‘WandaVision’: Was That Disturbing Commercial From Episode 6 Referring to Wanda or the Kids of Westview?
Part of the fun appeal of WandaVision is the sitcom aspect. Now that S.W.O.R.D. is involved, the point of view switches back and forth between the “real” world and Wanda’s reality in Westview, but the sitcom portion is still entertaining and fun. That is, until you remember that the people in town are being held against their will. Regardless, in between Wanda and Vision’s “scenes,” there are commercials that fit in with each decade’s theme. Episode 6’s was chipper, but disturbing as heck under the bright animation. [Spoiler alert: Spoilers ahead for WandaVision].
Every episode of ‘WandaVision’ has commercials with references to parts of Wanda’s past
As stated above, to really sell the aspect of WandaVision being a show within a show, Wanda’s reality comes with its very own commercial break system. And, as with many things Marvel does, there are tons of Easter eggs in each.
In the first episode, there was the ToastMate 2000, a 1950s product that seemed very mundane and normal at first. Until the “by Stark Industries” came at the end. And the ticking of the toaster’s timing sounds like a bomb… the Stark bomb that killed Wanda and Pietro’s parents.
There’s a commercial for a Strücker watch in Episode 2, which is easily a reference to Baron von Strucker, a leader of HYDRA who experimented on Wanda and Pietro with the scepter that held the Mind Stone, resulting in their powers. Then there’s Hydra Soak in Episode 3, also self-explanatory.
Maybe the most offensive toward Wanda, thus far, is the one for Lagos, the paper towel brand. This is a reference to Lagos, Nigeria where Wanda accidentally killed a ton of civilians in Captain America: Civil War, when Rumlow exploded himself and she tried to contain him. She succeeded in doing that, but flung him into the side of a building. The paper towel’s slogan that it’s great for, “when you make a mess you didn’t mean to.” Ouch.
This week’s commercial was actually pretty disturbing, and possibly refers to the residents of Westview not being able to eat
So that brings us to Episode 6, the Halloween episode set in the 90s. Evan Peters’ Pietro is there and Vision is back to normal, at least as far as Wanda’s concerned. Tommy and Billy are still their 10-year-old selves and Westview has kids again, even though Vision pointed out the last episode that the town was actually absent of children.
The commercial this time around was a claymation featuring a kid stuck on an island with nothing to eat. He’s noticeably sick and tired, and a big, cartoonishly-optimistic shark pulls up on a surfboard to offer the kid something to eat; a cup of Yo-Magic, the yogurt product the commercial is for. However, the kid can’t get it open, starves, and turns into a skeleton. It’s upbeat the whole time, which makes it that much more disturbing.
So what does “Yo-Magic, the snack for survivors,” mean? Well first, Chris Killian from ComicBook.com tweeted that both the shark and Pietro use the term, “little dude,” which might not be just a coincidence. Could it hint to this new Pietro being Mephisto or Nightmare?
On a deeper, more traumatic level, some fans on Reddit and TikTok think that this commercial is referring to the fact that the people — or just the kids — in Westview are starving.
Again, the kids weren’t around until this episode, meaning they might have been asleep until now, as Pietro asked. Meaning they haven’t been eating.
“Maybe this was a reminder to Wanda that the kids need food, air, and the ability to exist. Or they stop existing,” one user wrote.
Another wrote that maybe Wanda can’t keep up with controlling everyone’s daily routines and so those on the outskirts who aren’t moving can’t eat or drink. And are slowly decaying away, as the commercial suggests.
Other theories think the commercial could be pointing to Wanda, personally
That is truly terrifying. Wanda created this reality out of grief and never set out to be a malicious or evil person. But to think that the people of Westview are like that boy in the commercial is eery, to say the least.
Other theories, though, think that the “Yo-Magic” spot was all about Wanda.
“Personal Theory: it represents her time in the Raft, where she had the magic collar on and couldn’t use ‘yo magic’, and she was wasting away,” one fan wrote.
The Raft is a highly secure prison specifically for people with abilities where Wanda was put after the massive fight in Civil War. She, along with Sam, Clint, and Scott were there, and she took it particularly badly due to the fact that she was the most powerful and therefore had to have the most severe restraints.
Another user wrote that they thought the commercial was representing Wanda’s “survivor’s guilt” for “being the only one getting abilities while almost everyone else was killed” following HYRDRA’s experiments. Even taking that further, though, it could just be within her own life.
Wanda has experienced so much loss, from her parents, to Pietro — her whole country — and then Vision, she probably asks herself, “Why me?” a lot. Like, why is she experiencing all this grief, but then also why is she the one that always survives? And always goes on? In the midst of that pain she experiences in those losses, she probably has some guilt as well.
So “Yo-Magic,” “Your magic,” Wanda’s Magic, or whatever, could be the “snack” or “key” for survivors, but is it worth it?
