WandaVision - S1E8: Previously On
DISNEY+The penultimate episode of WandaVision is a disappointment and an admirable misfire. Admirable because it attempts to characterise Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) through fleshing out her past, and a misfire because it genuinely adds nothing of interest or value.
The format of a television show was exciting in the sense that time could finally be spent building up the secondary characters who have had threadbare arcs or characterisation in the movies of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This episode is an attempt to do this with Wanda, but actually highlights why the movies are so successful: with the films, it’s the action that drives the story and not the characters. Any characterisation within the films is typically done within the narrative, rather than a personal aside and this is missed here, resulting in a rather boring addition.
Agnes (Kathryn Hahn), after her painfully slow reveal in the last episode, puts her energy into exploring Wanda’s past. Other than an Agnes flashback at the beginning of the episode, the series’ antagonist is not explored well and she continues to feel like a sassy narrator, rather than an all-powerful villain. It’s also not exactly clear what Agnes is hoping to find within Wanda – it seems Agnes is in awe of Wanda’s powers and wants to learn how to imitate her, but the directions in which Wanda’s flashbacks go offers no real answer.
For example, the first flashback depicts a young Wanda and her family in war-torn Sokovia. It’s the night that a Stark Industries bomb tears through her home, orphaning her and her twin brother. It’s also a story we’ve heard before and seeing it play out in real time doesn’t add anything. In fact, it’s mostly just a waste of time. The flashback to her childhood could have explored any number of things not touched upon already, but chooses to focus on the one thing we do know. There is a point to the flashback, but it’s such a trivial addition that it could’ve been explored with a mere line of dialogue rather than a gartitutious scene.
Up until this point, WandaVision has been a show that thrives on promise, offering tantalising moments of intrigue and excitement that suggest a build to something worth waiting for – and yes, there is yet another tease here in the form of a mid credits scene. Instead of choosing to follow up on any of the numerous teases thus proffered up to a hopeful audience, we are instead subjected to a meaningless episode of flashbacks, alongside no real furthering of the main narrative arc. The one thing that could have crushed the forward momentum of the show has been done here, and it’s a real kick in the teeth to anyone invested in the show who has been patiently waiting week by week for the events to unfold.