Examining how the comic book Wanda Maximoff got from “hexing” or cursing her enemies with bad luck to totally rewriting reality may shed some crucial clues on the to her future, in comics and in the MCU.

With her MCU future beginning to be spelled out in the first Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness trailer, we’re diving into what makes her comic book powers tick.

Reality Bites

In her earliest days first fighting the X-Men as part of Magneto’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants and then joining the Avengers alongside her brother Quicksilver and their fellow reformed villain Hawkeye, Wanda Maximoff’s powers fairly hard to pin down.

In X-Men #4 (opens in new tab), Wanda’s first appearance, Pietro says whoever Wanda “points her finger at” will suffer “disaster.” This is illustrated through scenes of Wanda causing rubble to fall on Angel of the X-Men in X-Men #4 by lashing out to protect Pietro.

Then, in Avengers #17 (opens in new tab), her first adventure with the team, she shows some greater control over her abilities, using them specifically to “slow” a giant robot that is grasping Captain America by making it stumble.

With Wanda’s early uses of her powers – later manifested with magical energy through so-called “hex bolts” and “hex spheres” – her intent seems to come through when she strikes out, though the results of how her “hex” powers manifest seem to be almost at random, based on the environment and timing.

As Wanda’s time with the Avengers rolled on, the scope of her abilities began to expand, with the “hex” power now described as “probability alteration,” a form of subtly altering reality within her immediate vicinity to cause unlikely, almost impossible occurrences that turn the odds of a given situation in her favor in unexpected ways.

Wanda’s early “hex” powers reached their zenith in Avengers #118 (opens in new tab), when Dormammu (arch-enemy of Doctor Strange) and Loki (arch-enemy of Thor) come into conflict over a bizarre artifact called the Evil Eye, leading to the Avengers and Defenders teaming up in the unfettered magical realm of Dormammu’s Dark Dimension.

Turning to mud under Dormammu’s spell, Wanda is the last Avenger/Defender standing, with Dormammu unable to rob her of her mutant power like he robbed her allies of their abilities. As she desperately lashes out, she causes the Evil Eye to activate, defeating both Dormammu and Loki with its terrible power in a flash. Even Doctor Strange is impressed with Wanda’s abilities to resist Dormammu’s magic and overcome his power over the Dark Dimension.

Wanda also received steady upgrades to what her “hexes” could do over the years, with more and more Avengers creators leaning into her consistent creep toward being one of the team’s powerhouses.

In Avengers #161 (opens in new tab), she manages to defeat Ultron, whose computer mind can’t cope with the probability altering nature of Wanda’s powers, leading to multiple instances of Ultron specifically attempting to defeat Wanda before fighting the rest of the team, and her proving to be his undoing.

Mistress of Magic

In Avengers #186 (opens in new tab), Wanda takes a trip to the mystical Mount Wundagore, a magical location with deep ties to her past. Under the influence of the evil wizard Modred, the son of Morgan le Fay (another magical Avengers villain who manipulated Wanda’s powers over the years), Wanda discovers that her powers go far beyond what she’s always believed about her mutant probability alteration abilities.

It’s revealed that Cthon, a god of chaos from Marvel lore, sensed Wanda’s connection to chaos and random chance on her birth, and imbued her with a portion of his power – making her a font of “chaos magic” (a Marvel Comics term unrelated to the modern occult practice) and a “nexus” of magic in Marvel’s multiverse.

In that story, Wanda became possessed by an evil force for the first time, with Cthon essentially hijacking her body with his mystical essence, and capturing the Avengers. Though Cthon was defeated, and Wanda freed, this incident became a dark harbinger of what Wanda would eventually learn as the cost of her great power – that she’ll always be a target for manipulation by outside forces looking to harness the magical energy within her.

(You may notice Wanda is referred to as “Wanda Frank” in the captions. Wanda and Pietro’s parentage has been the subject of many retcons and rewrites over the years, and they didn’t always use the surname Maximoff).

Following her encounters with Dormammu and Cthon, Wanda comes under the magical tutelage of the witch Agatha Harkness, an expert in Chthonic chaos magic, who teaches Wanda to harness and control her connection to Marvel’s magical forces.

Wanda’s magical prowess then becomes a key part of her adventures with the Avengers, with her abilities and her access to new spells and aspects of the magic of the Marvel Universe always growing to fit new stories – but almost always then culminating in Wanda falling prey to the manipulation of magical villains and entities.

In one of the biggest blows to Wanda’s psyche, she magically manifests a pair of twin boys, William and Thomas, as her children with her then-husband Vision (this should all be somewhat familiar to WandaVision fans – we go more in-depth on the comic book nature of William and Thomas right here). But, as it turns out, the children are constructs tied to the demon Mephisto (sort of Marvel’s answer to the Biblical devil), and eventually disappear, leaving Wanda bereft, and eventually resulting in Vision losing his emotions and trying to conquer the Earth.

