The following contains spoilers for the first two episodes of WandaVision. This is your warning.
Disney+'s first live-action series set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is finally here with the first two episodes of WandaVision. For it being the first MCU project released to the public in a year and a half, there's no question that WandaVision isn't quite what we've come to expect from the MCU. There's a lot less of superheroes punching each other and a lot more...weird stuff happening without much explanation. In other words, it's a modern TV show. The series sees our titular heroes, Wanda Maximoff and Vision, apparently trapped in an ever-rotating collection of sitcoms. So how did they get there?
Two episodes in, and we have little idea of how or why any of this is happening. It's clear due to the fact that somebody is trying to communicate to Wanda from outside all this, as we saw with the radio in the second episode, that she and Vision are inside something or somewhere. However, we're far from any sort of answers regarding how they got there, how they might get out, if they actually want to get out, or even when within the MCU timeline any of this is taking place. So who's responsible for Wanda and Vision going all Lucy and Ricky? Here are a few possibilities.
S.W.O.R.D.
At the end of the first episode we discover that somebody is watching Wanda and Vision in their sitcom paradise. Part way through Episode 2 we get our first hint who that might be. Wanda discovers a toy helicopter in her hedges which is the only thing that exists in color. It has a logo that fans of Marvel Comics will recognize. The organization S.W.O.R.D. as the name might indicate, is like S.H.IE.L.D. but not. Generally speaking, in the comics, S.W.O.R.D. are the good guys, so why they would trap Wanda and Vision in sitcom hell is unclear, but it's always possible there's a reason. It's also possible that the MCU version of S.W.O.R.D. are not the good guys. S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't turn out to be so great once either.
There are some reasons to believe S.W.O.R.D. Isn't the guilty party. If they're the ones trying to communicate, then it would indicate they're here to help, not harm, but it's possible that voice is somebody else. At this point we just can't know anybody's motives so anything is possible.
Wanda
Of course, while the voice on the radio is asking Wanda who is doing this to her, it's possible that the answer is actually, nobody. It could be that everything we're seeing here is a creation of Wanda herself and that she's here because she chooses to be. The biggest question of all is why Vision is even here. Is this series taking place prior to Avengers: Endgame or is this taking place after Vision died? It's possible Wanda has created a world where she and Vision can be together. We see some evidence of this at the end of Episode 2 when somebody strange comes up through a manhole and Wanda just rewinds time to make that thing not happen. She has the power to control events in this world and clearly knew what she was doing.
While Wanda does appear to have some control, there have been other times in first two episodes where she seems to be as clueless as anybody else as far as what's going on. Even if she doesn't know who is trying to communicate, you'd think she'd be less shocked that somebody was if she knew her world was fictional. She even starts to bring up the event to Vision, which is probably the last thing you want to do if you don't want your fantasy husband to know he's a fantasy. At this point, it's unclear if anybody realizes they're not actually living in a sitcom.
A.I.M.
Here's another Marvel acronym to add to the collection. Advanced Idea Mechanics is a scientific organization that, in certain Marvel continuities, was created by Baron von Strucker, the same Hydra leader who gave Wanda her powers in the first place. Von Strucker is referenced in the TV commercial portion of Episode 2, which is the same episode where we see the guy in the image above, a beekeeper who climbs out of the sewer. The members of A.I.M. often wear full body suits that resemble beekeeper outfits, and the name has stuck as a slang reference to them. Of course, unlike this guy, they aren't usually surrounded by actual bees.
Because the world Wanda and Vision are in almost certainly isn't "real" in the traditional sense, we have to question everything we're seeing. Perhaps this guy wasn't an actual beekeeper but whatever is warping this reality caused him to appear that way. He could be a human scientist conducting an experiment on Wanda.
Beings From Another World, Or Multiverse
Of course, we're only two episodes into the season of WandaVision, and so it's also possible that we haven't met the cause of all this yet, and that there isn't even enough information to make an educated guess. The first two episodes are little more than set-up. We were given the pieces, and we'll likely be able to start putting them together soon. Since S.W.O.R.D. is traditionally tasked with dealing with alien threats, perhaps it's an alien force creating this world, with or without the help of anybody named above.
However, we also know that, somehow, WandaVision is going to tie into Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and so one way or another, the solution to all this will get us there. Perhaps it is some otherworldly force, not strictly alien, but from another plane of existence or an alternate reality.
But ultimately, when it comes to good television, the solution to the mystery is far less important than the journey there. So far, WandaVision has been a bizarre and legitimately funny show, and as long as that fun continues on Disney+ we'll enjoy figuring out what's happening. Do you think the answer is one of these, or something that we haven't brought up here? Let us know and while you're waiting for the next episode check out the Winter and Spring TV premiere schedule to see what other new shows are on the way.
