WandaVision SHOW Discussion

[Jay 37,281]

WandaVision 1x05 On a Very Special Episode...

 

Well, the midpoint of the 9 episode season certainly was an interesting one.

 

I really liked that the first 3 episodes were entirely 50s, 60s, 70s sitcom riffs, and that episode 4 was entirely real world.

 

This episode really rubbed me the wrong way right from the start.  The 4:3 format for the first 3 episodes was great, and I loved that it only opened up to 16:9 when Monica got booted into the real world, and then episode 4 being entirely MCU movie style filming was great.

 

But then when this episode started as an 80s sitcom, why was it 16:9 instead of 4:3?  Is it because the real world parts are 2.35:1 and they didn't want the entire episode to have black bars?

 

I also didn't like that it shuffled between the made up sitcom and the real world.  I wish it would have just been the 80s sitcom the whole time, and we would have seen these real world bits in a later episode did like how Ep 4 showed us the other side of ep1-3 events

 

Oh well - I guess those are minor complaints

 

The 80s sitcom bits weren't quite as clever or funny as any of the earlier sitcom riffs, but still enjoyable.  The Growing Pains style opening (with some Family Ties and Full House bits) was clever and Olsen's outfit for the ep was great.  I still don't quite get why Vision's wig when he's human looking is so bad - it must be on purpose, but I don't get why.  The child actors being rough with their line delivery was probably intention too and it was kinda charming that way.  Agnes actively asking if her lines should be redone was pretty interesting, so nobody else in the town seems to ever vocalize their knowledge of what's going on.  Is she special in some way or is this going to eventually happen to everyone?

 

Vision at work was kinda interesting - I don't really understand why Darcy's memo ended up on their computers - intentional on her part or some weird glitch of the Hex?  The way Vision was able to "awaken" that one guy was interesting.

 

Real world stuff - Really good!  I love the way the story is progressing slowly each week.  Monica seems like a smart character with good ideas, Randall Park's character is better and better every week, and Darcy is always great.  The Director guy is a total jerk, and I wonder if he's going to be revealed to be an actual bad guy working for an opposing force and not just a brute.

The scene where Wanda leaves the Hex, warns everyone, makes you think she's gonna kill the director, then goes back in but turning the Hex a red color was interesting.  It was actually kind of a bummer to hear the bad Slovanian accent again because I felt like they had her drift away from it with each subequent movie after Age of Ultron and that was a good thing.

 

 

 

 

I think despite the characters now thinking Wanda is in control of everything, that isn't actually the case.  I think she was telling the truth when she was telling Vision she doesn't know how or why everything is happening; I don't think it's just because it's some subconcious thing, I think a real bad guy, as yet unrevealed, is actually behind all the badness.  Probably it's gonna be Agnes, because the people talking about "she's in my head, it's excruciating, I can feel her pain" is probably a misdirect to make you think it's Wanda but it's really Agnes.

[Faleel 5,333]

I thought the email thing was similar to the radio thing last episode, them trying to contact vision.

 

Yeah most people are theorizing Agnes is something more than she seems,

Spoiler

a comics character named Agatha Harkness.

 

[GerateWohl 4,327]

The thing in the show that makes least sense to me is that a woman that grew up and was socialized in Slovenia would never build up her perfect dream world in the form of US American sitcoms. 

[Faleel 5,333]

18 minutes ago, GerateWohl said:

The thing in the show that makes least sense to me is that a woman that grew up and was socialized in Slovenia would never build up her perfect dream world in the form of US American sitcoms. 

That assumes that she is the sole one who made that reality, and not

Spoiler

Mephisto/Agatha from Salem

 

[crocodile 7,983]

3 hours ago, Jay said:

The scene where Wanda leaves the Hex, warns everyone, makes you think she's gonna kill the director, then goes back in but turning the Hex a red color was interesting.  It was actually kind of a bummer to hear the bad Slovanian accent again because I felt like they had her drift away from it with each subequent movie after Age of Ultron and that was a good thing.

Well, it cannot be a bad accent because it is fictional.