In the late ’90s, Wanda’s connection to Chthonic magic strengthened once again. In Avengers (vol. 3) #10 (opens in new tab), the Grim Reaper (brother of Wanda’s teammate Wonder Man, whose mind formed the basis of Vision’s original personality), uses necromancy to resurrect dead Avengers to fight the team – including Wonder Man, who had appeared to Wanda in an energy form since his death.

In Avengers #11 (opens in new tab), under Agatha Harkness’s guidance, Wanda uses her Chthonic magic to understand her connection to Wonder Man, who she realizes she is deeply in love with. 

With Agatha pushing her, Wanda harnesses the full potential of her magical ability, not only returning the undead Avengers to the grave, but fully resurrecting Wonder Man into his original physical form – actually bridging the gap between life and death for the first time.

And it’s this move that seems to push Wanda past altering the probabilities around her and casting spells, to full-on rewriting and remaking reality.

A few years later, in the story ‘Avengers: Disassembled,’ (opens in new tab) under the influence of the megalomaniacal Doctor Doom, who (once again) seeks to use Wanda’s power for his own ends, subverts Wanda into destroying the Avengers, apparently killing Vision, Hawkeye, Ant-Man, and others in the process.

As a result, Wanda’s mind shatters, and she uses her now nigh-omnipotent abilities to rewrite reality to a place where mutants are the dominant people on Earth, the House of M reality. On her return, Wanda cast one final spell, robbing many of Earth’s mutants of their powers, including, seemingly her, and disappearing.

Mutantkind later recovered (it’s comics, after all), and so did the dead Avengers, and, more or less, Wanda – though she’s never really been the same, both in terms of her personality and her relationship with her fellow teammates.

Whatever Wanda Wants

In WandaVision, some of this played out similarly. Age of Ultron essentially described Wanda’s Infinity Stone-granted abilities as “telekinesis and telepathy” – reading minds, and psychically moving objects. 

Even in that film, she’s shown altering people’s perceptions, giving Thor and Tony Stark bizarre visions and subverting the Hulk to her control, similar to what she’s ultimately doing to all the people in Westview.

WandaVision episode 5 even revealed that she’s actually remaking the clothing her Westview victims wear, remaking them into new forms that fit her narrative.

If all that is leading to the place comic books led, it could mean that Wanda will ultimately be able to fully, truly resurrect Vision. And, given that Wanda will play a role in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it’s possible to theorize that her powers will evolve in a way that resembles her comic book history, perhaps even adding actual magic to the mix (Wanda was even once a candidate for Sorcerer Supreme in comic books).

Wanda Maximoff may have had her heel turns, but she usually stands alongside some of the best female superheroes of all time.

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“I am such a huge fan of Adrian’s work, and I’m very excited to team with him and Roadside Attractions on this updated, modern take of Shortcomings,'” Park told Variety (opens in new tab). “In these characters, I see versions of Asian Americans in my own life — the ones I love and the ones I just kind of tolerate.”

Shortcomings is centered around Ben Tanaka, his relationship with girlfriend Miko Hayashi, but also tackles issues around identity. No casting has been announced, but the author will be executive producing the film and adapting the screenplay for Park. This won’t be Park’s first time in the director’s chair. He previously directed the series finale of Fresh Off the Boat.

“Randall, Roadside Attractions and Imminent Collision immediately impressed me with their passion, insight and vision for this film,” Tomine added. “They have been invaluable partners in the process of translating ‘Shortcomings’ both to the screen as well as to the current time, and I’m honored to be a part of this collaboration.”

Right now Park is also starring in the TV series Young Rock, and no doubt we can expect to see more of him in future MCU projects too. 

For more on the MCU’s exciting future, check out our guide to Marvel Phase 4 and the new Marvel TV shows set to arrive in 2021. If you’re not signed up yet, check out the latest Disney Plus bundles.

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But while the continuation of Wanda’s story in WandaVision season 2 seems like a natural next step, it’s actually going to take place elsewhere. In fact, Marvel has been surprisingly open about whether a new season is going to become a reality or if the sitcom setups in Westview are a one-and-done affair. So, let’s break down everything that has been said about WandaVision season 2 so far – and why the series isn’t likely to return (for now).

Spoilers for the WandaVision finale follow!

WandaVision season 2: Is it happening?

In a word, no. Director Matt Shakman has been forthright on the possibilities of WandaVision season 2 streaming on Disney Plus.

“We have no plans for WandaVision season 2 at all,” Shakman told Collider (opens in new tab).

But that’s not to say it will never happen. Shakman continued: “That could change, of course. It all depends on what’s the story. We were very focused on telling this story over nine episodes and hopefully coming to a conclusion that feels satisfying and also surprising.”

Similarly, Kevin Feige has opened up on whether Marvel has plans for a second season of any of its shows, from WandaVision to Loki.

Speaking at the Television Critics’ Association tour, Feige said (via The Independent (opens in new tab)), “It will vary based on the story. Sometimes it will go into a season 2, sometimes it will go into a feature and back into a series.”

He did admit, however, that he’s “been at Marvel too long to say a definite yes or a definite no to anything” and “We hope there’s a part two and a part three” to WandaVision “but we’re focusing on part one.” Watch this space.

