WARNING: The following contains spoilers for WandaVision Episode 4, "We Interrupt This Program," now streaming on Disney+.
In the first three episodes of WandaVision, one of the most surprising aspects of the sitcom reality was the commercials. They make the show feel really like a retro TV series, cutting into the humor to sell household items for people in the '50, '60 and '70s.
However, as much as the commercials enhance the show's levity, there could be a much bleaker aspect to them, as they may reflect Wanda's grief and tragic past.
In this alternate reality known as Westview, the small town is a manifestation of Wanda's grief, which is obvious from the perfect life she has created. But while her husband, children and overall demeanor speak to her sense of hope and wishful thinking, the commercials come from the darker side of her psyche.
In the first episode, the Toast Mate 2000 is a product of Stark Industries. The slogan for the item is "Forget the past, this is your future," which seems connected to Wanda's past with Tony Stark. Initially, he was an enemy to her, as his bombs were dropped on Sokovia, killing her family in the process. She viewed him as a terrorist and the origin of all her agony, and even after she turned into an Avenger, Tony was still a thorn in her side.
He tried to lock her away in Civil War, using Vision to babysit her. This led to the Avengers breaking up, which made it easy for Thanos to get the Infinity Stones and kill Vision. To put it simply, Tony's need to control everything caused a lot of the tragedy in Wanda's life. And while she might want to forget her past and focus on her future as a hero, her mind's clearly pushing back and trying to find someone to blame.
The second episode houses a commercial for a Strucker watch. With the Hydra logo in the middle, it ends with the ticking of the watch rapidly increasing as the announcer reads the slogan, "Strucker: He'll make time for you." Baron von Strucker was the man who experimented on her and Pietro, and while giving her powers allowed her to fight back and get a bit of agency back, she was still a lab rat for a horrible man. This commercial gives off the impression that Wanda's conflicted, though, mostly about whether Hydra was a good or bad influence. Time could also speak to Thanos telling Wanda, once he had the Time Stone, that time was all an illusion. In that sense, Wanda could see time as the enemy, which is why she wants to fiddle with reality.
Lastly, the third episode features the Hydra Soak bath powder that is supposed to help one relax. The slogan for this product is that it lets the user "escape to a world all your own," which suggests that Wanda believes making her own world is the only way out. It also tells the audience to "find the goddess within," something Wanda may be embracing in her quest to bend reality to her will and take back full control. Clearly, Wanda wants to be in charge of everything, and these commercials are just one way of showing that.
Written by Jac Schaeffer and directed by Matt Shakman, WandaVision stars Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch, Paul Bettany as Vision, Randall Park as Agent Jimmy Woo, Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis, Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau, and Kathryn Hahn as Agnes. New episodes air Fridays on Disney+.