I'm going to start with a spoiler-free review, but I will be talking theories and characters just below, so don't scroll down too far unless you're ready!
I was so excited for WandaVision to be released as I'm a big fan of the Marvel Universe. I wanted to watch the show with my sister and for various reasons we started the show a few weeks late, so I think we watched episodes 1-3 in one go.
When I think of Marvel, or more specifically Wanda Maximoff, I consider all things action-packed and fast paced. Episode 1, "Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience" was possibly the slowest moving Marvel content I have ever seen. The creators of the show have done an absolutely brilliant job of celebrating television through the decades, but I would've hated '50s telly. I found the episode to be mostly quite boring, until the end, where it just became uncomfortable. This is definitely the intention of the creators, to lure you in with a false sense of (boring) security, and then make a twist, that leaves you thinking about it for the rest of the week. That being said, if the other episodes hadn't been available (and I wasn't such a Marvel fan), I don't think I would've gone on to watch more from this episode alone.
It's so important that you continue the story.
Episode 2 is similarly paced, but with many more moments that show something is wrong in this little town, and episodes 3 onwards are much faster and leave you begging for more. I found that once colour had been added (as we entered the '70s), the energy of the show picked up. I'm left wondering, what made Disney decide to style it like this? Is it simply for aesthetics? To represent time-bending? Growth? Life? It's beautifully made, from the costume to the editing, but I want to know why they've chosen this creative direction.
If you're thinking of watching the show, it's a good idea to head into it generally knowing the characters already, as the mystery of the show centres around the fact that a particular character should not exist. I'm trying to keep this review section as spoiler free as possible, but it's difficult when there's films, shows and comics that depict what has happened. If you're looking for key beginning points, I recommend Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame; or for a brief introduction, Disney's Legends.
If you enjoy mystery and heroes and all of that comic book glorious stuff, this show is made for you. To Marvel fans' delight, Disney has riddled every episode with easter eggs linking to not only the films, but to the original comics as well. It's so great analysing every episode as it's released, and looking back at previous episodes to see what they foreshadowed. The creators have really done their research, and Disney has the wallet to pay other studios for characters and entire franchises (hello X-Men and Fantastic Four)!
Kevin Feige, Marvel Studios president, is creating something truly incredible. Every easter egg is an absolute joy to find, every plot-twist and every theory inspiring story-telling during such a boring time, due to the pandemic. It's been a pleasure to wake up early on Fridays just to watch a new episode of WandaVision (and I don't do mornings).
My rating for episodes 1-6, is probably 4.5/5 stars, the 0.5 being my distaste for '50s television.
Below, I will be discussing the show in more depth, addressing theories and characters. Be warned!
Spoilers Ahead!
WandaVision is set just after Hulk's snap reverses the effects of Thanos' snap, bringing back the The Vanished (who turned to dust in 2018), into 2023. One of our main characters, Monica Rambeau (introduced in Captain Marvel), returns in a hospital room and we quickly learn her mum died during the Blip, while Monica was gone. S.W.O.R.D. seem to investigate Westview a couple of weeks after this, placing WandaVision in between Avengers: Endgame and Spider-Man: Far From Home within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) timeline.
Additionally, we know Marvel are releasing "Dr Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" (2022), and have said here that this film will tie WandaVision and the upcoming Spider-Man movie together. The rumours flying around about the unreleased Spider-Man film deserve their own blog post; but in summary, actors from the original Spider-Man trilogy, The Amazing Spider-Man films and our current Spider-Man's cast have been confirmed - whether they'll be playing their respective characters is still up in the air. However, the idea of the 'multiverse' of madness alongside Wanda's alternated reality, we could definitely hope for 3 Spider-Men in one film! Especially now since we've seen our 'recast' Pietro enter our universe.
Wanda's Westview is in the shape of a hexagon, and this shape is represented in every episode. This bears the question: what is the relevance of a hexagon? A potential lead could be the idea that, as a hexagon has 6 vertices, these may represent the 6 infinity stones. The following website taught me that hexagons are a symbol of time; "The hexagon is the connecting centre of universal coherence which ties everything together and links everything back." Could this foreshadow Dr Strange having to step in, as Wanda has altered timelines and realities?