Does the WandaVision finale set up season 2?

For starters, the ninth and final episode is called “Series Finale” and not “Season Finale” You can probably guess there this is going.

That being said, there are a few loose ends that could be tied up in WandaVision season 2, should it happen. The fate of White Vision is one that, as far as we’re aware, won’t be expanded upon in any upcoming movies in Marvel Phase 4. There is absolutely scope for a Vision spin-off – but a second season in Westview isn’t likely for the time being.

Instead, Wanda’s story will continue in at least one Marvel movie. Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch is set to appear in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness in 2022. Feige has confirmed on multiple occasions that Olsen will have a role to play in the Sam Raimi-directed movie and the post-credits scene in the finale with Wanda using the Darkhold to harness her magical powers to previously untold levels appears to bear that out.

From there, there’s every chance it could bounce back to Disney Plus as Feige mentioned – depending on how the Strange sequel comes to a close.

What next? Here are all the new Marvel TV shows coming your way in 2021 (and beyond).

The post Will there be a WandaVision season 2? Here’s what Marvel has to say appeared first on Game News.

When asked by Screen Rant (opens in new tab) whether he has a favorite Easter egg from WandaVision, Shakman replied: “I mean, there certainly are some that folks have noticed that are important. A certain license plate, perhaps, in an opening title recently. We have to honor Stan Lee, of course.”

Confused by the Stan Lee reference? Head on back to the The Office-inspired opening credits during WandaVision episode 7. During the deluge of ‘Wanda’ names thrown at us, a license plate with the numbers ‘122822’ appear. Scroll to 4:12 to see it for yourself.

Those numbers are actually a reference to 12/28/22, or 28 December, 1922 – better known as Stan Lee’s birthday. The Marvel legend, who helped create several iconic and beloved superheroes, made cameos in several MCU movies before his passing in 2018. This is just another way of paying tribute to his incredibly legacy.

That’s not all that WandaVision is – and could – be hiding. One particular post-credits scene moment has fans thinking a major villain could make their presence felt in the finale. Speaking of the finale, the WandaVision episode 9 runtime has leaked – and it promises to be the longest episode yet as things draw to a close in Westview.

Catch up on the MCU so far with our guide on how to watch the Marvel movies in order.

The post WandaVision is hiding a Stan Lee tribute that you may have missed appeared first on Game News.

Upon White Vision’s activation in the penultimate episode’s mid-credits sequence, the washed-out synthezoid moves his left hand and pays surprisingly close attention to it.

As pointed out on Reddit (opens in new tab) by u/ScaryIsGood, Ultron – who created Vision thanks to the Mind Stone – is missing his left arm during the Big Bad’s final scene in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Cue dramatic music.

I rewatched Age of Ultron today and noticed something about Ultron’s final scene. Apologies if someone else already posted something like this! from r/marvelstudios

Coincidence? Possibly. But with Marvel Studios’ knack for scattering breadcrumbs throughout WandaVision (including a costume-based clue hinting at a villain in plain sight), we can’t discount the possibility that this White Vision has remnants of Ultron leftover within his circuitry. It has Redditors speculating in their droves, too, about a return for the James Spader-voiced AI – especially given the focus on the left arm (or lack thereof).

At the very least, it could be seen neat nod to a movie in Age of Ultron that is more relevant now than it has been, arguably, since its release. WandaVision’s flashbacks to the period helped cement Wanda and Vision’s love story through a series of touching scenes.

But, if this fan theory holds any weight, Pietro’s murderer could be heading to Westview for one last showdown with Wanda – using the body of the android she has tried so hard to bring back.

Don’t miss out on the extra-long finale. Here is the WandaVision release schedule.

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And though the new episode may have been mostly transitional, we’re about to pierce the surface and break things down – because what seems to have been revealed in WandaVision episode 7 is about to get quite bizarre. 

In Marvel comic books, Wanda’s powers started as sort of nebulous ‘Hex Powers,’ which caused misfortune to befall those she afflicted with her ‘Hex’ (Dr. Darcy Lewis coins the term in the MCU in episode 5 of WandaVision). As time went on, Wanda’s numerous magical encounters led to revelations about her connection to Marvel’s magical, arcane forces, beyond her mutant abilities. 

WandaVision has already shown how powerful Wanda’s innate reality-altering powers are, and now it looks like the show is about to head into explaining Wanda’s potential in the MCU beyond being “weird,” as her powers were originally described by Maria Hill in Avengers: Age of Ultron. 

Spoilers for WandaVision below

At the end of WandaVision episode 7, Wanda finds herself in the basement of her neighbor Agnes, who finally reveals herself to be the dark witch Agatha Harkness. Agnes secretly being Agatha has been telegraphed almost from the start with the first trailer’s glimpse of her Halloween witch costume hinting at her true nature right from the beginning.

Agatha’s basement was lined with eerie columns and seemingly endless corridors marked with arcane symbols, all overgrown with dark purple vines, looking more like a stereotypical fantasy witch’s lair than something you find in a home built in the 20th century. 

