Review: “WandaVision” is a Charming and Mysterious Addition to Disney+
Hi everyone!
WandaVision premieres tomorrow (January 15th, 2021) on Disney+ with the first two episodes available. After that, the remaining seven episodes will be shown on a weekly basis. WandaVision is the first television series from Marvel Studios and features Vision (Paul Bettany) and Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) in a very different way than we’ve seen before.
From Marvel about WandaVision: Marvel Studios presents “WandaVision,” a blend of classic television and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in which Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) – two super-powered beings living idealized suburban lives – begin to suspect that everything is not as it seems.
I had an idea of what to expect with WandaVision, but it took a while to get in the mindset of the series. I received three episodes to watch, and was halfway through the first when I backtracked and watched it again. It was really mind-bending at first to see these characters channeling familiar classic sitcoms including The Dick Van Dyke Show and The Brady Bunch.
I’ve seen a lot of descriptions for WandaVision over the past week – including “creepy” and “mysterious”. Overall I find the show quite funny, charming and unique but of course familiar as well. Elizabeth Olsen seems to effortlessly move through the decades and Paul Bettany is fantastic – they are believable as a sitcom couple in each episode I have seen so far. The first episode was actually shot in front of a live audience, although Elizabeth Olsen was happy when the “fourth wall” was added after that. She sometimes seems a little bit like Lucille Ball but at other times she reminds me of Alice Kramden from The Honeymooners.
The series will appeal to viewers in different ways. For example, I grew up on classic sitcoms and so there is a familiarity for me that won’t be the same for some. On the other hand, I’ve never really read Marvel comics and from what I understand, it may be beneficial to read some of Wanda and Vision’s stories. I’ve been asked if someone would need to have seen all the MCU films to enjoy the series and so far no – but there are six more episodes I have not seen and I don’t know how the movies will fit into the series. It does help to know that Wanda is the Scarlet Witch and Vision is an android for some of the comic scenes (he can’t eat food and that does play into some of the humor, especially in episode 2).
The black and white episodes also have a bit of a The Twilight Zone feel to them as there is some suspense building for whatever will unfold in future episodes and the black and white aspect lends itself more to that than the technicolor.
Kathryn Hahn is hilarious as neighbor Agnes and Teyonah Parris is terrific as Monica Rambeau (a character first introduced in Captain Marvel).