There are to be 9 episodes; assuming each episode represents a different decade spanning from the '50s to the present day, episodes 8&9 will see Westview in modern times. Again, is there a particular reason why Disney decided to style it like this? Could Wanda's ability to rewrite reality within the hex develop as the decade does, meaning she could have access to Stark-style technologies from 2010s, to reanimate Vision? Or could the element of time passing by differently represent a hiccup since the Blip, as returning people and a time-travelling Thanos caused chaos in the multiverses, thus creating leaks from one universe to another...
Below is a really fun theory I found on Tik Tok, giving an explanation of the forcefield around Westview. I'm not sure if this holds anymore, but I still really like the idea.
Theories about characters we've seen:
⁃ Director Hayward: HAYwaRD, HAYRD, HYDRA, Hayward meaning keeper of enclosure, keeping the hex, DIRECTORHAYWARD; eradicated, deathly.
The only other time we see a hexagon OUTSIDE of the hex, is in Director Hayward's office.
When Wanda storms S.W.O.R.D. for Vision, none of the workers react. Is this because in actual fact, Hayward entered, then cut the cameras and edited the footage/distorted reality?
The only other time we see 'Hayward' mentioned in the Marvel universe, is in another one of their TV shows.
“In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Brian Hayward was a super-soldier created by the Centipede Project, a program devoted to creating Captain America-style operatives funded and controlled by Hydra...In other words, he's a Nazi super-soldier.” -pointed out by this article.
Is Brian Hayward our Director Hayward’s son?? In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., he only mentions a sister, nothing about parents.
⁃ Agnes: AGatha harkNESs
In the first episode, Agnes introduces herself to Wanda, "I'm your neighbour to the right, my right, not yours... Wanda, charmed." Agnes is a delightful character always popping up whenever Wanda needs assistance - in fact, just before Wanda even realises she needs assistance. Using 'charmed' here may imply connotations of enchantment, magic - which may allude to a comic character, witch Agatha Harkness, or may be a warning to Wanda that she is under a spell-like trance.
In reference to the house that's "not your right, my right", we see Herb in a later episode cutting bushes there. Does this mean Agnes is not where she says she's from?
Costume choices and character interactions suggest that Agnes is almost definitely based on the witch Agatha Harkness, due to a reoccurring broach seen on the character in the comics, and her lack of shock to magic. Additionally, whenever Agnes suggests something in an episode, it tends to occur. See the following tumblr post:
The troubling thing with Agnes, is it's really difficult to tell whether she's a friend or foe. I adore her character, but she's definitely acting suspicious. Up until episode 6, I was confident that she was consciously-aware in Westview, even able to control her actions. She was able to tell that Geraldine/Monica wasn't from the hex. However, in the Halloween themed episode, it seems Vision 'wakes' her up. Is this a ploy? Was she parked on the edge of town to encourage and ensure Vision tried to leave? When 'woken', she asks Vision if she's dead, like him, and asks about the other Avengers. With Vision's memory cleared before Westview, he has no idea what she's talking about - could Agnes be trying to create a divide between Wanda and Vision?
One theory, is that Agnes is working for Mephisto (who I'll mention later). In the first episode, she mentions her husband Ralph and that their anniversary is on June 2nd. From this website, I learned that the first conviction of the Salem Witch Trials occurred on this date, against Bridget Bishop. This further reinforces the idea that Agnes is actually Agatha, but could also suggest she made a deal with the devil Mephisto to survive the witch hunt. Further, in episode 2, she even says "That's not the only place he's in"
in reply to Dottie mentioning the devil. Is this a warning? A cunning remark? It's hard to tell whether this is a good or wicked witch, but there is more to our characters than simple binary traits, such as good or evil. We can see the complexity of how Wanda is viewed from the outside; is she a hero? A terrorist? Can she be both? Potentially Agnes is working with Mephisto unwillingly. Only time will tell.
⁃ Twins: Billy and Tommy, Wiccan and Speed: Are they real? They are aware of things Wanda hasn't told them, insinuating that they may be an extension of her mind. She can't seem to control them, however, as she can't use her magic to stop them from crying. Everything to do with her pregnancy was uncontrollable, from the stork to the crying. If Wanda can only rewrite reality, not create it, how do the twins exist? If they are fragments of Mephisto's soul, could this lead to a House of M (mentioned later) inspired meltdown from Wanda? I mostly just have questions here, rather than theories. I'm hoping the twins stay around and could become the Young Avengers!
⁃ Vision: If Vision is dead and is being controlled by Wanda, why is he questioning her? Why does he have his own consciousness, and is going out of his way to leave the hex? Could computers/AI be unaffected by mind control in the hex? Although Wanda has 'rewritten' episodes, she has never forced Vision to do or say something (although she did 'direct' him to help Mr Hart).
