So You Want to Watch WandaVision but Know Nothing about MCU ?

So, you’ve seen the hype about WandaVision and you’re interested; As you should be! I’ll tell you now, it is worth the hype. It's far from the standard or stereotypical Marvel movie. This is the first time we have seen Marvel do a mini-series format and the first time the Scarlet Witch is fore-fronting a project. Maybe you were drawn in by the aesthetics or the sitcom format but you don’t understand the intricate world of Marvel. In this case, I don’t think it's a problem. You don’t need to know the entire history of Marvel to watch this show; there are just a few key things to understand if you want to jump into WandaVision.

The two key players in the series to understand are Wanda and Vision. Let’s start with a brief history on Wanda. Wanda Maximoff and her twin brother, Pietro (now deceased), were born in Sokovia (a country near Russia in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or MCU). The pair had a normal childhood until Wanda and Pietro’s parents were killed in an explosion. After that, the twins became dedicated to HYDRA (an authoritarian paramilitary-subversive organization bent on world domination, aka the bad guys) and wanted to destroy S.H.I.E.L.D (espionage, special law enforcement, and counter-terrorism agency, aka the good guys who the Avengers work with). When we first see Wanda and Pietro, they are used as weapons of HYDRA because of their powers that have developed over time. Wanda’s power revolves around a piece of the mind stone (One of six infinity stones that have ultimate power) and she is able to move objects and, in a way, brainwash people. Other than that, her powers are a bit of a mystery, meaning no one really knows all that she is capable of. After her brother's death, Wanda joins the Avengers and begins using her powers for good! (Yay Wanda!)

Vision is a bit more complicated. He started as a computer program named J.A.R.V.I.S. and was created by Tony Stark (Iron Man) and Bruce Banner (Hulk). In the Avengers movie, Age of Ultron, Tony and Bruce are toying around with the idea of Artificial Intelligence and creating a “peace-keeping” robot/ artificial intelligence. Turns out, the A.I. (Ultron) thought the only way to have peace would be to destroy all of humanity! So, to combat the dangerous Ultron, Tony and Bruce created Vision from pieces of J.A.R.V.I.S and A.I. He is a robot who yields his power from the mind stone (yup, the same one Wanda gets her power from!) But, the most important thing to know about Vision is that he is dead. Yup, you read that right, dead. Vision sacrificed himself to defeat Thanos in the most recent Avengers movie. His brain and source of power, the mind stone, was ripped from his head. And Wanda was the one who did it. She was the only one who could destroy the stone. So, to recap, Vision was created to defeat another Artificial Intelligence and then a few years later was killed by the love of his life to save the universe! Nice!

Now you know who Wanda and Vision are separately, but let me tell you a little bit about their love story. Wanda and Vision came onto the scene around the same time (second Avengers movie, Age of Ultron). The two do not really interact until Captain America: Civil War. Vision is tasked by Tony Stark to watch over Wanda and keep her in the Avenger house (basically a frat house for superheroes). At this point, the other Avengers fear she is dangerous because she can’t control all her power. So Vision and Wanda are alone in the superhero frat house and they begin to bond. We see Vision making a complicated Sokovian dish to lift Wanda’s spirits, despite the fact he is a robot and has never eaten or cooked; it's very sweet. The next time we see them as a couple is in Scotland. Wanda is hiding out from S.H.I.E.L.D after breaking some rules (well, all the rules, but that’s a long story) with a few other Avengers. Vision says that they have been “testing out” this relationship for about two years (whenever he can make it to Scotland to visit her) and maybe they should make it official. As soon as Wanda agrees, mayhem ensues. The two fight some aliens who are hunting the Mind Stone and then decide to go back to America and fight with the Avengers again. It is during this movie (or fight) that Vision realizes he has to die to defeat Thanos.

Wandavision picks up pretty shortly after Avengers: End Game where Vision has died and Wanda is experiencing great grief. But, there is a mystery aspect to the show in that even the most devout Marvel fans do not know how Vision is alive. We do not know how Wanda and Vision got to suburbia in the 1950s, so it's okay to be confused. Embrace the confusion and appreciate the homage to sitcoms. The first three episodes are an ode to sitcoms in different decades. It is not until episode four that you get some answers as to what is really going on. There is one last thing I want to prepare you for. This will not come into play until later episodes, but here is some clarity on the organization S.W.O.R.D. S.W.O.R.D is an organization similar to S.H.I.E.L.D (as previously mentioned) in that it deals with superhero protection, crimes, rules, counterterrorism, etc. That is all I am going to tell you so I do not burst the wonderful first three episode bubble!

Do not be discouraged by the often overwhelming world that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe! WandaVision is a wonderful show for anyone who enjoys television. It’s so much more than a superhero story, and I hope with the background information I’ve given you, you feel inspired to watch WandaVision!