WandaVision premiere recap: A strange couple move into town

WandaVision Episode 1 takes us into a sitcom from the 1960s. But is there something sinister lurking in the background of this quirky little town?

WandaVision is finally here! Months of waiting and Marvel Cinematic Universe fans can enjoy some much-awaited new Disney Plus content. And what a way to start the show. The trailers don’t quite prepare you for the quirkiness that is the WandaVision Episode 1. If you’re hoping for answers, you’re not going to get them. Because even Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) don’t know what’s happening!

So, what happened in the WandaVision premiere? We break it down for our readers.

WandaVision Episode 1 recap: The Happy Couple

The WandaVision premiere opens with Wanda and Vision arriving in a new town as a newly married couple. They’re driving down this idyllic 1960s American town which they will call home.

Vision tries to hide his real visage from their neighbors by hunkering down and lowering his hat over his face. That hat does nothing for Vision, by the way, unlike the sweaters he wore in Captain America: Civil War.

In true sitcom style, Vision tries to carry his new bride over the doorstep but phases through the door without her. Cue the laughs. Either Vision doesn’t have a grip over his powers, or he’s playing it up for laughs. Or is it something much worse?

Setting up a new home is easy-peasy when you’re the Scarlet Witch. Wanda merely waves her hands around and the dishes go back to their rightful place and tumblers get cleaned. Fun times! This is a clear nod to old comic books where they often showed female characters using their superpowers for domestic duties.

WandaVision Episode 1 recap: An Important Date

It isn’t long before the happy couple faces their first mystery to solve in the WandaVision premiere. There’s a heart drawn in the calendar over Wednesday, August 23. It must mean that this is an important date for the two of them. So, why can neither of them remember what it is?

Vision shouldn’t be able to forget what the cause for celebration is. He’s a combination of Tony Stark, Dr. Bruce Banner, J.A.R.V.I.S., and the Mind stone. He never forgets anything!

Yet, Vision is at a loss about the significance of the date and the heart. And Wanda, with all her powers, should be able to keep track of a simple romantic celebration.

The two go back and forth for a while till they determine that the other knows what they’re celebrating and leave it at that. Then Vision is off to work—after being reminded to transform into a human.

WandaVision premiere – The Nosy Neighbour

While Wanda’s at home doing, well, nothing, because her powers have taken care of all the work, she’s visited by their neighbor in the WandaVision premiere. Agnes (Kathryn Hahn) is a jolly, friendly person, with no filter about her married life.

She’s rather curious about Wanda—why is she single, why is she alone, what is she doing? Wanda sets the record straight—she’s married to a human man. Except, she isn’t. Wanda never got to marry Vision, and he is far from human. But does Wanda remember this?

Nosy or not, Agnes is helpful in planning the evening celebration and determining that it’s probably Wanda and Vision’s wedding anniversary. Of course, Wanda can’t tell Agnes how long they’ve been married.

Some of Agnes’ tips are a bit regressive. What magazines is this woman reading? Well, they’re unfortunately appropriate given the era of this episode’s setting. But still, Wanda is completely clueless, so any help is welcome.

WandaVision Episode 1 recap: Workplace Hijinks

While Wanda plans out their evening, Vision is being extremely productive at work. A bit too productive—he is a machine, after all. His colleague, Norm (Asif Ali), can’t keep up, though he’s not complaining, since productivity is up by 300%.

Vision has some questions though—what precisely do they do at Computational Services? Do they make something? Do they sell things? Norm says ‘no’ to both, but it’s not like he has any answers.

One mystery in the WandaVision premiere does end up being solved. Vision’s boss, Mr. Hart (Fred Melamed), asks Vision about dinner and everything becomes clear. The heart symbol wasn’t romantic; it was meant to signify Mr. and Mrs. Hart coming to dinner and hopefully having a good enough time to promote Vision.