 

Karol

[Jay 37,281]

Of course, but I just meant it literally sounds bad, like her (and Taylor-Johnson) never found a way to make it sound natural to them remotely

 

 

That reminds me something else, I thought the reveal this week that Wanda stole Vision's body and brought into the Hex was pretty cool.

 

However, I have doubts that it was actually Wanda, I bet it was the bad guy (probably Agnes) that was using magic (or whatever) to look like Wanda.  And also in this ep when Wanda went outside with the missile and confronted SWORD, I think that was also Agnes (or whoever the bad guy will be) and not Wanda.  When it cut back inside there was really no indication she had been out.  I think it's all just part of the misdirect

[Faleel 5,333]

13 minutes ago, Jay said:

Of course, but I just meant it literally sounds back, like her (or Taylor-Johnson) never found a way to make it sound natural to them remotely

 

 

That reminds me something else, I thought the reveal this week that Wanda stole Vision's body and brought into the Hex was pretty cool.

 

However, I have doubts that it was actually Wanda, I bet it was the bad guy (probably Agnes) that was using magic (or whatever) to look like Wanda.  And also in this ep when Wanda went outside with the missile and confronted SWORD, I think that was also Agnes (or whoever the bad guy will be) and not Wanda.  When it cut back inside there was really no indication she had been out.  I think it's all just part of the misdirect

That's a interesting theory.

 

However, how would the bad guy get the drone? we saw Monica (supposedly?) piloting it over Wanda and the kids.

[Jay 37,281]

I dunno, but I thought it was suspicious the way it cut from it hovering over them to her being outside with it in her Avengers garb and accent.  And the real world people never really talked about what the sitcom showed happened after that

 

I definitely could be wrong!

But it sure is fun to speculate on a show like this.  It's been a while since we had a good mystery box show!

[Faleel 5,333]

She could have paused or rewound reality like with the Beekeeper.

[Jay 37,281]

That's a good point, but usually they show that 

 

Anybody else besides me wish we got an entire 80s episode and they saved the real world stuff for later? 

[Jay 37,281]

I just came across these cool character posters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is that amazing outfit Darcy is wearing in the top TV of hers?

[Faleel 5,333]

No idea, some sort of SWORD (perhaps transformed in the Hex?) outfit we will see later?

[Jay 37,281]

Can't wait!

[Jay 37,281]

New featurette

 

 

[crocodile 7,983]

Another solid episode...three more to go.

 

Karol

[Jay 37,281]

Ah, timezones. Time to ignore this thread till we finally see it! 

[Faleel 5,333]

6 hours ago, crocodile said:

Another solid episode...three more to go.

 

Karol

Agreed

[Jay 37,281]

Wasn't expecting Malcolm in the Middle! 

 

Anyone else never really like that show? 

[Faleel 5,333]

So does that mean they skipped the 90's?

[Jay 37,281]

Huh, I guess so.

 

I would have sworn Malcolm in the Middle started in the 90s, but wikipedia says it started in Jan 2000

[DarthDementous 1,059]

There were some wonderfully creepy visuals and ideas in this episode, the sheer nothingness just outside of the town's borders, the NPC-like behaviour and I could swear during the scene of Vision at the outskirts of the Halloween goers one of the children was an actual skeleton which if true raises some...horrifying implications. That could be what the Yo-Magic advert was hinting at, too.

What do we think about Quiksilver? Is he an actual version of the character or is he someone just wearing his face? He certainly seems to know more than what he should

[Jay 37,281]

WandaVision 1x06 All-New Halloween Spooktacular!

 

Anyone else bothered this was also 16:9 like the 80s episode?  Why aren't these 4:3 like the 50s-70s?  Makes no sense.

 

I was never a fan of Malcolm in the Middle when it was on, but it's the perfect choice for this part of the story!  I loved the one kid talking to the camera and the general fun they were having throughout.  Evan Peters also showcases how much of a better actor he is that Taylor-Johnson; I can't imagine imagine him and Olsen having these same conversations and them having the same weight they do here.

Again just like last week I am bummed the real world stuff is intercut with the sitcom world instead of saving it for their own episode, though I guess in retrospect they kinda had to do it here and last week because of the way the two worlds collide at the end of this.

