Hey. It’s me, Shree. Welcome back to The Weekly Shree.
If you follow me on Instagram, you probably know this past week has been a bit rough for me. I’ve had to deal with some sudden perplexing health issues, which has made writing - or doing anything, really - difficult. I don’t have anything too serious, but I definitely needed some time to recover. So thank you for staying patient with my sporadic publication timing throughout all this.
I was going to publish a third installment in my series covering the student government (SG) election for campus governor at FAU’s MacArthur campus last week, as its results are being hotly contested right now. If you’re not aware, voting concluded on February 24 and incumbent Gov. Jitesh Persaud won with about 48% of the vote. However, he was disqualified from the race two days later, after being convicted of four campaigning violations by the SG Elections Board. Now, Persaud has the option to appeal this decision to the SG Student Court. The deadline to do so was on Friday.
In any case, this leaves election results up in the air right now. I wanted to cover all that in greater detail this newsletter, but I’ll be waiting to confirm some findings.
So instead, I decided to jump into a completely different reality and discuss one of the most popular TV shows right now…
WandaVision!
*cue theme song as we enter the Hex*
(by the way, episode 2 contains the best iteration of the theme song, I don’t care what anyone says.)
Now, if you know me, you know that I am a huge Marvel movie nerd. I’ve been watching these superhero blockbusters since I was a kid, and reading the comics alongside them. So when Marvel Studios announced a new slate of TV shows on Disney Plus last year, I pretty much resigned myself to cancelling my Netflix for the new service.
I think I made the right decision though, because WandaVision - the first of the new Marvel TV series - has become one of my favorite shows. It began as a wacky sitcom starring the eponymous two minor Avengers, but evolved into an examination of the destructive powers of grief. It also finally gave Wanda Maximoff, one of the most maligned characters in the MCU, proper characterization and backstory. It did that for Vision as well, but this is really Wanda’s show. It is her story.
Now, I want to take a moment and acknowledge the fact that some readers might not know what I’m talking about. To you, I say: if you’ve been living under a rock for the past two months and don’t know what WandaVision is… I- I don’t even know what to say. You’re a disappointment.
All “jokes” aside, if you haven’t watched the show and/or its series finale that dropped on Friday, stop reading this newsletter right now. We’ll be reviewing and analyzing the whole thing, so there will be BIG spoilers for the show and the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) going forward. Go watch the show (either on Disney Plus or through… other means), then come back and read this. For now, you can also scroll to the end of this page for a little list of the week’s news.
IMAGECOURTESY: MATT FERGUSON
Alright, I’m gonna assume everyone reading now has watched the whole show.
Now, this review will focus on the entire series, but first I wanna talk about that ending. I was really hoping this finale wouldn’t be too sad, but Wanda and Vision’s final farewell to each other (and the kids!) had me in tears. Vision saying:
“I have been a voice with no body. A body, but not human. And now a memory made real. Who knows what I might be next? We have said goodbye before, so it stands to reason-”
Finished by Wanda:
“We'll say hello again.”
IMAGECOURTESY: MARVEL COMICS (AVENGERS #58)
Oh no, I’m crying again. But what a lovely quote. It gives me some hope that the two will be reunited some day, even if it’s not any time soon. I’ve really loved watching their relationship blossom over the past two months, and now I wish we got more of them in the past.
Plus, I’ve always maintained that Vision gets some of the best lines in the MCU, and this series has proved that. Remember that flashback in episode eight (Previously On) when Vision was first comforting Wanda about the loss of her brother?
“What is grief, if not love perservering?”
I cried at that one too. Actually let me be honest, the entirety of the last two episodes have dried my eyes out. But enough crying, let’s talk about the show as a whole.
Sitcom immersion.
The first few episodes of the series capture the feel of a classic old-timey sitcom so well - taking inspiration from The Dick Van Dyke Show, Bewitched, and The Brady Bunch. The sets, music, camera work, and writing transition through the ‘50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s seamlessly. I mean, just look at this shot from episode one (Filmed Before A Live Studio Audience).
PHOTOCOURTESY: DISNEY/MARVEL STUDIOS
That’s a stereotypical ‘50s kitchen and housewife if I ever saw one (which I haven’t but, you know). Minus all the magic floating recipe cards.
The sitcom mimicry continued for most of the series, dedicating an episode for each era of television. I was expecting at least one of these episodes to falter but honestly, I think these were all amazing. The writers found a way to play with different sitcom tropes and Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany - who play Wanda and Vision respectively - were great at adapting their roles to fit the decades.
But I mostly loved this sitcom immersion because it made the moments of reality hit so much harder. Moments like when Mr. Hart - Vision’s “boss” within the sitcom - starts asking about the couple’s backstory:
The camera quickly switches from a static multi-camera style to a more cinematic pan, giving the scene a sense of modernity and unease. This is our first real hint that something is wrong with the world we are watching. It also hints at how the real residents of Westview are feeling under the control of Wanda - choking under her grief. It’s a masterfully crafted piece of cinema.
But while I loved these scenes, there were certain aspects of the plot I didn’t like as much. I think the most unsavory of these was the…
Mind control and torture.
Before the series begins, Wanda takes over the town of Westview, New Jersey to convert it into the sitcom world I praised above. She not only transforms the surrounding materials, but also controls the residents by transferring all her grief to their minds and bodies. Norm - Vision’s “coworker” - sums up the effects of this:
“[Wanda]’s in my head… It hurts… it hurts so much. Just make her stop. Just make her stop!
…When you [Wanda] let us sleep, we have your nightmares… If you won’t let us go, just let us die.”
