WandaVision season 1, episode 6 review: All-New Halloween Spooktacular!

This time on Wanda Vision, we are in the ’90s with a revived Pietro Maximoff sporting a different face as there are disturbances during Halloween.

At the cliffhanger of last week’s episode of WandaVision, we were introduced (or should I say reintroduced) to Quicksilver. Not the Aaron Taylor-Johnson Quicksilver from Avengers: Age of Ultron, but the Evan Peters Quicksilver from the X-Men franchise.

A stunned Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings) realized Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) had “recast” her brother, Pietro, somehow. And, as a result, we have a new Quicksilver on the Disney Plus show.

New Malcolm-inspired intro and breaking the fourth wall in WandaVision

Let’s talk about that wild intro which saw Billy and Tommy Maximoff (Julian Hilliard and Jett Klyne) up to a lot of mischief in what were absolutely crazy opening credits. A 1990s-themed episode, this was clearly paying homage to the unconventional sitcom Malcolm in the Middle. Although that show does not quite hit the right era, as it aired during the turn of the new millennium in the 2000s, the music selection does as it matches the pop-rock sounds of the ’90s.

I was expecting an intro more in line with sitcoms like Seinfeld, Frasier or Sabrina the Teenage Witch but I applaud Marvel for good effort. To have Billy and Tommy open up to the camera about their concerns over Wanda and Vision was a nice touch as it is a great nod to Frankie Muniz’s character Malcolm in the aforementioned sitcom.

Billy and Tommy are excited about Halloween Night and their uncle Pietro is clearly great with the kids as he himself is referred to as a “man child.” Wanda comes downstairs in her comic-accurate red cape and dress and believes she is dressing as a “Sokovian Fortune Teller” while Billy asks if she is “Old Red Riding Hood,” before Tommy calls it “Rad” while Pietro throws in that it’s “Lame.”

Pietro remembers a time when their mother got them costumes during Halloween when they had Typhus (shown in a quick flashback). However, Wanda does not remember things in that way – take note of that for later in the episode. Vision (Paul Bettany) comes down in his green and yellow duds and humors Wanda with the costume but something is clearly off with the Synthezoid, as he did not let Wanda know he was on neighborhood watch. Another red-flag: What could be going on? Wanda is not pleased, wanting Vision to spend time with the kids on their Halloween Night. Pietro steps in and offers to babysit.

Capt. Monica Rambeau, Darcy Lewis and Jimmy Woo clap back at S.W.O.R.D.

Meanwhile, outside Westview at the S.W.O.R.D. response base, Captain Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Paris) is furious at Director Tyler Hayward (Josh Stamberg) for his handling of the Wanda situation and the “Hex” encircling the town. We get a small Captain Marvel reference here as Hayward is aware of her encounter with Carol Danvers as a child when Danvers was trying to prevent a war between the Kree and the Skrulls.

Lewis (Dennings) mocks Hayward for almost being killed by his own men in the last episode. The director, however, is not in favor of Rambeau’s continued sympathy towards Wanda. He uses her absence at S.W.O.R.D. during “The Snap” and her judgement against her and even mentioned his own challenges running S.W.O.R.D. with her mother Maria out of commission.

Agents escort Monica, Jimmy Woo (despite his insistence not to engage Wanda) and Lewis off the premises per Hayward’s request, but Rambeau and Woo take down the soldiers and go into hiding in a very intense beatdown.

Yo-magic! Commercial Break

The commercial breaks on WandaVision, usually tend to feature Marvel Easter Eggs but this one is different as it contains its own eerie little reference to the actual events of the show and what Wanda’s magic could actually be doing to the inhabitants of Westview.

The commercial depicts a hungry young man stranded on a desert island when a shark jumps out of the sea, converses with him and shares a yogurt called Yo-magic! The poor young man tries opening the container of Yo-magic! as the shark leaves him be. Days and nights pass as he still is unable to open the container and eventually dies, fading away to a skeleton. Very dark sense of humor indeed.

Vision gets the truth from Agnes (sort of)

While Rambeau, Woo and Lewis are hidden within the base and discover that Hayward was withholding information about S.W.O.R.D. tracking Vision, they plan their next move – into the Hex.

Elsewhere, at the edge of the Hex in a very secluded part of town, Vision is off exploring (clearly showing resistance) and finds Agnes (Kathryn Hahn) alone and pretty much idle – like all of the townsfolk at this part of Westview. It is here that he unlocks Agnes’ true personality. As he does, Agnes reveals a couple of things – most importantly the fact he was an Avenger and he is actually deceased in the real world. This sets him on a path to find out what is beyond the Hex.

At this point, we are three episodes away from the end of WandaVision and we now have a lot more questions than answers as to what is going on. By now, we know Wanda is not in control of her reality-bending abilities and we are not aware of what could happen to both of her children when the Hex is inevitably taken down – although we now know what is at stake for Vision.

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The sixth episode has done incredibly well in divulging more secrets without giving away too much. WandaVision is, by far, the most beautifully-written series set within the MCU. Kudos to Chuck Hayward and Peter Cameron for writing this episode as it truly is full of suspense. Matt Shakman has done an equally terrific job directing these sequences.

In terms of breaking the fourth wall, the creative team for She-Hulk should take note (if they are indeed going for a legal-comedy route) because this episode was a masterclass in how to do it effectively.

We don’t have an official trailer for episode 7 of WandaVision at the time of writing, but the sixth episode has foreshadowed a great deal in terms of what is to come with all of the characters. Billy and Tommy may be about to follow their comic book destiny and the same could be said for Monica Rambeau. Unfortunately, it does not look good for Vision.

In terms of gripes, there are only small ones. The episode was supposed to be taking inspiration from the ’90s but it didn’t necessarily follow through on that – the first time this has happened – as Billy and Tommy would not have access to motion-sensing games for home entertainment during this era and The Incredibles was not out until 2004. This was, no doubt, intentional but it does leave this one with something of a lack of consistency in terms of the era they are in. Also, while Peters was a breath of fresh air in terms of comic relief, Quicksilver did not maintain the same level of drama with Olsen’s Wanda that Bettany’s Vision could.

Nonetheless, this week’s episode of WandaVision was another hit for the series.

WandaVision adds a new episode on Disney+ every Friday from midnight.

What did you think of WandaVision season 1, episode 6? Let us know in the comments below!