Binge-watching and mental illness versus comfort TV and mental health in WandaVision

Datos Bibliográficos

ID5682014
AutoresChristopher Moore (0000-0003-3149-1140, University of Wollongong), Christopher L Moore (0000-0002-6972-2787), Chris Comerford (0000-0001-5000-7807, University of Wollongong, autor de correspondencia), Ren Vettoretto (0000-0001-6168-570X)
Año2025
Volumen20
Número2
Páginas185-204
Fecha de publicación2025-06-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaCritical Studies in Television The International Journal of Television Studies (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1749-6020 • E-ISSN: 1749-6039
EditorialSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/17496020241229038
OpenAlexW4391300358
IdiomaEN
Referencias citadas27

WandaVision launched the Disney+ subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) platform by blending the sitcom and the superhero genres in a nostalgia-inducing fusion of Marvel comics, cinema and television. The series represents the canonisation of Marvel media into a single cohesive narrative 'multiverse', yet the story focuses on the personal experience of the character, Wanda, and her struggle with loss, grief, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). In this article, we explore how WandaVision presents a unique examination of the tension between the role of screen media as comfort TV and the pervasive fears over the obsessive escapism of binge-watching. The article also assesses the potential risks of excessive media consumption through the framing of American sitcoms and superhero families from the 1950s and onward

Mental health · Mental illness · Psychiatry · Cinema and Media Studies · Clinical Psychology · Comics and Graphic Narratives · Nostalgia and Consumer Behavior · Psychology