WANDAVISION Season 1 Review; "A Beautiful Exploration Of Love And Loss Mixed With Blockbuster Visuals"

WANDAVISION Season 1 Review; "A Beautiful Exploration Of Love And Loss Mixed With Blockbuster Visuals"

WandaVision wrapped up it's first (and likely final season) on Disney+ today, and we're now reviewing all nine episodes of the game-changing MCU series. Be warned, as major SPOILERS do follow from here...

Review Opinion
By JoshWilding - Mar 05, 2021 03:03 PM EST
Filed Under: WandaVision

WandaVision wasn’t supposed to be Marvel Studios’ first TV series, but COVID-19 meant that it ended up hitting Disney+ before The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. As it turns out, the streamer couldn’t have chosen a better show to expand the Marvel Cinematic Universe on the small screen with than one which lovingly homages some of the greatest American sitcoms ever made. However, we soon learned that there was more to this than “parodies” of The Dick Van Dyke Show and Malcolm in the Middle. A beautiful, poignant exploration of grief and what it means to lose the person who means the most to you, WandaVision proved to be an essential chapter in the MCU tapestry. 

Kicking off with a two-part premiere, we followed Wanda Maximoff and Vision as they found themselves living an idyllic life in 1950s and 1960s-style sitcoms. There were plenty of clues that not all was right in the town of Westview (many of which we now know to be red herrings), and despite surprisingly short runtimes, these love letters to the classic shows they drew inspiration from were really something special. Marvel Studios seemingly realised that they needed to do something more to keep fans on the hook, though, and “Now in Color” took us into the 1970s, while also revealing that Wanda had more control over events than we first suspected. After throwing “Geraldine” - who we’d later come to know as Monica Rambeau - out of the town, a flashback episode shed some light on S.W.O.R.D., The Blip, and how those outside the “Hex” were seeing these sitcoms play out. We definitely missed them around this halfway point, but an episode to introduce the players working to figure out what was happening was essential. 

As we moved into the second half of the season, we faced a shocker of an episode in the 1980s/1990s which saw Vision question his surroundings and Wanda get the shock of her life when a “recast” Pietro Maximoff showed up on her doorstep (played by a scene-stealing Evan Peters). Quicksilver received his fair share of the spotlight in "All-New Halloween Spooktacular!" as did the now superpowered twins. Comic accurate costumes aside, this instalment managed to perfectly balance an early 2000s sitcom with the deeper mystery at play, as well as what was happening out in the “real” world. Our final sitcom experience came in a Modern Family-inspired effort which was perhaps the show’s weakest episode. The concept worked well enough, but without a larger cast of supporting characters - can you imagine Ultron actor James Spader playing the “dad” who lives across the street? - it fell flat. On the plus side, a last-minute reveal about Agatha Harkness which was accompanied by one heck of a catchy tune went some way in making up for that.

The final two episodes played out more along the lines of a classic Marvel Studios movie, but WandaVision didn’t suffer because of that. Instead, they proved that the big budget feel of the MCU works just as well on the small screen as it does the big one, and there were heaps of twists, fan-pleasing moments, and jaw-dropping reveals in these lengthier instalments to make this series worth the price of admission. Not everyone will be happy with how things played out, of course, especially as the show dropped a lot of big hints and red herrings along the way, but didn’t pay the majority of them off. There was no Mephisto, no Professor X, and not even a cameo from Doctor Strange. Now, getting your hopes up over fan theories is never a good idea, and it turns out Marvel Studios simply wasn’t telling that kind of story. It’s admittedly a shame that the Agnes/Agatha Harkness twist was easy to telegraph even before the trailers for the series were released, but for non-fans, that’s a moment which likely did surprise. 

