What is Grief, if not love persevering? - This dialogue from WandaVision is one of the, if not the greatest dialogue in cinematic history. Most of us, for all our lives, have associated grief with regret, sadness, or sorrow. But what we often fail to understand is that grief cannot really be the only feeling.
The dialogue came from Vision in one of the episodes of WandaVision, but little did we know the impact it would have on Wanda's story moving forward.
'She is Just a Kid'
Her story debuted in Avengers: Age of Ultron. As Captain America rightly said - She was indeed just a kid back then. After being experimented on for god knows how long, she came to Ultron's aid, who was hell-bent on destroying the very fabric of the universe.
It didn't take long for her to switch sides, but when she did, when she fought for the good side, she lost her brother. Fast forward to the Infinity War, she, with her own hands, killed Vision, for Thanos would have got the mind stone if she didn't.
After all, saving the universe takes priority right? But did she really? No. All her effort and all her courage went in vain as the Mad Titan ultimately got all the infinity stones and snapped half the population out of existence.
She killed the love of her life, and it didn't even matter. There's a reason why fans fell in love with her character. She was relatable. She was going through all the struggles in the book, but she kept going. But hey, someone's got to give in, right?
The Endgame & The Birth of Scarlet Witch
If it was not for Thanos and his call of rain fire, Wanda would have single-handedly destroyed him. No one present in the theatre would have ever guessed it. What unfolded in front of our eyes was pure brutality, and fans loved it. Where the trio of Iron Man, Captain America and Thor couldn't stand and face Thanos without being nearly beaten to death, it was Wanda who nearly killed the Mad Titan.
That was the first time we saw what Wanda was capable of. The comic book fans always knew it, but for the ones who got associated with Marvel through the MCU - it was a pleasant surprise.
Then came WandaVision. After losing the love of her life, her brother, and no one to fall on - Wanda, because of her grief, unknowingly harnessed the power of Chaos Magic that was always within her to create her own little world.
We got to know that she was always primed to become the Scarlett Witch, meant to rule the world, and one day would be the very reason for its extinction. By the end of WandaVision, she had to get rid of her own little world that had Vision and her Children - the ones she manifested using Chaos Magic.
She looked content, but it wasn't to be. She got hold of the Dark Hold, or vice-versa, and she became hell-bent on finding her kids back, even if it meant annihilating the entire multiverse. By the end of Doctor Strange in The Multiverse of Madness, she redeemed herself by destroying the Dark Hold, and finally, looked at peace, knowing her children would be taken care of.
She finally realised - what is grief, if not love persevering? She finally understood that grief is because love is.
What Now?
Marvel has now created a character that goes far and beyond a normal superhero. They have established an unrivalled backstory and an emotional connection with the fans.
There is a lot left to be explored about the character, and don't be surprised if there's a solo Scarlet Witch outing in the near future. The character deserves it, and the fans deserve it.
