The following contains spoilers for the first two episodes of Marvel’s WandaVision.
After a much-needed (though certainly unplanned) year off, the Marvel Cinematic Universe made its grand return this week with the silly and surreal WandaVision, starring one of the most endearing couples in superhero cinema. The sitcom-styled adventures of Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch and Paul Bettany’s Vision may appear like harmless homage at first, but as its pilot nears its end, it becomes clear something dark and absurd lies underneath the artifice.
As advertised, WandaVision is not simply a comedy series reappropriating American sitcom history with two intensely powerful Avengers. At the show’s heart dwells a mystery whose implications could shatter the very foundation of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. What is this world? How did Wanda and Vision get there? And, most importantly, why are they there? Though the first two episodes keep most everything close to the chest, a few significant bits of information scattered throughout will help piece together the truth as the nine-episode “event series” begins.
One of the more popular techniques in modern fiction is known as “en medias res,” in which the audience is dropped into the middle of a given story, forgoing expository introductions and getting to the immediate conflict at hand. But what happens when the characters are just as clueless as the audience joining them? WandaVision‘s pilot opens with an adorable back-and-forth between the titular couple regarding the significance of the day’s date – neither has any idea why August 23 is marked on their calendar. This conundrum serves as the basis for the ensuing wacky hijinks, but it also shows Mr. Mind Stone and the Sokovian Sorceress are not in their right minds.
It’s not just Vis and Wanda – another character within the humble town of Westview also missed forget-me-not season in her garden: a young Black woman whom Wanda meets in the second episode struggles to remember her own name. Though technically not confirmed within the show, this character is almost certainly Monica Rambeau, who was last seen as a precocious child in 2019’s Captain Marvel. She seems even less aware of her surroundings than Wanda or Vision, meaning she is likely a visitor of WandaVision‘s world just as the two Avengers are. With all three MCU veterans unaware of their existence outside of a television, it’s more than likely their hippocampuses were hijacked by a third-party.
One of the major taglines attached to WandaVision (and the greater lineup of MCU Disney+ offerings) was “The Universe is Expanding,” suggesting Marvel Studios’ first wave of straight-to-streaming shows will lay the foundation for its next multi-Phase conflict, following the Infinity Saga’s conclusion in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. WandaVision wastes no time keeping true to that promise: as Vision and Wanda’s doomed dinner party is abruptly resolved at the pilot’s closing, the couple recuperates on the couch and strikes a pair of winning smiles to the camera.
In line with the first episode’s I Love Lucy aesthetic, cutesy credits roll over shopping-mall music, suggesting the episode has reached its conclusion. But the camera then pulls back, revealing all of WandaVision is being viewed on a TV in an unknown location, monitored by someone working for the “Sentient Weapon Observation and Response Division,” abbreviated as S.W.O.R.D., further evidenced by the notebook on the employee’s desk bearing the logo.
The reveal is framed nefariously, suggesting Wanda and Vision may be trapped within this bizarre reality against their will. Given its title and Wanda’s provably deadly power-set, it’s possible she’s been quarantined in a pocket dimension for her own safety (or for everyone else’s).
S.W.O.R.D.’s presence continues to loom over their newlyweds’ peaceful existence. In the second episode, Wanda finds a brightly-colored helicopter toy bearing the organization’s insignia, and someone in a beekeeper outfit sporting the logo appears at its conclusion (more on them in the next section). Whether this S.W.O.R.D. is pointed at or away from the MCU’s heroes has yet to be seen, but it’s clear it has a lot of investment in Wanda’s reality real-estate.
One of WandaVision’s more unique selling-points is its roster of returners. Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau has grown up since the character’s previous appearance in Captain Marvel, Kat Dennings’ Darcy Lewis from the first two Thor films is returning to the MCU for the first time in seven years, and, in a twist of fate only The Watcher could’ve expected, Randall Park’s Jimmy Woo, the endearing and bumbling FBI agent who kept tabs on Scott Lang throughout 2018’s Ant-Man and The Wasp, is also involved in the unraveling mystery.
In the second episode, Wanda and supporting character Dotty come across a radio transmitting a message: “Wanda, can you read me? Who is doing this to you?” Anyone who saw Ant-Man and The Wasp will recognize Jimmy’s voice – somehow, the struggling party magician broke dimensional barriers and made contact with the weird and wonderful world of WandaVision.
Though he wasn’t exactly characterized as a brilliant investigator in his first appearance, he’s more than capable of tracking down the only Avenger capable of singlehandedly overwhelming the mighty Thanos. Regardless of how Agent Woo pulled it off or what his objective actually is, one thing is certain: viewers will be seeing him again.
Of all the kernels of continuity-crafting sprinkled throughout WandaVision’s two-episode kickoff, the most important (and, arguably, most obvious) lies with the lady in red. After narrowly avoiding exposing their superpowers to the residents of Westview at the end of the second episode, Wanda and Vision are alerted by a loud noise outside the house. Upon investigation, the pair bears witness to a mysterious individual in a beekeeper outfit emerging from the sewers under the streets.
Without a second to waste, Wanda emphatically responds to the unwelcome cameo with a thudding “no,” and the scene is immediately (and literally) rewound to the moment before Wanda and Vision left the house. Wherever she is and why she’s there, the scene proves Wanda holds the ebb and flow of this sitcom-scape in the palm of her hand.
Although Wanda retains control, it’s not clear if she’s the true author of this sitcom imitation game. Her actual powers have never been explicitly described in any of her appearances (likely on purpose) so whether or not creating an entire reality based on the fabricated existence of television characters is within her power is anyone’s guess. But the notion that she has sway on the world’s timestream implies she is aware of its idiosyncratic existence. If that’s the case, the next question becomes obvious: does she want to be there?
Marvel’s WandaVision is streaming now on Disney+.
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