We even got a small look at what appears to be a version of the Darkhold, a tome of evil magical knowledge with ties to Doctor Strange that was previously adapted in different forms in Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hulu’s Runaways.

But before we get to ancient tomes, let’s talk about something much, much, older – at least in Marvel Universe terms. 

Let’s talk about Nexus Beings

Along with past episodes, WandaVision episode seven featured a commercial for an antidepressant called “Nexus,” similar to pharmaceutical commercials which have become ubiquitous on modern American television.

According to the ad’s dialogue, Nexus can “anchor you back to reality – or the reality of your choice.” The commercial’s slogan implies even more about Wanda, considering her reality-warping powers and the nature of Westview – “Because reality doesn’t revolve around you.”

That hints that Wanda’s current situation may indeed tie into the multiverse, and the Nexus of All Realities from Marvel Comics may be the key to the whole mystery.

In comic books, Wanda isn’t just a mutant (or maybe a mutant at all, her origins have had some retcons over the years). She’s something more powerful, more cosmic. As sensed by the Marvel Comics chaos deity Chthon when she was born, Wanda’s mutant powers give her a connection to the mystical forces of the Marvel Universe.

In comic book terms, she’s what’s called a ‘Nexus Being,’ or ‘Nexi.’ 

Much like her husband Vision, the great wizard Merlin, and even Kang the Conqueror, each Nexus Being has a power unique just to them, but each is extremely powerful.

Nexi have displayed abilities ranging anywhere from the deadly art of necromancy to Wanda’s reality-altering Hex abilities, and far beyond.

In Marvel Comics, the Nexi of each respective reality in Marvel’s Multiverse personifies the essence of their realm and serves as the mystical anchor of that world. 

First appearing in Avengers West Coast Vol 2 #61, the concept of Nexus Beings came into play when Immortus, one of the time-traveling Kang’s many alter egos, brings forth enemies of the future which included the much-forgotten Oort the Living Comet (hey, Quicksilver needs bad guys too, right?).

However, in the great words of Benedict from Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, “there’s a double meaning to that.”

In MCU terms, ‘Nexus’ could also refer to the information hub Tony Stark uses in Avengers: Age of Ultron to track down his menacing creation. And given Wanda’s direct connections to Ultron, there’s no ruling out that the terminology could refer back to that film.

That said, WandaVision is clearly building to something grander and more mystical in its final episodes, leading toward some of its plot threads apparently picking back up in the upcoming sequel Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. So the ‘Nexus’ recurrence from Age of Ultron could be a coincidence – or it could mean that there was even something Multiversal in play way back then.

When it comes to Marvel Studios, you can’t rule it out.

What’s the Nexus of All Realities and how does it work? 

First appearing in Marvel’s Fear #11 (opens in new tab) back in 1972, the so-called Nexus of All Realities acts as a cross-dimensional gateway that provides access to all possible worlds of the Multiverse (apt name, right?).

This is the place where all the realities of the Multiverse intersect…and even interact.

As such, the Nexus (we’re gonna shorten it down) has been kind of an ultimate MacGuffin for many Marvel stories and has been used as shorthand in many cases when characters need to move between realities.

In WandaVision episode seven, we saw Wanda apparently losing her grip on Westview, with things glitching and reverting back to the previous decades the town has embodied, from the twins’ game console controllers eventually becoming Uno cards, to her fireplace being transforming into a potbelly stove.

If Westview is connected to the MCU’s Nexus, and MCU Wanda is also some version of a Nexus Being, the glitches may hint that a house call from Doctor Strange may be in order – perhaps leading directly to Wanda’s confirmed appearances in Multiverse of Madness.

Though Marvel Comics lore has not confirmed whether the Nexus was somehow created or if it’s a natural feature, it has one other key feature that could play a role in WandaVision – a guardian.

There’s Something About Man-Thing

Debuting in 1971’s Savage Tales #1 (opens in new tab), Marvel’s Man-Thing (the jokes do and have written themselves) is one of the publisher’s weirdest but most enduring cult-favorite characters – and major player where the Nexus of All Realities is concerned. 

Often portrayed as the so-called ‘guardian’ of the Nexus, Man-Thing is the twisted identity of Dr. Ted Sallis, a once human scientist who was transformed into a creature of hulking plant matter when his experiments mixed with the mystical waters in the swamp where he makes his home – later identified as an aspect of the Nexus itself.

(Man-Thing, created by Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, Gerry Conway, and Grey Morrow, sure sounds a lot like DC’s more famous Swamp Thing. But Man-Thing predates Swamp Thing by three years.)

Man-Thing has been a part of numerous comic book stories, including his early horror-fueled Man-Thing ongoing title from Steve Gerber (opens in new tab) which established much of the creature’s place in the Marvel Universe.

Man-Thing’s swamp, later identified as an aspect of the Nexus, started out as ‘ground zero’ for horrific and magical occurrences, which evolved into the thinning of the veil between realities. Given how swampy Agnes’s lair is, could there be a physical connection between her basement and the MCU version of the Nexus? And if so, could Man-Thing himself appear?

