"CHAOS Magic Woman!" Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff Appreciation 2022

[Phoenixx9]

They do, yes. In the Kurt Busiek run that introduced the idea that her powers had always been magic -- which has stuck since then, even in Avengers Disassembled -- she continues to use terms like hex sphere, hex power, etc. She uses her magic powers to cast hexes.

Ah, thank you!

[James Hunter]

I know this is an odd topic to bring up but I have just been re-reading A-NEXT and I'm curious just what people's general opinion of Tom Defalco's take on Wanda is. Especislly in A-NEXT #8-9...

Personally I thought it was interesting but I'm curious of other peoples opinions (acknowledging, of course, that its in its own continuity)

[gurkle]

All I remember about those issues is her being found unconscious and not having aged despite it being set in the future.

[Lukmendes]

I think it's just game related. Probably because they are teasing some things about the game. Or they just misinterpreted their parentage.

It could be a possibility like her and Pietro being genetic experiments he made or somethin' like that, time will tell though.

I always loved the caption literally defining her power as "something happens."

The Wundagore Mountain one also talks about a "combination hex bolt and mutant blast," but isn't her hex bolt supposed to be her mutant power? But writers got confused a lot about what was mutant, magic or something in between.

One of the all-time craziest uses of her hex bolts, though you really need to read the issues to get the full effect, is in maybe her best guest appearance of the '70s, Marvel Team-Up #41-44 written by Bill Mantlo (an arc guest-starring her, Vision, Doctor Doom and Moondragon). It's too complicated to explain, but when Wanda's mind is taken over by an evil witch-hunter who wants to take her back in time to the Salem Witch trials, she manages to cast a random hex before passing out, and the hex produces a pink fireball that zooms around New York until it starts following Spider-Man around, and eventually teleports him to Wanda. (Note: Spidey and Wanda had never met on-panel before and she never had the power to teleport before.)

Hm... Checking out appearances here, they did meet in MTU#11, kinda, it's a story about Kang having captured the Avengers and Spidey teams up with a bunch of characters to save 'em (Stark, Johnny, Inhumans), the Avengers are rescued and Spidey and Wanda do see each other, but Avengers are just people who need to be rescued and don't do much, I don't think the Avengers besides Stark and Thor even get to talk lol.

It's likely the first time he met Vision too.

Though yeah, MTU#41~44 is the first time they interact and share an adventure, which's far more noticeable than "Spidey helped to save the Avengers once" lol.

https://comicsarcheology.com/wp-cont...mage006-36.png

Then in the last issue of the arc, when everyone is back in the 17th century, Wanda pulls the same trick again, except the hex goes forward in time to the 20th century, takes over Moondragon's mind and compels her to let it teleport her back in time to 17th-century Salem so she can help fight the villain.

https://comicsarcheology.com/wp-cont...mage003-41.png

And Wanda has no idea how she did any of this because both these hexes were cast unconsciously before she passed out. This was the '70s and there wasn't a lot of editing going on, so it seems like Mantlo just got to make Wanda's powers do literally anything he wanted without knowing what she was doing, and it was kind of fun.

https://i.imgur.com/Mf4xtGj.jpeg

I wonder if random stuff like that is why Marvel eventually decided to say Wanda's powers are magical in nature lol.

All I remember about those issues is her being found unconscious and not having aged despite it being set in the future.

You think there's any chance she cast a hex on herself before she went unconscious that prevented her from aging somehow? .

[GenericUsername]

It could be a possibility like her and Pietro being genetic experiments he made or somethin' like that, time will tell though.

Maybe in that game. In the comics it's very different. He just gave them their powers and even that should have an asterisk next to it because their family has abilities, and Wanda was blessed/cursed by Chthon. He just experimented on them after they were born. Unless he's meant to be the father that killed Natalya, and then took the kids.

[Galerion]

On the topic of streamlining Wandas powers I feel the comics have a problem that the MCU doesn't have and that is Pietro. Let me explain. In the MCU Wanda is a born witch and a very special one at that and that's it. It's simple and clean. So how did MCU Pietro got his powers? We don't really know and since he is dead it's not really important anyway so people can headcanon it. Wanda gave Monica superpowers through the Hex and Agatha gave Ralph Boner Quicksilvers powers through an enchanted necklace so it's easy to assume it's in their powers to do so and Wanda was using magic all the time unknowingly so there you have a possible explanation.
In the comics though Pietro is obviously alive and kicking and since they are siblings you have to explain how both of them got their powers. Obviously they didn't bother with giving them different origins on how they attained their powers so that's why we currently have this High Evolutionary stuff that nobody really cares for I imagine.

Now is it really worth it to retcon this once again? I don't think so because I honestly don't see many references being made to it anyways but it would be possible I suppose.

You think there's any chance she cast a hex on herself before she went unconscious that prevented her from aging somehow? .

Interestingly Trial of Magneto established her as immortal so there is that.

[gurkle]

On the topic of streamlining Wandas powers I feel the comics have a problem that the MCU doesn't have and that is Pietro. Let me explain. In the MCU Wanda is a born witch and a very special one at that and that's it. It's simple and clean. So how did MCU Pietro got his powers?

