We have reached the 90’s, my friends. WandaVision returns with yet another fantastic entry in “All-New Halloween Spooktacular.” The twins Wanda and Pietro, along with Billy and Tommy, dominate the episode, while Vision goes on an eerie quest to the edges of Westview. Each week we are allowed to peel another layer of the plot off and take a bite. It’s like a delicious onion. Or perhaps the film on top of “Cream of Wheat” when you leave it for a minute. Yum. I have five thoughts, you have eyeballs; let’s join them in holy matrimony. Spoilers ahead.
1. The Pietro of it all
Evan Peters fits right in as the long lost, oddball brother to Wanda. He brings the same frenetic energy from his time in Fox’s mishandled, rebooted X-Men franchise. Pietro also plays a critical role in this episode. He directly questions Wanda’s intentions, allowing her to drop her walls and confide in him. Not only that, Uncle Pete has intimate knowledge of how she seems to be doing all of this. Is he real or simply conjured by Wanda to give her some level of comfort? There is undoubtedly an outside force assisting Wanda in this endeavor, but maybe it’s something more cosmic? Either way, Pietro adds to the intrigue of this bizarre series.
2. Agnes Watch 2021
Maybe I was wrong about Agnes. Maybe. Nah, I will stick to my guns. She’s up to something. How do you explain her always being around and aware of what Wanda and Vision needs? Wanda’s crippling loneliness made her mind control someone to be her friend, you say? OK fine, I will buy that. How about Agnes’ conversation with Herb a few episodes back where they clearly weren’t under mind control? Hm? You’ve got nothing for that, right? Truth be told, the probability of Agnes being just another captive is healthy, but some things just don’t add up. It could just be weird plot holes that I am focusing on. For instance, how does Agnes know Vision is dead? Wouldn’t she just think he was brought back with all the other snapped folks? Does the mass populous know about Vision and how he isn’t just another human in a suit? Maybe that’s Wanda’s psyche intruding on Agnes’ mind. Who knows? The fantastic thing about this series is our ability to speculate on these theories. Keep an eye on her, folks. She’s hiding something. Aren’t you having fun? I’m having fun. *sips juice box*.
3. Speed and Wiccan revealed
We officially have mutants among us. Pietro was a wildcard since he is dead as all shit and could have just been a projection. Those two precocious boys are most certainly children and now have mutant powers—props to the costume designers for dressing Billy in his comics accurate costume. The Halloween setting certainly opened up many opportunities for the writers to have some fun with these characters in this setting.
4. No More Mutants, but the opposite
There are considerable developments in this episode. We guessed it, but it’s pretty much confirmed this show is a backdoor origin story to Monica Rambeau. Her cells are altered, and the change to Spectrum has begun. Get excited folks, Auntie Monica is on the way!
Darcy posits that all the people trapped in Wanda’s Hex bubble could have the same cellular change. Could this be the catalyst to mutants in the MCU? YES! Why the hell wouldn’t it be? Wanda literally gives birth to the first two mutants. You can’t classify her or Pietro as the first since they were basically science experiments. I suppose so are the residents of Westview now. We will go from ‘No More Mutants!’ to ‘Maybe, like, a thousand mutants.’
5. That escalated quickly
You can’t argue with the pace of this show. Things tend to pick up quickly, with every episode ending on a relative cliffhanger. This week’s episode ends on a big one as Wanda uses her hex powers to extend the Westview simulation. Both to save Vision from his very real death and capture the S.W.O.R.D contingent gumming up the works. We finally witness Wanda exerting her control over the citizens in Westview, freezing people and animals alike as she flexes her mutant muscles. Despite Wanda’s claim that she doesn’t know who started this, she certainly has downplayed her involvement in controlling everyone’s mind. She may not be getting people to doctor’s appointments on time, but she definitely puts them in motion.
Continued belowThe wrap-up
We have three episodes left, so things are going to be picking up in a big way. The stage is set for Wanda to mess with S.W.O.R.D, as the carnival outside of Westview is full of S.W.O.R.D clowns, literally and figuratively. Pietro’s inclusion delivers on many levels. He serves as an ear for Wanda to bend, a source of exposition, and a symbol of the impending multiverse. Something we, the fans, have been clamoring for. Vision continues to baffle me as an undead autonomous synthetic with amnesia. That’s a lot to take in, but after thirteen or so years of Marvel movies, it’s the least weird thing to comprehend. Remember when Star-Lord turned into Pac-Man in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2? Let’s meet back here next week and talk about the next episode, OK? Great, see you then!
Notables:
- Today’s episode homage is to Malcolm in the Middle, A show I admittedly have little knowledge of but completely remember the introduction to. How else would I know to change the channel back then?
- The reference to Kick-Ass was fun. For those unaware, both Evan Peters and Aaron Taylor-Johnson played best friends in that film, then both men went on to play alternate versions of Quicksilver. Serendipity
- Heyward is a special kind of bastard. Don’t drop people’s momma’s into a conversation. He’s lucky Monica didn’t go across his face.
- That lady crying while stuck in a futile loop was possibly the saddest metaphor for the workforce I have ever seen. Am I reading too much into it? Still sad
- My daughter watched this episode with me. When that Yo-Magic snack commercial came on, it scarred us both. Thank’s Marvel, now she hates yogurt. We are down to chicken nuggets and Gushers for her balanced diet.
- Vision being slowly “snapped” back into the Hex was a grim reminder of what Thanos did to folks
- So, when did Darcy learn how to hack highly-classified computer protocols? Just because someone is smart doesn’t make them a hacker, Marvel.
- Let’s take a moment and acknowledge how beautifully shot this show truly is. The cinematography, pacing, framing, color-correction. It’s all top-notch stuff. Every homage is lovingly rendered. I half expected them to recreate the original aspect ratios for each decade. I guarantee someone asked to do that during production. I know I would have.
