*Spoiler Alert: WandaVision spoilers ahead*
After over a decade of releasing 23 successful blockbuster films all leading up to the climax of the series, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) seemed to come to a halt when Avengers: Endgame was released in 2019. Fans finally got their closure for the biggest plot-line in film franchise history, and could sleep soundly at night knowing that the Avengers had won. While no one expected Marvel to stop making films, especially with their announcements of releasing new movies in the future, I think I can speak for the majority of fans when I say we did not expect WandaVision to happen. It’s no surprise to have novels or comic books turn into movies, but Marvel took it up a notch when they took a comic book series, turned it into the highest-grossing movie series of all time, and then turned that into a spin-off sitcom TV show.
A bit over a month ago, WandaVision was released on Disney+, and I know I’m not alone when I say that I was extremely confused. For starters, one of the main characters is supposed to be dead. Pair that with follow-up questions such as “why is it black and white?”, and “why are two insanely powerful superheroes living in a suburban neighbourhood in the 50s?”, and you’re bound to get a headache. The first two episodes display the couple struggling to fit into their new lives in Westview, and we, the audience, struggle to make sense of what’s really going on. It’s obvious there’s some deeper, twisted plot going on behind the scenes, insinuated by the sparse instances when colour randomly appears in their black-and-white world, or when it’s hinted at multiple times that the characters are actually trapped in this “world”. By episode 4, Wanda is somehow four months pregnant and ready to give birth in the same day, and by episode 5, their kids have aged ten years. It’s later revealed that Wanda created her own fantasy world to keep Vision alive in her life, and that all the other characters are stuck living in her made-up, fairy-tale version of reality. Whatever the case, Marvel clearly has some master plan at work, and they’re slowly giving us bits and pieces as the show goes on.
I have to admit, I was not satisfied with the first few episodes. Having to go from watching Vision and Wanda, the bad-ass Avengers who saved the world multiple times, to watching their characters in some dull spin-off series where they try to play nice with the neighbours, it honestly felt like a slap in the face. However, when you look behind the scenes and pick up the clues, their unsettling, suburban lifestyle is obviously not the main plot. The idea to put two main Avengers characters with the most tragic love story into a sitcom-style TV show was a genius move on Marvel’s part. Not only are fans intrigued and captivated, but the sudden change of pace and scenery for this particular franchise is grabbing attention everywhere. The MCU is full of unexpected convolutions and clever plot-lines, and WandaVision is just another one of those “let’s wait and see” moments. Once you get through the first few episodes, I promise it’ll be worth it. Let’s be real — when has Marvel ever disappointed?