Rather than introducing the MCU’s next big bad or introducing the concept of mutants, WandaVision was a six-hour character study, taking Wanda Maximoff from reluctant Avenger to the Scarlet Witch. Along the way, she went a long way in overcoming her grief following the loss of Vision; sure, it’s not normal to trap an entire town in your dream reality to get over the love of your life, but this was a path Wanda needed to head down in order to become a key player in Phase 4. Had this show not happened, Wanda’s pain would have been glossed over in a handful of scenes in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but we instead got to learn more about what that loss did to her, and just how important Vision was in the hero's life (given the nature of their movies, most of their romance took place off screen). There were plenty of fantastic supporting turns in WandaVision, of course, but the real reason it worked as well as it did is simple: Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany.

While the latter is likely to be overlooked due to just how damn great Olsen was each week, they both turned in potentially career-best performances, with a chemistry that is nothing short of electrifying. Bettany effortlessly portrayed a goofy sitcom dad, but never faltered when it came to making us believe in a “man” terrified by not knowing his past and failing to understand his surroundings. Olsen, meanwhile, was flawless, and it really will be a crime if she doesn’t win some major awards this time next year. Throw in star making work from Kathryn Hahn and Teyonah Parris, as well as memorable supporting turns from Randall Park and Kat Dennings, and this ensemble never faltered (Josh Stamberg deserves a special mention for his hateful take on Director Hayward too). We just wish we’d got to spend more time with Peters, especially in those final two episodes. That’s a minor flaw, though, and WandaVision rarely made mistakes. There will be some fans who simply can’t get over the fact Reed Richards wasn’t Monica’s aerospace engineer friend and that Mephisto didn’t appear to try and claim the souls of Tommy and Billy, but put those arguably unrealistic expectations aside, and we’re sure you’ll agree that the series delivered exactly what it set out to do.

Perhaps the biggest winners to come out of the show, however, will be director Matt Shakman and showrunner Jac Schaeffer; what they do next should be unmissable. 

A beautiful exploration of love and loss mixed with blockbuster visuals makes WandaVision an absolute winner for the expansion of the MCU on television, and it shouldn’t take a magic trick to ensure Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany walk away with their fair share of prizes come award season. 

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Ahhh
Ahhh - 3/5/2021, 3:08 PM
It was a great series. The finale was very underwhelming, but not horrible by any means. Some of the reveals could have been better, and Agnes was a bit cronge. But overall a damn good show.
Ahhh
Ahhh - 3/5/2021, 3:09 PM
@PsychoBatemen - Now. Let's see Paul Allens Wandavision.
globaltravels
globaltravels - 3/5/2021, 7:26 PM
@PsychoBatemen - Underwhelming is the perfect word to describe the finale.
Kman
Kman - 3/6/2021, 6:44 AM
@globaltravels - looking back on it now, after a day or so... it was only SLIGHTLY underwhelming to me. I mean we did get real Scarlet Witch and white/robot Vision, and the Darkhold (among other things)... so not terrible at all IMO
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN - 3/5/2021, 3:11 PM
Does anyone else thinking that the mountain Wanda is staying next to is Mount Wundagore? Has to be, right?
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 3/5/2021, 3:12 PM
@CapstheMFingMan - that's what I think. They make it a point of focusing on the mountain range before taking you to the cabin. Also, the cabin itself seems to be a reference to Bruce Banner at the end of TIH escaping to the remote wilderness to master his abilities. Different cabin though.
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN - 3/5/2021, 3:20 PM
@HeavyMetal4Life - That would be really interesting if Banner was drawn to it bec of it's mystacism but it did say he was on Canada and I doubt that's where Mount Wundagore is located. But I am really curious where Feige is taking the MCU. It's clear that after aliens and space they're going heavy on the magic. Can't wait to see what they do w it b
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 3/5/2021, 3:35 PM
@CapstheMFingMan - yes I'm not saying that Wanda and Banner went to the same location, I'm just saying there are parallels to what each of those characters did at the end of their solo outings.
DartOfHarkness
DartOfHarkness - 3/5/2021, 4:13 PM
@CapstheMFingMan - I think someone jumped on that theory earlier today but yes, yes I do.
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN - 3/5/2021, 5:45 PM
@HeavyMetal4Life - I realized that right after I posted lol.
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 3/5/2021, 5:47 PM
@CapstheMFingMan - haha all good buddy, I do that too ;-)
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN - 3/5/2021, 5:48 PM
@HeavyMetal4Life @DartOfHarkness

