Contains Spoilers
And so, Marvel’s first Disney+ show comes to an end. Well, as much as anything in the ever-expanding MCU can come to an end. This may be the end of the show WandaVision, but it is certainly not the end for a lot of the characters within it, which leads to a finale that closes some loops, while leaving enough threads dangling for the future. As a result, this is probably the most generic episode in regards to adhering to the kind of base level expectation audiences have for an adventure set within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But for fans, this is a finale that’ll undoubtedly get them excited about future incoming installments in the multi-billion dollar enterprise.
After last week dealt head on with the emotional core of this series, the WandaVision finale is more about the superhero spectacle, as the world of Westview becomes centre stage for the showdown between Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen), Agatha (Kathryn Hahn), the two Vision’s (Paul Bettany) and the forces of SWORD. As a result, much of this episode offers quick answers to some lingering questions, and multiple scenes of power beams being thrown across the town of Westview, while laying seeds for the future of these characters.
Those who have become less and less involved with the show as it has dropped its more creative sitcom styling approach will likely check out at this point, as this is very much an episode designed for those invested in the wider world, which you either categorically are or aren’t at this juncture. Wanda and Vision are still the heart of the story, particularly in its quieter more emotional final moments, but this episode is largely being used as a chess piece to make sure elements and characters are in their place come the next move.
It is a very tidy finale then in that respect, never quite doing anything that you wouldn’t expect it to, but also dropping some very tasty hints for fans as to the fabric of the future. Seeing Wanda embody the figure of Scarlet Witch is very satisfying, even if all the action and spectacle feels routine and a little unimaginative (you’ve seen plenty of colourful beams flying everywhere before in this franchise). Hahn herself also feels somewhat underused, with it being demonstrated that, for the time being anyway, we’re not going to get much more dimension to Agatha beyond being a power hungry witch.
Agatha is used, though, as a means to introduce Scarlett Witch to the kind of dark magic that we can see leading to a whole hell of problems, most likely in the upcoming Doctor Strange sequel The Multiverse of Madness, which is set to feature Olsen’s return as Wanda. Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) is also left a little adrift in the episode, but gets her own post-credits setup for her own future in Captain Marvel 2. And while one version of Vision may be gone, there’s the dangling thread of the new White Vision remembering his past, meaning that Wanda and Vision may yet get some kind of a happy ending after all (even if you are left a bit puzzled, as to why her version of Vision didn’t tell her that White Vision now remembers everything). It leads to an experience which is satisfying, but never particularly awe-inspiring or invigorating in much the same way this show has been at its strongest moments.
So, as a finale to a TV show, this is certainly more interested in laying the seeds to be sown in future other properties down the path of Phase 4 and beyond of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This was always likely to be the case, leaving WandaVision feeling like a much more conventional piece of the MCU tapestry than its initial few episodes would have had you believe. But if that’s the kind of balance that we can expect from the MCU going forward, it should be an approach that’ll please many fans, as it certainly does this writer. We’ve come to accept that this is an ever-rolling enterprise now, with currently no end in sight. If shows and movies can deliver as fun a blend of weird and wonderful concepts as this, whilst also operating as entries that introduce new characters and potential storylines, then that is exciting potential for any Marvel fan.
WandaVision has begun to open the world of this franchise in ways which have often proved surprising and emotionally resonant, so much so that it can be forgiven for a finale that rests more on conventional superhero action. It has been a much stronger show than I think many of us could have anticipated, and it has paved the way for a very bright and magical future for a franchise that clearly still has plenty of tales to astonish up its sleeve.
