If this week's episode felt like a recap, then this week's piece on 'WandaVision' is a recap of a recap. A recap-cap, if you will. Let's start off by admitting outright that our theory last week about Agatha Harkness was way off - but also, not?
The way in which Agatha Harkness brings Wanda through her life, from her childhood in Sokovia which then led to her volunteering for HYDRA, right through to the very creation of the Westview anomaly is not unlike how therapy leads you to confront the root causes of trauma, but yes, Agatha Harkness is not a psychotherapist but rather just a plain old psychopath.
This week's episode also fully clues us into two major aspects of the whole show - how it was that the Westview Anomaly came into being, and how it was that Wanda was able to bring Vision back to life. More than that, it explains how their connection was so deep because, it seems, Wanda basically helped bring Vision to life by exploding the Mind Stone - the yellow Infinity Stone that powers his being - out of its casing. That her mind touched the Infinity Stone means she has a bond with it and subsequently Vision, which explains how she was able to bring him back from the dead - but couldn't bring Pietro back, nor anyone else.
As for the Westview Anomaly or the Hex, it's all part of her trying to cope with the unimaginable loss by creating her elaborate fantasy set inside the sitcoms that brought her comfort. There was also a nice touch of showing the episodes of 'The Dick Van Dyke Show' and 'Malcolm In The Middle' as a way of showing how TV sitcoms have been a comfort, so what better way to comfort herself than by placing her and everyone around her in a sitcom that she controls?
Once again, Kathryn Hahn is playing a blinder in this series and fully deserves the Hahn-assiance she's going through. She's so fully committed to being the villain by the end, even if it is all a bit 'Hocus Pocus'. The big question that's left for the next episode, however, is whether or not Vision inside Westview is real, or whether Vision outside Westview is real.
There's a mid-credits scene where S.W.O.R.D are shown to have reconstituted Vision from the parts that Wanda confronted in her memory. This is interesting, as the initial narrative made it seem like she had taken his body with her to Westview. Obviously, this is building towards a finale where you have Vision inside Westview battling with Vision from the outside - but will it mean Vision can be saved, then?
Next week's finale will reveal all - we hope.
