Unpopular Opinion | Wandavision

© Disney, All Rights Reserved

I had my doubts when Marvel announced the launch of a miniseries on the love story between an Enhanced and a synthezoid with artificial intelligence. What about the love? The emotions? The so-called dating life? And yet, I couldn’t be more wrong. Wanda and Vision may be an unusual pair, but what their relationship teaches us about love and grief, is so relatable that we might not want to hear it.

“But what is grief, if not love persevering?”

Despite being an android, Vision knows what it’s like to be human. When the rose-colored glasses shatter, what follows is the harsh reality that, in life, we lose the people we love. Sometimes we get so clouded and overwhelmed with sadness that we forget that everything we are feeling right now stemmed from love. A strong, all-consuming love, that as soon as we lose it, we forget how to breathe. To me, the grieving process is like free diving. On my good days, I dive and resurface just fine. On my bad days, I forget how to catch my breath. On my worst? I keep drowning until someone comes to drag me up, forcing me to breathe.

But Wanda didn’t have that someone. It was unclear what exactly happened to the Avengers after their big showdown with Thanos, but it seems like everyone just kind of went their own way. It is hard to imagine them just hanging out at a bar getting drinks. So realistically, Wanda was left all alone. And grief does weird things to people, so does love. Grief had me on a sleep marathon for weeks and months, simply because I was too afraid to stay awake to process my sadness. Grief got Wanda to create an alternate reality, one in which she can finally get to learn what it’s like to love and share a family. And I couldn’t help but wonder—is that really too much to ask?

“There are rules in life. We can’t rush aging just because it’s convenient. And we can’t reverse death.”

Despite living in the fake world of Westview, Wanda and Vision still try to raise their kids the right way. When Sparky died—more like killed—Wanda didn’t take the convenient path to just give her sons another dog with her magic. Though ironic, considering she was doing the exact opposite, she told her kids it is impossible to reverse death and undo what had happened. Moving forward is really our only option.

I once asked my friend if she had ever wanted to go back to a particular time in her life to make amends. To my surprise, her answer was no. Because if she went back with no memories, that means she’d probably just live through the same course of life again. And even if she did have her memories, how can she make sure to avoid every single mistake, big and small? What if we just end up messing things up, just in a different way? Both paths sound like utter torture, making staying in the present the best possible outcome.

Perhaps my friend is right. I wouldn’t be where I am—sitting in front of the screen typing out this piece—for everything that I’ve been through. I wouldn’t discover my love for writing, Wanda wouldn’t understand the true powers of the Mind Stone, Vision wouldn’t experience what love is, and the list goes on.

But if you ask me, I’d still say yes a hundred times. I’d kill to spend an extra five minutes to just hear my dad’s voice again, to give him a tight hug, to tell him about my day. So when I saw Wanda turning the town into a dreamland for her and her family, the first thought was: I wish. I wish I’d be able to construct a world in which my dad would be able to attend my graduation, to be there for my first break up, to walk me down the aisle, to be there for my first book reading, and so much more. Like Monica Rambeau said in the season finale: “Given the chance, and given your power, I’d bring my mom back. I know I would.” Love is selfish. And I think we all know it.

Don’t get me wrong, if we think from the town people’s perspective, what I am arguing may be dangerously selfish. But if we put ethics and societal rules aside, and simply focus on what it’s like to be human, we will realize that Wanda and Vision are just an ordinary pair struggling with loss and trying to get back on their feet.

So, consider this my plea to not villainize Wanda in the future films, because how can we not understand why she did what she did?