Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, also known as Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, are some of the most complex and complicated characters in the world of comic books. With backstories that encompass different family trees, not knowing who or what they are, and with powers that seem to unlock more tragedies than they know what to do with, these two sibling superheroes are as interesting as they are confusing.
Although they are brother and sister, their relationship takes twists and turns not normally known to most siblings. Because of the many different universes and storylines they cross over into, there’s a lot that goes on between Wanda and Pietro, and more often than not it’s not what anybody ever expects to happen.
The relationship between Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver is not one which usually gets a lot of attention, as it is normally the bond between Scarlet Witch and The Vision that gets highlighted. I you’re thinking this is because Vision and Wanda share a romantic connection, well, get ready to have your mind blown and your eyes pop as we delve into the nitty gritty of this brother and sister duo.
With that in mind, here are 20 Weird Facts About Quicksilver And Scarlet Witch’s Relationship.
They Both Have Some Serious Daddy Issues
If ever there were two characters who had some major daddy issues, they’re definitely Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. Boasting one of the most complicated and murky family trees to exist in the world of comic books, this brother and sister duo have good reason to be a little messed up when it comes to knowing who they are and where they come from.
Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch were first introduced as villainous characters in 1964 when they made their debut in the fourth issue of Uncanny X-Men. They were members of Magneto’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, and as far as anybody was aware, weren’t connected to magneto in any kind of familial way. In fact, we were led to believe that the twins, Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, were the children of Eastern European couple Django and Marya Maximoff.
However, in 1974’s Giant-Size Avengers No. 1, things started to get a little complicated, when it was revealed that the siblings were the kids of WWII superheroes Miss America and The Whizzer. Then, of course, there was another twist to keep everyone on their toes, when in 1984, Magneto laid down a “I am your father” moment.
For the next three decades, it was commonly accepted that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch were Magneto and Magda’s offspring, but of course, there’s always another twist.
In 2014, Avengers & X-Men: Axis No. 7 declared that the twins had no blood ties with Magneto and that they were, in fact, Django and Marya Maximoff’s kids after all.
They Were Raised By A Cow
To add yet another complicated and weird layer to Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch’s backstory, it turns out they had yet another parental figure, only this time their caregiver was a cow called Bova.
As their winding, twisting story goes, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch’s mother Magda wanted to have her babies as far away as possible from Magneto as she feared what might happen to her children if he found out where they were.
Their births were overseen by Bova, a cow-woman midwife, who had been created by the High Evolutionary as part of their experiments to create intelligent anamorphic creatures called The New Men.
Bova had been created specifically in order to nurture and raise children, so when Magda fled to the mountains and abandoned her newborn twins, it was Bova who took care of them and raised them for a while.
Bova tried very hard to find adoptive parents for Pietro and Wanda, and finally she found a willing couple in the Maximoffs who ended up taking in the twins and giving them their surname.
Although Django and Marya Maximoff were certainly the two people the twins ended up identifying as their parents during their formative years, there’s no denying that Bova played a big part in their initial upbringing.
Their Powers Balance Each Other’s Out
Twins are interesting people. As much as film and TV like to paint a stereotypical portrait of twins being very often the same, even creepily so, the truth is that usually these two people who happen to be born close together are very different, often wildly so. Well, such is the case with Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, who are very different in almost every single way. However, despite their contrasting behaviors, they do end up balancing each other out.
Quicksilver is super fast at everything he does. Not only does he move at super speed, but so does his temper. Easily frustrated and quick to get upset about things, Quicksilver seems to annoy easily, which is most likely due to the fact that the rest of the world is too slow for him. While he’s off doing things at ridiculous speed, he has to wait for people to catch up with him, which clearly wears on his nerves.
In contrast, Scarlet Witch is much more in tune with her surroundings and is very connected to the universe. Her ability to tap into people’s minds and alter that which surrounds her makes her a much more cerebral hero, grounded in the mind and the soul.
Quicksilver Only Stayed In The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants To Be With His Sister
As you can already tell, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch’s story is a complicated one with a lot of starts, stops, twists, and turns.
When these two characters were first introduced in Uncanny X-Men, they were painted out to be villains, serving Magneto’s will as members of The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. However, we learn that neither Quicksilver or Scarlet Witch actually wanted to be a part of this crew as they didn’t really agree with Magneto’s particular vision of evil.
