Surely by now everyone has heard of the sequel series to the critically-acclaimed Wandavision. If you haven’t, then, wow, you are truly missing out! Not only is this the perfect fall show to watch with a pumpkin-themed beverage in hand, but it showcases incredible representation of queer women.
Synopsis
Following the aftermath of Wandavison, Agatha All Along picks up right back in Westview. Agatha, played by Kathryn Hahn, is stuck under Wanda’s mind control spell. With the help of her exe-girlfriend(?) Rio Vidal (Aubrey Plaza), she manages to break the spell. However, a new problem emerges: Agatha is powerless.
The show follows Agatha and the mysterious ‘Teen’ (played by Joe Locke), on a quest to create a new coven with the goal of opening up the ‘Witches’ Road’ so Agatha can get her power back.
However, while the show’s plot is incredible, the much more important aspect of the show is the diversity weaved throughout.
Agatha All Along follows a primarily female cast, apart from Joe Locke’s character of Teen. There haven’t been many Marvel productions with such a large amount of female leads– the most recent being The Marvels (which, although I think it was great, didn’t do so well in theaters). With just two episodes, Agatha has a rotten tomatoes score of 80% for both critics and viewers. Considering that the first two episodes were primarily introductions rather than a typical quest-structured plot, 80% tomatoes is incredible. Like I said, it’s a Femininomenon.
Coven Of Chaos
Although far from perfect, the coven’s banter really adds to the chaos of the show, and, in my opinion, makes it a lot more fun.
From left to right, we have Mrs. Hart– I mean Mrs. Davis– played by Debra Jo Rupp. Mrs. Davis is a very fun character because, while she doesn’t have magic (as far as we know), she is strung along with the rest of the coven because of Agatha’s ego. She’s confused and honestly just follows the rest of the witches because of the vibes, which I relate to; if I was invited to a coven party, I would do the same.
Next, we have Lila Calderu, played by the one and only Patti LuPone. She is a divination witch, specializing in seeing the future. She is witty and a “bit of a kook” because of her prophetic visions, but that’s what makes her interesting. Though, it does make me wonder if she knows how this journey may end. And if so, is she holding something back from the coven?
Joe Locke plays Teen, a fanboy of Agatha with a mysterious past. In the first two episodes, whenever he attempted to tell Agatha his name, his voice would be silenced, leaving it a mystery not only of who he is, but why he wants to help. Though, I’m pretty sure it was (basically) confirmed he’s playing Billy, one of Wanda’s sons. If he is Billy, then why does he want to go down the Witches’ Road? Is it possible that his mother Wanda isn’t dead? Is she what’s waiting at the end of the Witches’ Road?
In the center we have our leading lady, Agatha Harkness. As mentioned, she clawed her way out of Wanda’s spell, and is now back to her evil self. Personally, it was super awesome to see the way her personality changed whilst under the spell versus being free. Without Wanda’s hold on her mind, she is sassy and a little volatile. However, even though she has the personality of a diva, it’s very fun to see the way she behaves on screen. You don’t want to root for an evil witch, but it’s almost impossible not to.
Rio Vidal, played by Aubrey Plaza, is a green witch, gender-swapped version of the Emerald Warlock from the comics. She is feisty and fierce, as well as a little unhinged. She helps Agatha break Wanda’s spell, which begs the question of why. Perhaps it’s because she has… feelings for Agatha, but we’ll get to that a little later.
Sasheer Zamata is Jennifer Kale, a potions witch. Like Agatha, her powers have been removed, and we do not know why. She’s extremely sarcastic and holds a quippy love-hate relationship with Agatha. We have to wonder if her powers are somewhere along the Witches’ Road as well, and what her motives may be.
Lastly, Alice Wu-Gulliver is played by Ali Ahn. Alice is a protection witch with a bad history. She’s quiet but mighty. In episode two, her mother is said to have disappeared, which makes you think about if she is possibly along the road as well.
So, yes, all of the witches have some motive that makes them ‘trust’ Agatha just enough to follow her down the road. This cut-throat group isn’t your typical happy family, but their differences make the show much more intriguing to watch. They’re all selfish, and we as an audience get to watch them play for their own wants rather than working together.
“Gay Explosion”
Now that we’ve covered this formidable group of women, let’s talk about it being “the gayest show on Marvel,” according to Ali Ahn, our Alice Wu-Gulliver.
Because the show is about witches, there is a huge historical connection to the queer community. The show’s creator Jac Schaeffer told Zavvi, “There is an enormous overlap between the history and persecution of witches and that of the LGBTQ community, just as there’s a lot of intersection between the queer community and the horror genre, so it was a very natural fit for there to be queer representation in the show.” While speaking about herself and the other writers, she says they, “were unapologetic about making these characters openly queer.”
It’s so powerful that not only are the writers recognizing these characters as queer and having this in the show, but are avidly promoting it. It’s easy for shows to put queerness on the backburner, but for Agatha, while it isn’t the major plot of the series, it’s certainly a part of the main platter.
We’ve already seen in the show that Joe Locke’s character Teen has a boyfriend named Eddie. Though, if he is playing Billy, then his future boyfriend is going to be Teddy Altman, or Hulking. While this representation is very exciting, since the only other openly gay male I can think of in Marvel is Phastos from Eternals, what caught my eye the most was the tension between Agatha and Rio.
Kathryn Hahn told Variety that the two witches, “have a very long and complicated relationship,” and when asked if Agatha was the “gayest marvel project ever,” she answered, “Yeah, I definitely think it is.” When Aubrey Plaza was asked the same question, she answered “It better be, cause that’s what I signed up for,” and mentioned that the show, “will be a gay explosion by the end.”
As for their characters, throughout episode one it was pretty obvious they have a very complicated story. Even though they act like they hate each other, their banter is very flirty and coy. There’s history there, and because Agatha is under Wanda’s control, she doesn’t remember it, so the viewers don’t know exactly what it is either.
However, after Agatha breaches Wanda’s spell, there is a rather sensuous scene between the two of them. They fight, they wrestle, they choke each other, and Rio puts a knife to Agatha’s throat. If I was in their shoes I would certainly be wondering “What are we?”
Then, before Rio departs, Agatha mentions that she doesn’t have a heart, and Rio’s reply is that she does, and it “beats for [Agatha].” A crazy line to say to someone if you aren’t/weren’t romantically involved with!
We will have to see where their relationship ends up throughout the show, but for now, it’s evident that there’s something there.
Agatha and Rio’s relationship, whatever it may be, is something special. There aren’t many sapphic relationships shown explicitly in Marvel. In fact, I can’t think of any on-screen relationships besides Nico and Karolina from Marvel’s Runaways, Negasonic Teenage Warhead and Yukio from Deadpool, and a hint toward Ayo and Aneka’s relationship in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Of course there are sapphic characters, like Valkyrie and America Chavez, but if Agatha and Rio go canon, this would be one of the few represented sapphic relationships in Marvel, and the second in the MCU. Agatha All Along is quite literally making history!
In conclusion, Agatha All Along is a fantastic representation of not just powerful witches, but also of queerness. The characters are diverse in age, ethnicity, and sexuality, and because of all these differences, the chaotic coven has incredible chemistry.
If you haven’t watched this show yet, first off what are you doing, and second off, go watch it! You will not regret this ‘femininomenon.’