After eight straight weeks of new episodes, WandaVision aired its finale and wrapped up Marvel Studios’ first earnest stab at television programming. Throughout the lead-up to the show, those involved with the production called the series Marvel’s most layered project yet. As it turns out, not only is that much true for the show itself, but also for the discourse that has followed after Friday’s climactic episode.
You don’t have to go far at all to find someone talking about the Disney+ series. Once you do manage to locate someone, chances are they’ll be using two words in the same sentence — WandaVision and theories. There’s a significant part of the fandom upset because virtually none of the most prevailing theories came right. There was no major Mephisto reveal, nor was Nightmare the big bad of the series. Evan Peters wasn’t even playing the version of Quicksilver that first appeared in 20th Century Fox’s X-Men franchise.
Here’s where things start to get contentious.
It’s reasonable to say it’s silly for people to get upset because their own theories didn’t prove accurate. In fact, plenty of people have already made that point through Twitter threads or blog thinkpieces. The “No More Mutants” panel from Marvel’s House of M comic arc has been reformatted to read “No More Theories,” and is being passed around like hotcakes.
But WandaVision isn’t flawless television, and it has a fair share of legitimate criticisms. To an extent, isn’t film criticism itself where you judge something based on your own standards and expectations? Because art is subjective, we have to set our own internal expectations and desires for what we hope a film or series will end up being.
That’s not to say we condone those who are getting furious at WandaVision because the red-faced demon didn’t show up. But who are we to tell people to stop concocting their own theories regarding these properties?
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is the world’s biggest entertainment franchise, and it largely got to where it is today because of the water cooler discussion between fans, and the common theorization of what could come next. Why should we stop that all right now?
WandaVision is now streaming in its entirety on Disney+.
What’d you think of Marvel Studios’ debut television series? Let us know your thoughts either in the comments section or by hitting our writer @AdamBarnhardt up on Twitter to chat all things MCU!
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