WARNING: The following contains spoilers for What If...? Season 1, Episode 6, "What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?," streaming now on Disney+.
As great as Black Panther is, the movie did feel like it underused Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis) as someone who held great potential since debuting in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Whilst he lost his hand to the titular villain, even after he ended up getting his sonic blasting prosthetic, Klaue just felt like a mere prop to advance the schemes of Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan). And unfortunately, while "What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?" changes up the Wakandan plan and gives Killmonger victory, it once more wrongs Klaue, who's easily the shadiest Marvel Cinematic Universe villain around.
Klaue's a sneaky character, dealing weapons and other black market items, evolving the Avengers villain from the comics from being someone just looking to cause chaos. It helped that Serkis brought an intriguing level of sleaziness to the character, which made fans eager to see how he'd help Killmonger enter Wakanda in the movie after Ultron bullied him.
Sadly, Killmonger shoots Klaue and uses him as a pawn, offering him up to the Wakandan border tribe so he can return home and stake a claim to the throne. Had Klaue been kept as an outside agent -- maybe for a sequel -- that might have made sense, but for someone who was touted as a threat, Klaue was nothing more than a disposable tool.
What If...?, though, seems like it's initially following a different path as Klaue deals Wakandan relics such as Vibranium spears. He's also found peddling Vibranium to James Rhodes as Tony Stark wants the metal to build Killmonger's Liberator Drones, so it's clear he's got a stockpile of goodies. But, as Rhodes and T'Challa are killed by Killmonger during the transaction, all to pit America against Wakanda, Klaue emerges as Killmonger's secret partner once more.
In this alternate reality, it does feel like Killmonger needs his arms and other resources a bit more, knowing Thunderbolt Ross, the U.S. military and the Dora Milaje will be sniffing around the case as war looms, but sadly, Killmonger does Klaue dirty once again. We're not shocked that he betrays him, shooting him dead at the Wakandan barrier, as it's in Killmonger's nature. But Klaue just doesn't get time to intimidate anyone, throwing back to the movie where he only rocked the blaster for a few minutes and was quickly beaten by T'Challa. Here, he doesn't even get to impose himself with his iconic sonic blaster, as he watches on as Killmonger uses the weapon to finish off Rhodes and T'Challa.
Had Klaue done this, or at least gotten one of the kills, his death might have been more palatable. Instead, in this alternate reality, he's robbed of any villainous agency and feels like any old warmonger. It's a shame because he has such potential, yet he ends up being a body Killmonger brings in to infiltrate the Wakandan royal council again.
It's repetitive, lazy and ruins what Klaue could have been as an ally in the shadows, helping destabilize the world per Killmonger's training as a Navy Seal. If Klaue was killed for plotting to betray Killmonger, that would have fit both characters too, but ultimately he's once more a random, mindless goon and an unwitting pawn in a larger game.
To see how Klaue's once more wasted as a villain, the latest episode of What If...? is streaming now on Disney+.