Thank Goodness ‘WandaVision’ Didn’t Become A Cameo-Fest

In the end, as it should be, it was all about the relationship between Wanda and Vision. And even though the last episodes of WandaVision probably had a bit too many energy bolt fights for my taste, the emotional payoff between those two characters is all that really mattered.

WandaVision was less a “mystery box” and more a “mystery table tray.” In that, yes, by the nature of its concept, it was mysterious. But the contents were never really hidden all that much. Over the last few weeks, the theories went hog wild about who or what might show up. Apparently, everyone from Hugh Jackman to Al Pacino were supposed to show up in this last episode. Or it was supposed to lead directly into the next Doctor Strange movie. In the end, none of that really happened and there are a lot of disappointed people, but thank goodness that didn’t happen. Energy bolt fights aside, the show kept its focus squarely on the two characters that mattered.

It’s like our viewing habits have turned into less about character development and more into QAnon-type conspiracy theories. It seems like people just want to “figure it out,” as opposed to enjoying the arcs of the characters that are actually leading the show. Look, sometimes that can be fun. But some of the theories I’d see bouncing around that people were excited about, I remember reading them and immediately thinking, “that sounds terrible.” It reminds me of old The Phantom Menace message boards after that movie came out. People were convinced Anakin’s little buddy Kitster was actually Boba Fett. People thought Naboo became Dagobah. None of this made sense but people wanted to “crack the code,” even though there wasn’t any code. It turns out, in the end, the Star Wars Prequels were just about the relationship between three people, just kind of awkwardly executed. (Too bad, Kitster.)

We are coming up on two years since the last MCU movie in theaters, which if you forgot was Spider-Man: Far From Home back in 2019. WandaVision was never meant to be this kind of singular event that it wound up being. It was supposed to be just this weird thing to enjoy at home and maybe sell some more Disney+ subscriptions. It was never meant as anything to guide the entire MCU over the last two years, but it kind of became that because of our real-world circumstances. Oh, and Marvel has the rights to make X-Men and Fantastic Four movies now? Well, WandaVision must show us how! People have had almost two years to speculate about the whole Fox merger into the MCU, so now they wanted answers and WandaVision. Especially after the introduction of Even Peters’s version of Pietro. What was supposed to be a fun little thing became the hypothetical entryway for a thousand more characters to show up and say, “Hey, it’s me!”

(Side note: my biggest complaint about the finale specifically would be when Monica Rambeau told Wanda that the townspeople will never understand what she sacrificed. What? If I were a townsperson and was told what Wanda sacrificed there’s no way I’d be like, “Oh, she had to give up her robot boyfriend who was already dead? Well, that changes everything. Sure, I guess that was worth becoming a zombie for who knows how long.” Does Monica Rambeau even have the authority to just say, “We’re all good here”? Yes, Wanda should be in prison.)

So, yes, I enjoyed WandaVision for what it was: an homage to the history of the situation comedy and the story about the love between Wanda and Vision. Honestly, if anything, I wish it had fewer nods to the rest of the MCU than it even did, which, compared to most every other entry, wasn’t much. It’s not like Thor showed up at the end to help or anything. Or, even worse, the Fantastic Four showing up or something. But there are people deeply disappointed something like this didn’t happen. Again, thank goodness it didn’t.

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