Weirdly (and what isn’t weird when Man-Thing is involved?), Man-Thing was already adapted into an eponymous horror movie in 2005, which was one of the first movies ever produced by Marvel Entertainment, leading to the creation of Marvel Studios.

One more interesting tidbit – 2021 is the 50th anniversary of Man-Thing’s creation, with Marvel Comics planning a mini-event titled Curse of the Man-Thing to crossover with the Avengers (opens in new tab), Spider-Man (opens in new tab), and X-Men (opens in new tab) this summer.

What does this mean for the twins or “Pietro”?

In comic books, Wanda and Vision’s twins Billy and Tommy are revealed to have been created by Wanda’s reality-shifting abilities and Mephisto’s dark magic, which was inadvertently channeled into Wanda herself through Agatha Harkness empowering Wanda. 

In WandaVision episode 7, Billy complains about how there’s a buzzing in his head and it’s so loud and getting louder – until he goes over to Agnes/Agatha’s house next door and it’s quiet. There’s not even noise in the background in that scene. 

Later, when Wanda investigates and Agatha has revealed herself, both actors Olsen and Hahn mirror the scene where Wanda learns the truth about her world as well as her children – that Agatha has been manipulating everything in Westview behind the scenes since the start of the show.

Wanda doesn’t take the news well – and trauma about the true nature of her sons is what led directly to the mega-event House of M, which destroyed the Avengers in its lead-up, and decimated Marvel’s mutantkind in its aftermath.

As for WandaVision’s ‘Pietro,’ it seems likely at this point that he’s not supposed to be a “recast” version of Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s character from Avengers: Age of Ultron. Could this instead be Pietro from another universe, crossing over to the MCU through the Nexus? Or in an even weirder twist, could he be a version of the villainous alt-reality speedster Whizzer/Speed Demon/Blur of the Squadron Supreme, who are at the center of this summer’s Heroes Reborn comic book event?

With only two episodes left, there are far more questions than answers about Wanda’s powers and what they mean for not only the show. Can she utilize her Nexus abilities to set things right? Can she transfer people from other realities into the MCU?

Wanda may have been manipulated by Agatha, but her true power over reality seems to be the real driving factor behind WandaVision and Westview. The strongest character in the MCU has been there in front of us all along and we’re about to see where this power takes her. 

The post What is the Nexus in Marvel comic books? The WandaVision reference explained appeared first on Game News.

Plus, we’ll dig a little deeper to see if they have any ties to Marvel’s comics – and what that all could mean for WandaVision moving forward. Because, with Eastview still lingering around and a case of amnesia spreading like wildfire, these people might not even be who SWORD thinks they are. Confused? Let’s dive into it.

Of course, possible spoilers for WandaVision may follow. For more WandaVision, check out the hidden message behind each of the show’s commercials (so far).

Agnes

Real identity: Currently unknown

Agnes (Kathryn Hahn) is the archetypical sitcom nosy neighbour, but one that could be hiding a big secret. Common consensus on social media and message boards is that Agnes is actually Agatha Harkness, a sorceress whose history can be charted all the way back to the Salem Witch trials in the 17th Century.

This isn’t a theory pulled out of thin air, either. Throughout each of WandaVision’s episodes (as of writing), Agnes can be seen wearing a peculiar brooch, either pinned to her lapel or round her neck. That’s very similar to Agatha Harkness’ own brooch in the comics.

Agatha even has history with Wanda in the comics – and it’s thankfully a more benevolent one than Agnes’ muted conversation with Herb in the third episode might have you believe. After Mephisto (more on him in a moment) absorbed Wanda’s children – long story – Agatha wiped Wanda’s memory so she wouldn’t have to remember such a grave loss. Harkness also later helped mentor Wanda. Think the Magic Circle with a few more covens and you’re on the right track.

Ralph

Real identity: Currently unknown

The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he doesn’t exist. Even Marvel is feeding into that idea, with Agnes’ unseen husband, Ralph, potentially pulling the strings in the shadows as Mephisto, Marvel’s answer to the devil.

There isn’t too much to back up this theory so far, but there are a handful of clues and possible insider scoops that back it up. The second episode features Westview resident Bev pointedly telling Agnes “The devil’s in the details.” Her reply? “That’s not the only place.”

Later, in the third episode, Agnes cracks a joke that her husband “looks better in the dark.” Who else but Marvel’s version of Satan would look better surrounded by eternal nothingness? Plus, if we want to really pull at straws, Ralph isn’t a million miles away from ‘Meph’ in the same way Agnes and Agatha are fairly analogous names by design. Noted insider Roger Wardell has even suggested Mephisto is going to be one of the show’s main villains, alongside someone seen in the opening credits.

There’s every chance, then, that Wanda might have struck a deal with the devil himself to bring back the deceased Vision, as well as giving up part of her soul – as she did in the comics – so she could give birth to Billy and Tommy.

Herb

Real identity: “John Collins”

Unlike most of those residing in Westview, Herb doesn’t appear to have as many ties to the comics. While he was seen whispering to Agnes in the third episode – and could then very well have a larger role to play – there is nothing that stands out about the concrete-cutting neighbour Wanda and Vision.

