After months of selling and quite a few jokey title modifications, Marvel’s WandaVision spinoff starring Kathryn Hahn’s breakout villain, Agatha Harkness, has lastly arrived at Disney+ and we’re right here to debate its first two episodes.
Following her defeat on the finish of that collection, nevertheless, the Scarlet Witch has since trapped Agatha in her personal television-inspired delusion. As a substitute of Wanda’s world of acquainted sitcom tropes, the de-powered Agatha has discovered herself trapped inside a particularly well-observed pastiche of small city police procedurals starring a fuckup detective. Closely riffing on Mare of Easttown, True Detective, Coroner, Wallander, Borgen, Lilyhammer, and so forth., Agatha—now again to being “Agnes,” stars in her personal collection, Agnes of Westview (mentioned to be “based mostly on the Danish collection Wandavisdysen”, which is cute)—replete with its personal opening credit sequence and bluesy theme tune.
Being the star of a detective collection, Agnes/Agatha wants a homicide to unravel, and she or he’s introduced with a red-haired “Jane Doe” who died of blunt pressure trauma after being crushed by one thing large and heavy. In our first overt reference to witch media, Agatha’s companion (Herb from WandaVision) notes the sufferer is “actually, most sincerely lifeless” following her mysterious accident (or perhaps not-so-mysterious to anybody who caught Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity—however we’ll get to that later). Among the many gadgets recovered on the scene are a torn web page from a library guide and a pendant resembling the one worn by Agatha in WandaVision.
Following up on this primary lead, she pays a go to to her (extraordinarily busy and crowded) native library, the place Emma Caulfield’s Dottie now works. It’s right here she learns the web page hails from a guide titled Dialogue and Rhetoric: Recognized Historical past of Studying and Debate—the primary letter of every phrase clearly being very important—by “Andrew Ugo” (a anagram of Wundagore, the mountain that squished the Scarlet Witch) and wasn’t checked out, however the truth is stolen three years in the past, roughly across the time WandaVision concluded. When she checks the Pure Sciences part of the library (the place a lot extra copies of this apparently extremely sought-after quantity might be discovered, we study), Agnes/Agatha discovers all these copies had been someway destroyed in a particularly remoted hearth. This intel comes from a bizarre, unnamed character performed by Jail Break’s Paul Adelstein (in line with IMDB, this man’s going to look in seven extra episodes of the collection, so begin theorizing which hearth and brimstone-related villain he may-or-may-not ultimately be revealed as).
Because the episode unfolds, extra details emerge associated to the case: specifically, 1) a “microbial sediment” cultivated from beneath the sufferer’s nails is claimed to have originated from someplace in Japanese Europe; and a couple of) no footprints or drag marks of any variety had been found across the physique, as if it merely materialized, ex nihilo. So baffling is the case, Agnes/Agatha’s boss (Harold from WandaVision) has known as in an out of doors specialist, FBI agent Rio Vidal, performed by Aubrey Plaza; she and Agnes/Agatha apparently have historical past with one another, and her presence will not be welcomed. Vidal seems round Agnes/Agatha’s raveled workplace and asks, “is that this how you actually see your self?” suggesting she’s absolutely conscious of the spell forged on the finish of WandaVision.
Returning dwelling, Agnes/Agatha solemnly enters an empty baby’s bed room belonging to her apparently late son, Nicholas Scratch, who received an award for “greatest vocals” in a kids’s choir. Her vigil is interrupted by a go to from Agent Vidal, who comes bearing pizza and beer. Whereas discussing the case, Vidal asks, “Do you keep in mind why you hate me?” however the second is undercut by a burglary-in-progress upstairs. The swiftly apprehended thief is revealed to be Joe Locke’s goth-kid “Teen,” who, whereas being interrogation, states he was searching for one thing known as “the Highway.” A 3rd time, the second is undercut because the crime scene pictures he’s introduced with shift to ones of well-maintained lawns and gardens, simply because the two-way window of the interrogation room morphs into Zuccarelli’s portray MacBeth Assembly the Witches. Clearly, one thing is amiss on this actuality as Teen begins to threateningly chant at her in Latin.
The incident causes Agnes/Agatha to hurry to the morgue and examine the physique of the crushed Jane Doe, which, to the shock of nobody with a shred of media literacy, belongs to Wanda Maximoff. Agent Vidal then seems to substantiate what we knew all alongside: that Agatha is trapped within the spell of a lifeless witch, and her solely salvation is to “claw herself out.” Agnes tears at her garments, revealing a collection of costume modifications, earlier than remembering she is certainly the sorceress Agatha Harkness. The now absolutely nude Agatha takes to the streets of Westview, the place she learns she’s been dwelling within the neighborhood towards her will as a real crime-obsessed shut-in for the final three years.
Fortunately, nevertheless, her pet rabbit Señor Scratchy continues to be alive. Additionally, the teenage burglar of the phantasm is now a hostage in her closet, and Rio Vidal is definitely a rival witch out for revenge towards an unrevealed slight. Following a sexually charged battle, wherein Rio states she’s prefers Agatha “horizontal… in a grave,” we study a number of events are out for her blood now that the curse has been lifted, together with “The Salem Seven”—a coven of black-shrouded witches we meet in episode two.
