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The 'WandaVision' Commercials Are Clever Easter Eggs That Outline the Show's Origin Story

Photo credit: Elaine Chung
Photo credit: Elaine Chung

From Esquire

The mid-century sitcom world of WandaVision is as weird and charming as it is a cool meta exploration of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In just two episodes that run less than a full hour, there's a lot to unpack from this black-and-white slice of vintage Americana. And part of that is the brief commercial interruptions we get in episodes one and two, which quietly serve as a secret explanation of the WandaVision origin story.

The first commercial we see midway through Episode One is for the Stark Toast Mate 2000. “It’s the go-to for clever housewives,” the add pitches. The most obvious clue here is that this toaster comes from Stark Industries, a reference to Tony Stark's and his father's business empire. But what's really interesting here are some of the more subtle details. When the toaster is turned on, it makes the unmistakable sound of the Iron Man armor powering up. There's also a red light flashing on the front of the toaster with a sound like a bomb counting down. This, as fans have speculated, is likely a reference to Wanda's first Avengers appearance in Age of Ultron. When we first meet Wanda, she's with her brother Pietro. They explain that their parents were killed by bombs made by Stark Industries. The two of them survived, buried under the rubble for days with one undetonated Stark bomb. “Every effort to save us, every shift in the bricks, I think, ‘This will set it off.’ We wait for two days for Tony Stark to kill us,” Wanda explained in Age of Ultron. This advertisement seems to clearly reference Wanda's origin story, and the reason she initially joined Hydra.

The second commercial is for Strücker Watches. "They say a man is never fully dressed without two important accessories,” the spokesman says. “His special lady, and his Strücker.” The commercial ends with a close-up of the watch with the tagline: "Strücker, he'll make time for you."

There are a few key details in this second ad, the most obvious one being the reference to Baron Wolfgang von Strücker, who first recruited Pietro and Wanda into Hydra. He's also the one who experimented on Wanda and Pietro with the Mind Stone to give them their super powers. When we see the close up of the watch, you can see the Hydra name and symbol engraved on its face.

Photo credit: Disney
Photo credit: Disney

Though they might not be very helpful for new viewers, these advertisements are fun Easter Eggs for fans of the in-depth MCU. But they also serve another purpose. Wanda and Vision are clearly trapped in some sort of strange alternate universe, one that we've speculated might be connected to the House of M comics series. And these advertisements seem to be telling us something important.

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has said that these commercials will be more important than they seem:

“How is other truths of the show beginning to leak out? And commercials was an early idea for that. And if this is the very first Marvel MCU thing you’re watching, it’s just a strange. It’s just a strange version of the ’50s commercial or ’60s commercial that you’ll have to keep watching the series and understand. If you have been watching all the movies, you might be able to start connecting what those things mean to the past.”

With the third episode dropping next Friday, it might be worth it to go back through to take a close look at all the other Easter Eggs WandaVision might be hiding. Like, for instance, the red toy Wanda finds that's also from Stark Industries. Or that beekeeper at the end of Episode Two.

One thing is certain, make sure you're paying attention going forward.

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