WandaVision

 

I've just been catching up with WandaVision, which is a show about superheroes trapped inside decades worth of sitcoms. 

We get a very 50s-style laughter track 4:3 format mono episode to start, reminiscent of old Dick van Dyke/I love Lucy shows, and then by Ep2 we've moved into Bewitched territory and in Ep3 into the world of Hey Hey we're the Monkees style color, with the end of the episode already drifting out to a 16:9 format.

I'm not really a fan of the superhero genre of shows with everyone flying around and bashing things with big mallets, but I quite like this show with its teasing hints of a parallel universe. 

I've only seen three episodes and it reminds me of a riff with Douglas Coupland's Girlfriend in a Coma whilst strange events occur in the World As Portrayed. Or maybe in British terms the idea from Life on Mars or its follow-up show?

I get the feeling that we are watching something from inside someone's projection, but I could be wrong and haven't read ahead to find out. Because I'm not familiar with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there could well be other characters already lurking in the cast about to pop on their superhero suits. 

I also enjoyed the series Jessica Jones, which was another sliver of MCU, but similarly played for real instead of with whizz-bangs all the time. Admittedly WandaVision has a few more Bewitched style moments, but I assume some of that is playing to the genre of the individual shows. 

Anyway, sufficiently intriguing for me to watch the next six episodes with interest.

Update: It eventually broke the 4th wall, slightly too soon for my preference,  and then we were able to see outside into a fantasmagorical Real World, with superhero hardware sprinkled throughout it. 

I suppose it needed a superhero vs villain punchup at some point to be able to use all the special effects. I wonder if it could have been more enjoyable if they used the secret powers covertly. Still, an interesting show.