Wanda only agreed to be a part of the gang in the first place because she felt like she owed Magneto after he saved her and Quicksilver from an angry mob. Because Quicksilver and his sister shared such a tight bond, he decided to join and stay too.
Every time we see the brother and sister trying to leave The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, Magneto becomes abusive, making it almost impossible for the twins to leave.
Magneto could obviously see how powerful Scarlet Witch’s powers are, and wants to use both of their abilities to inflict his evil will on mutantkind.
Eventually, as we know, Wanda and Pietro succeed in leaving The Brotherhood, and join the Avengers in issue #16.
He joined Another Bad Bunch, The New Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, To Stay Close To Her Too
Over the years, Wanda Maximoff went through a lot - lke a crazy amount. In fact, she is arguably the superhero with the most tragic story, having gone through more tragedies and more hardships than most people should ever have to endure.
From not knowing her parentage to basically losing the love of her life, Scarlet Witch has gone through it all. The one person she could always count on, however, was her brother Pietro, who stuck by her side through thick and thin. Although some might say these two sibling were a little too close for comfort sometimes, at least she had someone who wouldn’t abandon her when things turned rough.
After Wanda endured the pain of seeing The Vision lose all emotional capacity, she left and went to go join the East Coast Team, forming in the process The New Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.
Once again, although Quicksilver was reluctant to join this villainous crew, he pitched in his forces in order to stay close to his sister and make sure she was okay. He wanted to monitor her as she went through this difficult time and keep a close eye so that she didn’t turn completely evil.
Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch Bonded Over Finding Out They Weren’t Actually Mutants
It would mess anybody up pretty badly to grow up thinking you’re something and then years later discover you’re not. It’s bad enough not really knowing who your parents are, but then to have your entire identiy called into question? That’s pretty messed up.
Well, in Uncanny Avengers #4, we got the shock revelation that Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver weren’t actually mutants after all. This was big news, as up until then, it was assumed that they were.
They leerned that The High Evolutionary stole the twins from their birth parents, Django and Marya Maximoff, and performed experiments on them, genetically modifying their chromosomes in order to develop superpowers.
However, once The High Evolutionary performed their works on the brother and sister, it was realized that the twins weren’t going provide the desired results after all, so they were returned to their parents.
As Wanda and Pietro grew up and their powers evolved, the people in the small village they were living in in Eastern Europe began to catch on to their strange ways and turned against them. The villagers assumed these two kids were mutants, and thus Wanda and Pietro grew up thinking they were.
They are Romani
Now that we know that Django and Marya Maximoff were really Wanda and Pietro’s real parents this whole time, it’s safe to accurately put forward that the two twins are of Eastern European heritage, and are of Romani background. The Romani people have faced a lot of persecution and discrimination over the centuries, and this identify of being an outcast and shunned by the rest is obviously mirrored in the other aspects of Wanda and Pietro’s identity, as in the fact that they are shunned for being superpowered.
The twins grew up for a time in a Romani camp, and their identity is deeply rooted in wandering and travelling.
Again, this brother and sister duo move from back and forth from bad side to good, and they are constantly fleeing tragedy and trouble.
There has been some contention over the way Pietro and Wanda were portrayed in the Marvel films, being played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen. Many criticized the studio for whitewashing these characters and accusing the filmmakers of not taking into account the characters’ Romani background.
In fact, the only real nod towards the idea that Wanda and Pietro are Romani when they are introduced in Avengers: Age of Ultron is through their costumes. It is clear that the clothes they wear in the film, especially when we are first introduced to them, are not as sleek and polished as the other heroes’ outfits are, as if Wanda and Pietro would just pick whatever clothes they could find or steal. Aside from their sartorial choices though, their Romani heritage is kept on lock.
They Have Always Been Intensely Close
If someone told you they were close with their sibling, your first instinct probably wouldn’t be to think that there was anything strange about that. You’d most likely think that was a good thing. Well, Wanda and Pietro Maximoff are very closely-knit siblings. They are always there for each other, no matter what, and they seem to be very dependent on one another, not only for survival but for happiness too.
Even in their earliest appearances in the comics, Quicksilver seems to come to Scarlet Witch’s defense, even at the slightest of threats.
He’s always putting himself forward to protect and defend her, and we often see the two of them holding hands, embracing one another, or just generally being close to each other.
