Seven weeks and many debunked theories later, WandaVision wraps its limited series with an explosive, but also an emotionally tender, finale.
There’s much discourse over what this show was meant to be prior to its premiere and that didn’t slow down as the episodes rolled out. The fan theories that spawned before, during, and after each episode were fun to read and think about. Would this open up the multiverse? Is Mephisto behind all this? Are there mutants? All these ideas were exciting and the implications could be astronomical if they came true. However, as the show evolved, it became increasingly clear (at least to this reviewer) that this ain’t that type of show. Instead of a show layered with world-building, crazy plot twists, and groundwork for future projects, it’s (quite literally) a self-contained story about grief, escapism, and healing. Though there’s certainly going to be ripple effects that affect future projects (it’s confirmed this is to be a precursor to the Doctor Strange sequel), WandaVision mostly competently wraps up this standalone story that it was committed to telling, free of any burden of appeasing fan speculation.
I won’t dwell too long on the early episodes as we already have a review up on the site for the first two episodes. To reiterate, I found those first three episodes to be a really compelling mystery. I loved how committed to the sitcom bit it was, but not so committed that it wasn’t tongue in cheek. The show knew to leave enough evidence sprinkled throughout to draw the viewer along and it often felt like a tamed Twilight Zone episode because of it. I was perfectly content to enjoy the entire series if it had stayed in this mindset.
Episode 4 is when the formula breaks and we follow a new cast of characters who are attempting to understand this world Wanda Maximoff has created. We have Marvel veterans like Jimmy Woo and Darcy Lewis making their return. Historically I’ve never liked the character of Darcy but I found her delightful here and her humor feels much more at home than it ever did in the Thor flicks. The character of Monica Rambeau makes her return with new actress Teyonah Parris and is arguably the protagonist when Wanda and Vision aren’t the focus. Monica is a well-drawn character who plays the straight man for much of the show, balancing against the lightheartedness of Jimmy and Darcy while also seeming to be the only one who has a deep understanding of what’s going on with Wanda. Unfortunately, the show didn’t give her much to do in the back half of the series as she disappears for a couple of episodes and then spends much of the finale standing around in captivity and giving Wanda verbal support. Though I have no doubt Marvel has great things planned for the character, it ultimately felt like Monica was only here to get superpowers, saving any emotional resonance for later.
Perhaps the biggest letdown of the series was the handling of Evan Peters as Pietro, Wanda’s fake brother. Seeing an actor from the X-Men universe make their surprise debut in the MCU was one of the biggest “holy crap” moments in the entirety of the franchise and it sent the fan theories wild. Unfortunately, this amounted to nothing as fake Pietro is just another citizen being mind-controlled by the secret antagonist. That’s fine theoretically, but it culminates with one of the worst jokes in the MCU ever. Though I was fine with this not being a multiverse plot twist, it seems kind of mean of Marvel to tease the fans like that.
Agatha Harkness is revealed to be the main antagonist of the show, though she’s not the one behind everything despite what the catchy song claimed. Kathryn Hahn perfectly plays the campy character in a way that evokes the Wicked Witch of the West. Though she’s not particularly intimidating, she’s a perfect foil for Wanda. Ultimately it’s the job of the antagonist to challenge the hero in a way more than just physically and from a writing perspective she brilliantly kicks off Wanda’s path towards the Scarlet Witch.
The finale itself was a solid ending for the story here, and it really delivers home the themes of healing and grief. The final scene between her and Vision is one of the most emotionally resonant in Marvel’s history but it’s a bit undercut by the notion that white Vision is still alive. Had this meant to be the official retirement for Vision, it could have rivaled other character sendoffs like Tony Stark.
I also have mixed feelings about the fight scenes in the last episode. WandaVision was so unique up till this point that it’s a bit disappointing that it fell back on its usual Marvel tropes of big CGI set pieces. Though there are plenty of great moments in them with Vision fighting white Vision with logic and reason and seeing Wanda finally don the iconic Scarlet Witch suit was as epic as it needed to be. Though the show is aware of how awful Wanda’s actions have been towards the innocent people of Westview, there doesn’t seem to be many repercussions for it, and Wanda simply walks away with nothing more than mean glares from her victims. Hopefully, the consequences are being saved for a later project as I found that a little head-scratching.
Overall, WandaVision was a wonderful experiment that paid off in a way that’ll have fans talking about for a long time. This experimental show had a brilliant mystery that fleshed out meaningful ideas and gave a new dimension to the title characters. Wanda has been a victim of much loss in her life and the series explores those themes meaningfully. Escapism is a remedy, but it isn’t a cure, and it’s up to Wanda to begin that healing process. Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen are the best they’ve ever been in this role and you can tell they’ve had a blast getting to know these characters in unique ways. I’m excited to see where their characters go.
