‘Wandavision’ surprised fans with a new style of storytelling

Marvel, best known for its climactic conflict and incredible fight scenes, takes on a different type of show with its new Disney+ series, “Wandavision.” The show follows Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and The Vision (Paul Bettany) as they move into the small town of Westview and live a classic, white-picket-fence suburban life through the decades. 

The first episode is set in the 1950s in black and white, with Wanda as a housewife and Vision working a nine-to-five job. This episode follows the classic ‘50s sitcom style, with a miscommunication leading to an amusing conflict. There is, of course, the classic nosy neighbor— she introduces herself as Agnes, and her and Wanda instantly become friends. All is well until later in the episode when a minor issue occurs, but this issue was fully caused by Wanda herself, and it occurred when her and Vision were being asked about their lives prior to moving to Westview. 

Episode two takes place in the 1960s. Wanda and Vision face an even bigger challenge in this episode, because they have to perform for Westview while Vision is malfunctioning. Wanda and Vision finding themselves in mishaps is a trend that continues through the following episodes, too, which take place in the ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s— but everything keeps getting slightly worse and worse. Something is amiss, and Wanda is at the center of it all. 

By the fourth episode, which takes place in the ‘80s, it becomes clear what is really going on. There is a force outside of the neighborhood that is intent on bringing Westview down. Wanda resists this, as she refuses to let anything else stop her from living her dream sitcom life. Episode seven brings a huge twist with the reveal of a new villain, changing the course of the series and steering it in the direction of more Marvel-typical themes. By doing this, “WandaVision” opened several doors for Marvel executives to create even more Marvel Cinematic Universe projects.

The last two episodes possess a completely different tone than the first two. The sitcom reality-style format disappears as Wanda is forced to simply face her truth, and the scenes are filled with gut-wrenching sorrow as her past is revealed, bringing the audience through a journey exploring trauma, PTSD, and the truth behind grieving loved ones. The finale brings all of the storylines together as the inevitable occurs, whether the audience enjoys the ending or not (of course, you’ll have to watch it yourself to find out just what that is). As usual, Marvel left some loose ends at the end of the storyline to pave the way for more spin-off stories following the finale of “WandaVision”.

“WandaVision” took a different approach to a Marvel hero, turning Wanda Maximoff into a complicated character with depth as they followed her journey through coping with everything she had lost. The unique style of the show brought a fresh meaning to what Marvel really is, and it brought the audience closer to Wanda and Vision, spending an entire series detailing who they really are. “WandaVision” was an excellent show, bringing superheroes, sitcoms, and truths to life.