WandaVision Series Premiere: An Unusual Couple
Sarah Little
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It's time to theorize, speculate, and pick apart every minute detail, folks!
With the arrival of WandaVision Season 1 Episode 1 and WandaVision Season 1 Episode 2 on Disney+, we are finally getting a much-needed dose of the Marvel Cinematic Universe after a five hundred and sixty-three-day drought.
And, boy, did Marvel deliver. Not that there was any concern that they wouldn't, of course.
WandaVision is unlike anything we have ever seen within the MCU, making it already a standout piece of work among the many movies and television shows that have come before it. And at the forefront of its success is Wanda Maximoff.
Wanda is one of the most underrated, most powerful characters in the MCU, and she is finally getting the recognition and the screentime that she deserves.
And Elizabeth Olsen is, as expected, marvelous as the Scarlet Witch herself.
Vision: My wife and her flying saucers.
Wanda: My husband and his indestructible head.
Vision: Aren't we a fine pair?
As mentioned before, WandaVision is a bit unusual, and that's because Wanda, along with her TV husband, Vision, is trapped in a world that is akin to one that you would see on a sitcom.
Wanda and Vision played out all the tropes on the series premiere one might see on a sitcom in the '50s. And Olsen was an absolute riot as the quirky, misplaced housewife who constantly found herself in a bit of mischief.
It's almost as if Olsen is playing Wanda Maximoff, who is then playing another character, Wanda, the housewife. If that's not an act of triumph to pull off not only successfully but superbly, as an actor, I don't know what is.
As we saw near the end of the first half-hour, Olsen was able to switch back between Wanda the Scarlet Witch and Wanda the housewife seamlessly.
And with a laugh track to back her up, Wanda was hilarious in the '50s and the '60s, which we then saw on the second episode.
Norm: You're like a walking computer.
Vision: What? I most certainly am not. I'm a regular carbon-based employee made entirely of organic matter, much like yourself, Norm.
Of course, Vision was funny and charming, too, but with him supposedly dead in the real world, it's easier to see Wanda as the main character.
Plus, the man on the radio during the '60s sitcom was only calling out to her and not her android lover. And she was the one to rewind the tape when they saw the mysterious beekeeper.
Make no mistake, it may be called WandaVision, but Wanda is the real star here, and we look forward to seeing more of her trope characters and her real, Avengers character.
WandaVision seems like it's going to be more of a slow burn in the way it reveals its truths to us, the audience. And that's not a bad thing exactly; it just makes us long for the next episode and the one after that.
It's a hoot to watch Olsen and Paul Bettany trapped in sitcom versions of their characters, but, hopefully, we'll get to see more of their real selves soon as they figure out more about the universe they're trapped in.
Vision: And now, ladies and gentlemen, for our grand finale, I bring you, The Magnet of Crysteries!
Wanda: The Cabinet of Mysteries!
Vision: Yeah, yeah, what she said.
It's still unclear who is doing this to Wanda and perhaps to Vision as well, or if it is, in fact, Wanda who created this world, but we did get a little hint when the show took us out of the world of '50s television.
We saw what looked to be someone watching Wanda and Vision on TV. They had a notebook in front of them that appeared to have the symbol for S.W.O.R.D. on the front of it.
We saw more of the S.W.O.R.D. symbol on the '60s episode on the red and yellow helicopter that Wanda found, and it was printed on the back of the beekeeper's outfit.
For those not familiar, S.W.O.R.D. is basically the space counterpart of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the comic books.
Now, S.W.O.R.D. is an organization that is historically made up of the good guys, which begs the question, are they here to help Wanda and Vision escape?
Also, could they be the ones who were trying to communicate with Wanda through the radio? If so, why? Is this made-up universe in outer space? Is Daisy Johnson from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. involved in any way?
Was the beekeeper an agent of S.W.O.R.D.?
So many questions with little to no answers, just the way Marvel likes it.
There were a few moments here and there where the show slightly pulled its characters out of the spell they were under, leading us to believe that Wanda and Vision aren't the only ones trapped.
When Mr. Hart was choking, Mrs. Hart repeatedly said, "stop it," but she seemed to be speaking to Wanda and not her husband, as if Wanda could stop this illusion.
Perhaps this does mean that Wanda is behind all this, after all, or it just means Mrs. Hart believes Wanda has the power to save them all, which she definitely does.
There was also the time when Dottie confronted Wanda and asked who she was, and broke the glass in her hand.
Let's just say things are very fishy in the town of Westview.
A highlight of these two installments was the commercials, where any MCU fan could have spotted a couple of easter eggs.
The first one was for a toaster made by Stark Industries and the second one was for a Strucker watch that had "HYDRA" printed on it.
Today, we will lie to you, and yet you will believe our little deceptions because human beings are easily fooled due to their limited understanding of the inner workings of the universe.
Vision
If we are looking back on Wanda's life, these two commercials might hint at her backstory. When she was young, her home was bombed by missiles made by Stark Industries. This later contributed to her hatred of the Avengers on Avengers: Age of Ultron.
And Strucker was the German scientist who used Loki's scepter to give Wanda her powers and make her do HYDRA's bidding.
Again, I'm not sure what this all means, but it will definitely add up to some answers in the future that we so desperately need.
We were finally introduced to the grown-up version of Monica Rambeau, but she is definitely not the little girl we all remember.
It seems as if Monica is trapped in the made-up world of Westview along with Wanda and Vision, and she goes by the name Geraldine there.
Of course, that's all we know about her so far. My best guess is that she is an agent of S.W.O.R.D. that infiltrated this alternate universe to save Wanda and Vision, but she got stuck as well and was rewarded a whole new alias.
But even as Geraldine, I'm hoping we get to see more of a friendship develop between her and Wanda because they played off each other nicely in the scenes we have seen so far.
How great is Agnes? And how suspicious are we all of her?
She might be a nosy neighbor, and she might seem like a good friend to Wanda, but there has to be more to her character than just that.
Agnes: Wanda, can I give you a bit of friendly advice?
Wanda: Is it about the way I'm dressed?
Agnes: Yes, but it's too late for that.
Yes, she is hilarious, and Kathryn Hahn is utterly fantastic playing her, but she's almost too perfect.
There's also the fact that she is always mentioning her husband, Ralph, but we have never seen him. That's a bit odd if you ask me.
Is Agnes the real villain of this story? Or am I just being paranoid? It remains to be seen.
What did you think, WandaVision Fanatics?
Is WandaVision everything you hoped for and more? Who do you think is behind all of this?
And what kind of tropes are you looking forward to seeing on the '70s episode?
Let me know in the comments, and do not forget that you can watch WandaVision online right here via TV Fanatic!
WandaVisions airs Fridays on Disney+.
Sarah Little was a staff writer for TV Fanatic.She retired in September 2021.
