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Were now several episodes intoWandaVision, the first major Disney+ era TV foray into Marvel Cinematic Universe.
(like note, major spoilers through episode five ofWandaVisionlie ahead.)
Rebecca Alter:Lets talk about hex, baby.
Abraham Riesman:Yes, lets!
Hows everyone feeling about this show in a general sense?
I am feeling mildly interested but only because ofthe episode-five twist.
Nothing else about it is making me come back other than my assignment to recap it.
Sorry if this is too jaded and negative!
They were interrupting the thing I really liked aboutWandaVision!
Oh, theyre divisive, for sure!
Are they good or are they bad?
Are they movies or do we not get to call them that because theyre basically TV?
Are they generally Good for Culture or are they Destroying Culture, etc.
But the terms of the argument aroundWandaVisionfeel quite different to me.
Its that too many cooks thing, and it still works on me.
I know how comics adaptations work.
They are 90 percent an executive saying, What have they done in the comics thats cool?
RA:Oh, for sure.
People who know shit-all about the comics (me!
), meanwhile, are much more likely to be fascinated by it!
RA:The issue of knowing definitely always goes hand in hand with any MCU product.
You either know too much to appreciate it, or you know too little to appreciate it.
The other massive difference (and fun tension) between MCU blockbusters and this sort of sitcom is stakes.
I dont care for that turn one bit.
What were your reactions to the outside-Westview segments?
AR:Resignation, I guess?
That was true inepisode five, too.
A 60s-style sitcom builds on the work of a 50s one, etc.
So the its about grief, stupid!
(Which is that genre is a TRAP!)
(Or maybe grand isnt the right word, but you get it.)
I read comic books, for Chrissakes!
At least traditional three-camera ones.
So thats what Im doing with this.
And we havent even gottenintothe Kathryn Hahn of it all.
Maybe what Im really trying to say is I likeWandaVisionbecause I like it when Kathryn Hahn gets a paycheck.
KV:Who among us, Rebecca, could argue that point?
But your very compelling reading ofWandaVisionand Marvel meta-commentary goes back to the same tension Abe has been pointing at.
Heknowsthe creators are not going to go beyond a certain line in terms of experimentation or daring.
Any TV thing in a while, Id argue!
But I can see how it also leads to this infuriating muddle.
How much MCU do we get to ignore when we watch the show?
Who wants a show that comes with homework?
This is the appeal of the sitcom rhythm for me, too!
I dont need to have done the homework to come away with all kinds of feelings about these characters.
My fascination with the sitcom in this format is also how explicitly domestic it is.
I am exhausted when it comes to apocalypse.
A moment of frivolous joy buried in all the action.WandaVisionis full of these moments.
AR:Yes, true!
I guess I just resent that theyre explicitly artificial?
It makes me feel like, whats the point?
Is it all just to show how good they are at aping things?
What do you two think about the precision in creating/re-creating these sitcom touchstones at a technical level?
KV:Oh, theyre gorgeous.
The effects arent CG weightlessness, theyre not murky explosions and openings in the sky.
AR:These are all very astute points.
I guess I just remain skeptical about what its all in service of.
I will be (maybe pleasantly?)
I dunno, maybe Im wrong.
KV:This is the beautiful thing about TV as a form!
The weekly episode release emphasizes that its okay to feel differently about different pieces of a TV show.
TV is a zen form!
Love the part in front of you now; try not to worry about the future.
Well always have The Hatch.
Should we move on to final thoughts?
Oh, and Kathryn Hahn fans.
KV:I dont want to dismiss your frustration with it either, Abe.
It just tickles me!
Wandas doing what so many of us have done in the last year: burying our feelings in sitcoms.
Whatever else this show does, I will always love how right it feels for the winter of 2021.
Plus, Evan Peters just rules as Pietro, so Ill be happy to hang out with him again.
Once more, into the breach!
