As long as we got each other / We got the world spinnin’ right in our hands – Wanda Maximoff, basically.
WandaVision episode five was an utter game-changer in terms of plot, narrative, and previously dead loved ones. But amid the heated arguments and shocking reveals was one of the series’ best openings yet. After weeks of the Dick Van Dyke Show, Bewitched, and Brady Bunch-inspired credit sequences, WandaVision entered the ‘80s with a bang and a puppy whimper.
We open with the gentle sounds of another bop of a theme song from Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, the Oscar-winning duo behind songs from the Frozen movies and Coco. While the inspiration is obvious — there are musical nods to both the B.J. Thomas and Jennifer Warnes song “As Long as We Got Each Other” from Growing Pains as well as the Deniece Williams and Johnny Mathis love song “Without Us” that opened Family Ties — the lyrics hold some keen and very current insight into Wanda’s world.
You wander the world with a vision of what life could be
But then the years come and teach you to just wait and see
Forces may try to pull us apart
But nothing can phase me if you’re in my heart
Crossing our fingers, singing a song
We’re making it up as we go along
While the strains of ‘80s family love play, the images show some fantastically loving odes to those same sitcoms. From the Family Ties living painting…
…to the Growing Pains childhood photo montage. (BABY. VISION. Y’ALL.)
Finally, there is a third source of inspiration courtesy of the good family Tanner from Full House, which is adorable given that it starred — as we all know and love and owned It Takes Two on VHS — Elizabeth Olsen’s older sisters Mary-Kate and Ashley.
Also, Vision was a turkey. That’s not a reference to anything I don’t think, it’s just really important.
Honestly, I can’t think of a way this opening could have been cuter. Well. Maybe one.
OK, maybe “cute” is the wrong word.