The 'WandaVision' Finale Sets Up a Very Scary MCU Future
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WandaVision episode 9 spoilers follow.
Well, it's over. Anyone else wish the Scarlet Witch would come along and put them in a world where WandaVision never ends? For a show that's focused so heavily on grief, we imagine Marvel fans everywhere will be going through their own mourning period right about now.
But Wanda's story isn't over, not really. And in fact, it looks like her journey will play a key role in the MCU as a whole moving forward. Just like Westview revolved around Wanda, so too will future movies, including Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and, to a lesser degree, Captain Marvel 2.
Join us as we cast our vision gaze to what lies ahead while breaking down what both, yes, BOTH post-credits scenes in the WandaVision finale mean for the future of the MCU.
WandaVision ending explained
As the fight against Agatha Harkness plays out, Wanda comes to terms with the damage she has wreaked on the residents of Westview. In a brief act of redemption, the newly crowned Scarlet Witch starts to undo her hex, but then realizes that she "tied" her family to this world. No hex means no more Vision, and no more Billy or Tommy either.
Meanwhile, the new Vision and White Vision continue to battle in the skies above Westview. But while they talk, Wanda's Vision realizes that the pair are too evenly matched, and the only way to "defeat" White Vision is by making him realize that they are both Vision in their own way. If he is to kill the Vision, then he would have to kill himself too.
This surprisingly philosophical debate ends with White Vision's memories restored. "I am Vision," he declares before flying off to God knows where. Does this mean "our" Vision from the movies is now alive and well again? Or does he still lack emotions like his comic-book counterpart? What we do know is that this isn't the last we've seen of White Vision.
As Wanda continues to fight Agatha, Photon/Monica and our future Young Avengers hold off the SWORD units who have now invaded Westview. "Boys, handle the military. Mommy will be right back."
And off Wanda goes, using the mind tricks we last saw in Age of Ultron to trap Agatha in a nightmare world. Although that backfires, the Scarlet Witch headgear appears, showing that Wanda is now fully accepting her true power (more on that here).
Agatha promises Wanda that she will "correct the flaws" in the hex, allowing the Maximoff family to "live in peace." All Wanda has to do is give up her power, her chaos magic. Of course, Agatha was lying all along (sang to the tune of her catchy ditty). "This world you made will always be broken, just like you," she cackles.
Of course, Wanda knew that Agatha couldn't be trusted. To defeat Kathryn Hahn's deliciously camp witch, Wanda used Agatha's own knowledge against her, casting runes on the hex walls, cutting out her magic entirely. "'In a given space, only the witch who cast them can use her magic...' Thanks for the lesson."
Now that Wanda has fully embraced the Scarlet Witch's power, it comes with a snazzy new costume and a warning from Agatha before her mind is locked away in Westview. "Oh God. You don't know what you've done." More on that later.
For now though, let's embrace Wanda's crimped hair and the moving way she's finally taken ownership of her mistakes. Determined to set things right and release those under her control, Wanda slowly pulls the hex back again, and this time, she doesn't change her mind halfway.
Cue an emotionally devastating goodbye when Wanda and Vision put their children to bed, knowing that they are about to be erased from existence forever. "Boys, thanks for choosing me to be your mom." We don't see them "die" because this is Marvel, but it's still extremely harrowing to know these mini-Avengers have breathed their last — or have they?
"Family is forever", Wanda reminds us, which is why the next goodbye is even harder to watch. Vision switches on a light because "it's bad luck to say goodbye in the dark," and then they do exactly that, say goodbye.
But before this version of Vision is erased from Westview, Wanda finally explains what he really is. "You, Vision, are the piece of the mind stone that lives in me. You are a body of wires and blood and bone, you are my sadness, and my hope, and mostly, you're my love."
Vision sheds a single tear, which is pretty remarkable given how dehydrated we were following that devastating moment. But maybe this isn't the end for Vision either? "I have been a voice with no body," he says. "A body but not human, and now, a memory made real. Who knows what I might be next?" Don't be surprised if this second Vision also returns at some stage...
