Killing Maria Rambeau in WandaVision is proof that the show is not messing around when it comes to dealing with stakes. The character debuted in Captain Marvel as Carol Danvers’ fellow Air Force pilot and best friend, and her story continues in the MCU through her daughter Monica, who may be the key in the Westview mystery.
WandaVision episode 4 titled “We Interrupt This Program” flipped the Marvel Studios Disney+ project as it shifted the storytelling perspective from inside the bubble to outside of it. While its first three outings felt so disconnected from the larger MCU aside from the fact that it featured two of its most notable heroes, the latest one established links to the bigger events in the universe like Thanos’ snap and its eventual reversal in Avengers: Endgame. More subtly, it also brought back Maria into the franchise after her initial appearance in Captain Marvel, but only to reveal that she has died just years after the decimation.
Opening up about tackling this death in WandaVision, showrunner Jac Schaeffer told ComicBook that while it was difficult to kill such a beloved character off the screen, they felt that it was necessary not just in terms of Monica’s personal journey but also the show’s overall storytelling. It set up the vibe that they were going for and emphasized that the series is not shying away from darker narratives.
“That was a tough decision. I feel very strongly about Maria and her relationship with Monica. It’s so much of a part of her character. But we really wanted to set Monica up, with a rough road really. And we wanted to dig into her character as best we can and be sort of concise with dropping the audience into like where we are in the MCU timeline and letting them know what the tone of this episode is gonna be, that we’re not messing around.”
The first three outings of WandaVision heavily leaned on its sitcom inspirations with visual references to I Love Lucy, Bewitched, and The Brady Bunch. During these episodes, the humor was campy and outdated as well, so as to mimic the feel of the aforementioned shows. Amidst all the lighthearted jokes, however, Marvel Studios peppered clues that not everything happening on the screen is what it seems. If anything, the show’s initial brand of comedy emphasized this as the overall tone of the show significantly changed every single time something more serious was happening on the screen. Episode 4 kicking off with the reformation of Monica after being snuffed out of existence and then the subsequent reveal that Maria has died while she was gone, however, firmly established that WandaVision will tackle darker themes moving forward.
While Maria didn’t physically appear in the show, it was revealed that she founded SWORD, which raises questions with regard to MCU’s timeline. Not much is known about the franchise’s new governing body, but it was presumed that it was newly-established and was headed by Nick Fury as suggested during Spider-Man: Far From Home‘s post-credits scene. It’s curious if Marvel Studios will clarify the confusion in WandaVision or if it’s something that’s reserved for other projects down the road.