However, there is an outside chance that he could be Marvel’s most famous (and, frankly, only) Herb, Herbert Wyndham – otherwise known as The High Evolutionary.

The High Evolutionary, thanks to exposure to an Evolutionary Accelerator of his own design, was able to evolve and rapidly increase his powers of intelligence and physical prowess. In the comics, he also has history with Wanda and Pietro, delivering them to their foster parents. Interestingly, he also once created a ‘Counter Earth’. Given the false world Wanda in inhabiting, it wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest Herb had a part to play in putting all together.

Phil Jones

Real name: “Harold Copter”

With apologies to the Phil Joneses of the world, it’s not a name that immediately jumps out at you as being one that has ties to the weird and wonderful world of Marvel. However, there is a Phil Jones present in the comics. While he doesn’t have any superpowers himself, it’s his ties that bind him to an even greater theory.

In WandaVision, Phil Jones is married to Dottie. In the comics, he’s married to Arcanna (aka Moonglow), a magical member of the arcane crimefighting squad, the Squadron Supreme. Given that “Phil Jones” is the only full name from Westview explicitly mentioned in the credits, there stands every chance that their partnership is one pulled straight from the comics.

Dottie

Real identity: Unknown

Dottie has been the subject of much speculation so far. She could be another candidate for Mephisto – especially as “her roses bloom under the penalty of death” is a certifiably ominous line – while another theory on Reddit (opens in new tab) reckons she’s actually Clea, a sorceress who would go on to marry Doctor Strange in the comics.

While it could feasibly be either, such is the scope for strangeness in a show such as WandaVision, it’s her marriage to Phil Jones that could hint at her identity. If she is Arcanna/Moonglow, it would appear that several superheroes and sorcerers with the power to use magic are either aiding or against Wanda within the fictional world of Westview.

This could even be way for the MCU to slowly integrate the use of magic more and more. Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness is just around the corner in 2022, and if someone in the Squadron Supreme is introduced now, the two could line up nicely for some parallel universe shenanigans next year.

Senor Scratchy

Real identity: Unknown

We promised a bunny. And here it is. By now, you’re probably noticing a pattern: Westview is filled with more magicians than a disappointed child’s birthday party. That even extends to the fluffiest member of the sleepy suburb, the rabbit given to Wanda by Agnes for use in the talent show in episode 2.

Senor Scratchy, as one theory suggests (H/T Looper (opens in new tab)), could actually be Nicholas Scratch, the magical son of Agatha Harkness and frequent collaborator of Mephisto. Marvel Studios has clearly been very deliberate in its choice of names thus far – and Senor Scratchy’s moniker raises enough eyebrows that a connection to an underused villain from Marvel’s past.

The twins

Finally, we couldn’t leave out the two new arrivals, could we? They could even be among the most important characters in the show – especially given their ties to the comics.

In Wandavision’s third episode, Wanda gives birth to twins Tommy and Billy. In the comics, she also gives birth to a pair of boys with the same them. There, they grow up into superheroes (and New Avengers team members) Wiccan and Speed. Given how time is accelerating at a rapid rate in Westview, don’t be surprised to see them stand on their own two feet sooner rather than later.

Westview’s secrets are being kept under wraps for now – but not everything on the show is an unknowable mystery. Find out when the next episode drops with the WandaVision release schedule.

The post WandaVision theories: Every Westview character who might have links to the comics appeared first on Game News.

Spoilers for WandaVision episode 4 follow. Proceed at your own risk.

The cold open for WandaVision episode 4 starts with Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) beside a hospital bed having been reconstituted. She, like so many, returns from Thanos’ snap after Hulk and the rest of the Avengers’ daring time travel heist in Endgame.

Then, chaos. As Monica makes her way through the hospital, she sees several people like her also turning from dust back into people as pandemonium reigns. It’s yet another glimpse at the exact moment where Hulk snapped his fingers with Tony Stark’s own gauntlet and brought half the universe back five years later.

Spider-Man: Far From Home also peeked into the aftermath of The Blip, but to more comedic effect. Instead of a marching band re-appearing in the middle of a basketball game, this is much more somber – and punctuated with the reveal that the five-year time skip meant Monica missed her own mother’s death.

WandaVision, though, moves pretty steadily on from the impact of The Blip. Only a brief news report seen in the background of one scene references it. From there, it’s all systems go as SWORD and a returning Monica aim to find out the mystery behind the ‘missing’ town of Westview.

No mysteries here: Find out when the next episode lands with the WandaVision release schedule.

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Though Westview is itself a creation of the show, new to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it may have its roots in another mysterious comic book town, Pleasant Hill – a small community with a dark secret that was at the heart of the 2016 limited series Avengers: Standoff (opens in new tab).

If Westview is anything like Pleasant Hill (and we’ve got plenty of reason to believe it is), the bizarre nature and purpose of Pleasant Hill may provide the key to explaining exactly what’s going on with Wanda and her new hometown.

What is Pleasant Hill?

