army combined with The Collector's own array of weapons and followers, she would be vastly outmatched and beaten in moments. In the films, Hela had an edge due to her experience and knowledge of killing gods and conserving her limited energy. But by facing The Collector, her focus would be on survival, which is much harder to do when weakened. As a result, her death leads The Collector to obtain her helmet and Necrosword, making him even more powerful than before.
What If...? teases the limitless potential hidden within The Collector and proves just how much of a threat he can be. To defeat Hela is no easy feat and being able to do so, even when she isn't on Asgard, is impressive. Hela has conquered worlds and faced down gods, even killing almost all of the Valkyrie. But even with all of that strength, it was no match for the knowledge The Collector possessed. With the artifacts around him, he would then orchestrate her execution and obtain yet another powerful weapon.
New episodes of Marvel Studios' What If...? debut Wednesdays on Disney+.