By Truman Martin – Staff Reporter

“Wandavision” is the newest installment in the Marvel cinematic universe, but this time, it’s a sitcom. The show debuted on Disney+ on January 15. The show follows Avengers Wanda Maximoff and Vision in an old-fashioned sitcom with a twist: every episode is a time period later than the last, starting in a 1950’s black-and-white style. But everything is not as it seems in their world, and an underlying mystery starts to unfold as the show progresses. 

“Wandavision” lets the audience know right away that it is very self-aware. There’s lots of tongue-and-cheek acting with corny jokes, but not so much to the point where it makes watching unbearable. When Wanda makes things float around, the string holding the objects up is almost visible. The show can be likened to other classic sitcoms like “The Brady Bunch” and “Leave it to Beaver.” Although, being a show about superheroes, it is also a lot like the other Marvel movies. The show also has mid-episode commercials that give the audience a little bit of information pertaining to the underlying story. Some memorable scenes were moments where the show became self-aware and started to break the 4th wall. These moments give the show an unsettling undertone that keeps the audience guessing what will happen next.

There aren’t many weak points in the show, but there is one that other problems stem from. Each episode of the show is 30 minutes long, making the show a fast watch. The problem with this is that each episode is released once a week, so the 30 minutes goes by really fast. Then, waiting for another episode feels really annoying. This method of releasing episodes wouldn’t be as bad if the show were released 10 or 15 years ago, when there weren’t streaming services like Netflix that promote binge-watching. Disney + has so far released two shows: “The Mandalorian” and “Wandavision,” both having 30-minute-long episodes. A possible improvement for the future would be either to make the episodes an hour long (like most shows are doing right now), or to release the entire show at once. 

Overall, “Wandavision” is a fun and different story in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but is a little hindered by its short episodes and weekly releases. 

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Some information courtesy https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/wandavision