Mackinaw Mail

WandaVision is Must See TV

WandaVision – 2021 (Action/Adventure/Comedy)
    Mini-Series    |    


Occasionally a TV series will take a leap of faith that no one has seen before. In the case of WandaVision, Disney takes a step that we’ve never seen before (or maybe one that we have.) Disney has been known to repeat their formula over and over on each new film they released for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU.) They felt it was time to break that mold for their TV debut.

Normally I would hesitate to review a series until all of the episodes of that season have been released. In this case, only two episodes are available to stream with additional episodes being released each Friday. I feel that this is an exception to the rule though, WandaVision is unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, at least in some senses.

The series features Wanda Maximoff who is played by Elizabeth Olsen (Ingrid Goes West, Kill Your Darlings) and, Vision who is played by Paul Bettany (The Da Vinci Code, Solo: A Star Wars Story) it explores their “continuing” adventures after the current conclusion of the MCU. The series kicks off what is called Phase Four of the MCU and is easily the strangest road they’ve gone down. There have been 23 films in the MCU so far, with a long list of new ones already in development. While it wouldn’t hurt to be familiar with these, I don’t think they’re necessary viewing to appreciate the series. It could get deeper, and make them mandatory viewing but as of now, they only help deepen the story.

Wanda has been “gifted” magical powers (psionic energy, telekinesis, flight, etc.) that make her one of the most feared characters in the series. While Vision is a little harder to describe, he is an android that is made of nearly indestructible material and given the personality of an artificial intelligence named J.A.R.V.I.S. Sounds a little crazy, right? Well, that’s only the start, and it looks as though Disney is taking this chance to run with the crazy and make something truly unique.

Each episode so far is based on a classic sitcom, the first being a parody of The Dick Van Dyke Show (’61) and the second episode takes its style cues from Bewitched (’64) this is likely rather jarring for the regular audience of the MCU. A lot of the younger fanbase has likely never heard of these shows, let alone know what they were like or anything about them. Thankfully I grew up in the heyday of “Nick at Night” and watched many of the classic series in reruns.

All of this is to say that there is still going to be a catch somewhere, the series will not continue in this way and there have already been glimpses of abnormalities that don’t fit in these timelines. In my opinion, my favorite part is the cast’s lack of awareness. For the most part, they don’t know that anything is out of the norm and I think that’s going to make the continuation that much more powerful.

As I said, normally I wouldn’t review a series this early on so make sure to follow my reviews at any of the outlets I have listed below (Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, or LetterBoxd) to see my furthering thoughts on the series.

If you like crazy and unpredictable TV, this is a must-watch! I can’t wait for each new episode, check them out each Friday through March 5th for what I am sure will be a monumental conclusion!

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