‘WandaVision’: 1 Big Mistake Has Nothing to Do With MCU Continuity
The Marvel Cinematic Universe explores new territory with its first Disney+ series, WandaVision. Weaving in characters and dynamics from the films with this wacky world has led to some fun surprises. But like anything else in the MCU, WandaVision isn’t without flaws. Did Episode 8 reveal a big mistake?
MCU continuity is a sticking point for fans
When it comes to the vast, interconnected world of the MCU, fans find continuity errors often. Many revolve around timing, like the opening of Spider-Man: Homecoming, which indicates that the Battle of New York took place years earlier than it does in the MCU timeline.
Due to the number of different writers and directors working on each Marvel project, it’s understandable that there are mistakes. Some are ignored, while others they retcon later. For instance, when Hela declares the Infinity Gauntlet on Asgard “fake” to fix the confusion around there seemingly being two of them.
When does ‘WandaVision’ take place?
Getting back to timelines, the MCU’s has grown even more complicated with the addition of the Disney+ TV series. WandaVision begins with the eponymous heroes living in a 1950s sitcom world. With each episode, the decade changes, progressing from The Dick Van Dyke Show, all the way to Modern Family.
However, the audience also gets a glimpse at what’s going on outside Westview, New Jersey. Beyond the confines of Wanda’s Hex, it’s 2023, just weeks after the events of Avengers: Endgame when the Hulk reversed the effects of Thanos’ snap, bringing back half the universe’s population.
‘WandaVision’ went back in time to Wanda’s childhood
In the final episodes of WandaVision, the sitcom facade ended when Wanda discovered her neighbor, Agnes, was actually the witch Agatha Harkness. Determined to figure out how Wanda constructed this reality, Agatha goes back in time in her memory, first to when she was a child growing up in Sokovia.
Wanda’s father arrives home from a day of selling DVDs. Her mother is disappointed his case is still full, but he assures her he’ll sell more the next day. He turns it into a happy moment by asking Wanda what she wants to watch. She picks, naturally, The Dick Van Dyke Show. But while watching, an explosion kills her parents.
Why Wanda couldn’t have watched those DVDs
In a previous WandaVision episode, it’s established that Wanda’s parents died in 1999 when she was 10 years old. Some Marvel fans noted that it was unlikely Wanda and her family would have a DVD player at that time, as they weren’t popularized for a few more years. But it’s not impossible.
What’s not possible are the DVDs in her father’s case. DVD boxsets of The Dick Van Dyke Show weren’t sold until 2003. Bewitched came even later, in 2005. And even if these are bootlegs, there’s another impossibility. A DVD boxset of Malcolm in the Middle Season 1 can be seen in the shot, but the series didn’t even premiere until 2000.
However, there are two possibilities to consider ahead of the WandaVision series finale. Agatha Harkness manipulated Wanda to revisit these memories. Could they be false? Additionally, there’s always the simpler option that Wanda’s memory is flawed, like anyone looking back on their childhood.