That’s… pretty messed up. And while she does it all unintentionally at first, Wanda doesn’t stop once she becomes aware of what’s going on. By imprisoning an entire town as a coping mechanism for her depression, she turns into a bit of villain in my eyes. I understand her pain and her lack of control over her power, but does that justify all the pain she inflicts on these people? Is her state enough to warrant their forgiveness?
And even as she seemed remorseful at the end, I couldn’t stop thinking about how Wanda inflicted the same mind control on Agatha Harkness at the end of their final battle. Isn’t that still kind of messed up? Agatha is definitely a power-hungry villain, but does that mean she deserves this torture? Based on what I saw, I don’t think so.
Indeed, these actions have convinced me that Wanda is on a path to darkness. And that brings me to…
The future of the MCU.
So I think it’s pretty clear that Marvel is setting up Wanda as an anti-hero in the upcoming 2022 film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. I mean, in addition to the inhumane deeds mentioned above, Wanda is also shown reading the Darkhold in an end-credits scene during the series finale.
The Darkhold - as we learned from Agatha earlier - is literally called The Book of The Damned. It has a tendency to corrupt its owners. That doesn’t bode well for Wanda. It’s bad enough there’s an entire chapter about her in the book; now that she’s reading it there’s bound to be even more trouble. That trouble is hinted when we hear her kids - or something that sounds like her kids - calling for help at the end of the scene. My guess is that she’s going to try to get them back, which may cause some interdimensional chaos for Dr. Strange.
Speaking of interdimensional chaos, I want to talk about Pietro Maximoff, or Quicksilver. Now, he definitely died in Avengers: Age of Ultron - yet another loss for Wanda - but he showed up again in WandaVision looking… different. In case you didn’t know, the “Pietro” who showed up in episode 5 was actually Peter Maximoff from the X-Men movies. Or, at least that’s what I thought?
Marvel really said, ‘Nah, it’s just a boner joke.’
I’m not sure that I believe that “Pietro” is really just Ralph Bohner though. There’s defintely something weird about this guy. I mean, why else would Marvel go hire the same exact actor who played Quicksilver from X-Men movies? Just for a prank? I can’t believe that - rather, I won’t believe that. I feel like that would cheapen the series.
I don’t know. Maybe he really is Ralph Bohner, a regular old guy. Maybe I’m just in denial because all my theories about the multiverse and the introduction of the X-Men have been seemingly shut down. Maybe I’m just like Wanda, creating an alternate reality where all my Marvel theories can flourish.
IMAGECOURTESY: DISNEY/MARVEL STUDIOS
Don’t worry guys, I’m not going to mind-control a bunch of people. I think I’ve made my stance pretty clear on that whole situation.
And regardless of “Pietro’s” status, I will probably still be excited about whatever happens with the MCU going forward. In fact, I’m already excited for the next Marvel series:
IMAGECOURTESY: MARVEL
As a longtime fan of Captain America: Winter Soldier, I’m honestly more excited for Falcon and The Winter Soldier than WandaVision. And it’s coming out next week! I can’t wait!
Okay, okay, I’ll stop now.
That’s it for today. Thanks for sticking around to read this rambling review and analysis. I know this newsletter was a bit of a departure from my usual focus on news and politics, but I kind of wanted to try something new. Like I said before, I’m a huge Marvel nerd so this was really fun for me to write. I hope it was at least a little fun for you guys to read as well.
But if it wasn’t, don’t worry, I’ll be back soon to talk about that student government election I mentioned earlier.
From,
Shree
Btw, here’s another list of things you should read/watch/listen to. It’ll help you catch up on what happened this past week outside of the Hex.
A 1.9 trillion stimulus package was passed in the Senate last week. Here’s what you can expect to get.
The CDC announced today that fully vaccinated Americans can have small gatherings indoors with other vaccinated people - but should still wear masks in public.
Johnson & Johnson have developed a COVID-19 vaccine, which was approved by the FDA recently. Here’s how it works. If you’re a biotech nerd like me, you might be surprised to see it utilizes an adenovirus vector - usually used in gene therapies.
What do vaccine efficacy numbers actually mean?
More vaccines are going to the rich than the at-risk in California - and throughout the country.
Similarly in Florida: Gov. DeSantis claimed “the state was not involved” in arranging for more than 1,200 Keys residents in the wealthy Ocean Reef community to get accelerated access to the COVID-19 vaccine. Local officials disagree.
Desantis also recently announced the age for coronavirus vaccine eligibility will be lowered ‘soon’. This comes just days after eligibility was opened to residents who were “extremely vulnerable to COVID-19.” The phrase was not defined.
As mentioned in a previous newsletter, Texas state leaders have had inconsistent COVID-19 safety restrictions. This was once again demonstrated in Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision last week to prematurely lift the statewide mask mandate and fully reopen businesses.
The Florida Democratic Party has a problem. It’s broke and disorganized.
A bill in the Florida Senate seeks to cut Bright Futures scholarship funding for majors which “don’t lead directly to employment”. As you can imagine, there’s a lot of student opposition to this.
A look back to when the left attacked the capitol, fifty years ago.
Medical professionals are discovering that Reiki, the ancient energy therapy, somehow works.
Climate change is weakening the Gulf Stream. There’s a “cold blob” involved.
Listen to the new deluxe version of Bryson Tiller’s album A N N I V E R S A R Y. It’s an R&B melange of urgent rap, soothing harmonies, and rich instrumental effects. Basically, every song is fire. Here’s my favorite one:
Finally, today is International Women’s Day. Here are some great charities to support that focus on gender equality. Also, here’s some lovely art by female creators! (make sure you click “view entire message” at the end of this email to view all the art… there’s a lot.)
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