After everything fades away, all that's left is Wanda standing in that empty plot of land again, empty like our tear ducts. Everyone who has been freed from their brainwashing is understandably angry and afraid of Wanda in equal measure, except Monica, who understands exactly why she did what she did. "Given the chance, given your power, I would bring my Mom back."
And with that, Wanda flies away in her Scarlet Witch outfit, taking one last look at Westview before moving on to pastures new. Should she be punished for what she did to that small town? Yes, absolutely, although no one ever seems to talk about all the people that "heroes" like Iron Man have killed in the line of duty, so maybe we should let Wanda off this one time...
WandaVision post-credits scenes explained
The first post-credits scene focuses primarily on Monica and Jimmy Woo. Darcy has already left Westview, which is unfortunate as her character absolutely deserved more screen time in the finale. But at least Hayward was captured thanks to her, and now we see his arrest unfold thanks to Jimmy's friends at Quantico.
Monica is then approached by a stranger who suspiciously asks if they can speak privately in the cinema. It turns out that this human-looking official isn't human at all. They're a Skrull who was "sent by an old friend of your mother's." Yep, this new character is definitely talking about either Nick Fury or Talos, another Skrull who played a big role in the first Captain Marvel movie.
This scene sets up Monica's upcoming journey into space where she will meet Talos and possibly Nick Fury too, probably aboard the spaceship seen at the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Monica absolutely deserves this as we still didn't get to see much of her newfound potential in WandaVision's final episode. But another scene which is even more important comes straight after at the very end of the credits.
Here, we come across Wanda casually making tea in a cute house by a lake. She's ditched the superhero outfit for some cozy looking casual wear, which makes a lot of sense given all she's been through. You enjoy your tea, Wanda! Except, that's not really Wanda, or at least, not the true Wanda.
Because we then discover that there's another Wanda in the backroom, casually floating in the air while she reads through the Darkhold book. Is the first Wanda just an illusion designed to hide her from the authorities? That's unclear still, but what we do know is that as the Scarlet Witch flicks through the book, we suddenly hear Billy's voice scream "Help, help me!"
Whether these words come from Wanda's memory or whether she's actually hearing a version of Billy scream out with his powers right now, it's clear that Wanda's goal is to bring her children back. If anything can help her, it's the Darkhold, but didn't Wanda watch Agents of SHIELD or Marvel's Runaways? If she had, then she would know that this "Book of the Damned" corrupts the minds of those who use it.
This is worrying, because Marvel has already fed at least partly into the Unstable Powered Woman trope up to this point. If Wanda's quest does indeed turn her evil, then we're looking at yet another female superhero who's been punished for being stronger than the men–too strong, as misogynists would say.
Whether that happens or not, the Darkhold draws power from other dimensions, and with Wanda's confirmed involvement in Doctor Strange's next movie, it seems that her meddling here will somehow break reality, creating a "multiverse of madness."
Agatha did say earlier on that Wanda has "no idea' what she's unleashed by accepting the Scarlet Witch's power. Although the mechanics behind this are still a little fuzzy, it appears that this combination of chaos magic and Darkhold energy will become key to the MCU moving forward.
We now know that Evan Peters wasn't really playing an alternate version of Pietro, but that doesn't mean WandaVision hasn't still set up crossovers with the X-Men and Fantastic Four in future films.
Sounds good, right? Well, if Agatha is worried, then we should be too, because nothing fazes that iTunes-topping witch. But, at the end of the day, maybe it's all worth it if Wanda can bring back her children. As she said, 'family is forever," and lord knows the MCU needs more LGBTQ+ representation moving forward.
Will this happen in a second season of WandaVision? Probably not, as the end of this show seems like a closed chapter for now. But either way, bring on adult Billy, bring on adult Tommy, and bring on the whole Young Avengers team, multiverse be damned!
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