Since there’s magic in music, let’s press play on the theme song for Agatha All Along.—everything is more fun with a soundtrack.
“Blood, and tears, and bone. Maiden, Mother Crone”
Let’s begin.
There are some television reveals that are whiplash-worthy. The identity of the Man in Black in Westworld S1, or the Bad Place reveal in The Good Place. There’s River Song’s lineage in Doctor Who, and the dual timelines in This Is Us. I know you’re yelling a bunch more, but you already know where this is going: It was Agatha All Along.
Did you scream? I screamed. Did y’all scream? I think we all screamed. That wasn’t the only big reveal of the series, but it thrilled us. And it gave us a new tune too. As gifts go, it’s a twist that’s keeps on giving, now that the WandaVision spinoff series has arrived on Disney+. Did you watch, you’re here, I know you did.
“You can’t be right and wrong at the same time.” “Yes, you can.”
Just when you thought the reality-warping days of Westview were behind us, Agatha All Along pulls us back in—but this isn’t the sitcom dreamscape of WandaVision. Uh uh, this time we’re sucked into the dark and twisty world of a Scandinavian murder procedural (with a mischievous wink). This is AGNES of WESTVIEW, based on the Danish series WANDAVISDYSEN. It’s brooding, it’s dank, and Agatha (Kathryn Hahn) is a disrespectful detective named Agnes, who punches suspects, and tromps around fog-laden forests—all while tipping her hat to the absurdity of it all. No one expected this blend of Danish noir with Marvel magic, but we’re not mad. Are you?
“Is she dead? … you never know”
Cue Aubrey Plaza because showrunner Jac Schaeffer and casting director Sarah Finn know she makes everything better. Who else would you want to deliver the line, “It is a universally acknowledged truth that a lady cop cannot be good at her job and have a healthy personal life.” Plaza plays Federal Agent Vidal. She riles the detective up, but beneath the Agnes exterior, she’s gets Agatha ‘twitterpated.’ Ooooh gurl. There’s nothing like a ‘seggsy’ someone to help you find yourself.
Agatha pushes up through the layers of her “televised” reality and there’s a boy there (our Heartstopper, Joe Locke). She calls him Teen and their backstories might be aligned, but he has a sigil spelled on him that prevents us from learning his true identity. Could be Wiccan (Wanda’s son), could be Mephisto (the Marvel Comics devil), or Teen could be a whole new mystery. We don’t find out in the first four episodes, so don’t ask me.
Agatha wants the powers Wanda stole from her back, and Teen has an agenda of his own. Since Agatha is the only witch to ever walk the legendary Witches’ Road and survive, they team up. It doesn’t seem like a bad plan, it’s rumored the Road gives you whatever you want most.
NOTE: These two need to watch more stuff. That’s a total set-up for an impossible choice in the near future.
“Oh no, must be the season of the witch.”
With that terrible decision made, Agatha and Teen need a coven. No surprises. Remember when the series was called The Coven of Chaos? Well, that’s when I sat up and got into the series.
My description of Agatha All Along is: The Witches of Eastwick on a demented quest for power in Oz, with a sprinkle of The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. The series blends the mischievous camaraderie of Eastwick’s enchantresses with the found family you meet on the yellow brick road—when darkness falls, things get scary, and people die. Ooh, and there’s singing. Add that sprinkle of wickedness from CAoS to make it bubble, and you’ve got a brew that’s both nostalgically familiar and creatively fresh. Agatha and the Coven conjure up a cauldron of chaos, and after four episodes we’re intrigued enough to keep drinking from the kettle.
“Gathering sisters fire, water, earth, and air.”
Hahn is…I’mma just say it…spellbinding but totally off her broom. Her portrayal of Agatha is whimsy with the right amount of wicked. And let’s talk about that coven. Patti LuPone (diva for real) as Lilia brings a touch of zany fortune-teller charm. While Sasheer Zamata‘s Jen, a beauty potion maven, adds a gorgeous and comedic energy to the party. Alice (Ali Ahn) is the edgy one with rockstar tendencies and a law enforcement background, and Debra Jo Rupp reprises her role as Mrs. Hart/Sharon, a woman who just wanted to do some gardening and throw back some booze. Together, these women and a boy, unwind the threads of fate and see how far they’ll go.
What’s enchanting about Agatha All Along is how it leans into the mysticism of the MCU, taking us down The Witches’ Road—a path rippling with storytelling potential. According to Marvel.com, “The Witches’ Road is a mysterious mystical dimension that only certain magic users and those summoned by them can enter. It is the home of the Goddess of Witchcraft, a cosmic entity that serves as the source of magical power for witches and warlocks who perform magic using spells and phrases, and for the descendants of mystics who have inherited their powers.”
Yet the series doesn’t rely on digital effects—something fans have complained about in the past. It’s me. I am “fans”—how could they do that to She-Hulk? Instead, the creatives behind the show embrace practical effects, producing a world that is tactile and real. Once again harkening back to the classic magic of cinema’s golden age, but in a different way from WandaVision.
From nods to both The Wizard of Oz and The Wiz‘s “ease on down the road,” to subtle winks at other iconic witchy tales, the show balances nostalgia with contemporary trends. Beneath the magic and mayhem, there’s a story about redemption and self-discovery. Agatha takes steps to outpace the antagonist we met in WandaVision. Although it’s too early to tell whether or not she’s been misunderstood, the show explores what it means to be powerful in a world that wants to suppress that power—a theme that speaks to women throughout time.
Ax3 works, but I’m still not sure I like it…yet. There are moments when I’m acutely aware I’m standing on the outside of the story. That lack of immersion tells me something is missing from the brew. Perhaps it’s the sense the show is trying too hard to live up to its predecessor. We’ll have to figure that out together, come back and we’ll see if my thoughts change when episodes 3 and 4 drop. I already know the answer but this is a Marvel show, and I’m playing along with the tease.
Who knows? We might just find ourselves enthralled. As the title promises: It was Agatha and the Coven of Chaos All Along. Yass, witch!
AGATHA ALL ALONG launches September 18, exclusively on Disney+.