The way Vision was able to freely explore and discover what he did seems like a massive oversight on the part of Wanda's subconscious (or whatever villain is doing this, or whatever).  But it was cool that the result was the Hex being expanded and our outside heroes getting trapped inside.  I guess we'll get to see Denning's outfit from that poster last week!

 

 

 

 

Speaking of posters, I just came across these posters that were released before the show started that told us the whole time the time periods they'd go for:

 

            

There's also a clip online for tomorrow's episode, which reveals what timeframe they're doing next.  Doesn't reveal anything plot or character related at all, but I'll put it in a spoiler block anyway

 

Spoiler

 

 

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==

 

(For those who don't recognize it, that's Modern Family, which started in 2009)

 

 

[Faleel 5,333]

Whoa.... things are really heating up!

 

Spoiler

We saw that outfit and Villian Agnes was confirmed.

 

[Arpy 4,145]

Now that Agnes is out of the bag, I can say I loved seeing her reveal, especially in her Haunted House^TM replete with spooky trees and a magic spellbook hidden in her basement.

 

 

[DarthDementous 1,059]

I don’t know if I’m giving the show too much credit, but I can’t help but feel that Agatha Harkness is a bit of a misdirection

 

The voice we heard from behind the interviewer’s chair sounded like a very strange male, and I feel like they deliberately showed us Agnes was behind there in the montage to hint at a disconnect

 

Speaking of that montage...we have been trained to expect to take the validity of all of these sequences with a grain of salt. If Agnes is behind the broadcast then what we are seeing is exactly what she wants us to see. I don’t see why it would be beneficial to reveal her true intentions, unless to misguide SWORD watching and by extension us. If this is a ploy then it would be a really cool meta commentary on the way we interact with media and interpret the director’s choices, because they are in a sense manipulating our perspective - like Agnes is doing.

 

EDIT: I looked at the credits but couldn’t find any credit for the voice of the interviewer, make of that what you will

[Quintus 5,399]

Wait, this is more superhero stuff? Jesus H Christ. I thought it was something very different. Nm 

[Jay 37,281]

Why would you think that?

[Quintus 5,399]

I glimpsed black and white and what looked like satirical piss taking. Thought it was something quirky but not involving superheroes. Never mind. 

[Jay 37,281]

The name of the show is two superheroes names back to back

[Quintus 5,399]

Really? I was more inclined to recall A Fish Called Wanda. 

[Faleel 5,333]

3 hours ago, DarthDementous said:

I don’t know if I’m giving the show too much credit, but I can’t help but feel that Agatha Harkness is a bit of a misdirection

 

The voice we heard from behind the interviewer’s chair sounded like a very strange male, and I feel like they deliberately showed us Agnes was behind there in the montage to hint at a disconnect

 

Speaking of that montage...we have been trained to expect to take the validity of all of these sequences with a grain of salt. If Agnes is behind the broadcast then what we are seeing is exactly what she wants us to see. I don’t see why it would be beneficial to reveal her true intentions, unless to misguide SWORD watching and by extension us. If this is a ploy then it would be a really cool meta commentary on the way we interact with media and interpret the director’s choices, because they are in a sense manipulating our perspective - like Agnes is doing.

 

EDIT: I looked at the credits but couldn’t find any credit for the voice of the interviewer, make of that what you will

Cue the

Spoiler

Mephisto is the interviewer voice

theories.

[Edmilson 7,384]

Is that Agatha character from the comics? I'm no comic expert, but if I remember correctly it's DC who has a character named Harkness in their comics.

[Faleel 5,333]

31 minutes ago, Edmilson said:

Is that Agatha character from the comics?

Yes.

[KK 3,307]

I will say that I enjoyed the last two episodes, despite some of the cliché narrative trappings of Marvel Universe syndrome, the charisma of the two leads really elevated the humour of it all. Maybe this show just had a really pedestrian start. Either way, I'm on board for what's next.

[A24 4,326]

Really?

[Quintus 5,399]

No, he just typed all that for no reason. 

[Arpy 4,145]

18 hours ago, Quintus said:

Wait, this is more superhero stuff? Jesus H Christ. I thought it was something very different. Nm 

When Monica breaks through the barrier and later does that superhero force smash, I think I then was awoken to the fact that this is eventually returning to the rest of the MCU shenanigans and tired superhero dreck.

