WandaVision - Episode 3 - Review

The first two episodes of WandaVision introduced us to the titular characters in their new setting, as well as a few extra members of the community, but while they served as an introduction, there was something hidden beneath. But while the first episodes were more about the wonder, the third episode will leave you wondering.

*Spoilers Ahead*

Just like the first two episodes were set in specific decades, the third episode was also themed to one, the 70’s and far from being groovy and far out, the episode perhaps shoves a little to much into its runtime, but let’s step back a moment. At the end of the second episode, the show shifted from black and white to colour, and that came about, due to the Wanda and Vision accepting their place in the community. Of course, as the last episode moved forward for the couple, the mystery also moved ahead, with a man in, what appears to be a beekeeper suit, emerging from a manhole, with the S.W.O.R.D. logo on its back and some odd device in hand. Upon seeing him, Wanda refused to accept it, giving an indication that she didn’t want anything to break the happiness that they had found, which was of course the news that they were having children.

Given that the first two episodes blew past 20 years, well two different decades, there was no way that Wanda would remain pregnant for too long and that came to be quite true as she gives birth in the same episode. A lot of the humour from the episode comes about, from the pair attempting to prepare for kids, at a rate that, even Vision, with his brain capable of infinite calculations, can’t comprehend. The show has fun with it, including some of the visual gags, which is a treat, though the stork bit seemed a little on the nose, but regardless the plot of the babies was fun, but there was much more happening than just the pending arrival. While we had hints that something wasn’t right in the first two episodes, this one kind of just dumps Vision into the mystery and not in the, he stumbled upon it and worked out what was going on. No, for some reason the approach here is more akin to being beaten over the head with a truncheon and then being given vital clues, which he still attempts to decide.

While that is happening for Vision, Wanda is having a chat with Geraldine, who reveals that she knows things, that someone from this small slice of americana, couldn’t possibly know. While that conversation is happening, Vision is learning more from his neighbours, about the mysterious Geraldine and before he can find out the truth from the woman herself, Wanda explains she has left, leaving Vision and the audience waiting to find out what is going on. Though for Vision the answers must wait another week, we get a little more information and another sneak into larger events and while it doesn’t answer any burning questions, it does start to line up some dominos, ahead of the inevitable fall.

Of course, as the show progressed into a new decade, the visual look and of course colour pallet shifted along with it and if there was one clear message in the inspiration, it was The Brady Bunch. The attention to detail in everything from the costumes, to the set itself, just shouted Brady Bunch to me, to the point where I felt that I was looking at a reversed set, stairs being on the right, instead of the left. The outfits, from those in the opening sequence, to what they wear at the end, also manage to feel authentic, at least as far as I can tell, I am not that old, but again, comparing it to The Brady Bunch, everything felt right. Even the scenes that were shot outside were wonderful, because while Vision is discovering that something isn’t right, I was bemused by the massive backdrop that was clearly just an image.

While the pace on this one is the complete opposite end of the scale, from what the first episodes were aiming for, it still manages to lay some extra founding pieces of story, while answering some questions. The overarching mystery is starting to build up and what it is hinting at, has some amazing potential, but overall, I felt that the third episode missed the mark on having Wanda achieve something, sure she had kids, but that was really it and given that her pregnancy lasted for less than the length of a standard TV episode, that wasn’t much. Vision managed to crack the rose coloured glasses and discover more background on this world, but how long it takes them to fully break away is something we will have to wait and see on.

The Score

8.0

Review access provided by Disney

The Pros

+Finally in proper colour

+The mystery is slowing coming together

The Cons

-Where the first two eps were slow, this one is blazing fast

-Wanda bounces around in terms of emotion a lot