We know Vision was previously made up of J.A.R.V.I.S., Tony Stark, Ultron and the Mind Stone, and if we think back to Wakanda, Shuri was tasked with removing the Mind Stone from him. Although the process would take time, Shuri believed it possible to remove the stone without losing too much of his own conscious. Though the process wasn't completed, was Shuri able to 'back up' his conscious beforehand? Could he have memories restored? Could the process being left incomplete have damaged Vision, such as wiping his memory, or having him get angry and behave in an unfamiliar way? Some viewers have pointed out that the credits remind them of Ultron - could the characters that make up Vision be coming out in certain emotions or situations?
During a Q&A IN Washington, 2019, the Russo Brothers explained "Thanos only reduced the stones to the atomic level. The stones are still present in the universe." If Wanda can rewrite reality and her power was sourced and is similar to the Mind Stone, could she be rewriting particular atoms to come together and form another Mind Stone for Vision? Is Wanda waiting for the later decades and the technologies belonging to them, to finalise her resurrected Vision? We saw towards the end of episode 6 that he came apart as he left the hex; which could have been a consequence of him being dead outside of the hex, the creator of the hex not allowing him to leave, or because the forcefield was too strong (the possibilities are endless).
I don't believe Vision is dead and it's a really tricky concept to grasp, because he is more than just a body; if an element of his consciousness survived, could they place this consciousness in a body similar to the one that housed Vision, as created in Avengers: Age of Ultron, by the Regeneration Cradle? Something like this, along with anything Shuri has for his mind, could rebuild and fully resurrect Vision.
⁃ Pietro: Interestingly, Evan Peters shows up as Pietro. Disney has recently bought 21st Century Fox, acquiring rights to X-Men and Fantastic Four. Quicksilver existed in the X-Men universe, played by Evan Peters, and existed in the MCU, played by Aaron Taylor Johnson (oh so dreamy). Darcy makes a comment about Pietro being 'recast'; and I'm sure this is to prepare for the upcoming Spider-Man film and multiverse potential. By recognising that Peters' Pietro is still Quicksilver; Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield and Tom Holland can all play Spider-Man in the same film... but as different Spider-Men. Although I'd love for Aaron's Quicksilver to come back, it wouldn't really make sense in terms of a multiverse leak, as he died in this universe.
Pietro's arrival created even more questions. Who brought him, and how? Did Wanda manage to summon him subconsciously? Vision and Wanda were arguing over who was really in control of Westview, when Pietro's knock came at the door. Was this a distraction, to prevent the couple from realising somebody else is pulling the strings in their utopia? What powers does this person possess, to summon from other multiverses, control a small town of people, to give twins to a couple who can't have kids?
Although Peters' Pietro has been seen in the X-Men Universe, the character in WandaVision has a different personality - at the moment, it's unclear whether Disney just wanted to take Evan's character in a different direction, or whether this was done on purpose, to make viewers suspect Pietro. He seems to know everything Wanda knows in terms of personal memories, but doesn't understand her power, asking uncomfortable questions towards the end of episode 6. If he is an extension of her mind, as in, the information that he knows is because she knows it, and the information he doesn't know is because she doesn't know it, does this prove Wanda's innocence in the hex? Is she unaware of how powerful she is becoming? Or, is somebody else taking the form of Pietro, somebody with shapeshifting and potentially telepathic abilities, trying to understand Wanda's power for their own benefit? Pietro seems to be another character that Wanda can't necessarily control; could it be that characters are controlled by the person who summoned them into the hex? Would this justify Agnes' behaviour too?
Pietro makes a comment that he was brought to Westview to "create tension with the brother-in-law, stir up trouble with the rugrats and ultimately give [Wanda] grief." Why would Wanda summon somebody to cause her a headache? Perhaps distracting her with her brother would allow for Vision to further question what was going on.
He makes a harsh comment; "It's not like your dead husband can die twice" but he already has (Wanda destroying the Mind Stone and killing him, then Thanos reversing that with the time stone, plucking the Mind Stone from his head and killing him... again). Is Pietro stirring up trouble to encourage Wanda to achieve her full potential and become even more powerful, through desperation, anger and hurt?
Theories about characters we haven't seen:
Who is our antagonist?