[Quintus 5,399]

I just try to ignore all superhero and Marvel/DC "universe" TV and film media, it's absolutely beyond boring how much that stuff dominates blockbuster cinema and wider pop culture these days. I'm just keeping my head down till the fad eventually passes. There's plenty of other entertainment to be getting on with in the meantime anyway. 

[crocodile 7,983]

So you guys click on a video with Marvel logo at the start and then are disappointed it's Marvel stuff? I don't get it.

 

Karol

[Quintus 5,399]

No. Not personally. 

[crocodile 7,983]

What's that then?

 

21 hours ago, Quintus said:

I glimpsed black and white and what looked like satirical piss taking. Thought it was something quirky but not involving superheroes. Never mind. 

 

Karol

[Quintus 5,399]

I couldn't tell you where I noticed it, but this show's promo material has been plastered all over the net for a few weeks now, no? 

[crocodile 7,983]

Ah I see. You thought it was something else. Got you.

 

Karol

[Quintus 5,399]

Aye

[KK 3,307]

5 hours ago, crocodile said:

What's that then?

 

 

Karol

 

I just wished that for once, these things were actually as "different" as they claim to me. Even for some of its fun quirks, it's just more franchise padding. None of these things are really able to stand on their own legs.

[DarthDementous 1,059]

3 hours ago, KK said:

 

I just wished that for once, these things were actually as "different" as they claim to me. Even for some of its fun quirks, it's just more franchise padding. None of these things are really able to stand on their own legs.

I’d want to see someone’s reaction to the show if this was the first piece of MCU content they had watched. It’s probably not designed for a brand new audience, but I think it does a decent enough job recapping that you could probably get most of what’s happening

[KK 3,307]

This is the first MCU show I've ever watched. I also haven't watched any of the films in which these "returning" characters were in. And while I could follow it fine, the MCU padding is quite significant.

[TheUlyssesian 2,473]

32 minutes ago, KK said:

This is the first MCU show I've ever watched. And while I could follow it fine, the MCU padding is quite significant.

 

This is technically the first MCU show - as in produced to be actually part of the main timeline of MCU and overseen by the same studio.

 

Any other Marvel shows are not MCU but just general marvel shows.

[Arpy 4,145]

All the SWORD stuff is just tired self-parody at this point - more anonymous government taskforces up to their usual business. I think like Quintus, I was drawn into this show because it offered a different premise to the standard Marvel fare. Haven't we got to the point now, after a decade of the MCU, that all this pomp and circumstance of superheroes (not just in Marvel) is just retreading old ground? Even the anti-hero entertainment is dragging perilously close to that line of becoming just as mainstream and omnipresent as the regular superhero crap. 

4 hours ago, DarthDementous said:

I’d want to see someone’s reaction to the show if this was the first piece of MCU content they had watched. It’s probably not designed for a brand new audience, but I think it does a decent enough job recapping that you could probably get most of what’s happening

The way the MCU operates now is that you must digest all the content prior to viewing the new shows otherwise it's all meaningless. Easter eggs and all those hidden things are what this entire enterprise has been based on, nothing more than self-referencing and allusions to the rest of the universe to suggest something bigger than it really is. 

[DarthDementous 1,059]

7 hours ago, Arpy said:

All the SWORD stuff is just tired self-parody at this point - more anonymous government taskforces up to their usual business. I think like Quintus, I was drawn into this show because it offered a different premise to the standard Marvel fare. Haven't we got to the point now, after a decade of the MCU, that all this pomp and circumstance of superheroes (not just in Marvel) is just retreading old ground? Even the anti-hero entertainment is dragging perilously close to that line of becoming just as mainstream and omnipresent as the regular superhero crap. 

The way the MCU operates now is that you must digest all the content prior to viewing the new shows otherwise it's all meaningless. Easter eggs and all those hidden things are what this entire enterprise has been based on, nothing more than self-referencing and allusions to the rest of the universe to suggest something bigger than it really is. 

I mean that seems sound enough on paper, I’d just rather see it put into practise because we are two people who can never truly look at the show through that lens