For a premiere, Agatha’s pilot spends most of its time on the earth of Agnes of Westview, subsequently presenting a problem I had with the sitcom hijinks of WandaVision. Its send-up of detective exhibits is correct to a fault, and so isn’t exaggerated sufficient to be parody. As a substitute, it’s a pitch-perfect instance of the very style its satirizing. Whereas the collection understands it may well’t try to deceive its viewers this time round, it stays dedicated to the bit as a solution to reintroduce audiences to the forged of Westview and the brand new world order of Agatha taking up the responsibility of a collection lead—and it really works, largely. If Marvel tv is that this proficient at mimicry, then maybe the MCU ought to focus extra on surprising genre-mashups than the corporate’s overtly devoted and continuity-obsessed initiatives of current years.
Episode two begins proper the place the primary left off, with “Teen”—who, as a result of some type of spell he’s below, can not reveal his true identify to anybody—asking Agnes to take him on the Witch’s Highway, a wish-granting non secular battery of assessments we discover out was detailed in successful single from the 1970’s. It seems Teen is fan of Agatha’s numerous witch-doings and believes she’d be the proper companion to compete the gauntlet with and are available out on the opposite facet. (Teen, we study, craves energy.) As he’s the one accountable for releasing her from the spell she was below—and since a cabal of witches is now after Agatha, who at present has no powers in any respect—she has nothing to lose. In the event that they’re going to do it although, they’ll want a coven, and the episode reveals its theme: a “getting the band again collectively” story within the vein of The Blues Brothers or Ocean’s Eleven.
As we study from Agatha, in any three-mile radius, there might be “a set of witchy-enough individuals” to type a coven, and so the primary candidate is Madame Calderu, a fortune teller performed by Patti LuPone. Calderu, nevertheless, shortly reveals herself to be the true deal and is reluctant to group up with a witch as notorious as Agatha Harkness. Sadly, she herself is dealing with eviction from her floundering enterprise and, like Agatha herself, wants extra “energy”—or not less than cash and social clout—to get out of it. With one witch within the financial institution, Calderu makes use of her psychic powers to uncover the names of 4 extra conveniently situated witches, and we’re off.
Subsequent on the record is Jennifer Kale, a potions knowledgeable performed by Sasheer Zamata, who, as a result of binding spell she’s been below the final century, has turned to experience to the skincare trade. Like Calderu, she’s dealing with authorized hassle from a number of of her merchandise burning the pores and skin off her clients’ faces. Although she additionally has a troubled historical past with Agatha, after Teen reveals that if convicted, Kale could be dealing with a life sentence in jail, she reluctantly agrees to affix them on the Highway. Simply to rub it in, Agatha steals certainly one of her jade eggs earlier than she leaves, quipping “you’ll know the place to seek out it.”
By excessive coincidence, the subsequent candidate is Alice Gulliver-Wu (Ali Ahn), a “blood/safety” witch and daughter of the musical artist accountable for releasing “The Ballad of the Witches’ Highway” within the ’70s. Unbelievably, we’re instructed her mom’s band, Lorna Wu and the Coral Shore, offered 40 million copies worldwide of the tune, which might place it someplace between the Saturday Evening Fever soundtrack and Bing Crosby’s model of “White Christmas” when it comes to reputation. Regardless of her mom’s success, nevertheless, Alice is working safety on the MCU’s equal of a Sizzling Subject and turns into the subsequent coven member after Agatha concocts a scheme to get her fired from work.
Now able to embark on the Highway, the newly assembled coven protest they’re nonetheless lacking a “Inexperienced Witch,” which Agatha doesn’t consider she wants. Apparently, the ultimate identify of the record was merely a “black coronary heart,” echoing a remark from Rio Vidal within the earlier episode. It’s obvious she’s the required closing member of the band, however the reluctant Agatha, crumbling to her coven’s needs, as a substitute recruits WandaVison‘s Mrs. Hart (Debra Jo Rupp) to be the ultimate member, as a result of she retains a pleasant backyard.
With all their eggs lastly in a row, the group ritualistically performs a rendition of the tune that allegedly offered 40 million copies, opening a door within the ground of Agatha’s basement—nevertheless, it takes a minute, offering Agatha with simply sufficient time to debase every member of her coven, sowing additional discord within the group. Fortunately, their escape hatch (to what’s doubtless sure loss of life, we’re reminded) occurs within the nick of time, too, because the Salem Seven she was warned about have descended upon the home.
So, after two very completely different table-setting episodes, Agatha All Alongside is simply simply now lastly able to change into regardless of the hell it plans on being for the subsequent seven episodes because the witches face the trials of its genre-bending Highway. What that will seem like, I assume we’ll have to attend till subsequent week to see.
A couple of concluding ideas on these first two episodes:
- I’m unsure what the impetus was for the coven to take away their sneakers earlier than traversing the highway, both, as that element wasn’t recounted within the lyrics of the world’s hottest tune.
- Severely, we’re led to consider a progressive folks tune containing the lyrics “blood and tears and bone, maid and mom crone” someway offered 40 million copies? Twice as many as “We Are the World”? What, is Comus’s First Utterance the equal of Michael Jackson’s Thriller within the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
- Agatha’s Physician Who-esque new costume on the finish of episode two is fairly terrific. Love the flowing blue-green coat.
- I consider episode one gives us with the second bare butt of a title Marvel character following Thor’s in Love & Thunder.
- The present’s finish credit score sequence is fascinating for its numerous references to witches in media—for what its omits as a lot as what it consists of. Apparently, Disney’s cope with Sony allowed the use footage of Fairuza Balk in The Craft, however needed to faux the opening titles to Bewitched—which a fast Google search confirms the corporate does certainly personal. The inclusion of Lisa Simpson carrying a witch’s hat can be weird—she doesn’t spring to thoughts as instantly as, say, Sabrina the Teenage Witch (not featured right here) or Maleficent (additionally bizarrely absent). What offers?
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