WandaVision episode 8 saw the story build towards its climax, but it's still filled with stunning MCU Easter eggs and Marvel Comics references. The mysteries of WandaVision are finally being laid bare, with Agatha Harkness stepping forward as the show's real villain, with parts of her own origin revealed here. But it seems Wanda's power far outstrips Agatha's own, and the ancient sorceress is keen to understand just how a neophyte like Wanda Maximoff has become so powerful.

All that leads into WandaVision episode 8, which interrupts the regular programming in order to reveal what has happened in the past. This is an episode that revisits the backstory of Wanda Maximoff in the MCU, revealing truths that had long been hidden, and in doing so rewriting the history of the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe and re-contextualizing past movies. Meanwhile, WandaVision episode 8's post-credits scene reminds viewers not to write SWORD out of the equation just yet, as Director Hayward plays his trump card - a so-called "sentient weapon" he clearly believes can even take on the Scarlet Witch.

Related: Marvel Confirms When WandaVision Is Set In The MCU Timeline

With a trip into the past of the MCU as well as continuing WandaVision's overarching narrative at the same time, it's no surprise that the installment is jam-packed with nods and references. So here are all the Easter eggs in WandaVision episode 8, from the subtle to the overt.

WandaVision Episode 8 Purple Marvel Logo

Over the last few years, Marvel Studios has become increasingly creative with opening renditions of their logos. Think the Stan Lee tribute for Captain Marvel, the dust effect for Avengers: Endgame, and even the redesigned Black Panther intro in honor of Chadwick Boseman. WandaVision episode 8 opens with the usual Marvel logo turning a bright purple, the trademark color of Agatha Harkness' magic, reflecting the fact she has taken control of the show.

Agatha Harkness' Origin & Powers

Agatha Using Magic in WandaVision

In the comics, Agatha Harkness is an ancient and ageless sorceress who was alive when Atlantis fell beneath the waves. She doesn't appear to be quite so old in the MCU, instead dating back to the Salem Witch Trials of 1693, where she was apparently a rogue member of a witches' coven. Agatha was placed on trial for her own crimes, with her own mother leading an attempt to execute her, but whatever dark magic she had mastered allowed her to instead drain the coven's life energy into herself. It's possible Agatha has continued to prey on other sorcerers since then, drawing their magic into herself, increasing in power over the centuries.

The Salem Witch Trials

Evanor Harkness is Salem

Agatha Harkness was involved in the Salem Witch Trials in the comics as well, but in a slightly different role; she was actually their orchestrator, approving of the persecution of witches. She believed these were necessary in order to cull the weak, and even secretly volunteered members of her own coven to be executed. The MCU's approach seems to be a different one, suggesting Agatha's experiments with dark magic were the cause of the persecution, with her coven eventually discovering the truth and attempting to kill her. The famous Witch Trials ended in 1693, presumably because Agatha had moved on and her coven had been killed.

Related: WandaVision Theory: Agatha's Rabbit Is Her Son, Nicholas Scratch

WandaVision Episode 8 Agatha Mother Crown

When Agatha's mother joins the attempt to kill her daughter, she manifests her full power in a stunning "crown" akin to a witch's headdress in the comics. The design is reminiscent of an ancient sorceress named Zhered-Na's in Marvel Comics, perhaps suggesting this coven learned Atlantean magic. If that is the case, the book of magic in Agatha's basement could well be the Tome of Zhered-Na, who was banished from Atlantis because of her prophesies of Atlantis' destruction, but whose spirit lived on after death to ensure her teachings were not forgotten. It is even possible the mysterious runes used by Agatha Harkness to restrain Wanda are Atlantean in origin.

Scarlet Witch's Origin Has Officially Been Retconned

Scarlet Witch sees her reflection in the Mind Stone in WandaVision Episode 8

It's long been clear Marvel intended to retcon Scarlet Witch, although there's been intense debate over whether she would become a sorceress - or the MCU's first mutant. WandaVision episode 8 does the deed, rewriting the history of the MCU by revealing Wanda was a young witch whose power would probably have dwindled as she aged - had she not been exposed to the Mind Stone. This fits with comments from Kevin Feige back in 2016, when he first discussed retconning Scarlet Witch by comparing her powers to Doctor Strange's. But, for all Wanda Maximoff may now truly be a sorceress, WandaVision episode 8 ends with a gripping moment suggesting her magic is very different to that of the Masters of the Mystic Arts.

The Probability Hex

WandaVision Episode 8 - Wanda Casts Probability Hex

Agatha Harkness forces Wanda to revisit some of the greatest tragedies of her life, including the fateful day her apartment was bombed during Sokovia's long and violent civil war. She and her brother Pietro were stranded in the rubble for two days, looking at the flashing light of an unexploded Stark Industries shell. According to Agatha, there is a reason the bomb did not go off; Wanda wove a simple probability hex over it, disrupting its mechanisms. In the comics, these probability hexes were indeed the first manifestation of Scarlet Witch's mystical powers.

Related: All MCU Movie Connections In WandaVision So Far

The Stark Industries Bomb

WandaVision Episode 8 Stark Industries Bomb

The mortar shell carries the logo of Stark Industries, just as discussed in Avengers: Age of Ultron. This experience led Wanda and Pietro to view Tony Stark in particular with hatred, and they ultimately volunteered for Hydra's Mind Stone experiments in the hopes of becoming saviors for their country. The WandaVision commercial in episode 1 was an Easter egg pointing to this scene, showing a Stark Industries toaster with the same flashing light as the unexploded bomb.

