Originally published in print March 2021.
Illustration by Andrés Murillo.
Way back in 2019, when Disney announced that WandaVision would be at the helm of Marvel’s first official foray into the world of television, I don’t think even the most devout fans of the MCU could have predicted just how much of a pop culture phenomenon it would become. Prior to the Disney+ chapter of the great streaming service saga of the 21st century, Marvel dabbled in small screen productions, mainly through a partnership with Netflix, with great (Daredevil) and not-so-great (Iron Fist) results. For better or worse, the arrival of Disney+ renders these titles non-canonical, and so begins an unprecedented new age for the MCU where the big and small screen finally collide, starting with the tale of arguably two of their most side-lined characters.
To use the synopsis derived from the trailers prior to its release, WandaVision appears to revolve around super-powered Avenger Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and her sentient android partner Vision (Paul Bettany) as they settle down in the suburbs of a small town called Westview, through a series of rapidly changing decades. This premise is initially unsettling right off the bat given that the audience knows Vision is dead. The true plot of this series remained shrouded in mystery right up to its final moments, creating a nine-week epic of theorising and easter egg hunting across the internet unlike anything I’ve seen before. Given the existence of decades-spanning comic book lore, Marvel fans are no strangers to their theories overtaking the internet, but this was something else entirely. When a new MCU film is released, audiences have an idea of what to expect based on the several interconnected films that have come before, leading to some online buzz right before the film’s release, and directly after in anticipation of the next instalment of the franchise. However, with WandaVision, eagle-eyed viewers found a film’s worth of hints in each half hour episode, for nine consecutive weeks. This episodic release strategy feels almost old-school, given the current trend of binge-watching popularised by Netflix, but ended up working in Marvel’s favour, keeping the show at the centre of hypothetical ‘water cooler discussions’ between friends and colleagues at a time where there is little else of note to talk about. As such, speculation about the origins of Wanda’s suburban paradise and the potential dark forces at play both within and outside Westview spread like wildfire as the series progressed. As a self-proclaimed Marvel nerd, these weeklong debates were almost as enjoyable as watching the show itself. However, in retrospect, many fans blew popular theories, such as the secret involvement of Marvel’s devil-like figure Mephisto, completely out of the water, which hurt their overall impression of the show when it eventually failed to meet these impossible standards within its limited run time.
The most widely covered unmet fan expectation was in fact Marvel’s own doing. By casting Evan Peters as Wanda’s deceased brother Pietro (better known as Quicksilver), a role he has previously played in 20th Century Fox’s X-Men franchise, the internet understandably blew up, taking this choice as confirmation that the X-Men would finally join the ranks of the MCU. This assumption was fueled by Wanda’s own mutant history in the comics, as well as Disney’s recent acquisition of the studio. Instead of easily tying in the two universes through the reality-bending setting of WandaVision, in a move that would have started riots in cinemas had this been a film and not a series, Peters’ ‘Pietro’ was instead revealed to be regular citizen Ralph Bohner. To cast such a well-known actor, one that was always sure to send fans into a flurry, for the purpose of a simple phallic joke felt like a wasted opportunity at best, and borderline cruel at worst, but is an important reminder that, like any creative entity, Marvel does not owe the viewers anything. It is important not to conflate expectations of a series with necessities, and admit that you got caught up in the hype instead of claiming the showrunners have done you a disservice. This lesson is hopefully one that fans will take onboard going forward into the next series on the roster, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
As much as hearing Peters’ in-character chuckle at his own punchline of a last name was a bitter pill to swallow (although, admittedly I found the reveal so hilariously absurd that I still smile every time I think about it), it made sense in the greater narrative of the series not to include such a juggernaut of a concept. Despite what the rampant fan discourse would have you believe, WandaVision is first and foremost, Wanda’s story. By stepping out of the cinematic realm, Marvel was able to provide some much-needed character development for its remaining heroes, finally giving Wanda the depth she deserves by showcasing her journey through the grieving process. The ‘big bad’ fans were desperate to identify from the first episode was not the demon Mephisto, or even the delightfully wicked Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn), despite the certified bop that is ‘Agatha All Along’, it was actually grief itself. This revelation is not something I can see Marvel getting away with in a blockbuster film, but, woven through a nine-episode story full of misdirects, it works perfectly. Additionally, despite the god-tier trolling of Paul Bettany teasing the major cameo of an actor that he’d longed to work with all of his life, with turned out to be himself, many hypothesised that anyone from Doctor Strange to Professor X would come in and save the day, but Wanda doesn’t need saving. This is a character-driven story, and any last-minute heroes would have defeated this purpose. Instead, WandaVision finally exposes the full magnitude of Wanda’s powers, far beyond the lacklustre red sparkle emitted from her hands in previous films. This vindicates people (like myself) who have championed her as the strongest Avenger from the beginning. I couldn’t help but shed a tear as the music swelled when she finally earned her ‘Scarlet Witch’ mantle, defiant in the face of all the loss she has endured.
In comparison to the blockbuster MCU films that have to move a mile a minute to pack in all the action and quips audiences have come to expect, the longer format of the show was utilised to put these emotional, character-driven moments at the forefront. This is best seen through the show’s greatest feat, actually making me care about Vision as a character. Since their first moments together in Captain America: Civil War, the idea of a romance between a woman and a synthetic humanoid felt comical, but throughout the series, this notion dissipates, and the love between these two characters begins to feel tangible and genuine. Despite not having a real heart of his own, Vision delivers some of the most moving lines of dialogue I’ve heard in a long time, retroactively giving emotional weight to his death in Avengers: Infinity War. By giving their secondary characters an opportunity to shine in their own right, Marvel have ingeniously set the stage for a post-Robert Downey Jr. MCU, in which other heroes that resonate with the audience must come to the forefront.
With a fresh format and the restrictions of box office numbers and a two-hour run time cast to one side, WandaVision was given the space to experiment with form and genre in a way that no other MCU property has before. This structure allowed the series to tie in with its comic book roots, showing different adventures every week gradually building into an overarching story. In creating the future of the MCU, and superhero TV programming as a whole, the series masterfully borrowed from the TV shows of the past, with Wanda and Vision’s journey through the decades inspired by legendary sitcoms, from The Dick Van Dyke Show to Malcolm in the Middle. As these facades began to crumble, the show took on an eerie, and at times horrific (I’m looking at you, corpse Vision) undertone. It was in these moments that WandaVision was at its best, well and truly free of the shackles of the typical Marvel formula.
In their quest for complete screen domination, Marvel have hit the ground running with WandaVision, adding an excitement to television viewing that has been missing for quite some time. Ever since the series ended, I’ve come to miss waking up on Friday mornings in fear of picking up my phone, desperately avoiding spoilers. If Marvel can continue to push the envelope on the small screen, and manage to tie these stories into the larger cinematic universe, the golden age of superheroes has a bright future indeed.