Other than the characters we've already seen, such as Agnes, Dottie and Pietro, these are some vague theories as to who our ultimate bad guy may be:
Mephisto: in the comics, Wanda made a deal with Mephisto so that she could bare children... How did she become pregnant in the show? Mephisto is a powerful demonic character; with powers including shapeshifting, altering time, projecting illusions and manipulating memories. The time in Westview has been altered, the entire thing a grand illusion and Wanda can't remember how it started... and Pietro 'jokingly' calls the twins "demon spawn". There's an insanely detailed article talking about how Mephisto may be introduced to the MCU here. To briefly summarise; in the comics, Mephisto was created with the multiverse and infinity stones. He used Thanos to collect the stones for him, and though his attempts failed, Mephisto acquired the Time Stone, allowing him to cheat death and create chaos in the multiverse.
Nightmare - some viewers think that as areas like China won't release media containing the devil, Marvel may merge Mephisto's elements with another character, Nightmare, who has the ability to use people's powers while they are sleeping.
Nicholas Scratch: is the son of Agatha Harkness, who we believe to be Agnes. Earlier on in the season, Agnes gives her rabbit, Señor Scratchy to Wanda to use for the talent show. If Agnes is the witch Agatha, could she have trapped Nick in bunny form? Nicholas Scratch is also a witch, with the ability to travel through dimensions. He's also linked to Reed Richards (who I'll mention in just a bit), Mephisto and Dormamu (of the Dark Realm).
Mordo: rumoured to be the villain in the upcoming Dr Strange film, Mordo was once a member of the Masters of the Mystic Arts, but turned his back on them after finding out their association with the Dark Realm. He is able to absorb magical energies from other sorcerers, showing this when he strips Jonathan Pangborn of his magic. He believes sorcerers have too much power - could he be planning on absorbing Wanda's energy?
Additionally, another character we may see introduced to the MCU is Layla Miller. While looking over House of M, I came across this character, also known as Butterfly. She is able to resurrect the dead, and has been partnered with Dr Doom, who may feature in the MCU later. While Wanda and Vision are decorating the twins' room, a mobile of butterflies comes to life. One lands on Vision’s nose - could this be a reference to Butterfly and her ability to resurrect? Layla is actually created from Wanda's House of M warped reality, so maybe she's a character to look out for!
One of our unanswered questions likely to be revealed in episode 7, is who our aerospace engineer is. In the Spanish subtitles for WandaVision, when talking about the engineer, they used the feminine noun, suggesting the character may be a girl. As the Ironheart series is coming to Disney+ towards (hopefully) the end of 2021, I'd love for the young character to be introduced during WandaVision. As she's a young character, she may also feature on the Young Avengers team!
Another suggestion is Reed Richards; introducing the Fantastic Four franchise into the MCU. One wonderful link to this character is Agatha Harkness, who saved Reed Richards and governed/nannied/babysat his son. This website explains; "Dr. Reed Richards is a scientist and inventor, better known as Mr Fantastic, who has been considered the smartest man on Earth. He is a polymath with mastery of all the sciences including; electrical, mechanical, aerospace engineering, electronics, chemistry, physics, biology and beyond." Funnily enough, Chris Evans, who plays Captain America in the MCU, was cast in Fantastic Four (2005), as Human Torch. Could the Fantastic Four about to be established in the MCU, rather than leak in from another universe?
General Theories:
House of M: when Wanda loses her twins (potentially because they aren’t real), Wanda alters reality so that everybody is thrown into a Mutant-dominant world. Perhaps the expansion of the hex could lead to this. A lovely little easter egg teased this theory in episode 1, as the wine poured at dinner with the Harts is called “Maison du Mepris,” translated from French means “House of Contempt” or some are saying…House of Misery: House of M.
What If series looking at alternate endings, could this link back to Layla, travelling with Dr Doom and fixing time?
Young Avengers: could Wiccan and Speed, along with new shows Ms Marvel, Hawkeye (introducing his daughter), Ironheart, and ant-man’s daughter form the Young Avengers?
Colour theory: red themes, is this representing the devil, the warped reality (reality stone is red), or Wanda becoming her name: Scarlet Witch?
Hi guys, if you made it to the end, I hope you enjoyed! This is the lengthiest blog post I've published so far so any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Just wanted to say thank you to anybody who has entertained me with theories and easter eggs, I tried to link my sources where I could but a lot of ideas I initially saw on Tik Tok/YouTube, which I haven't linked as of yet. If you notice any credit is missing, feel free to inform me and I'll update the post.
Thank you for reading!
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