Spoiler warning: the following contains light spoilers for the first two episodes of WandaVision. Proceed at your own risk...
Early on in WandaVision, both Wanda and Vision are perplexed by a certain date – August 23 – on their kitchen calendar. Various hijinks and mix-ups involving an anniversary date-turned-work-dinner ensue – but the date itself could also be pulling double duty as a brilliant ‘I Love You 3000’-style Easter egg tribute to the entire MCU.
Let’s rewind back to the halcyon days of 2019. Avengers: Endgame was dominating the box office, leaving the house was encouraged, and we were all obsessing over Morgan Stark’s cutesy ‘I love you 3000’ response to her dad, Tony. At the time, the widely accepted theory was that the ‘3000’ was a nod to the Marvel movies’ combined runtime up until that point, give or take an hour.
So, Marvel has history for that sort of thing. If that’s the case, what does August 23 have to do with anything? That significance may become clearer as the series wears on (and the Strucker watch in the ‘commercial’ of WandaVision episode 2 also makes pointed reference to the numbers two, three, and eight), but we can’t ignore the number 23 with a heart over it.
In the premiere, that was shorthand for a dinner date with Vision's boss, Mr. Hart. But, as Marvel diehards will know, there is also the small matter of 23 MCU movies that precede WandaVision. Coincidence? Or a neat little wink and nudge towards its box office big brothers? We hope it’s the latter, especially given Marvel’s propensity for including Easter eggs and hints practically everywhere – even in WandaVision’s own opening credits.
Like most of WandaVision so far, it’s a tricky one to decipher. It could be a clue, a clever callback, or nothing at all. Part of the joy of the coming weeks will be cracking the various codes thrown our way. For now, let’s hope it’s a continuation of the I Love You 3000 spirit. After all, we could all use a little love right now.
Find out when the next episode drops with the WandaVision release schedule.
