The Series Finale: WandaVision – Disney+ Talk
It seems like a long time ago since I started discussing ‘Wandavision’ but we have come to the conclusion of the series.
Episode 9, titled ‘The Series Finale’, sees Wanda, Vision, Billy and Tommy go up against S.W.O.R.D and their secret weapon in order to protect their beloved and bewitched town.
If I were to say anymore in the episode description, I would be spoiling the episode!
Overall, this is an episode that was bound to happen: a battle between Agatha Harkness and Wanda Maximoff, and a faceoff between Vision and White Vision. And, while this does happen, the show is happy to give us more answers, one that was personally unexpected.
‘Wandavision’, overall, has been a delightful addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The decision to make this a mystery show was a fantastic idea. It meant that this entry was unique to the usual action-packed format that is so often seen in the films. As well as this, it focused on Wanda Maximoff and Vision, two characters that were previously poorly written. The introduction of this show meant that they were given a second chance in terms of writing and character development. And, while Wanda Maximoff was one of my favourite characters even before ‘Wandavision’, my love for her has increased after this.
Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen are fantastic as Vision and Wanda, and this show gives them more of a spotlight to shine in, which they do effortlessly. Their onscreen chemistry is beautiful and it’s clear why these characters love each other. Wandavision does a better job at displaying their relationship than the Marvel Cinematic Universe ever did! Elizabeth Olsen is also fantastic as Wanda, a character struck with so much immense grief that it literally held a town captive. Despite her actions, she’s a sympathetic character; she just wants to be happy with Vision, something that was taken away from her suddenly and horribly. Grief is something that everyone can relate to. Even Monica says at the end that, if she had Wanda’s powers, she would immediately bring her mother back. Even if she was perceived as the villain in some episodes, Wanda’s motivation is a sympathetic, relatable and tragic one.
I love that Vision was essentially playing the detective and was trying to figure out what was going on in Westview. In a sense, he was the viewer; he didn’t know what was going on after being suddenly placed in this town and wanted answers. He was also a sympathetic character; he just suddenly existed, without any prior memories and was expected to go along with Wanda’s everchanging storylines. I also understood his perspective because he was confused and scared as he didn’t know what was going on. Like Olsen, Paul Bettany was also given a chance to shine here, with a couple of episodes dedicated to him discovering more information about the new town of Westview. I not only applaud Marvel for creating a fantastic and unique show, but I also appreciate them giving the two characters a second chance.
As someone who was never interested in the previous Marvel shows, ‘Wandavision’ was a breath of fresh air. I really hope this changes the way Marvel approach their show structures in the future. They don’t need just action-packed shows and films to make them exciting and intriguing.
While there isn’t too much information in terms of spoilers for this episode, I’m still going to be including a spoiler section. So, the rest of this article will now contain spoilers!
So, I want to start this section off by saying that one of my theories was technically correct. In a previous Disney+ Talk article, I suspected that Tommy and Billy weren’t real; that they were an illusion. And, technically, I am right: they’re integrated with the Hex. This is discovered when Wanda decides to try and undo the Hex and free the town. However, by doing so, she’d also destroy Tommy and Billy and the Vision that she’s created. It’s an unfair decision to give her: will she set the town free, thus killing her children and husband, or will she keep the town captive forever just so she can be happy? It’s a cruel moral dilemma to give her, but one that had to be given at some point. Furthermore, something that was unexpected was that the townspeople feel her pain and grief when under her spell. Not only did Wanda not realize this, but we also didn’t know this. She doesn’t know how to control her powers under immense stress and grief and this scene was a clear indication of that. A line that struck to me specifically was when ‘Dotty’ asks Wanda if she can see her child as she’s been locked away in the house for all this time, indicating that Wanda’s powers could only reach so far and to a specific amount of people. This idea was introduced in a previous episode when Vision visited the outskirts of Westview. However, it still doesn’t make it less disturbing. The line also implies that Wanda’s unintentionally kept all the children of Westview locked away, until the Halloween themed episode. While Wanda may seem villainous, she is no villain; just someone who can’t control their powers while grieving.
Another character that appears in this episode is White Vision. This is Vision that S.W.O.R.D kept from Wanda and turned into a weapon for their own use: to destroy Wanda Maximoff. And, while he may seem like a robot under straight orders at first (and even battles the illusion Vision), he is ultimately defeated by logic and memories. Like the rest of this show, this was a unique route that Marvel chose to take when it came to this battle. And, while we did get some fight scenes from the two replicas, it was heart-warming to see White Vision and Vision use logic to end the fight. Heart-warming, but not surprising since they are the same character. S.W.O.R.D may get rid of Vision’s memories, but they can’t get rid of his true core self; he’s still the same Vision on the inside. This is beautifully symbolized using the story of the Ship of Theseus: if everything on the ship is replaced with new and better equipment and technology, is it still the same ship? While they discussed that question, which ended with Vision giving White Vision his memories, my question is where is White Vision? The episode seems to leave this unanswered, leaving room for him to reappear.
Another character that has the potential to reappear is Agatha Harkness. After being defeated by Wanda, where Wanda transforms into her amazing modern Scarlett Witch costume, Agatha is imprisoned in the Hex. Here, she is to forever be trapped in the role that she chose for herself: the friendly but nosey neighbour. It’s a cruel fate for her, but one that is arguably deserved. Like previously mentioned, it also means that Marvel could bring Agatha Harkness back into the MCU if they wanted to.
One character that I was not happy about was Pietro. Said to be a huge cameo and change to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Pietro turned out to be just another resident that had been brainwashed too. This is discovered by Monica Rambeau halfway through the episode. However, some things are still unexplained with him: if he is just another resident, how did he get Quiksilver’s powers? My theory is that he is still Quiksilver but is just under a secret identity. He just happened to arrive to Westview at the wrong time!
And, speaking of Monica Rambeau, the finale rewards viewers with two end credit scenes. The first one revolves around Monica after she’s helped fight S.W.O.R.D (and stop three speeding bullets!). She is asked to meet an official who turns out to be a Skrull and is told that the Skrull would like to meet Monica. Considering that the Skrull were introduced in ‘Captain Marvel’, I think this is Marvel introducing Monica as a potential second Captain Marvel. If that’s the case, then I’m onboard with that. Monica has been one of my favourite characters in ‘Wandavision’ and I hope the film universe handles her better than they did with Wanda and Vision.
The second end credit scene revolves around Wanda, who has now left Westview and is living, alone, in a cabin. The scene starts off calmly as she sits on the porch then goes inside as the kettle boils. However, the camera keeps moving forward to the back room, and reveals that the Scarlett Witch is in the back room studying the Darkhold spell book, seemingly in a trance. Then the voices of Tommy and Billy are heard, calling out for help. It’s a striking scene, that has a lot of indications. Firstly, the children are alive, but can’t leave whatever remains of the Hex. So, if the children are alive then does that mean that the illusion Vision is still alive? And, secondly, if they’re stuck in a different world, could this open up the possibility of the multiverse? Considering that Doctor Strange 2 will feature multiverses, I think this scene serves as an introduction to that concept, an aspect that I am really looking forward to.
