WandaVision Episode 7 began to establish the next personifications of universal power – this time multiversal – in the form of people and places instead of Pedras do Infinito. The first 23 MCU films focused on the search for the Infinity Stones and the catastrophic repercussions that this entailed. To varying degrees, each conflict between heroes and villains has led them to find triumphant or tragic destinations due to Thanos’ ambitious quest to use the Infinity Gauntlet to decimate the universe, and anything that comes after the end of Phase 3 will be a direct consequence of the tragic victory of the Avengers in Avengers: Endgame.
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With the Infinity Stones reduced to atoms or in a completely different timeline, the universe is expected to get out of balance. MCU schedules are likely to merge and alternative realities will conflict. Villains will seek other sources of power and heroes will need to find different ways to stop them. In the comics, there are several objects and entities that, like the Infinity Stones, dictate whether the universe will remain in order or fall into total chaos, and the MCU will likely adapt some of them in future Disney + movies and programs.
Until here, WandaVision did a great job of defining many concepts that will become essential later. But since the MCU needs to be less complicated than comics, some of them are likely to be simplified or merged. Consequently, cosmic microwave background radiation, the multiverse and Nexus beings are likely to replace the science of the Quantum Kingdom, the intergalactic planets and the Infinity Stones as the main points of interest for the MCU. This raises the questions: what is the Nexus and what role will it play in the MCU?
What are Nexus beings
Just as the Infinity Stones represented a fundamental aspect of the universe, each Nexus being incorporates a different aspect of the multiverse. This includes more concepts related to magic, such as witchcraft, necromancy and geomancy. Since these entities are sentient (and often innately powerful), they are able to use and abuse their abilities to advance their own goals or to protect the multiverse, making them arguably more dangerous than the Infinity Stones. Nexus beings also connect to the Nexus of All Realities, which means the point where all realities collide. As such, they can affect the multiverse’s probabilities and alter reality on one or more planes of existence.
The location where the Nexus manifests can be just as important as the Nexus beings themselves. This means that a place like Westview can be the gateway to multiversal madness and an open door to other Nexus beings. However, at this point in the MCU, the most intriguing mystery is which character will be part of the Nexus. In the comics, Nexus beings include time traveler Kang The Conqueror and Franklin Richards, two direct descendants of the Fantastic Four; Jean Gray, known for possessing the Phoenix Force; Merlin, the legendary wizard of the times of Arthur, and both Wanda and Vision, who connect to the Nexus due to their particular origins and abilities.
Why Wanda is probably a nexus
Interestingly, Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff is even more worthy of the title of Nexus Being than its comic counterpart. While the comic book Scarlet Witch is a Nexus being mainly due to its mutant powers and magical abilities, MCU’s Wanda owes his powers to the Mental Stone and what are likely to be dormant mutant genes. In addition, it became the anchor point between the MCU and other universes, namely that of Fox X-Men franchise, which only recently started to connect with the MCU. In addition, the fake world of the Scarlet Witch, born from trauma, has turned into a snowball in an engine of magical power that can allow her to open the multiverse.
When choosing which character to own, Nexus of All Realities is easy. Wanda has a close connection to the Infinity Stones, as she not only drew her power from the Mind Stone (and even destroyed it once), but also behaves like the Stone of Reality. Wanda is also potentially the first MCU mutant and can be linked by blood to Evan Peters’ Mercury, which comes from another universe. Most importantly, Wanda transformed Westview with magic, making it a place where different planes of reality could easily intersect.
Why Agatha wishes for Wanda’s powers
Agatha Harkness is much more experienced as a witch than Wanda Maximoff. Agatha must know how useful Westview is to other magical entities, since apparently no other similar place has been created in recorded history. In fact, Agatha may have located Wanda as soon as she obtained her powers from the Mental Stone or when Wanda almost defeated Thanos alone. Wanda has not only become a target for world governments and powerful organizations, but also for sorcerers, witches and other mystical entities. While Agatha reached her first, other characters like Clea or Emma Frost may also be behind Scarlet Witch.
As for how Agatha Harkness can use Wanda’s magic, the mystery is more difficult to decipher with just a few clues. In the comics, Agatha Harkness is a witch who has lived through several historical eras. She lived to see the fall of Atlantis and played an important role in the Salem witch trials. In fact, it is very likely that WandaVision it will illuminate your story sooner or later, as this can expose your motivations for wanting Wanda’s help and power in the present. Perhaps Agatha’s “husband” Ralph, who may or may not be a disguised Mephisto, has been in prison since. But if there is something common about the witches they have established, it is that their pets are not always what they seem, so it would not be shocking if Agatha intended to remove Ralph, Mephisto or her son, Nicholas Scratch, from their pet bunny Señor Scratch.
How Nexus beings can replace infinity stones
In addition to the essential elements of the universe, the Infinity Stones affected many influential MCU characters. This is most evident in how the Mindstone imbued Vision of life and how the Space Stone gave Captain Marvel superpowers, but also in the symbolic transformation of many heroes and villains. For example, the Stone of Time helped Doctor Strange to move from novice to master in a short period of time and defeat Kaecilius and Dormammu, the last of whom lives in a different dimension. The Space Stone sent an evil Loki to a different timeline and is likely to make him an anti-hero in a shorter period of time than his original self, and the Soul Stone transformed the Red Skull from a mustacheed villain in the stoic guardian of the gate to Soul World, a pocket of reality that represents life after death.
Hulk secretly explained why infinity stones empower humans at the end of the game
Nexus beings and the Nexus of All Realities can behave similarly on a multiversal level. Wanda, as the all-powerful Scarlet Witch, could represent Necromancy after resurrecting Vision and Mercury (and possibly her twins, as they reincarnate in the comics), while Agatha Harkness embodies Witchcraft. Westview, New Jersey may be the focal point where all realities clash. As always, the MCU can adjust some details to fit all of these concepts within the established context and future plots. If what WandaVision established so far is something that can be trusted, it stands to reason that Wanda’s son Billy, who is quite powerful in the comics, could be a Nexus being, which is why Agatha is after the twins. Spider-Man could be another Nexus being, and that would explain why he is the focal point of the MCU’s apparent Spider-Verse.
The introduction of the Nexus speeds up the MCU because each conflict points to a common goal. It also allows new key characters like Wanda and Wiccan to become the faces of the MCU. WandaVision is just starting to set up the Nexus, but everything else is also falling into place. For example, the introduction of Kang, the Conqueror in Ant-Man and Wasp: Quantumania, the possible revelation of Franklin Richards in the next The fantastic four, and any mysteries Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Spider-Man: Homecoming 3 support Nexus as the Holy Grail of the next phases of the MCU.
- Black Widow (2021)Release date: May 7, 2021
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)Release date: July 9, 2021
- Eternals (2021)Release date: November 5, 2021
- Spider-Man: Homecoming 3 (2021)Release date: December 17, 2021
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)Release date: March 25, 2022
- Thor: love and thunder (2022)Release date: May 06, 2022
- Black Panther 2 (2022)Release date: July 8, 2022
- Captain Marvel 2 (2022)Release date: November 11, 2022
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