WandaVision: 3 Theories on What Exactly Is Going Down in the Town of WestView
WandaVision continues to stump viewers every week with its big mysteries and even bigger possibilities. Episode three made the big reveal that despite any theories we had before, the idyllic town of WestView is in fact, a real place. That doesn't mean there isn't something seriously whacky going down in that magical bubble keeping folks out, but it does narrow down our list of theories a bit. With the discovery that the town exists in the real world, and the subsequent reveal that everyone within the town must be real as well, we've come down to three in-depth theories on what could be causing all this drama in the first place. Has Wanda trapped an entire neighborhood of people after suffering a breakdown or is someone pulling the Scarlet Witch's strings? Is WestView a prison or a sanctuary gone horribly wrong? We don't have any of the answers, but you're damn sure we'll try to work through all our questions! Keep reading for our ideas on what is going down in WestView.
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WestView Theory #1: Wanda Created WestView as an Alternate Reality
The popular theory is that Wanda created the sitcom-reality she's living in as an escape from her real-life – the one where she's lost her lover and last hope for happiness. The premise of the show supports this theory because it gives Wanda the picture-perfect ending she wanted — a new life with Vision in an idyllic town.
There are also plenty of moments in the first few episodes that give the theory merit, including Wanda's ability to "rewind" time when she desires. Everyone in the town keeps up the facade of happy-go-lucky neighbors around Wanda, as if they know their fates are in her hands and they must keep her happy, with Dottie Jones being the sole exception. During the near-fatal dinner with Mrs. and Mr. Hart, it's only after Wanda permits him that Vision moves to save the life of the choking Mr. Hart. Whenever someone or something occurs that upsets Wanda, like the mysterious beekeeper or Vision having moments of clarity, the events are reversed as if they never happened. And of course, there's the fact that Wanda was able to throw Geraldine out of WestView in the third episode.
All this would suggest that Wanda is the magic-user controlling what's going on behind the scenes of WestView. These are the moments where she seems the most aware that there's a world beyond WestView and her actions make it clear she prefers to stay in her sitcom reality. If that's true, it makes sense that she'll have to be pulled out of that reality eventually — which would be the perfect reason to bring in Benedict Cumberbatch's Dr. Strange and segue into Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
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WestView Theory #2: Someone Else Is Controlling WestView and Wanda Is Trapped
As WandaVision goes on, it becomes clear that something bigger than Wanda having an emotional breakdown is going on. While Wanda has been able to exert her powers over several events throughout the first few episodes, there are instances (and comic lore) that suggest she isn't as in-control as we've been led to believe. The biggest clue comes in the form of a message hidden within a song from the second episode. The Beach Boys' "Help Me, Rhonda" gets interrupted by someone asking, "Who's doing this to you, Wanda?" The voice sounds like Randall Park's Jimmy Woo, and it plants the idea that rather than Wanda trapping everyone in WestView for her perfect life, she's a victim as well.
The last time we saw Wanda was at the end of Avengers: Endgame, where she was grappling with the death of Vision and the news that she came back five years into the future. We have no idea what could have happened from that point to get her to WestView, but it's safe to assume that it involves Vision in some way because his "resurrection" is one of the biggest mysteries of the show.
As we saw in episode three, WestView is a real place, enclosed within a barrier that can be breached (since Monica Rambeau was definitely a plant). Wanda is aware that there is an outside world but, because the reality is playing out her deepest desire, she's fighting the reality of her situation. But she's likely gotten to that point by someone else bringing her there, and the big questions are who and why.
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WestView Theory #3: WestView Is a Prison For Witches
This theory jumps off the previous one, but it stands to reason that there must be something going on with the other residents of WestView as well since they're just as trapped as Wanda. We know they're real since we've discovered that WestView really exists as well. An obscene amount of Easter eggs suggests that several residents could be Marvel heroes and villains, and, if they are, we have to wonder how they also wound up in WestView.
It's heavily implied that Kathryn Hahn's Agnes is the MCU's Agatha Harkness, and, if she is, then there's comic precedent for the idea of a community of witches kept undercover. After the Salem Witch Trials, Agatha and her witch community shielded themselves from mortals and called their home New Salem. WestView could be that, while Wanda was searching for a place to call home or some solace, she stumbled across this haven for witches before things went topsy turvy! Whoever it is that's controlling Wanda could have trapped all the witches in what used to be their home and is sitting back as their plan unfolds. It explains why Agnes would ask Vision if he and Wanda are there to save them in footage from the trailers.