The Song In WandaVision Episode 3 Tells Us A Lot About What's Really Going On

Though fans are eagerly wondering how superhero Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) has found herself in WandaVision's suburban sitcom world set against a laugh track, the Scarlet Witch herself seems uninterested in the answer. It's not entirely clear how much she remembers from her life with the Avengers, but at the first sign of an encroaching disturbance, she rewrites reality to keep the uncertainty at bay. The prevailing theory is that Wanda created this place to shelter herself from the grief and trauma of Vision's (Paul Bettany) death in Avengers: Infinity War.

After the creepy appearance of a mysterious beekeeper at the end of the show's second episode made Wanda rewind time with a resounding "No," WandaVision's third episode tests her further. When Vision begins seriously talking about something being wrong here, the image glitches a few seconds back and he comforts her instead. Then, when Geraldine (Teyonah Parris) brings up the fact that Wanda's brother Pietro was killed by Ultron — information no one in Westview should rightly know — she's ejected from the sitcom world and onto a darkened lawn, seemingly in the 21st century. A helicopter, several vans, and a few dozen armed personnel descend on her near what appears to be a military complex, which, judging by her necklace, is probably the organization SWORD. And all the while, a song plays out over the scene and into the credits, its lyrics hinting at what's really going on.

First off, though WandaVision has been meticulous about recreating each sitcom decade, from the camera techniques to the special effects, the Monkees song "Daydream Believer" is actually from 1967 — not the '70s, in which the episode seemingly is set. The mismatched timing enforces the feeling each episode cultivates: Something here is not quite right. Beyond that, the lyrics, "Cheer up, Sleepy Jean / Oh, what can it mean / To a daydream believer," enforce the theory that Wanda is trapped inside or keeping herself in a dream-like world of her own design.

Behind its pleasant, cheery-sound, the song's lyrics tell a more depressing tale of a young marriage between a "daydream believer and a homecoming queen" that's turned "funky." The singer is reluctant to wake up; the cold reality of their life stings. John Stewart, the songwriter responsible for the tune, said in an interview that he wrote "Daydream Believer" as part of a "suburbia trilogy," which certainly matches the setting of WandaVision.

However, before the Monkees recorded the song, RCA Records swapped out the word "funky" for "happy," turning the line into: "Now you know how happy I can be." This version of the lyric doesn't really jive with the rest of the song, as it conflicts with the story of a suburban marriage turned sour, but it does fit Wanda's circumstances better. She's suffered several losses, but is now enjoying herself with her very-much alive husband Vision. The cold reality she's reluctant to face is not one of a stale marriage but of one that never happened, so she remains in her daydream. WandaVision fans, meanwhile, are left wondering "Oh, what can it mean?" after each episode.