WandaVision
Review and series dissection
by Alexandra and Christiana
A genuinely entertaining and nostalgic watch, “WandaVision” is the first of the upcoming Marvel/Disney+ series to air on the streaming platform in 2021. Merging old-styled black-and-white comedy sequences with the bizarre, but highly anticipated insertion of hidden superhero symbols in true Marvel fashion, the show offers a refreshing take on the characters’ unusual life and relationship, now seemingly living in the 1950s. But as you might expect from a superhero series set after the “Avengers: Endgame” hunt for the Infinity Stones, reality is not quite that simple a concept, so buckle up and get ready to unravel all the Easter eggs and surprise cameos rumoured to appear in the following parts of season 1.
The show is delicious. Multi-layered and funny, it is captivating. It brings on a fake sense of security, as the audience rejoice the reunion between the two, but can't shake off the feeling of a warped reality cottoned in a fuzzy domestic bliss.
**EASTER EGGS (SPOILERS AHEAD)**
After premiering its first two episodes on January 15th, the comics-based production revealed multiple abstract references which might as well pave the path for X-Men’s arrival to the MCU, along with the official launch of Marvel’s Phase 4. Firstly, the ad for the Stark Industries Toaster Mate 2000 shown in the first episode, anticipates a possible turn of events for the protagonists, whose lives have already been altered too much due to the tragic loss and shared trauma suffered prior to the series’ action taking place. “Forget the past, this is your future”-as written in the commercial- is quite a sombre inscription to be ‘welcoming’ the audience into the show. It could have many meanings, but might eventually hint at the characters being stuck in an alternate timeline or reality, as suggested by the radio and background chatter featured at the end of both episodes.
Along with the unknown voices calling for Wanda and repeatedly asking “Who's doing this to you”, the characters seem to be having genuine difficulty in remembering how they got to this 1950s setting and what their lives were like before moving into the new house. Even so, when asked about the time they met by Vision’s boss, Mr. Hart, they don’t seem to have any recollection of the events whatsoever. At this time, there is no valid explanation for their lack of memory, thus the rest of the season will have to provide more information in this sense, although an accident or immediate result of the ‘Final Snap’ could have concluded in their past knowledge being wiped.
Next on the list, the ad for the Strücker watch included a Hydra symbol, connecting the brand of products to the military organisation, and so, to one of its former members and leaders, Baron Wolfgang von Strücker. Wanda aka Scarlet Witch and her brother, Quicksilver -who’s also rumoured to appear in the forthcoming episodes of the series- shared a key moment with the Hydra head in “Avengers: Age of Ultron” as they gained their power in an initial experiment with the Mind Stone performed by Strücker.
The vibrant coloured helicopter numbered 57 is a direct link to Vision’s first appearance in the Marvel comics, having the same number and dating back to October 1968. As for the S.W.O.R.D. symbol displayed on it, it’s the same one that was featured on the beekeeper’s uniform at the end of the second episode. The bright red colour used in opposition to the rest of the scene is likely to indicate that the item is not originally from Wanda’s reality and thus, interferes with the contents of that world. Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) is one of the exciting inter-Marvel cameos who were introduced in the series so far, previously portrayed in 2019’s “Captain Marvel” as Maria Rambeau’s daughter. One can simply try and connect the dots now, and judging by the fact that Monica's first appearance took place in the 1990s while she was probably around 10 years old, it must mean that her current portrayal as an adult is positioned in the present. So.....is 'WandaVision' really set in the 50s? Well... probably not as much as you might have thought.
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**END OF SPOILERS**
Next episode is out on the 22nd of January and we should be expecting costumes and haircuts from yet another decade, as so far the first and second episodes emulated the 50s and 60s. We can't tell you how much we have fallen in love with the characters' looks so far, as both Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) look radiant (even in black and white). Let us know what you've thought of the show, on Twitter or Instagram, and enjoy Friday nights henceforth hosted by the power couple WandaVision.