On its surface, Pleasant Hill is a quaint American small town in Connecticut, with oodles of Mayberry-style charm and a population of kindly locals to match. But Pleasant Hill has an almost unfathomable secret – it’s all an illusion constructed by S.H.I.E.L.D. to contain the world’s most dangerous supervillains by brainwashing them into thinking they’re ordinary townsfolk living their lives in Pleasant Hill.

Among the villains present in Pleasant Hill are Captain America’s arch-enemies Red Skull and Baron Zemo, along with a majority of Zemo’s Masters of Evil – including his former Thunderbolts Atlas, Moonstone, Songbird, and Fixer, the latter of whom was an evil genius that figured out how to break the illusion and brainwashing of the Pleasant Hill townspeople.

The whole operation is headed up by none other than S.H.I.E.L.D., led by Maria Hill (played by Cobie Smulders in the MCU) with the help of Erik Selvig, Thor’s scientist pal played in multiple films by Stellan Skårsgard, who are committed to the incarceration/rehabilitation concept despite the fact that it’s all powered by the infamous Cosmic Cube, a cosmic, reality-altering artifact that was adapted into the MCU’s Tesseract – which was, of course, an object of study for Selvig.

Whew! Got that?

Good, because we’re just getting warmed up. 

What happened in Avengers: Standoff?

In Avengers: Standoff, Bucky Barnes happens upon Pleasant Hill while investigating an incident seemingly related to the Cosmic Cube and after losing a fight to S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, he’s taken into custody and brainwashed into the population of Pleasant Hill to keep the town’s secret from leaking.

While investigating his friend’s disappearance, Steve Rogers – then an old man thanks to the loss of the Super Soldier Serum – tracks Bucky to Pleasant Hill where he discovers that not only has S.H.I.E.L.D. surreptitiously built a secret, ethically questionable super-prison, they have turned their Cosmic Cube into a sentient being in the form of a little girl named Kobik.

Thanks to Fixer’s meddling, Zemo and a squad of his Masters of Evil are freed from Pleasant Hill’s influence and launch an attack on the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility that is located in Pleasant Hill’s city hall. Under siege, Rogers assembles the Avengers for help, leading to Maria Hill reluctantly bringing them in to help despite the exposure of her secret facility.

Ultimately, the Avengers and numerous other Marvel superheroes – including Sam Wilson/Captain America, and none other than recent confirmed MCU addition Deadpool – all converge on Pleasant Hill to take on the now fully-empowered and freed supervillains to save Rogers, Selvig, Hill, Bucky, and the others.

In the resulting conflict, Red Skull reveals himself as one of Pleasant Hill’s inhabitants and the real villain behind the breakout attempt. Capturing Kobik, the villains take her to Fixer’s lab where he plans to revert her back into a Cosmic Cube at the will of Zemo or Red Skull (both villains want the power and plan to betray the other). 

As the heroes and villains fight, Zemo tries to get Kobik to lend her power to the villains, while Selvig tries to convince her to side with S.H.I.E.L.D. Finally, Kobik seemingly sides with the heroes, restores Steve Rogers to his youthful Super Soldier self, and teleports both Zemo and Selvig away, allowing Steve to defeat the Red Skull and the Avengers to round up the remaining villains.

Kobik chooses Winter Soldier as her guardian, and the pair assemble a new team of Thunderbolts – a Marvel team usually comprised of villains-turned-heroes, originally led by Baron Zemo – including some of the team’s original roster.

How could Pleasant Hill play into WandaVision?

Standoff had a lot of Marvel Comics fall out, and while very little of it had to do with Scarlet Witch and Vision, many of the story’s plotlines seem to be reflected in WandaVision – including some of the possible ramifications.

Let’s start with the obvious. Wanda is apparently being held hostage in Westview by someone – or someones – with Agent Jimmy Woo (and possibly others) looking for her, as evidenced by what is believed to be Woo’s voice coming into Westview over the radio, interrupting the illusion.

There’s also evidence that Vision and perhaps others don’t actually know how they got to Westview, with Vision’s job apparently consisting of a never-ending series of calculations that don’t correspond to anything. Could that in itself be a hint at how Vision’s computerized Synthezoid body, previously thought to be destroyed by Wanda herself and then again by Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, could play into whatever is going on in Westview?

Could that in itself be a hint at how Vision’s computerized Synthezoid body, partially destroyed by Thanos in Infinity War,

Wanda has also been imprisoned for the inconvenient nature of her powers before, in Captain America: Civil War – and she’s also got a level of untapped potential that could mean whoever is her captor, be it S.H.I.E.L.D., SWORD (who play a role in the show, in an incarnation somewhat different from their comic book counterparts), or someone more sinister.

Who might that be?

For one thing, both Zemo and Selvig are significant parts of the MCU. While Zemo, played by Daniel Bruhl, is slated to return in Marvel’s next Disney Plus series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, that means he’s potentially on the board at least for the follow-up of whatever occurs in WandaVision.

