WandaVision (Miniseries) Review: A Trippy And Engaging Superpowered Tribute To The Classic Sitcom
- naterichard98
- Apr 8, 2021
- 3 min read
CREATED BY: JAC SCHAEFFER
DIRECTED BY: MATT SHAKMAN
STARRING: ELIZABETH OLSEN, PAUL BETTANY, & KATHRYN HAHN
RATED: TV-14
9 EPISODES (30-50 MINUTES)
*Spoiler Warning For WandaVision*
After nearly a year and a half, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is finally back with WandaVision, the franchise's first official foray into television. While we've seen series set in the MCU before such as Agents of SHIELD, Daredevil, and the infamous Inhumans, we have yet to see a television series that plays canonically to the main films and has a genuine effect on the franchise. That is until now. WandaVision is the first series out of the gate and it's being followed up this year by Falcon And The Winter Soldier (the first three episodes are streaming now on Disney+), Loki, the animated What-If?, Hawkeye, and Ms. Marvel.
WandaVision plays as half homage to the classic sitcom and half MCU actioner and while that may seem like an odd paring, especially since it's been a year and a half since we last visited the MCU onscreen, the sitcom format genuinely works. The series picks up shortly after the events of Avengers: Endgame and finds Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) living a happy suburban life married to the now seemingly alive android Vision (Paul Bettany). But things aren't as serene as they seem, as the couple travel through several decades of sitcoms, things become more and more off to Vision. From their mysterious and charismatic nosey neighbor Agnes (Kathryn Hahn), the fact that nobody can actually leave town, the appearance of Wanda's presumed dead brother Pietro (Evan Peters), and the fact that Vision starts to learn that he's supposed to be dead. The series also shifts to outside of Wanda's new suburban life as we learn that there's a magical shield cast around the New Jersey town of Westview being monitored by MCU veterans Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings), Jimmy Woo (Randall Park), and Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris).
While in most cases, the devotion to a specific formula fails to keep the audience entertained, WandaVision simultaneous commitment to being a throwback to classic sitcoms as well to being a compelling mystery, just so happens to be one of the strongest aspects of the series. While there are certainly plot points and reveals that will let fans down, there's also quite a bit here that offers some of the best scenes of the MCU yet. The fact that it doesn't pander to the wants of it's audience is extremely admirable, especially in the current blockbuster landscape, where studio execs feel as if they need to constantly please hardcore fans and give them everything that they want.
Even when the series starts to become more standard Marvel fare, the series never once loses it's sense of intrigue and it's showrunner Jac Schaeffer and director Matt Shakman that we have to thank. Not everything here works and there's some dialogue that feels less than stellar, but the ambition of Schaeffer and Shakman is ever-present over the course of the nine episodes.
Olsen has never been better as Wanda Maximoff, giving one of the most impressive performances in the entire MCU. From how her acting style changes through the corresponding decades and to how she portrays Wanda's constant grief, she'll be sure to land an Emmy nomination when the time comes. Bettany shows that he's got quite the knack for comedy in his portrayal as Vision and gels well with Olsen as well as the rest of the cast. Though it's Hahn as the later-revealed villain Agatha Harkness who nearly steals the entire series, combining both a sense of menace as well as humor. Dennings and Park finally get their time to shine as Darcy and Jimmy and both of them proved to be welcome additions to the series. Parris shows that she's a movie star in the marking as Monica and she shows no signs of weakness in her MCU debut.
WandaVision features some of the MCU's finest moments and while not everything about it works, there's more than enough here that makes this quite the strong start to the fourth phase of one of Hollywood's biggest franchises.
4/5 Stars
All episodes of WandaVision are now available to stream on Disney+.
I agree Nate!