And there are consequences to dinner being a failure. A fellow colleague made the egregious mistake of making too many dinner courses, hiring a string quartet, and wearing a turtleneck. Let’s just say, he’s not an employee at Computational Services anymore.

This is bad. Vision makes a quick call to Wanda to explain the situation, but Wanda thinks she’s got it in hand. Of course, she doesn’t. Wanda thinks Vision is alluding to their romantic evening, and Vision thinks Wanda knows how to handle important dinner guests.

Disaster will ensue.

WandaVision Episode 1 recap: The Dinner Guests

You can’t fault Wanda for trying in this WandaVision premiere. She’s got the lights dimmed, the candles lit, and a sexy number on. Too bad Mr. and Mrs. Hart (Debra Jo Rupp) see her in it before Vision does. We would cringe if we weren’t laughing so hard.

Vision is excellent at saving situations. He insists it’s all a Sokovian greeting. Mr. and Mrs. Hart has little experience with Europe, so they immediately buy this excuse.

In the meantime, a very distracted Vision tries to explain the situation to a mortified Wanda, and they work on rectifying the situation. Starting with Wanda’s dress.

While Vision distracts Mr. and Mrs. Hart by singing and playing the ukulele—he’s actually quite good—Wanda enlists Agnes’ help to get ingredients for dinner.

Well, paprikash this is not, and even with her unlimited powers, Wanda struggles with the meal. In the end, she gives up and makes breakfast for dinner. That’s how they do it in Sokovia, she explains.

The meal goes quite well until Mrs. Hart starts asking too many questions. When did Wanda and Vision get married? Why did they move here? Where did they live before? Why haven’t they had children?

Wanda and Vision can’t answer any of that. They can’t even remember anything from before. MCU fans will know why but when will Wanda and Vision figure it out?

But things take an even more macabre turn in the WandaVision premiere. Mr. Hart, in the midst of haranguing the couple with questions, starts choking on his food. Mrs. Hart doesn’t try to help. She keeps laughing and telling him to ‘stop it’. It looks like she’s terrified or sad, but she can’t do anything about the situation.

Eventually, Wanda asks Vision to use his phasing abilities to free Mr. Hart’s esophagus and the man is saved. He and Mrs. Hart then pretend like everything is normal and leave for the night. But not before Mr. Hart promises to give Vision that promotion.

Alone, at last, Vision resumes his usual appearance and he and Wanda muse about their strangeness. They decide that this date will be their anniversary—Wanda even makes wedding rings for them.

As they look on, smiling at the unseen audience, someone switches off the channel. Who is this person? What organization are they working for? Why is WandaVision their television show of choice? So many questions that we can’t wait to find answers for.

WandaVision Episode 1 recap: The WandaVision premiere has us wanting more!

I wasn’t prepared for how bizarre and fun the WandaVision premiere turned out to be. These two characters have so much room for growth and it’s honestly great to see MCU content again.

Of course, there’s a darker undertone to this premiere. We know Vision is dead and that Wanda herself was dead till Avengers: Endgame revived her. When does this show take place then? How are these events happening? As enjoyable as this episode was, I feel like there will be a lot of tears in the future.

Wanda and Vision’s doomed love story in the comics is ripe for on-screen material. These two characters haven’t had that much screen time, which makes them ideal candidates to headline a show of their own.

The sitcom setup is a welcome departure from the regular tone of MCU properties. The more comedic films have certainly won over fans in recent years, and the WandaVision premiere proves that this genre still works.

For some viewers, this show will be a hard watch due to Paul Bettany’s associations with actor Johnny Depp. Behind-the-scenes drama is a frustrating by-product of the entertainment industry.

The WandaVision premiere can almost make you forget you’re in the real world, and that’s always been the magic of the MCU. What does the remainder of the miniseries have in store for us? We can’t wait to find out.

What did you think of WandaVision Episode 1? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

WandaVision is airing weekly on Disney Plus.