WandaVision fan favorite Kathryn Hahn returns to the small screen as the spinoff series, Agatha All Along, is finally premiering on Disney+.

I have to warn readers that some of the sequences can be dark in the first four episodes. It is definitely a dark comedy and there are elements of horror involved. There were times where I also had to cover my eyes. Given the genre, I guess this more or less comes with the territory.

Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) returns to the small screen exactly where she left off in the WandaVision finale: stuck inside whatever spell that Wanda Maximoff cast on her. She is finally free from the spell after a goth Teen (Joe Locke) helps her. We do not know much about him so Agatha has her reasons to be suspicious. And yet, this teen is the one begging her to take him on the Witches’ Road. For the unfamiliar, this road features numerous magical trials and if they survive, a witch gets rewarded. But in order to get their reward, they must gather a coven together to go down The Road.

Spinoff creator Jac Schaeffer brilliantly introduces Agatha in the spinoff series. The opening credits alone had me howling. It gives viewers an idea of her state of mind after Wanda left Westview. In many ways, both Agatha All Along and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness continue the WandaVision narrative. It’s already three years after Wanda left Westview but her spell is still casting a strong hold on Agatha, now stuck in a true-crime procedural. Watching WandaVision is a must if you do not yet know anything about Agatha. A rewatch is not essential for older fans of the character. One thing leads to another and then it’s a complete MCU rewatch. Am I right?

What we know from comics history is that Agatha Harkness is a villain. As far as the show goes, she is serving as both protagonist and antagonist. Rio Vidal (Aubrey Plaza) is also something of an antagonist and there’s some mystery to their relationship. This alone will make for interesting storytelling since we already know what she is capable of doing to other people. How will she get along with the witches in her coven?

An interesting choice going into the series is taking a practical approach. Everything here is both practical and old school, including the special effects elements. According to the production brief, the special effects team works with “matte paintings, miniatures and foreground, midground and background elements that play with forced perspective”. In many ways, it makes a lot of sense because Agatha has lost her magic.

If I have to guess, Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez will probably pick up an Emmy nomination for “The Ballad of The Witches’ Road.” It’s a catchy tune!

Will Agatha All Along be enough to get viewers watching the MCU on Disney+ again? This is just the second Marvel Studios release on Disney+ in 2024 but the third overall MCU release during the year. There are members of the cast that have their fan bases but will they be enough? This is the question of the hour but I don’t know. I do know that Agatha All Along has some big shoes to fill after Deadpool and Wolverine‘s box office success this summer and I have an interest in seeing where the story goes.

Agatha All Along has the pedigree and enough happening in the first four episodes to where it doesn’t need to be WandaVision to stay tuned in and see what happens next.

CREATOR/SHOWRUNNER: Jac Schaeffer
DIRECTORS: Jac Schaeffer (101, 102, 107), Rachel Goldberg (103,104,105), Gandja Monteiro (106, 108, 109)
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Brad Winderbaum, Mary Livanos, Jac Schaeffer
CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Trevor Waterson
CAST: Kathryn Hahn, Joe Locke, Sasheer Zamata, Ali Ahn, Maria Dizzia, Paul Adelstein, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, Okwui Okpokwasili, with Debra Jo Rupp, Patti LuPone and Aubrey Plaza

Disney+ will premiere the first two episodes of Agatha All Along at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT on September 18, 2024. New episodes will premiere weekly. Grade: 3.5/5

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