The Falcon and The Winter Soldier vs Wandavision
Image Courtesy of Screen Rant
By Garrett Farrell
In the early months of 2021, there have seemingly been two shows that have captured the attention of the public and taken over pop culture. These two shows came from the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe, which has already established itself as the ultimate franchise in pop culture for the time being. Basically, unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that these shows are WandaVision and The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Now, while these shows are similar in many respects, there are very clear differences in the shows’ styles, plots, and genres.
WandaVision premiered on January 15 and immediately captured audiences’ attention. The show centers around Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and her husband Vision (Paul Bettany) living an ideal life in Westview, New Jersey. However, there are many subtle hints that more sinister forces may be at play, and as the protagonists slowly uncover these hints for themselves, they find that their ideal life is not all that it seems.
The Falcon and The Winter Soldier premiered on March 19 and was completely different in overall style from WandaVision. TFWS focused mainly on the global aftermath of the events of Avengers: Endgame. Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) and James “Bucky” Barnes (Sebastian Stan) form quite the comedic duo as they fight off a terrorist group known as The Flag Smashers who seek to continue the policy of completely open borders that was in place during “The Blip.” Not to be ignored is the consensus winner for the internet’s “most punchable face” award, John Walker (Wyatt Russell), who the United States government has announced to be the new Captain America.
Both shows have many merits that make them excellent; however, the two shows are very different both in tone and in style. WandaVision generally has a very lighthearted tone; the main characters don’t take themselves too seriously for most of the show, and there are very rarely moments where we see darker sides of the main characters. In contrast, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is a much darker show; in the first episode we see flashbacks of Bucky Barnes assassinating political figures while he was being controlled by Hydra, and there are frequent discussions of the darkest, most shameful parts of American history.
Stylistically the differences between the shows are even more pronounced. For most of the show, WandaVision is parodying classic sitcom tropes, and the way the show is shot reflects that. A majority of the show is filmed in the classic three camera style that was used for most shows before the turn of the century. In contrast, all of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is filmed using the modern single camera style, as the camera tends to follow characters and objects more closely than it does in WandaVision. This is naturally a product of the difference in the natures of the two shows, with The Falcon and The Winter Soldier having many more action sequences.
Now, these differences don’t detract from either show, and both shows are definitely worth a watch, but if you were asking me to recommend one over the other… I’d have to say The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. It’s nothing against WandaVision, but in my opinion, TFWS has the advantage in acting and storytelling. Beyond Mackie, Stan, and Russel, even the minor actors leave their mark on the show, especially the incomparable Julia Louis-Dreyfus. In terms of storytelling, WandaVision’s “bit” is done just a little too well. The fun nods to classic shows can take you out of the story, and later in the show when the bit isn’t featured as much the changes in visuals can be a bit jarring.
While I certainly have a preference, both shows have many things to love and are extraordinary television that are worth watching.