I also think if it is indeed Wundagore Mountain that it also means Chthon. The MCU is about to go bonkers.
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 3/5/2021, 5:53 PM
@CapstheMFingMan - I have got to believe that Chthon is coming. Its one thing to say the devil is in the details and not have Mephisto show up, and another thing to name drop chaos magic... you don't do that imo unless you're setting something major up. And yes, if she is both at Wundagore and mastering the Darkhold, then Chthon may be involved in some multiverse shenanigans during DS2.
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN - 3/5/2021, 5:56 PM
@HeavyMetal4Life - I am so effing excited. Feige is unleashing his full powers like Wanda creating the entire Hex. He's flexing so f***ing hard right now. I'm really curious tho how the other movies and their respective genres will all tie together.
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 3/5/2021, 5:56 PM
@CapstheMFingMan - which movies in particular?
Goldboink
Goldboink - 3/5/2021, 6:14 PM
@CapstheMFingMan -
Already building up expectations. Awesome!
Goldboink
Goldboink - 3/5/2021, 6:16 PM
@CapstheMFingMan -
Yea, that was full on fantastic. World ending power that is studying the Darkhold. DS2 will be over the top
WakandanQueen
WakandanQueen - 3/5/2021, 3:11 PM
After Infinity War, Endgame and WandaVision, it's clear Feige wants us all to go to therapy.
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 3/5/2021, 3:15 PM
It was a very good, well done, exciting series with some terrific performances. Everyone involved should be commended, especially the showrunner. And Olsen, Bettany, and Hahn killed it.

Was it a perfect series? No. And yeah the finale was a little underwhelming overall even though it had many great moments. Compared to other Marvel series, its not the best but its certainly near the top (no. 3 for me). All in all, I'd give this series around a 9/10.
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN
JstaKIDfrmBKLYN - 3/5/2021, 5:53 PM
@HeavyMetal4Life - Completely agree. If they don't get nominated for some emmy's it's criminal. Elizabeth Olsen put on a masterclass in acting perfectly tailoring her performance to the styles of the eras. The production design also better be recognized.
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 3/5/2021, 5:54 PM
@CapstheMFingMan - Totally! Would be criminal. Throw them some awards, they deserve it.
Vanillain
Vanillain - 3/5/2021, 3:17 PM
OT: Variety: Chloe Zhao’s ‘Nomadland’ Censored by China After Nationalist Backlash.
https://variety.com/2021/film/news/chloe-zhao-nomadland-china-censorship-1234922882/

Marvel might have to do overtime to get Eternals released in China. F*cking hell. I feel bad for the younger generation over there who seem genuinely interested in Nomadland. 😔
SonOfAGif
SonOfAGif - 3/5/2021, 3:59 PM
@Vanillain - I think it's time American companies stop relying on China for it's major source of income. At times it feels like many of the projects filmmakers make get super regulated by the studios to appease Chinese audience and their government and it's getting annoying.
4thMaster
4thMaster - 3/5/2021, 4:28 PM
@Vanillain - That article is crazy! The whole story is whack. That government is so reactionary they can’t even get their story straight, with them still celebrating the win while censoring the flick, and all of this because some nationalist nut-jobs online started spewing crap.
globaltravels
globaltravels - 3/5/2021, 7:28 PM
@SonOfAGif - too much money in China mate. never gonna happen.
WakandanQueen
WakandanQueen - 3/5/2021, 3:20 PM
Still collecting my thoughts about this show and I will return after my rewatch but this is one of my favorite chapters in the MCU yet. Not sure exactly how I'd rank this amongst the movies because different mediums leads to different criteria but yea. Such an exciting, unique turn for comic book inspired movies/tv and the franchise as a whole.
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