WandaVision arc finally delved inside the niches of Chaos Magic and it may finally be responsible for a more powerful version of Wanda Maximoff as the Scarlet Witch.
Please be warned for those who have still not watched episode 8 of the WandaVision television series on Disney+, there are *several spoilers* in the content mentioned ahead.
In episode 8 of the WandaVision television series, we witness Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) using her mind manipulation magic on Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and taking her through all the past-life traumas that she has witnessed from the time she was born (this time around there weren’t any commercials). The reason Agatha Harkness took this trip down memory lane is that she wanted to understand the origins of Wanda’s power and what makes Wanda Maximoff one of the most powerful magic users on planet earth. Agatha reveals to Wanda about the latent power which has been imbued in her body since her birth allows her to wield the power of ‘Chaos Magic’ which makes her the Scarlet Witch. We are aware of Wanda’s superhero name but what is Chaos magic in the Marvel Comics Universe and the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
In the Marvel Comics Universe ‘Chaos Magic’ has been defined as a form of magic that can be used to Warp, alter, manipulate and reconstruct reality as per the wielder’s choosing. The Danger? By toying around the very fabric of time the magic may cause ripples or diversions in the current time continuum thus causing irregularities in the multiverse and challenge the very essence of existence. Chaos magic has the potential to wipe away the universe and the entire multiverse from existence by creating multiple alterations.
How Did Wanda Get Her Powers Of Chaos Magic?
Wanda Maximoff aka Scarlet Witch origin story was retconned by the Marvel comics from the mutant with reality-altering powers to the Witch who was capable of wielding Chaos Magic. In the comics, the origin of the Chaos magic dates back to the formation of the earth. During this era, an ancient species of beings called the ‘Elder Gods’ used to roam the planet. One of the strongest of these Elders lowered down into an arch-demon class and was since called Chthon, who became the first of the elder gods on Earth to harness the power of the mysterious dark magic. Chthon ruled the earth for a brief period as the ‘God of Chaos’, by using his dark magic powers to reshape the reality as per his liking. But, eventually, the other Elder gods found out about this and exiled him and sealed him away in an alternate dimension through Mount Wundagore, located somewhere in modern western Europe.
Wanda Maximoff was born in Sokovia which was within the vicinity of Mount Wundagore with her reality-altering powers as a mutant. Chthon who was still looking for a resurrection, located Wanda’s unique life force and decided to choose her as his vessel of reincarnation and in the process imbued her with a minute fraction of his power, giving rise to the Wanda Maximoff that we know of and to the powers of Chaos Magic. In time as Wanda gained mastery of her latent powers, she eventually became the most powerful character of the Marvel Comics universe. With events like the ‘House of M’ and countless other incidences made her stand out of the crowd and most probably atop the entire human evolutionary chain.
But, in 2016 with the release of Doctor Strange, Kevin Feige commented on the kind of magic that Wand wields and how can her magic and herself be countered by Doctor Strange. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we have witnessed Wanda wield her magic, which seems to be a lot chaotic and irregular in shape, well that is what Chaos Magic is, chaotic. On the other hand, we have Doctor Stephen Strange who has been trained by the former Sorcerer Supreme and he has ascended the throne of the current Sorcerer Supreme himself.
Wanda on the other hand never received any kind of training, whatever she achieved was of her understanding and number of hit and misses. The kind of magic both these users wield is a strike an extreme contrast to each other in nature, Wanda’s magic is born out of Chaos and Doctor Strange’s magic is systematic and brings Order. So, in simple terms, Dr. Strange’s Order magic can reset the current altered reality back to its normal state releasing it from the clutches of the Chaos magic. Now only time will tell how the showdown between the guardian of the Mystic arts and the wielder of the Chaos magic figure out this catastrophe.
