Fans have patiently waited for Marvel’s Phase 4. With much anticipation, Marvel kicked off its Phase 4 with WandaVision. Initially, the show felt like it is being dragged. But eventually, the show picked up its speed. WandaVision is Marvel’s first-ever Disney+ series. The show has successfully established Wanda as the Scarlet Witch. Elizabeth Olsen first appeared as Wanda in 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron. After six years, she has been referred to as Scarlet Witch for the first time. Her ‘Chaos Magic’ is capable of rewriting the fabric of reality itself. This explains how Olsen will directly land in ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’.
Doctor Strange is set for a major cameo in Spider-Man: No Way Home. This states that Spider-Man 3 will also lead into Doctor Strange 2. That is why the fans are eagerly waiting for a live-adaptation of Dan Slott’s Spider-Verse story from 2014. It has also been reported that Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield will be appearing in the film. They both will be a different iteration of the Spider-Man, hailing from alternate dimensions.
But there’s a problem with this theory. It sits uncomfortably with the narrative direction set by the post-credits scenes of Spider-Man: Far From Home. We saw how Spider-Man was framed for Mysterio’s death. Moreover, his secret identity was revealed to the world as well. So how does this sit with the Multiverse? The MCU’s version of Quentin Beck was a former employee of Tony Stark. He grew bitter and envious of Iron Man’s fame and success. Mysterio pulled off a scam. It made the world believe that he was an interdimensional superhero. He claimed that he originated from a parallel world. Mysterio claimed this by stealing Stark’s technology. He also allied with several people.
How is the MCU planning to move past it and focus on the multiverse? Spider-man discovered the truth when it was too late. He had already shared the drone technology with Mysterio. However, the final confrontation leads to Mysterio’s death. So how would Peter get from this disturbing new status quo – his identity revealed, the world turning against him and believing him a villain – to a multidimensional adventure?
The cat is out of the bag, and everybody knows Peter Parker is the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. He cannot go back to the time when no one knew about his true identity. Spider-Man has one goal in the threequel; not to regain his secret identity, because by now there will be no going back on that, but rather to prove he is not responsible for the havoc Mysterio wreaked across Europe. There are two ways to accomplish this task, and neither will be easy for a teenage superhero.
There is the most obvious approach that Spider-Man could follow. That is to prove that Mysterio was responsible for the Elementals. Peter discovered the truth about Mysterio. But he never realized the supervillain was part of a greater conspiracy. Mysterio’s allies had enough time to cover his tracks. Now, Peter would have to track down everyone Tony has ever annoyed in the hope he would stumble upon one of the conspirators. Tony Stark was a superhero and a savior. But it does not change the fact that he was known for his abrasive and egotistical personality.
Another approach for Spider-Man would be quantum mechanics. Mysterio’s claims are rooted in real-world theories of quantum mechanics. But if the science underpinning his story was undermined, then he would naturally be revealed to the world as a charlatan. Now, Spider-Man would have to defy the existence of Multiverse, instead of proving himself right. Mysterio’s deception positioned Spider-Man as a likely skeptic when it comes to the Multiverse. If Peter Parker stumbled upon a Multiversal Spider-Man, he would simply assume it was another hoax, perhaps even one orchestrated by the Mysterio conspirators.
Spider-Man: No Way Home can be about both Mysterio and the Multiverse, using Mysterio’s deception as a springboard to launch a now wary Spider-Man into Multiversal action. Having been deceived by a lie, Peter Parker – who, in the comics, has always been considered one of Marvel’s smartest superheroes – winds up discovering the real thing. This sets up the idea of Peter being forced to go to court and call up the likes of Doctor Strange to explain the real Multiverse. We know Matt Murdock (Daredevil) is involved in Spider-Man: No Way Home.
In the comics, Matt Murdock has even gone to the Supreme Court to debate whether or not masked vigilantes should be called as ‘witnesses’. It would be rather entertaining to see a similar idea play out on the big screen at the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home, with the Masters of the Mystic Arts testifying in court as to the nature of the Multiverse.
What do you think of this theory? Are you excited for Spider-Man: No Way Home?
