WandaVision has been an amazing ride, but the end is finally here. The final episode has some interesting conflicts, and leaves a few plot threads open for the future of some of the characters. Many of the rumored events do not, in fact, happen, and there are some interesting connections to other upcoming projects. That’s fitting, since WandaVision opened Phase Four of the MCU. To quote Ramsey Bolton from Game of Thrones, “If you think this has a happy ending, you haven’t been paying attention.” As a season, and possibly series, finale, there will be spoilers ahead for “The Series Finale.”

Picking up pretty much where the last episode ended, Wanda confronts Agatha in the streets of Westview, as Agatha holds Billy and Tommy on some very non-kid-friendly leashes. Agatha and Wanda exchange threats and banter, and, once again, Kathryn Hahn gives a phenomenal performance. I’d vote for her as best actress for the series, with Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda a close second. In a quick series of events, we see Wanda paying a price for defying Agatha, Vision at war with himself, a nice nod to the Wizard of Oz, and some great lines from Agatha.

While Wanda and Vision have their respective end-boss battles, Monica is trapped elsewhere. Her attempts to get out are foiled by “Pietro,” who gets in a few amusing quips. On the outside, Director Hayward continues to be an annoying jerk, and his thugs have managed to capture Jimmy Woo. Hayward gloats, Woo has some counters, and then we learn that the FBI Agent has quite literally learned a few good tricks. Agatha and Wanda argue about what Wanda actually is, and there’s a passing reference to Doctor Strange. Contrary to rumor, that’s as close as we get to seeing him in the series. When Wanda won’t agree with Agatha’s theory, Agatha gets cruel and plays games with both Wanda and the various Westview residents. It’s an ugly scene, and one of many that have me feeling bad for Wanda.

Not content to be a helpless prisoner, Monica prowls around where she’s being held. She learns several things of interest and manages to break Agatha’s hold on “Pietro.” This also explains the frequent references to the never-seen Ralph. It does leave a major unanswered question or two. It would seem that either some amazing coincidence happened, or Agatha can, among other things, see into other realities. While the twins worry about their mother, Wanda gets swarmed by agonized townsfolk. Her power spills out of control and horrifies the Avenger. Then, when she tries to set things right, Wanda learns the depths of the problem she’s trapped in as Agatha gloats about her impossible decision. Taking advantage of fluctuations in the Hex, SWORD charges inside in a needless display of firepower. Everyone gathers, and we get a cool, Incredibles-style moment of Vision, Wanda, and the twins preparing to face off against everyone.

In another rapid-fire series of events, Vision finds a great way to handle his conflict, Wanda and Agatha square off again, Tommy gets a nod to one of his “uncle’s” best scenes, and Monica saves some people from Hayward’s excess. When the SWORD director sees how things are going against him, he attempts to flee. I’d say this is a bad move with at least one speedster on the scene, but as it turns out, his escape is cut short by the arrival of Darcy, with another great line. The Vision battle resolves in an unexpected way that makes a lot of sense, and creates the first of many loose ends. Again, not everything should be resolved here, as this is the start of the next phase of the MCU, and I really think they’ve earned our trust so far.

Wanda and Agatha’s fight roams around the town and back in time as well. Agatha keeps her irksome smugness as she keeps trying to convince Wanda she can’t win. We get a hint at Wanda’s new look as the battle goes on, and then we see that Wanda has been paying attention and that she’s great at using misdirection. We knew this already, and even saw it earlier this very episode (surprise car!), but she does something on an even grander scale here. I do love it when a villain’s boasting is part of what helps defeat them. Wanda gets her new costume and visits her punishment on Agatha, which is quite fitting. The new change shows us Kathryn Hahn changing gears magnificently, and it’s a great wrap up to that conflict.

Victory rarely comes without a price, and the cost here is very high and falls on Wanda. The Maximoff family goes home for what we all know is a sad goodbye as the Hex continues to contract, released by Wanda. There’s a wrenching parting as they put the kids to bed, and the story seems to be following the original comic book tale in many regards. Vision and Wanda get their own goodbye, and Vision once again gets a stirring, heartbreaking line or two. Paul Bettany in many ways has been overshadowed by Hahn and Olsen, but he’s amazing in this scene. As Westview reverts to normal, we see the changes sink in, and get a very odd apparent link to a fantastic movie set in the future that, until now, had nothing whatsoever to do with the MCU.

Heartbroken, Wanda wanders through Westview one last time, and is decidedly (and understandably) not going to win any popularity contests here. She meets up with Monica, and they have a good exchange. Monica is a remarkably compassionate and understanding person. Wanda shifts to her new look and flies away, with one last look back at what was supposed to be her happily ever after. It’s a rough ending for someone who has suffered so much over the course of her several appearances. This could be the end, but it’s Marvel, and people really should know by now not to leave before it’s actually over.

There are two final scenes that, as they tend to do, set up future stories. In one, Monica and Jimmy Woo are doing their best to start the long process of restoring Westview to normal (Darcy has ducked out). Monica gets called away, and there’s an interesting reveal about a minor character that seems to indicate that Monica just might be part of the upcoming Secret Invasion series. In the second scene, we see Wanda’s new home, and see her studying and then hearing some disturbing calls, as well as getting an example of her power.

What I liked: Almost everything. There were no bad performances here, with Hahn, Olsen, and Bettany particularly standing out. Vision’s resolution was brilliant, and Wanda’s path to victory was fantastic. I thought it was great that Woo, Darcy, and Monica all got their moments to shine. Vision and Wanda’s farewell was tragic, but oh-so-well written and acted. The end scenes were nice hints of things to come, the way Marvel scenes have been since Iron Man, with the exception of Endgame.

What I didn’t: Wanda’s been through enough. Give the poor woman a break already. A few of the things they built up to didn’t go anywhere, and it almost felt like the writers/show-runners were teasing us, especially with Monica’s mysterious aerospace engineer that went nowhere, and the teases about both the Fantastic Four and the X-Men.

I’ll give the finale a 4 out of 5, and the season/series as a whole a 4.5 out of 5. This was some great work, and bodes well for the future of the MCU.

Now, my own version of an end credits scene:

What’s to Come: Scarlet Witch is confirmed for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Monica is confirmed to be in Captain Marvel 2, and might well be in Secret Invasion after this ending. Kat Dennings has hinted that her Darcy Lewis will be back, although she hasn’t said how or when as yet.

In Phase One of the MCU, Phil Coulson was the glue that held almost everything together. In the Netflix/Defenders, that role was filled by Claire Temple. I’d really love for Jimmy Woo and/or Darcy to take on that task for Phase Four. But that’s me. We’ll see.

Next week is supposed to see a special about WandaVision, and the week after that, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier will begin.

I thought this was a stellar series, and a great way to show what the Disney+ shows can do.