Inspired by his love Television and the comfort he found in the iconic “TV Family” sitcom, Kevin Feige brings us a side of the Marvel Universe we’ve never seen before with, WandaVision, and will only be seen on Disney+.

WandaVision takes place in the MCU and shares continuity with the films of the franchise. Taking place after the events of Avengers: Endgame, the series follows Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) living the ideal suburban life in the town of Westview, while also trying to conceal their powers. However, things are definitely not as they seem.

(L -R): Paul Bettany as VIsion and Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff in Marvel Studios’ WANDAVISION exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2020. All Rights Reserved.

After swapping places with Falcon and Winter Soldier, WandaVision is Marvel’s first foray into television – and it’s a BIG one. The idea was to create a series with characters we already know and love from the MCU that could not be done as a feature film and they absolutely did it! Somehow, according to Kevin Feige, they were able to turn a “wacky idea into a spectacular show”.

The series is influenced heavily by quintessential family sitcoms of the past. Shows that you can now find in syndication on Nick at Night and TV Land like B*Witched, I Dream of Jeannie, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and of course, I Love Lucy. The creators wanted the series to be as authentic as possible, however, Feige wants everyone to know that WandaVision is absolutely not a parody.

Far From Parody With WandaVision

“There’s one thing we talked about early on is these are not parodies. This is not direct satire. We love these things and they meant a lot to us. Dated and silly as they may seem now, there is a comfort factor there.”

Kevin Feige – WandaVision Press Junket

WandaVision is a magical, serendipitous series that could only have been brought together in this time by this team. Bob Iger, former Disney CEO who helped usher this project along, was the head of ABC and very influential in bringing on family sitcom shows like Family Matters. Elizabeth Olsen’s sisters are iconic for their role on Full House. Director Matt Shakman also no stranger to working as a sitcom actor during their golden era on shows like The Facts of Life, Good Morning Miss Bliss, and Just the Ten of Us, before making the switch to directing. Not to mention, Feige’s own Grandfather, Robert Short, was the Executive in charge of Production on The Dick Van Dyke Shows. 

Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff in Marvel Studios’ WANDAVISION exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2020. All Rights Reserved.

I had a chance to watch the first three episodes of the series and they are fantastic! While watching episode one, I sat there enjoying myself while also being confused trying to figure out what in the world I was watching. By the end, I was hooked! The execution and storytelling is A+. You can see and feel the respect for this genre of television while they also put a modern spin keeping the viewer asking questions and wanting more. 

Wandavision on Disney+ January 15th dropping episodes one and two, then moving to a weekly release schedule. Make sure to check it out!