It’s only natural for sibling to have a special bond, especially twins, but there always seemed to be an underlying feel that this relationship was more than just a brother-sister type of love. It ran deeper than that. As we’ve already seen, Wanda and Pietro balance each other out through their yin and yang-type powers, and clearly there’s a magnetic force that draws them together, no matter what the situation. Surely there’s nothing weird or freaky going on here - right?
Their Closeness Stems From All The Tragedies They’ve Gone Through Together
There’s no denying that tragedy bonds people. Going through an ordeal of great consequence has a way of bringing people together more closely, especially family members. If there were ever two characters who experienced more than their fair share of problems and tragedies, it’s most certainly Wanda and Pietro Maximoff.
Since their debut appearance in the 4th issue of Uncanny X-Men, Wanda and Pietro have been standing strong together against all the odds, trials, and tribulations that have been hurled at them. Never once looking like he would abandon her, Quicksilver constantly put himself between Magneto’s abuse and his sister, always there to protect her against harm. Scarlet Witch too was always there to comfort and console Quicksilver, and the two learned quickly to depend on one another for emotional and psychological support.
We have seen the twins go through thinking they were adopted, being abused by mobs in their hometown, facing the evil of Magneto together, thinking their father was a villain, facing the world alone together, and so much more.
Their struggles forced them to fight back with strength and in unity with one another, and there’s is truly a bond that clearly can’t be broken.
Subtle Hints About Their Relationship Became Inappropriate
Jeph Loeb created the storylines behind some great Marvel projects, including Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and some great Netflix shows you’ve undoubtedly binged like Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Daredevil. Leob also wrote Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver taking their relationship to the next, illegal level.
As we’ve already seen, Wanda and Pietro have always been close, maybe even a bit too close for a lot of people’s comfort, but it was never explicitly said that they were being inappropriate. Then Loeb decided to light a match and watch everyone’s innocence burn as he wrote a relationship between the brother and sister duo into the storyline of The Ultimates.
Granted, The Ultimates was based in an alternate universe and nothing really counts outside of it, but still, once fans read that about Wanda and Pietro, it was pretty hard to unsee and forget.
As far as everyone was concerned, Scarlet Witch’s main love interest was and always will be Vision, but it doesn’t stop Quicksilver from popping up on her list. It’s highly unlikely that any of this shady business will ever make its way into any Marvel film and it’s probably best for us all to try and just not talk about it, but somehow, it’s just hard to shake the unsavory taste the whole thing leaves behind.
And Everyone Seems Oddly Cool With It Except Captain America
While at first The Ultimates kind of just played along and kept hinting at an “in the family” relationship between Wanda and Pietro, in its third series, the writers finally just decided to let loose and spell it out for the readers in a very overt way.
The scene is set between Captain America and The Wasp. Cap has just had a bit of an altercation with Pietro about the way Wanda is dressed, and in typical quick-tempered Quicksilver fashion, he flies off the handle and threatens Cap, telling him to mind his own business. When The Wasp then tells Captain America that Pietro’s like that because he loves his sister, poor, innocent Rogers is like, “duh, they’re siblings.” Then The Wasp drops the major bombshell none of us really wanted to hear, which is that they love each other, as in they’re in love with each other.
The thing is, The Wasp is explaining all of this to Captain America like it’s the most natural thing in the world. She accuses him of being behind the times, saying that his 1940s brain clearly isn’t computing the very obvious and very casual fact.
Captain America might not know how to call an Uber, but we’re pretty sure he’s up to speed with this whole thing being gross.
So, Wasp, what’s up with you and everyone else? The writers have a lot of explaining to do here.
Quicksilver’s Mommy Issues
If you’re thinking: surely this whole plot line couldn’t get any worse, well, it most certainly can. It’s bad enough that the brother and sister superhero pair can’t keep their hands off each other now, but add the fact that Pietro loves Wanda so much because she reminds him of their mother Magda, and you have a whole other uncomfortable can of worms spilling out all over the place.
Two series after the one that dropped the initial bombshell in The Ultimates, we get an upsetting scene between Pietro and Wanda, and it’s made clear to us that Pietro has some serious mommy issues.
Clearly the twins have daddy issues, because as we know, they’ve gone through a whole heap of trauma being told multiple times that someone else is their father, but clearly there are some deep-rooted mother-related problems at play here too.