As for Selvig, he may not necessarily show up in WandaVision, but his protégé Jane Foster’s lab assistant D’arcy, played by Kat Dennings, is confirmed for the show, giving an in for the Tesseract (the MCU’s Cosmic Cube stand-in) to somehow appear, and for Selvig’s role in Avengers: Standoff to be played by D’arcy.

Though the Tesseract, which housed the Space Stone, was technically destroyed by Thanos along with the other Infinity Stones, the Stones (specifically the Mind Stone) were the catalyst for Wanda and her brother Pietro/Quicksilver to develop their powers in the MCU. And that brings us to the next point.

In WandaVision episode 2, there’s an old fashioned commercial for Strücker brand watches, with the slogan “Strücker: he’ll make time for you,” showing a watch with a Hydra logo. This seems an overt reference to Baron Strücker, the Hydra leader who conducted the experiment that gave Wanda and Pietro their powers, played by Thomas Kretschmann in Avengers: Age of Ultron, the movie which introduced Wanda, her brother Pietro/Quicksilver, and Vision to the Avengers.

Strücker seemingly died in Age of Ultron, but that’s hardly stopped anyone in comic books or movies from making a dramatic return – especially if the sadistic necromancer the Grim Reaper is one of the show’s villains, as hinted in some Easter eggs.

And in comic books, Baron Strücker’s son Andreas, a mutant, became the Swordsman, a member of former Spider-Man villain Norman Osborn’s incarnation of the Thunderbolts, meaning there’s a potential heir to Strücker’s Hydra throne already out there.

And if that’s the case, some Strücker or other might be the perfect stand-in for MCU Hydra founder the Red Skull, who had his own run-in with the Tesseract in Captain America: The First Avenger, leading to his fate in Avengers: Infinity War as the guardian of the Soul Stone.

This brings us to the last pieces of fallout from Avengers: Standoff. First up, there’s the matter of Quasar. In Marvel Comics, Quasar is a cosmic superhero not unlike Captain Marvel, who wields powerful weapons called Quantum Bands. 

In Standoff, a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent named Avril Kincaid inherits the Quantum Bands to become the new Quasar. While Avril Kincaid doesn’t seem to appear in WandaVision (that we know of), the show does include Teyonah Parris’s Monica Rambeau, all grown from her first brush with space adventure as a little girl in Captain Marvel.

In comic books, Monica Rambeau is a one-time bearer of the name Captain Marvel herself, with energy powers and a longtime Avengers pedigree. In WandaVision, Monica first appears in Westview using the name Geraldine, though promotional material from Topps shows her as an agent of SWORD. Could WandaVision adapt Standoff’s introduction of a new Quasar by giving Monica Rambeau powers and a new codename?

Though she’s never used the name Quasar in comic books, she has gone by Photon, Pulsar, and Spectrum (after giving up her original codename of Captain Marvel, which was not in use when she began her superhero career), so it’s not like it would be unprecedented for her to take on a slightly new identity.

Interestingly, Monica Rambeau was also part of an incarnation of the Thunderbolts, as one of the team’s heroic liaisons. It was in this era that she took the name Pulsar.

And then there’s silly neighbor Agnes, played by Kathryn Hahn, rumored to be an adaptation of Wanda’s magical mentor Agatha Harkness, a powerful witch who taught Wanda in the ways of Chaos Magic, eventually leading to the events of House of M – itself already hinted at in WandaVision with an Easter egg. Could Agnes be Agatha Harkness also held in whatever Westview actually is?

And that brings us to the final piece of Standoff fallout – the reinvigoration of Steve Rogers. Strap in, ’cause this is kind of a doozy – and it may have direct ramifications on the future of the MCU.

In the aftermath of Standoff, Steve, returned to his youthful vigor, became Captain America again. But rather than take his mantle back from Sam Wilson (who was Steve’s successor as Cap just like in the MCU), Steve let Sam keep his shield and the name, taking up a new shield and sharing the duties of Captain America.

But all was not as it seemed.

As it turns out, when Kobik gave Steve his youth and Super Soldier powers back during Standoff, she was secretly under the command of the Red Skull, and rewrote Steve’s history so rather than being an American hero, he was and always had been an agent of Hydra with a master plan to infiltrate the United States and conquer the world.

And that’s a plan he succeeded at in the 2015 story Secret Empire (opens in new tab), in which Steve revealed he was an agent of Hydra and took over as dictator of America. Through the reality-bending power of the Cosmic Cube, the ‘original’ non-Hydra Steve returned and defeated his evil doppelganger, eventually returning to the mantle of Captain America with Sam once again becoming the Falcon.

What could all of that mean for the future of the MCU?

Well, there is that little rumor about Chris Evans returning as Steve Rogers in a future MCU project. Marvel Studios wouldn’t dare make him a villain – would they?

As you can see, just by opening the door to an adaptation of Avengers: Standoff, WandaVision could be seeding enough plotlines to wrap through the entirety of the next phase of the MCU, which all kicks off in the first of Marvel Studios’ many planned DisneyPlus streaming series.

Avengers: Standoff didn’t make Newsrama’s list of the most impactful Marvel Comics events of all time, but if any of the above plays out in the MCU, we might have to reconsider.

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