At this point, it’d be genuinely concerning if you had no idea what a Marvel movie was. Marvel Studios is the cinematic superpower. In a little over a decade, Marvel took a handful of B-list comic book characters and reshaped the industry in its own image. Rival studios desperately scramble to create their own interconnected cinematic franchises, but none has come close to Marvel’s financial success, with their shattered box office records, $4.5 billion in ticket sales, and the highest-grossing movie of all time (that is, until Avatar rereleases for a week or two).
WandaVision is Marvel’s proper expansion into television, the first of many Marvel shows coming to Disney+, the premiere streaming service of Marvel’s parent company. This inaugural series plucks two supporting characters from its extensive library and puts them in the spotlight for nine episodes. The premise? A witch and a robot move to the suburbs to start a family, with each episode paying loving homage to a different decade of domestic sitcoms.
On paper, that setup is wonderfully bizarre. It never truly lives up to such a fantastic premise (a common criticism levied at Marvel), but showrunner Jac Shaeffer and series director Matt Shakman pull off impressive technical and visual feats. The way Shaeffer and Shakman perfectly emulate the aesthetic and pacing of classic sitcoms is pure magic to any millennial raised on Nick at Nite. An early episode expertly recreates the absurdly convoluted miscommunication that forces our heroes into wacky antics (complete with an audience laugh track). Carl Reiner and Dick van Dyke would be proud. But the show is more than a loving stroll through television past; from the jump, there is an off-putting, sinister mystery stringing the audience along. As the series unfolds, we steer further away from the ode to television and learn more about exactly why our characters are living out this sitcom fantasy.
The show is impressive on a technical level, but that wouldn’t sustain us for the entire run if we weren’t invested in our leads: Avenger-witch Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and her once-dead android husband, Vision (Paul Bettany). Considering the relatively brief screen time these two received in a handful of Avengers films, it’s a wonder we even care about them heading into this series. That’s largely due to the charisma, chemistry, and screen presence of Olsen and Bettany. Until now, their romance has largely developed off-screen between massive blockbusters bristling with dozens of stars. WandaVision—and the other planned Disney+ shows—is a chance to let these side characters breathe. (In fact, having smaller scale series’, focusing on character work, that then occasionally crossover with big-screen events, actually captures the dynamic and experience of comic book storytelling.) We now have several hours devoted to Wanda and Vision, and placing Olsen and Bettany front and center is our gain. They are a joy to watch, both showing their range from the winking archetypes of golden age television to mustering genuine heartbreaking pathos. It’s become a bit of a joke to say this show is an exploration of grief. It’s not exactly Manchester by the Sea, but the story uses Wanda’s grief as its emotional throughline. The standout episode of the series lets us sit in the tragic moments of Wanda’s life. Despite the high concept and sci-fi elements, the show succeeds at keeping the emotional stakes clear and ever-present. These are the cherished character beats too often sacrificed in bigger blockbuster fare, and Olsen is remarkable as she displays a kaleidoscope of emotions in any given episode. Her ability to imbue emotional honesty into every scene is worth the price of admission.
Of course, WandaVision is not without its missteps. Anyone expecting a truly weird, Lynchian fever dream will be sorely disappointed at some of the safer choices made. As with most Marvel fare, the show must check some boring boxes, and include an obligatory bland, action-heavy finale. It also falls victim somewhat to the old comic axiom of “the illusion of change,” coined by Marvel Comics icon and creative Stan Lee. Essentially, much of the status quo must remain by the end of the story, no matter how much character or story development is suggested. This can be frustrating and frankly leaves viewers feeling entertained, but a little empty—the cinematic equivalent of eating a bucket of popcorn. I also won’t get into the backlash from fans who felt their overblown theorizing led to massive disappointments. Fan speculation can and should be fun, but when unmet fan theories and shoehorned surprise cameos overshadow the needs of a coherent storytelling, the results aren’t pretty.
For all its flaws, WandaVision does stick the landing. It tells as satisfied and self-contained a story as possible, despite having to serve its function in a never-ending cinematic story. The show is charming, surprisingly emotional, and supremely watchable. It’s not only a love letter to classic and contemporary television, but an engaging showcase for the talents of our leads. Give Elizabeth Olsen an Emmy. Now onto the next corporate-mandated Marvel program!
Did you love WandaVision’s sitcom throwbacks and episodic pacing? Were you disappointed by the series’ shortcomings and adherence to the Marvel formula? Do we ultimately create the things we dread the most and, in our mad scramble for an ounce of control, unintentionally hurt the ones we care about? Sound off below!
WandaVision is available to stream on Disney+. Its miniseries consists of nine episodes and is rated TV-PG.
Absolutely loved WandaVision. Your review hits home the real highlights of the series. I didn’t know I could be so emotionally invested in a Marvel series, but I cried at the ending and felt empty with the conclusion. Love the character development, plot, and actors!