Pope Francis brushed aside the pandemic and security concerns to make his first-ever papal visit to the country.
WandaVision: Season 1, Episode 9 Review
This review contains spoilers for Marvel’s WandaVision episode 9, now available to view on Disney+. To remind yourself of where we left off, check out our WandaVision episode 8 review.
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After taking time out to revisit the past and retcon Wanda’s history, WandaVision returns to the present to cast one final spell. The series finale is simultaneously unexpected and exactly what many foresaw, using a surprising level of just-out-of-reach darkness to put a sting in an otherwise gently bittersweet tale. It sadly pulls some of its punches, which prevents it from being a true emotional gut punch of an ending, and also delivers possibly the worst joke in the MCU to date. But despite a little unevenness, WandaVision’s spell holds until the final moments, making for an enjoyable last outing with a wonderfully unusual couple.
The finale, at its core, is about the birth of the Scarlet Witch and the death of Vision. This makes for an emotionally turbulent finale, but not in the way many will have expected. The legacy of the Scarlet Witch is revealed to be an apocalyptic force foretold in Marvel’s book of the damned, the Darkhold, and so Wanda’s transformation is surprisingly haunting. The final end credits scene hammers this home, showing off what a strange, almost horrifying eldritch being the Scarlet Witch truly is. The double Wandas in this scene, acting independently, draws the character as the MCU’s answer to Watchmen’s Dr. Manhattan, which is effective nerd shorthand for what Wanda has become.
This has major implications for the future of the MCU, positioning Wanda as both a potential ultimate-level ally for heroes and a nuclear bomb waiting to detonate. That’s drawn straight from the comics, of course, but in the more contained cinematic version of this universe it works as a curveball. Rather than rising from her trauma and grief renewed, Wanda has embraced a form that risks her progress. This trades a sense of relief and closure for lingering danger and excitement, and is an unexpected and enjoyable way for WandaVision to close.
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But this decision, along with Vision’s fate, does make the arc of the show feel somewhat incomplete. With the White Vision’s former memories unlocked, it seems inevitable that the two will be reunited in time. And by framing Vision’s death as a temporary goodbye rather than a heart wrenching farewell, there’s no sense of permanence nor consequence to Wanda’s actions. Perhaps these are all threads to be explored in further Scarlet Witch stories that examine her inner darkness, but it means the central story – one examining the grieving process – is left oddly unfinished. A promise – even a half one – of resurrection only serves to sugar coat the bitter lesson and reduce its impact. WandaVision has been so interesting because of its exploration of such a human quality, and to make this specific thread superhuman feels a misstep.
While not as emotionally devastating as it deserved to be, the finale does have plenty of touching moments. The conversation between the two Visions about the nature of existence and a person’s makeup is quintessential of the character, and just about makes up for WandaVision using the rote cliche of heroes fighting their evil reflections. And for the episode’s heavyweight sequence, Wanda and Vision’s final moments are tenderly delivered. One of the season’s biggest questions has asked what exactly Vision is, and Wanda’s explanation of him being her sadness, hope, and love – while perhaps being lacking for Marvel sleuths – effectively drills to the point of the show. This was never a mystery story at all, it’s simply a tale of someone struggling with the memory of a loved one. Magic may have made that physical, but this was all emotion rather than any form of conspiracy to crack.
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Talking of conspiracies to crack, it’s impossible to ignore WandaVision’s handling of Evan Peters’ Pietro, who was revealed to be… just some guy called Ralph Bohner. Using Evan Peters for the role and stringing the mystery out over multiple episodes feels like something of an unfair trick from Marvel. In a universe that has built its reputation and reason to be on its interconnectedness, it feels as if fan investment in the multiple worlds of Marvel has been leveraged to create excitement for no payoff at all, and worse still a dick joke to cap it all off. It feels much like Iron Man 3’s Mandarin reveal, but without the actual fun.
Quicksilver isn’t the only one who is underserved by the finale. After being one of the show’s most compelling characters for almost its entire run, Monica sadly misses out on a major moment to cap her arc. It’s great that her time in the spotlight is spent saving Billy and Tommy – superhero stories often forget that heroes are there to save people – but that she doesn’t get to unleash all hell on Hayward herself after multiple episodes of building antagonism between them is unfortunate. Similarly, Jimmy and Darcy are provided just fleeting moments, and neither feel as if their stories are truly given a conclusion. Thankfully Monica does get her own post-credits scene, promising more from her, Nick Fury, and the Skrulls in the future.
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With little focus on the supporting cast, it meant Agatha had her chance to shine as the finale’s sort-of-antagonist. Writer Jac Schaeffer makes the right call of ensuring Wanda is constantly framed as the show’s actual villain, with plenty of call-backs to her mistakes and the way she’s terrorised the people of Westview. But this does mean that much of Agatha’s fun comes only in the gleefully outlandish performance from Kathryn Hahn, rather than the character’s rather stock motivations and actions. Instead of feeling genuinely manipulative, the moments of adversity came through underwhelming spell slinging. WandaVision has always been about matters of the heart and mind, so this finale would have been better served by cutting much of the action and opting for something more cerebral.
Agatha’s actions do, however, bring out the true Scarlet Witch in Wanda, and this makes for one of the strongest costume reveals in the whole MCU. The Scarlet Witch truly feels like a living legend; a force that’s barely contained. Of particular note is the centre of her headpiece, which features a ‘M’ shaped segment that resembles Magneto’s helmet. If WandaVision has taught us anything, it’s not to look too deeply at anything, but this is a lovely nod and wink nonetheless.
