Spoilers Ahead
Wandavision’s best episode yet mixes the sitcom aspect of the show with real life SWORD Action and it ends with a shocking cliffhanger
Wandavision’s previous episode ditched the sitcom format to shine a light behind the curtain. Episode 4 showed SWORD’s perspective on what happened during the first three episodes. It also seemingly revealed that Wanda was in fact the one behind everything happening in Westview. Episode 4 certainly revealed a lot but it very much seemed to be going through the motions to get viewers on board before the show pushed forward with its story. Fortunately, episode 5 returns to the sitcom format but also perfectly balances it with scenes from SWORD’s perspective. Things are truly starting to unfold and tension is beginning to escalate, even between Wanda and Vision.
The kids are all grown up
In episode 3 of Wandavision, Wanda gave birth to twins. In episode 5, we now get to see Wanda and Vision as full on parents. In order to show the difficulties of parenthood, the show chose to give Billy and Tommy powers so that Wanda and Vision would have their hands full as parents. For a superhero show, this is a very unique approach and it pays off as there are some great scenes focusing on the challenges and rewards of parenthood. The special power that Billy and Tommy have in this episode is that they can rapidly age themselves. They go from being babies to young children to 10 years old. In particular, one great scene about this aspect of the episode is when Billy’s and Tommy’s dog, Sparky, dies and Wanda and Vision as parents teach the two about death and how to deal with it. This is a really grounded scene which hits home in real life and is not just confined to superheroes.
wanda just wants to live a happy life with vision
This episode mainly focuses on the conflict between Wanda’s fantasy life and the outside world encroaching on it. At SWORD, Director Hayward is spearheading the initiative against Wanda and painting her as a terrorist. Hayward even tries to take out Wanda in Westview with a missile. Not surprisingly, Wanda responds antagonistically and threatens SWORD if they do not leave her alone. Elizabeth Olsen’s performance is particularly impressive this episode as she is able to switch from a cheery sitcom character to an enraged Scarlet Witch in an instant. These scenes show that Wanda knows that her perfect world with Vision is not real. Whilst there could be a bigger villain controlling things behind the scenes, Wanda here is in control of her destiny to a large extent as she herself chooses to be in Westview.
There is also tension near the end of the episode between Wanda and Vision. Whilst at work, Vision discovers that Norm has a real life and a family outside of Westview. Vision finally realises that something is deeply wrong as people are being held in Westview against their will and Vision himself cannot remember life before Westview. Vision confronts Wanda about it but she hilariously tries to roll the credits on him which is a genius use of the sitcom format. By the end of the episode, the tension has built to a breaking point and it is great seeing Wanda and Vision arguing back and forth. Wanda denies everything but Vision does not believe her. All signs point to Wanda being behind everything but with a show where everything is not as it seems, could there be another villain behind this. Just when all the right questions are being asked, all too conveniently, the door bell rings. Behind the door is a big surprise character whose return in this form could be taken to mean so many different things.
Pietro returns but with a twist
At the door is Wanda’s long lost brother, Pietro who is also known as Quicksilver. Audiences last saw Pietro played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson in the MCU when he died in Age of Ultron. Episode 5 made a big deal out of Wanda not being able to bring living things back from the dead such as her sons’ dog, Sparky. Vision is back so he must be an exception to the rule as an android. Therefore, one would think that Wanda could not bring back her dead brother. However, in the final moments of the show, Pietro appears at Wanda’s door but Pietro here is played by Evan Peters who played the character in the X-Men films. The show even acknowledges that this is a different Pietro as Darcy watching comments on Wanda recasting Pietro. This is a loophole for the show to bring back Quicksilver since she is not bringing back Taylor-Johnson’s dead version of the character. However, there are still questions that need to be answered.
First off, Evan Peters could very well be playing the Fox version of Quicksilver. It is already known that Wandavision is Part 1 of the Multiverse Trilogy which also includes Spider-Man 3 and Doctor Strange 2. Another explanation is that this is someone completely different pretending to be Quicksilver such as the villain, Mephisto. There are so many theories out there and fans could spend ages speculating. However, no matter the explanation the showrunners have decided on, it is amazing that they have brought Evan Peters over to the MCU and have delivered such a shocking cliffhanger.
Conclusion
Overall, Wandavision’s 5th episode perfectly balances the sitcom element of the show with insights into what is happening on the SWORD side. Once again, the time period has changed and this time, the show here takes place in the 80s. Wanda and Vision are now full on parents and are taking care of their children. Giving the children powers is a great move as Wanda and Vision thus have a lot on their hands as parents and this is a unique approach for a superhero show. Beside the parenting, Wanda’s ideal life is beginning to be shaken up as the real world is encroaching on the fantasy. Wanda has a full on confrontation with SWORD and even Vision has an argument with Wanda about what is really happening. Wanda if not the main initiator certainly has a hand in the Westview fantasy and by all indications, the show will take an even darker turn in future episodes. This episode is not only a delight to watch but its approach with the children and Wanda’s tragic past is excellent. The appearance by Evan Peters as Pietro at the end of the episode may be what everyone is talking about but that was just the cherry on top. What Evan Peters’s appearance does signal though is that Wandavision is about to get even more crazy and whether you are a Marvel fan or not, Wandavision is a must watch.