We know that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch’s mother Magda was forced to abandon her children, and then we were also told that Marya Maximoff was actually the kids’ mom. Then, there was the whole incident of the Maximoff home burning to the ground with Django and Marya in it, so it’s safe to say that the kids are probably craving some parental love.
However, that being said, it’s beyond creepy that the writers felt it necessary for Pietro to draw links between his mom and sister in that way. This is definitely some next-level Targaryen stuff.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson Sees Quicksilver’s Relationship with Scarlet Witch As Motherly Love
It probably won’t come as a surprise to you to know that the two actors who play Pietro and Wanda Maximoff weren’t exactly begging Avengers: Age of Ultron director Joss Whedon to highlight the romance that the two siblings have low-key become associated with.
Of course, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who plays Pietro, and Elizabeth Olsen, who plays Wanda, were aware of the special, close bond the brother and sister pair share. When asked about how they were going about getting into the mindset for their respective roles, Taylor-Johnson and Olsen touched on the deep-rooted connection the siblings share, but offered their own take on the close bond we see come alive in the film.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Aaron Taylor-Johnson explained that Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver are more than just brother and sister. They encompass a whole family unit, having gone through so much tragedy and only ever having each other to depend on. “When you look in the comic books, you see a lot of the time that she’s always sort of mothering him,” Taylor-Johson told EW. “He’s like the father figure and she’s like the mother figure. Emotionally, she can stabilize him, and he protects her physically, vice-versa.”
Olsen and Taylor-Johnson, having done their research on their characters, knew that the twins were often perceived as being overly close. Olsen told EW in the same interview: “They’re always so close, it’s almost uncomfortable. Aaron and I have been playing a little bit with those kinds of images just for ourselves.”
Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen Played A Couple In Godzilla
It’s clear when watching Age of Ultron that Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson share a great on-screen chemistry. Although they’re both great actors in their own right, their ease around one another was probably helped by the fact that they had already starred Godzilla together the year before Ultron was released.
In Godzilla, Taylor-Johsnon and Olsen play a couple, which seems fine, until you start thinking about the fact that they played a brother and sister duo with a weirdly close relationship just shortly after.
There have been many instances in films where actors switch up their roles and go from playing romantic couples to taking on family roles alongside each other, but knowing that Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver’s relationship during their comic book history, paired with the fact that we had only just recently seen Olsen and Taylor-Johnson play a loving couple, made this a little weird.
When watching Ultron, some of the uncomfortable closeness we’ve alluded to between Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch does creep through, and this is just made all the more bizarre knowing that Olsen and Taylor-Johnson had romanced each other in their 2014 action flick.
The Two Get Pretty Close In Front Of Wolverine
As we’ve seen, The Ultimates went a little rogue with its plotline and things got pretty freaky between Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. If that revelation wasn’t enough, and if the fact that Quicksilver was into his sister because she looks like their mom wasn’t yet sending you flying off the edge of your comfort zone, then do not despair, because there’s more to make you feel the ick factor.
In the same series of events that we learn Quicksilver has some disturbing mommy issues and that he’s drawn to Scarlet Witch because she reminds him of Magda, we see the siblings in a kind of woodland area, getting rather close to one another. The next frame shows us Wolverine peeking out of the bushes, spying on the Maximoff twins, and we’re thus led to believe that Wolverine is there watching Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch getting to know each other, in the biblical sense.
How we got to a point where the comic book writers thought this was something their readers wanted to see is quite simply baffling, and it’s pretty much the tipping point into “nope, no thank you” territory that could put anyone off this storyline for good.
Wolverine Is Also Potentially The Twins’ Father, By The Way
One more thing for you to have to get your head around. If you just about swallowed the fact that Wolverine was a total peeping-tom while Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch got close with one another, maybe the fact that Wolverine is quite possibly the twins’ father will be just one step too far for you. If this is the case, apologies.
In the series called Ultimates 3, we learn that Wolverine had an affair with Magda, who gives birth to Quicksilver and Scarlet. This means that in this universe, there’s a very good chance that Wanda and Pietro are Wolverine’s kids. If this is where the story stopped, then we’d probably think this plot line was a little left field, but with some many superheroes romancing one another, we’d probably just accept it and move on.
The Ultimates writersseemingly wanted to give their readers that extra little bit of shock value, so instead of just leaving it at that, they went a step further. Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver clearly already had enough daddy issues as it was, without bringing Wolverine into the picture, so if someone could please write in a therapist storyline, that would be great for everyone involved.