The script of WandaVision 8 has Agatha speculate on an explanation for Pietro's powers. It was cut from the episode but probably represents what they think happened. And unless we see Pietro in the MCU again (Aaron Taylor-Johnson just doesn't seem to be coming back, much as I would like him to) it's probably the closest thing to an explanation we'll get: Wanda was born with some kind of witchcraft power, which protected Pietro from death and enabled him to get his own powers from the Mind Stone.

[GenericUsername]

Yeah and it's become pretty accepted in the fandom that Wanda gave him powers to try to save him. Since she also gave her children powers.

In comics I felt Pietro should have stayed a mutant while Wanda is magic, blessed by Chthon.

[Galerion]

The script of WandaVision 8 has Agatha speculate on an explanation for Pietro's powers. It was cut from the episode but probably represents what they think happened. And unless we see Pietro in the MCU again (Aaron Taylor-Johnson just doesn't seem to be coming back, much as I would like him to) it's probably the closest thing to an explanation we'll get: Wanda was born with some kind of witchcraft power, which protected Pietro from death and enabled him to get his own powers from the Mind Stone.

Yeah something like that is kinda what was hinted at. Obviously the comics couldn't go with that at the time but Im sure they would have now if given the opportunity.

Don't know if you noticed it but pretty much every recent appearance of her has something to do with magic. Darkhold, The Trial of Magneto, her role in the current Captain Marvel arc, her role in the Strange Academy including the upcoming relaunch, probably her appearance in the current Strange comic.

Makes me think they really want tie her to the magic side of Marvel which would make sense. Marvels magic side is one of the least developed ones after all and you don't have many characters in it who are popular and relevant so it could really use a boost. So even though Aaron is leaving I don't think that Wanda will necessarily rejoin the Avengers. I mean it's possible and there isn't much of an argument against it but I don't think that's really the main thing they will be going for. I feel whatever project with Wanda in it it will mainly deal with magic. Either in a solo or team setting.

[Relugus]

The script of WandaVision 8 has Agatha speculate on an explanation for Pietro's powers. It was cut from the episode but probably represents what they think happened. And unless we see Pietro in the MCU again (Aaron Taylor-Johnson just doesn't seem to be coming back, much as I would like him to) it's probably the closest thing to an explanation we'll get: Wanda was born with some kind of witchcraft power, which protected Pietro from death and enabled him to get his own powers from the Mind Stone.

I see it as the Wanda, via the mind stone giving Pietro powers from the Space Stone (as the stones are interconnected).

[Galerion]

By lorycart

I see it as the Wanda, via the mind stone giving Pietro powers from the Space Stone (as the stones are interconnected).

Is this headcanon because I can't remember this being stated?

[tranquil]

Yeah and it's become pretty accepted in the fandom that Wanda gave him powers to try to save him. Since she also gave her children powers.

Yeah I feel like it's just a simple subconscious probability hex. She saved themselves by altering the bomb from blowing up, so she saved her brother by altering the mind stone from killing him into giving him powers.

[gurkle]

Returning to the ancient times when Wanda was actually appearing in comics... in the '80s and '90s the editors were pretty insistent that she was a probability-altering mutant, so I love it all the more when writers have her do things that make absolutely no sense while claiming that it's somehow based on probability. Like in West Coast Avengers Annual 6 (1991, written by Roy and Dann Thomas) she alters the probability of turning a force field to solid crystal?



Also a page or two earlier she suddenly develops telepathic/empathic powers or at least knows how to mentally contact a telepath/empath like Sersi.

[Phoenixx9]

Returning to the ancient times when Wanda was actually appearing in comics... in the '80s and '90s the editors were pretty insistent that she was a probability-altering mutant, so I love it all the more when writers have her do things that make absolutely no sense while claiming that it's somehow based on probability. Like in West Coast Avengers Annual 6 (1991, written by Roy and Dann Thomas) she alters the probability of turning a force field to solid crystal?



Also a page or two earlier she suddenly develops telepathic/empathic powers or at least knows how to mentally contact a telepath/empath like Sersi.

Yeah, and there was no cast Hex when Wanda tried to contact Sersi. I mean, even if she cast a Hex, while still improbable, at least it would be using her powers. But just going silent into using mental powers, no, that does not work for me.

[Galerion]

Returning to the ancient times when Wanda was actually appearing in comics... in the '80s and '90s the editors were pretty insistent that she was a probability-altering mutant, so I love it all the more when writers have her do things that make absolutely no sense while claiming that it's somehow based on probability. Like in West Coast Avengers Annual 6 (1991, written by Roy and Dann Thomas) she alters the probability of turning a force field to solid crystal?



Also a page or two earlier she suddenly develops telepathic/empathic powers or at least knows how to mentally contact a telepath/empath like Sersi.

I guess a force field just randomly turning to crystal isn't impossible. It's just incredibly unlikely so there you go. No idea what's up with the sudden telepathy though.

I must say that I do find these hilarious.