Who Is Geraldine on ‘WandaVision’—and Who Does She Work For?

Well, that sure was something, wasn’t it? Episode 3 of WandaVision totally went for it in terms of reveals, expanding the show’s universe to just outside Westview’s city limits and outside Wanda’s imagination. Oh yeah—obviously we are gonna get into spoilers in this post. This entire thing is one big spoiler. Why are you here if you haven’t watched WandaVision Episode 3?

Anyway—”Now in Color” doesn’t so much answer questions as ask a whole bunch more. But at least the episode asks questions that point us in a definite direction re: the show’s central mystery. We now have a better grasp on what we’re dealing with here, even if we still have no idea what’s going on. And in regards to one big question posed by Episode 3, we actually have an answer. We do know who Geraldine is and who she’s working for on WandaVision. Let’s break it down!

Who is Geraldine on WandaVision?

Introduced in last week’s second episode, Geraldine (Teynoah Parris) is just another Westview resident caught up in whatever reality-warping, sitcom-styled magic Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) has unleashed. Except she’s not.

WandaVision Episode 3 finally teased something we’ve known for a while, literally from the moment Parris was cast on the show. She’s not playing a neighbor named Geraldine. She’s playing Monica Rambeau, a major Marvel Comics superhero. We finally got an inkling of Geraldine’s true identity in this Brady Bunch-inspired episode. After Westview’s resident busybody Agnes (Kathryn Hahn) made Vision (Paul Bettany) suspicious of his wife’s friend, he rushed into his home only to find Wanda alone and Geraldine long gone. She was forcefully ejected, retro outfit and all, out of Wanda’s Westview and back to Earth. The last shot of Episode 3 is of a whole squadron of troops, officers, agents, etc. descending upon a spaced out Geraldine/Monica.

Who is Monica Rambeau on WandaVision?

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Monica Rambeau is the daughter of Maria Rambeau—the fighter pilot played by Lashana Lynch in the ’90s-set Captain Marvel. Now Monica’s all grown up and an agent of S.W.O.R.D. (more on them in a sec).

In the Marvel Comics universe, Monica Rambeau debuted as Captain Marvel in 1982’s Amazing Spider-Man Annual #16, written by Roger Stern and penciled by John Romita Jr. Her powers involve manipulation of different types of energy and light, meaning she can wield and transform into various forms of rays and radiation. Monica was the second Marvel Comics character to bear the title Captain Marvel, and she would do so for about 14 years. During that time, she joined the Avengers and she led the Avengers. When the original Captain Marvel’s son Genis-Vell took on the name Captain Marvel, Monica switched to using the codename Photon—a name that Genis-Vell would also steal. After going by Pulsar for a minute, Monica’s used the codename Spectrum for the last seven years—and Genis-Vell is dead, so he ain’t stealing more of her names.

Who does Geraldine work for on WandaVision? What is S.W.O.R.D.?

The thing that really triggers Wanda in Episode 3 is Geraldine/Monica’s necklace. Wanda demands to know what the symbol stands for, apparently unaware that it is the logo for S.W.O.R.D. This logo has popped up on more than just Monica’s necklace. The encircled sword appeared next to a monitor in the real world at the end of Episode 1, and it popped up again in Episode 2 on the toy helicopter that Wanda found in her front yard and on the back of that creepy beekeeper. It’s clear from her choice of jewelry that Monica works for S.W.O.R.D., and it’s also worth wondering if the helicopter from Episode 2 brought her into Wanda’s world (remember: “Geraldine” wasn’t in Episode 1!).

So, what is S.W.O.R.D.? In the comics, S.W.O.R.D. stands for Sentient World Observation and Research Department. The organization was essentially S.H.I.E.L.D.’s outer space department. Whether or not that’s the case for the MCU’s newly-introduced S.W.O.R.D. remains to be seen. There’s been no indication yet that anything going on in WandaVision has anything to do with aliens, so the acronym may change. Or, y’know, these sitcoms are a world created by Wanda’s sentience! Or it’s possible that these sitcoms a kind of alternate reality, and MCU’s S.W.O.R.D. handles those as well. Or—and this is very silly but also weirdly plausible—maybe WandaVision’s S.W.O.R.D. stands for Scarlet Witch Observation and Research Department. Hey—the creators and cast have hinted that WandaVision is going to reveal why Wanda has that codename!

WandaVision Episode 3 Recap: “Is There a Doctor in the House?”

To sum it all up: Teyonah Parris is playing Monica Rambeau, an agent of S.W.O.R.D. who got stuck in Wanda’s sitcom reality and took on the name Geraldine. Now she’s outside of Wanda’s vision and who knows what she’ll be able to report back to S.W.O.R.D.!

New episodes of WandaVision debut on Disney+ on Fridays.

Stream WandaVision on Disney+