Quicksilver Didn’t Approve of Scarlet Witch’s Relationship with Vision
One of the most famous Marvel love stories is that of Scarlet Witch and The Vision, who not only fall for each other but later end up settling down, getting married, and having kids. It was always a bit strange for some that a so-called mutant and an android would not only have a relationship resulting in marriage but that a family would also come out of it.
As it turns out, this happy family unit wasn’t all that it appeared to at first be, as we gradually learn that nothing but tragedy would await this seemingly happy couple. In fact, in Vision and the Scarlet Witch, we’re told that Wanda’s kids only ever exist when she thinks about them, and seem to be figments of her imagination. In another telling of their story, Scarlet Witch’s children turn out to be pieces of evil Mephisto.
It’s safe to say Scarlet Witch and Vision’s relationship is “complicated.”
However, to add extra stress on her relationship with lover Vision, it turns out that Wanda’s own brother Quicksilver was completely against her relationship with the android. Quicksilver was so set against his sister getting together with Vision, that the two siblings, whom we’ve gotten to know as being practically inseparable, became estranged for a long time because of their disagreement over the relationship.
Their backstory was changed for the MCU
Wanda and Pietro Maximoff have a little bit of a weird situation when it comes to portraying them in films. Because they appear in both X-Men and Avengers comics, this puts them in a bit of an awkward position when it comes to straddling both Fox, which owns the rights to X-Men, and Marvel Studios, which owns The Avengers.
It got a little complicated when Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver were appearing in both Avengers: Age of Ultron and X-Men: Days of Future Past, as both studios owned the rights to these characters, just in different ways.
This means that getting these two characters’ backstory communicated effectively and in a straightforward manner will get tricky as time goes on. This is especially true, since the Marvel films weren’t legally allowed to talk about “mutants,” as this right strictly belonged to Fox.
It will be interesting to see how these characters are developed and which elements are chosen from their vast and complicated backstory to be brought into the plots of future films.
It seems like Marvel has chosen to solve the rights problems by altering the source material, and then by potentially acquiring Fox through parent company Disney.
Scarlet Witch Was Only Ever Hinted At In X-Men On Screen
Fan gossip was set ablaze when a scene in X-Men: Days of Future Past showed Quicksilver, here played by Evan Peters, with a little girl on his lap. Many people speculated that this was supposed to be Scarlet Witch with her brother, but it was revealed that this was not the case by director Bryan Singer.
However, it was also unveiled, that Wanda Maximoff was almost featured in the film. According to Singer, because of the complicated nature of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver being owned by both Marvel and Fox, he was going to hint at Scarlet Witch being around, but decided to cut this element from the film.
He told Screencrush: “I had a line which I cut, where Quicksilver’s mother says to the little girl, ‘Go up and bug your sister,’ and the little girl says, ‘She bugs me!’ You never see the older sister, but it was to imply that there is an older sister for comic book fans. I ended up cutting it.”
Had Singer not cut this part of the scene, it would have nicely set up an opportunity for Scarlet Witch to slip into future X-Men sequels. Who knows what the Disney-Fox deal could bring.
It Was Quicksilver’s Love For Scarlet Witch That Led To The House of M
Wanda Maximoff went through a heap of tragedy following her marriage to Vision. Not only did Vision end up losing all emotional capability, but Wanda also found out that her kids weren’t actually real. Not only does she lose the capacity to remember her kids, but then later when she is reminded that they once existed, but only in her mind, she understandably breaks down and is driven into a wild, dangerous frenzy.
As Wanda becomes increasingly unstable, her powers becoming more powerful than she seems to be able to accurately control, the Avengers start to worry that she will not only be a threat to herself but to everyone around her. The group discusses whether or not they should just stand by as Wanda becomes an ever-increasing hazard or whether they should end her in order to potentially save themselves and humanity.
Quicksilver was obviously concerned about the fate of his beloved sister and understandably wanted to do everything in his power to prevent her from being destroyed. He therefore convinced his sister to use her powers to create a utopia where everyone gets their own desired happy ending.
However, Wolverine and a few other superheroes caught on to the fact that this was a created, false reality they were living in, and confronted Scarlet Witch about this fact. This led to the devastation of 90% of mutants, as Scarlet Witch uttered the famous three words: “No more mutants.”
Do you have any other facts to share about Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver? Leave them in the comments!
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