A Quiet Place 2 Release Moved Forward to May
A Quiet Place: Part II will now open in theaters on May 28, 2021.
According to Variety, Paramount Pictures has shifted the release of John Krasinski’s horror sequel from September 17 to May 28, 2021, which coincides with Memorial Day weekend. It also takes the slot previously held by Universal Pictures’ Fast 9 in the release calendar after that movie’s release date was pushed back from May 28 to June 25, 2021.
A Quiet Place: Part II has been subject to several release date changes. The movie was originally slated to begin its international rollout on March 18, 2020, with a UK debut expected on March 19 and the US release set for March 20, but it was postponed a week before its release. The sequel then received a new release date of September 4, 2020, before moving to April 23, 2021, and later September 17.
They always say good things come to those who wait. Well… I think we’ve waited long enough.
A QUIET PLACE PART II
MEMORIAL DAY pic.twitter.com/hqkE0YcUj8— John Krasinski (@johnkrasinski) March 5, 2021
Krasinski took to Twitter on Thursday night to announce the new release date for his movie. He tweeted: “They always say good things come to those who wait. Well… I think we’ve waited long enough. A QUIET PLACE PART II. MEMORIAL DAY.”
The latest round of rescheduling comes shortly after news emerged of Paramount’s plans to shorten the theatrical windows for its upcoming slate of movies, with A Quiet Place: Part II reportedly being lined up for a release on Paramount+ a mere 45 days after its theatrical debut, which means the highly anticipated sequel would now premiere on Paramount+ in July.
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Serving as both a prequel and a sequel, the follow-up to Krasinski’s smash-hit horror flick from 2018 will follow the remnants of the Abbott family who are facing the terrors of the outside world as they continue their fight for survival in silence while also discovering new threats in the form of other humans scrambling, and killing, to exist as they venture into the unknown.
The movie has received largely positive reactions from its advanced screenings, with some critics addressing the unrelenting tension and suspense of the story while others heaped on the praise for the soundscape and the performances of new-to-the-series Cillian Murphy and the returning Millicent Simmonds, hailing the sequel as a worthy and terrifying successor.
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Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.
Outriders Demo Getting Patch, Legendaries Will Be Harder to Farm
People Can Fly is patching the Outriders demo to address player activity and fix bugs. One major change will make it harder to farm legendary items in the demo after players discovered a ‘loot cave’ amid other unintended exploits.
The full patch notes can be found on Reddit, where a Square Enix representative notes that the popular demo has been downloaded by over 2 million players since its launch on February 25.
A backend update is coming later today that will tweak mob health statistics and stop players from farming legendary items with an exploit. This exploit allowed players to load into a mission, loot a trio of chests and repeat. People Can Fly has now made it so that chests will no longer drop legendary loot, and shops and vendors won’t feature epic items either. As an alternative, repeat runs of side quests will now offer a chance to drop legendary loot, to incentivize a more above-board method of farming. The post notes that some of the exploits found were not “within the spirit of the game,” which is why the developers are stepping in.
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People Can Fly also warned that those who have already used the demo exploits may see their progression impacted in the main game when it launches next month. “While we have balanced the main game with a certain progression system, this progression may be impacted by heavy farming of gear and/or mods in the demo,” the post reads. “As some players are front-loading a lot of that progression (such as by trying to fill their mod library or acquire multiple Legendaries) within the demo content already, their experience of parts of the main game may well be impacted.”
A patch coming early next week will also add requested features like a Motion Blur toggle and implement loading time and frame rate tweaks, as well as fix several crashes across all platforms. Going forward, People Can Fly is looking at a number of issues to address including camera shake in cut-scenes, items disappearing from player inventories and cheating players.
Outriders will launch on April 1 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. Here’s our review in progress of Outriders, covering our impressions of the generous demo. If you’re keen to see what all the fuss is about, here’s a video covering 10 Outriders demo tips and tricks to help new players acclimate to the game.
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Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.
Trump State Department Aide Arrested In Capitol Riot
Charges include assaulting an officer with a dangerous weapon during the Jan. 6 mob insurrection.
Pope due in Iraq despite virus and security risks
Pope Francis arrives shortly for his first international trip since the Covid-19 pandemic began.
Wandavision Episode 9: 18 Easter Eggs And References In “The Series Finale”
Well, it’s over. WandaVision Episode 9, “The Series Finale,” is streaming now on Disney+, and no matter what else you may have thought about it, the final chapter was at least full of Easter eggs and references for us to break down. If that’s what you’re interested in, go ahead and keep scrolling.
Of course, there’s a lot to say about the episode itself, and we have no doubt that fans are going to be divided on this one. On one hand, it provided closure and emotional payoff for Wanda and Vision’s story so far throughout the MCU, and it was fantastic to spend so much time with these normally secondary Avengers (compared with the likes of Iron Man and Captain America, at least). On the other hand, this episode left a lot of dangling threads that may or may not be picked up down the road in future MCU movies and shows.
Plus, the Evan Peters casting turned out to be a red herring all along. Can you believe it? Let us know in the comments below, and keep reading for all the Easter eggs and comics references we spotted in WandaVision’s finale.
China NPC: Beijing set to overhaul Hong Kong electoral system
Premier Li Keqiang warns the world not to interfere, as he addresses China’s largest political meeting.
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