TheScarlet Witchhad a dark arc in theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), but one of her most grievous crimes has gone completely under the radar. It’s fair to say that Earth’s Mightiest Heroes were thoroughly tested in their time as heroes. These individuals possessed extraordinary power, and because of their gifts, they felt called to a position where they needed to fight for and on behalf of people who did not possess their powers. They stopped world ending threats such as alien invasions, and they saved the universe and restored half of all life everywhere after their battle against Thanos, but along the way, one character had a controversial hero’s journey.
Wanda Maximoff grew up in challenging circumstances, after her parents died as a result of Stark Tech bombs dropping into their living room.Wanda and her brother Pietrogrew up in the system, and when their powers were revealed, they became experiments and lab rats. Eventually, they were freed by Ultron, who professed that they had an enemy in common, Tony Stark, and they willingly joined his fight to take down the man they felt was responsible for their parents' deaths. But when they recognized the pain and suffering they were inflicting, they switched sides, and decided to join the heroes.
The MCU Has Inspired Furious Debate About Scarlet Witch’s Status As A Villain
Wanda Maximoff Became One Of The Most Evil Villains In The MCU
Wanda’s past, and her most recent actions in the MCU have led to her character being an incredibly contentious one. For all the elements of her character that could be praised, it appears that she has equal, or more incidents where she behaved in dangerous, destructive, and villainous ways. And for fans of the character from the comics, this flip back to the dark side is one that seems like a betrayal. Most heroes go from the point of being selfish, like Tony Stark, or weak, like Steve Rogers, or immature, like Peter Parker, to a pointwhere they embrace being a hero. They learn, and they grow into their roles.
Do you want Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch to come back to Marvel & stay after Avengers: Secret Wars?
Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch might be dead right now, but after Agatha All Along’s many teases that Wanda Maximoff will return, and with Olsen also speaking about how she wants to come back for a good story, it is hard to believe that Wanda will not return. An MCU soft reboot is rumored to happen after Avengers: Secret Wars. While some actors would be recast in that situation, at 35, I would love to see Olsen stay in the MCU for another decade. Wanda can lead a solo trilogy and be an important player in the X-Men’s MCU story.
However, for Wanda, her story saw her go from being a victim, to a villain, to a newly minted hero, to a victim, and thena multiversal murderer villain. Wanda deserved better from the MCU, and if she has the opportunity to return, she needs to have a proper hero arc. However, that doesn’t erase or disqualify the numerous terrible acts that she committed and will need to make right before she could ever be truly accepted as a hero. Sure, shedestroyed the Darkhold’s across the universeand heroically sacrificed herself to save America Chavez and Doctor Strange, but there was a lot more that Wanda did wrong.
Most Of Scarlet Witch’s Crimes Are Understandable
Wanda Suffered A Lot Of Sadness And Loss In The MCU
When looking at Wanda’s long list of crimes, it’s possible to view them through a perspective that rationalizes and provides context.Wanda lost her parents as a childand grew to hate the man who she felt was responsible. She lost her brother, and struggled to focus on training her powers, which led to civilian casualties when she tried to help. Even beyond this, when she took over West View, Wanda wanted to escape her intense grief at having lost her beloved Vision, so she created a bubble where he could exist and they could have a happy family.
Then, when the bubble burst, and Wanda lost her husband and her children, she was corrupted by the Darkhold to find some way to bring them back. This resulted in tearing holes in the multiverse and trying to kill innocents who stood in her way, but her mind was no longer her own. For all of these things, there are reasons and influences that pushed her to act in rash and destructive ways. But none of these things match up to theworst crime that the Scarlet Witchever committed. And at the time she did so, she was arguably a lot more in control of herself, and aware of the damage she was inflicting and what it could lead to.
Scarlet Witch’s Biggest Crime Threatened To Destroy The Avengers & Helped Thanos
Scarlet Witch Broke The MCU
InAvengers: Age of Ultron, Wanda is introduced as a young woman who is recruited, alongside her brother, to fight against the Avengers with Ultron. Considering one of the leaders of the Avengers is Tony Stark, the pair were more than happy to throw their hat in with Ultron, and set out to kill the man who took their parents away from them when they were just children. Ultron used both Wanda and Pietro to fight against the Avengers, with Pietro providing physical support, whileWanda used her impressive mental abilities to influence and distractin more subtle and affecting ways.
I’ve Just Noticed Something Really Concerning About Kevin Feige’s Three Favorite MCU Scenes
Kevin Feige has long made his three favorite Marvel Cinematic Universe moments clear, but there is something admittedly worrying about them.
Wanda got inside the head of Iron Man, and planted visions that would cause the hero to distrust his allies, and live in fear of a dark and disturbing future. Bycausing Tony to dream about the Avengers dying, and the world being destroyed, she incepted an idea that he could never shake off after that point. Tony became obsessed with protecting others, and only trusting himself despite being surrounded by other heroes who could help him to achieve his goals. And while this Jedi mind trick may have seemed small at the time, the effects and fallout were impossible to calculate.
The Effects Of Scarlet Witch’s Vision Permenantly Broke The Avengers
The Avengers Were Never The Same After The Scarlet Witch
Yes, Tony was always paranoid since being kidnapped, betrayed by Obadiah Stane, and coming close to losing everyone he loved inThe Avengers. But Wanda’s vision in Tony’s mind caused him to pull away from people he trusted. This was arguably one of the most important factors behind Tony and the Avengers parting ways inCaptain America: Civil War, and Tony siding with government supervision over his own allies. This led toTony fighting arguably his best friend, Steve Rogers, and becoming a government watchdog who stood idly by when his friends were imprisoned.
Wanda’s vision in Tony’s mind caused him to pull away from people he trusted.
And whenThanos eventually arrived with his Black Order, the Avengers were a divided and weakened shadow of their former selves, which likely led to their losing to Thanos in the Battle of Wakanda. Yes, Wanda suffered great loss in this battle, and it changed the course of her life, but that almost appears to be a karmic fate after her actions appear to have a direct correlation to the Avenger’s split, the weakened team’s loss to Thanos, and Tony’s eventual need to sacrifice himself to restore half of all life across the universe. All of this connects back to theScarlet Witch, and the vision she implanted in Tony’s mind years earlier.
