Death and witches – and a very big reveal

I always enjoy it Agatha all the time more than I think every week. Sometimes the episodes start off a bit bumpy but pick up speed by the end. Last week felt a little rougher than most, but I liked the rock 'n' roll version of it The Witch Street, And now I realize that last week's episode was mostly just a teaser for this episode.

Finally, last week we looked at a whole mother-daughter trial on Witch Street, where Alice (Ali Ahn) had to break a generational curse and it turns out that the song her famous rock star witch mother made became an international hit had made, was actually a ward She protected her daughter from the evil demons of the curse. What a touching moment!

We'll learn how dark this show actually is when they seize this moment and move on to another mother-daughter trial from beyond the grave in this week's episode. This time the ghost of Agatha's mother Evanora visits her and says to Agatha: “You were evil from the moment you were born. I should have killed you when you came into this world.” Ouch. Agatha seems genuinely upset about this and the prospect of her coven leaving her behind to be tormented and possessed by her dead mother and who knows what else. (The possession that takes place moments before is the scariest scene in the series so far.)

When Agatha's mother begins to absorb her, Alice steps in and brings some of her own magic into the mix to save her, despite the others warning her not to. This drives the ghost away, but Agatha (Kathryn Hahn) immediately begins to absorb Alice's powers. It's a shocking moment and the rest of the circle tries to stop them. The only thing that happens is when Teen (Joe Locke) storms over the Ouija board and discovers a new name, which he calls out to Agatha: Nicholas Scratch, her son – and apparently her dead son at that. “Stop, Mom,” the ghostly voice says, and she does.

But it's too late for Alice. Just one episode after breaking her family's curse, Alice lies dead on the floor and the witches – and Teen in particular – are not happy.

Only Rio (Aubrey Plaza) seems unfazed by it all. She is a curious cat. When she rides a broom she cackles just like the Wicked Witch of the West The Wizard of Oz. When everything turns upside down in the Ouija board game, she dances around with joy while everyone else freaks out. The strangest thing is when the Ouija board replies, “Who is that?” With TOD, she laughs loudly as if she knows something no one else knows.

My guess? She is not Rio at all, but death personified. In the comics, death takes many forms when visiting the physical world, but the most common are a skeleton in black robes and a woman. When Rio shows up on Witch Street, she tells the others that she is here to collect their bodies. Now she has two. Well, maybe more!

After stealing Alice's power, Agatha goes outside and looks pensive until Teen shows up. He's angry and she sputters excuses. She can't control it, she tells him, it was an accident. “Stop lying!” he says angrily, and then there is a change. Agatha changes completely. With a sly – really evil – grin she says, “You're just like your mother.” The Wanda theme begins to play.

She walks away and we see Teen change. Magic crackles on his fingers. Suddenly Jen and Lilia's eyes turn strangely blue and they grab Agatha, dragging her relentlessly to a nearby patch of quicksand, where they unceremoniously throw her into it. She begs for help as she goes under. Teen then uses this sudden magic to throw the other two women into the quicksand. As they sink beneath them, screaming in despair, we see Teen begin to change.

Wanda's crown appears on his forehead, just like Billie Eilish's song You should see me in a crown starts playing. This is one of the cleverest and most effective needle drops I've ever seen on a show. The credits roll as Eilish sings:

Bite my tongue, wait and see

Carrying a warning sign

Wait until the world is mine

Visions that I destroy

Cold in my kingdom size

Fell in love with these sea eyes

You should see me in a crown

I will run this nothing city

Watch me make her bow

One by one

One by one

You should see me in a crown

Your silence is my favorite sound

Watch me make her bow

One by one

One by one

This works on several levels:

• This is Billy, Wanda's son, also known as the comic book character Wicca. The song is by Billie Eilish.
• He wears Wanda's crown and the song not only has the perfect title, but is also spot on thematically. He bit his tongue – the protection placed over his voice prevented the witch from knowing his identity – and waited – his powers dormant until now. Now he takes power, uses his powers to stop Agatha and makes the witch's “bow”.
• Sonically it's the perfect tone for this dramatic crescendo, dark and menacing.

Anyway, what a great episode. I liked the whole 80s sleepover costume theme in the new trial and I'm glad we're getting it weekly because it's a nice throwback to that WandaVision and its sitcom eras while still serving its own purpose. The brooms were fun, even if I found the whole “easily lifting a giant root out of the ground” thing a little weird. Have you ever tried breaking off a root this way? For the most part, I really enjoyed everything from the Ouija board to the big Wicca reveal. I'm definitely excited and excited now to see how the series will develop in the final episodes. Kathryn Hahn is killing it. This transformation into pure evil was frighteningly good.

I'm curious how she found out that Teen is actually Wanda's boy. They don't make that clear. Did something happen when she was possessed? Had she simply realized that he couldn't be her son when her actual son, Nicholas Scratch, spoke up from beyond the grave? (And is he actually dead? My guess is “no”). Or did it have something to do with obtaining Alice's powers? I hope we find out. Maybe she just knew he was either her child or Wanda's. But she seemed sure!

Scattered thoughts:

• I've been avoiding leaks, so I assume other people already knew Teen's identity, and I certainly had my suspicions, but it was a cool reveal. Rio's true identity – it must be Death – is more obvious than ever after this episode. But in retrospect her funniest line is: “I hate ghosts.” Makes sense – not quite alive, not quite dead, caught between worlds. I imagine Death wouldn't be a fan.
• Did Wanda give Billy the seal, or did he give the seal to himself, or are we dealing with another being or force? I speculated a lot about Mephistopheles during this time WandaVisions run . . . .
• I'm impressed with Jac Schaeffer for taking big risks here and for the most part they're paying off. She did that WandaVision and both of these shows are truly unlike anything else in the MCU. This is quickly becoming one of my favorite MCU series on Disney+, with just WandaVision And Loki in advance. Disney should really consider giving Schaeffer a movie to wrap all of these things up and bring Wanda back.
• I think Lilia referenced tarot cards in every episode. I need to pay more attention to these parts. Each one seems significant. Of course, time may be running out for our fortune teller – and for any witch unfortunate enough to join Agatha's quest.
• I hope Agatha doesn't get a redemption arc. I want her to go completely evil and for Wicca to stop her. Redemption arcs are so overrated.
• I don't think the swamp killed the witches either. My big question is whether they will reappear or show up in the real world. If these three aren't dead, does that mean Mrs. Hart and Alice will come back alive? I somehow believe that these deaths are permanent, but the “deaths” in the swamp are not. We'll see. . . .
• I wonder if this process was sideways from the start. Should Evanora even be there, or did she sneak in through the Salem Seven's presence – perhaps through one of the bugs in Agatha's hair? Maybe only Scratch should appear for this test. Lots to think about. Captivating secrets to relax you. I think it's great.

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