Loki's Scepter

WandaVision Episode 8 Loki Scepter

Wanda's memories move on to her time as a Hydra test subject, when she was exposed to the Mind Stone. Oddly enough, these experiments appear to have been quite basic, simply involving placing people in the presence of the Mind Stone; Wanda and her brother Pietro were the only ones to survive exposure. A recent in-universe guide book, The Wakanda Files, revealed Hydra didn't just settle in Sokovia because they felt they could avoid the world's attention there; they had also observed a number of genetic anomalies among Sokovians, which they believed would make them perfect test-subjects for the Mind Stone experiments. This suggests there may still be a genetic component to Wanda's powers, meaning even now Scarlet Witch could still be a latent mutant as well as a sorceress. Certainly her brother's transformation into Quicksilver is still unexplained, because it has always seemed odd that the Mind Stone granted an individual superhuman speed.

The Scarlet Witch Silhouette From The Comics

WandaVision Episode 8 Scarlet Witch In Mind Stone

Hydra scientists watch in fascination as the Mind Stone flares with power in Wanda's presence. Wanda herself receives a mysterious vision, one in which she appears to see her own future being brought into being. The Scarlet Witch costume worn is lifted straight from the comics, but looks a lot better than previous comic-book-adaptations in WandaVision's Halloween episode. Note the traditional comic book headdress, which may well be a symbol of her power.

The Aftermath Of Avengers: Age of Ultron

Vision and Wanda after Age of Ultron in WandaVision

Agatha Harkness' magical mystery tour through Wanda's memories continues, fast-forwarding to the first moment Wanda bonded with Vision in the immediate aftermath of Avengers: Age of Ultron. Wanda was grieving the recent death of her brother, and Vision offered her comfort at a time of sorrow, first creating the connection between them. Notice Vision enters by walking through the wall, a habit he still displayed in Captain America: Civil War, as he struggled to understand the point of using doors.

Related: WandaVision Has To Repeat Infinity War’s Ending To Save Wanda

The Excelsior License Plate

WandaVision Episode 8 Excelsior License Plate

There's a subtle Stan Lee Easter egg in WandaVision episode 8, although oddly enough this one may be luck rather than judgment. In 2020, New York counties began distributing new "Excelsior" license plates, replacing stock of previous "Empire Gold" plates. These new license plates bear the word "Excelsior," Latin for "Ever Upwards," and Wanda is driving a car with an Excelsior license plate in one of the flashback scenes. It's rather appropriate, given "Excelsior" became Stan Lee's catchphrase back in the '60s when he wrote the replies in comic book letters pages.

Chaos Magic

WandaVision Episode 8 Wanda Uses Chaos Magic

Agatha Harkness finally figures out why Wanda is so powerful; she wields Chaos Magic, a force Agatha believed only mythical but which allows Wanda to rewrite creation itself. In the comics, Chaos Magic is associated with the Elder God named Chthon, who used it to rule the Earth until he was banished. It was deliberately forgotten by Earth's sorceress because it was viewed as so dangerous, but Scarlet Witch was born in a place where the fabric of reality was thin, and so Chthon was able to imbue her with his power. Doctor Strange initially believed Chaos Magic was just a figment of Wanda's imagination, but the truth was revealed when Chthon invaded Earth and mocked the Sorcerer Supreme for his foolishness.

The "Scarlet Witch" Name

According to Agatha, in the MCU Chaos Magic is the province of rare magic users who are called "Scarlet Witches," beings "capable of spontaneous creation." This fits with a comment made by Kevin Feige at CCXP 2019, when he said WandaVision would finally make Wanda the Scarlet Witch. He promised the show would "reveal a name that I'm not even sure we've said in the MCU yet, but we absolutely make a big deal of in the show, which is that Wanda is in fact the Scarlet Witch. What does that mean, that she is the Scarlet Witch? And that's what we play into in this show, in ways that are entirely fun, entirely funny, somewhat scary, and will have repercussions for the entire future Phase 4 of the MCU." The MCU's definition of the Scarlet Witch differs to the comics, where it is an inherited title; here, Scarlet Witches appear to be far more rare.

Agatha Harkness' Costume

Agatha hovering above the ground with wind on her face in WandaVision.

Agatha Harkness is shown wearing a costume that's fairly accurate to the comics, although granted it's a little bit sexier given the character has been switched up and is no longer an elderly woman. She's taking a massive risk confronting Wanda out in the open in Westview, presumably gambling that the children give her the edge she needs. But for all her power, Agatha has no idea what's really in play here - because she has forgotten SWORD.

The White Vision

White Vision looking at his hand in WandaVision

WandaVision episode 8 reveals the Vision in Westview is a magical construct, a being created by Chaos Magic with no physical substance; this explains why he couldn't leave Westview, because he had left the area of Wanda's magic. But SWORD has repaired the real Vision, who they view as the greatest sentient weapon ever made. Vision's new white design is a striking reference to John Byrne's 1989 comics arc, Vision Quest, in which Vision was disassembled and then restored. The new Vision was a colorless, emotionless synthezoid who considered human life irrelevant - so he's sure to be a force to be reckoned with.

More: Why Vision Was White In The Comics

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