“WandaVision” series takes place after “The Avengers: Endgame” events. Indeed, we know that Wanda survived the threat of Thanos, while Vision fell in battle. However, the series does not mention any of these prompts in the premiere; we are not told the location of the events neither, so the first feeling could be that of disorientation. Yet it is not so. Jac Schaeffer and the eight writers do not care about that audience, they do not need it, so they start a show that does not have any premise. All this is very fascinating, and it is definitely an editorial choice aimed at comics books and MCU fans.
WandaVision Episode 1,2 Review
As we could already notice from the trailer, “Wandavision” is the most peculiar Marvel product among all. The first episode takes up all those topoi of the 50s television. Those clichés are now anachronistic but always current in the message. I explain myself better. Wanda and Vision are a married couple who move to the town of Westview. New neighbors, a new job for Vision, and new rules. Everything seems perfect, except that Wanda and Vision are much more than human. She is a witch with magical powers. He is an android able to alter his mass and solidity and not only.
This is their secret, no one should know it. You can imagine that this condition will give birth to many physical and verbal gags. The 50s clichés mostly represented by the American dream, specifically the desire of a couple who moves to a new town trying to find its place in society. Vision is obviously dedicated to working. He is the man of the house, the head of the family. Wanda, instead, is the classic housewife, loves to do housework. If these male and female roles are outdated in most cases, some topics such as the forced integration and toxic validation are not so archaic.
These are themes that have always exploited in audio-visual products, from “Sabrina, the Teenage Witch” to “Wizards of Waverly Place”. In fact, everything works very well both in the pure comedy and in the drama mentioned. Another interesting addition is the laugh track, which contextualizes even better the type of television that “WandaVision” tries to imitate. Although black and white is obviously a requirement for that 1950s model show.
What Didn’t Work
The series spreads some elements that blow up in the ending, where everything becomes in color. To distinguish some scenario features from the rest of the frame is a brilliant choice, and it exploits to show the illusion of that world. All this confirmed by the ending of the first and the second episode, where Wanda desperately tries to have her happy ending. A fake one, but happy.
Bottom Line
From the protagonists played by Elizabeth Olsen (Wanda) and Paul Bettany (Vision) to all the co-protagonists, the show has certainly found in the cast an excellent element, supported by a writer’s room composed of 4 women and men, looking for important fairness for a higher show’s success. These first two episodes really offer a pleasant entertainment that we imagine will become more and more adult in discussing mental illness, homologation, and integration. “Wandavision” is waiting for you only on Disney+. Run to watch it!