We knew that “Wandavision”, the first Marvel Cinematic Universe show to debut on Disney Plus, would be a different kind of Superhero experience. You could tell that by the preview (story HERE).
And boy, were we right.
The show which takes Wanda Maximoff and Vison from the Avengers and sticks them in a 60’s sitcom world, where the humor is cheesy and the stories are simplistic. And it’s all brought to you in the glory of black and white television.
Based on the first two episodes that premiered this week, I don’t think you could even call it a “superhero” show but we’ve got two Avengers here. You kind of have to.
But the program still works because of the acting ability of it’s two leads.
Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany are great here. They nail the old school comedic timing very nicely, and along with Kathryn Hahn playing a crazy neighbor, the whole thing work for the most part. A lesser cast playing these characters so differently probably would not have.
Still, it’s very important that anyone expecting another Avengers film be warned in advance. It’s completely different.
There is something bigger at work here that will inevitably be tied into the MCU, but we’re given so little of it during these first two shows, that it won’t really sustain your interest if you’re looking specifically for battling superheroes and epic action scenes.
But along with the production value, and this talented cast (you forget Wanda’s movie accent completely, and it’s good to see a regular Paul Bettany) Wandavision is still very much worth your attention at this point.
And we can give both Disney and Marvel the benefit of the doubt that the payoff will be very much worth the wait.