Agatha All Along

[The_real_blerd]

On 9/20/2024 at 8:31 AM, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Small update:

It's nice to see a show generating a LOT of fan theories and positive interaction on the interwebs again.

Read a GOOD one, but it's gonna turn the happy campy singalong vibe on its head if it's true...

  Hide contents

"Teen" isn't Billy. He's Nick Scratch, Agatha's son.

 

And one way of proving to any passing multidimensional horror that you will do absolutely anything for power, especially the likes of the Darkhold...

...would be to offer your own flesh and blood for it.

 

If the Road's test involve confronting your own worst nightmares, I wonder what Agatha's is going to be...?

 

I agree with this theory and for pretty much the same reasoning.

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

Okay, witches, here we go...

Spoiler

• Rules of the road: DO NOT LEAVE THE ROAD. No powers, even if you'd got any. Trust no-one and nothing.
  Maybe a safety briefing woulda been nice: exits are here, here and here.
• Each test/deathtrap is made to fit each witch. Given what we know about Goopy girl Jen, a horrifically preppy Hamptons wine party seems like her environment, and poisoning people exactly the kind of b**ch-witch thing she'd do. (Which might have led to her binding.)
• At the risk of cronesplaining, I have a thought. If you read Tarot, one of the Big Damn Majors is Judgement. People get scared of it, but for the wrong reasons: no-one else is going to judge you, though guilt might make you afraid of that. It means you're stuck. Usually because of something you're doing that doesn't serve you any more, or something you've done that you need to account for. If you can accept, confront and let go of the thing that's holding you back, you get to the good side of the Judgement Day story... renewal and rebirth. Freedom. And it's specifically shown on a classic card as rising from the grave.
• In the trip sequence, we get flashes of what's messing with each one's head. 
  Jen is half-drowned in water.
  Alice witnesses a fire.
  Sharon the gardener (earth) relives the takeover of Westview.
  And Lilia sees a spirit (air).
  And there's Agatha with... that book in a bassinet. Called it.
• But I didn't expect them to say it out loud as well. Agatha traded a kid for the Darkhold, and wouldn't recognise him if she saw him.
• He could be dead, could have grown up into a fine young witch (cue Teen gasp)...
• ...or he could be an Agent Of Mephisto. 
  I proper cackled at that. They're screwing with us and they know it. 
• Teen turns out to be their saving grace already - his blood hasn't been poisoned. But again, I think that's metaphorical. Teen is the only one of this crew who hasn't got something to cleanse himself of. 
• Yes, including "Sharon". Like I said, trust nothing and no-one you see. Even if it's not the same person you're suspicious of at any one time. For example, anyone who sneaks off to give Teen a quick plot-revealing/faith-shaking sidebar, while their acting style subtly changes. 🖤
• To help them survive death, Jen's forced to recognise that even if she's had everything else taken, no-one can steal your knowledge. (Good lesson, that. I might nick it.) That unlocks the puzzle and allows them to move through, though at the cost of one life. Or does it?
• EDIT: major potential spoiler about Teen and Rio’s identities just dropped if you like your collectables - wish toy makers would keep a lid on this stuff a bit better. One would involve merging two character histories, and the other... is a bit more leftfield. But given what we know, and a lot of the metaphors used in the show, both make sense.
  Then again, they’re only graphic representations of those toys, not the actual finished items. Marvel knows this kind of thing fuels the speculation… did they plant a red herring?

 

Edited September 26 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

Small note for anyone interested:

 

Read a quick interview clip with Jac Shaeffer (writer/showrunner). Spoiler below re the M-word...

Spoiler

When they were developing the series, they dug a lot into the various WandaVision fan threads and theories.

Then they just went ahead wrote the story they wanted to write anyway.

But throwing in Mephisto's namecheck was deliberate bait to to the fans.

As are many of the other references, callbacks and red herrings.

 

So whether or not Big Red's actually in the series, the writers are fully, deliberately, gleefully screwing with the fandom's collective head and I love it.

[FX/GRAMS: dramatic chords, exaggerated witch cackle, choking, gasping]

...eesh, never do that with an Altoid in.

 

Edited October 2 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[TTRPGWhiz]

That’s interesting. A lot of creators will tell you that they don’t read any of that stuff so that if something does make it into the show, no one can say “hey, that was my idea”.

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

Heh. I don't think any lawyer in their right mind would support anyone's specific claim about that.

(See meme on previous page - and also the current viral junk story claiming he's been in it since Avengers.)

[TTRPGWhiz]

I didn’t say lawyers, I said creators. It’s been expressed by quite a few; Neil Gaiman and Damon Lindelof come to mind most readily. 

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

Okay witches, here's Episode 4:

Spoiler

• Okay, poor Sharon is dead-dead. Cue bickering about whose fault that was.
• Foreshadowing: Alice says the road would save her. But from what exactly?
• Is Agatha right and only two can complete the Road, can they all survive, or do they need everybody this time around on this Road?
• Be careful what (and who) you wish for... and Essere Viridis Non E Facile? Well, this is a Disney property. 🐸
• ...and enter THE Green witch, Rio Vidal. (River of Life. Hint: growth and decay, life and death...)
• House #2 is not wanting to be ignored. This is clearly Alice's challenge: waxing moon, fire, protection witch. But again... from what?
• Fabulous outfits and so much tension. But no backstory. Yet.
• Lots of scary things from each witch's culture. Beautiful reflection shot of Alice superimposed on her mother's face.
• Did Rio survive the road with Agatha first time? "...and I get my bodies." Uh-oh.
• heheh... Ozzy tribute, then Evil Dead? Spoiling us.
• Musical challenge stage? (Hint: the EPK interview with the Lopez crew said every version has clues: in this case, it's a message from Alice's mother.)
• That was a quick challenge. Don't get cocky, kids.
• Lilia keeps timejumping, and also having these visions of Tarot cards as clues. Three of Swords is my absolute least favourite card in the deck: Betrayal. Something has done or is about to do something VERY nasty, and yes, it's VERY personal. But who would do a thing like that?
• But Jen's got her power back, so all good. And now it's BIG backstory time.
• Sigils work on the caster too. Huh.
• Agatha seems very keen to keep Teen alive. Given what we now know, Rio may or may not be lying about Teen not being hers to hurt Agatha.

 

So, not a filler episode (with the challenges for each witch, none of them will be), but spending time fleshing out character a little.

Honestly, only thing I'm a bit disappointed about... felt a bit short. Then again, one of the advantages of streaming is you can cut an episode where the story suits, not the ad breaks.

Edited October 3 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[ZacKing]

I gave the first two episodes a try and to be honest, I fell asleep I was so bored.

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

Okay… so that was...

 

*blink*

 

D+ shows have this habit of throwing the Big Damn Twist in Episode 4 or 5.

 

It did not disappoint.

In fact, the whole structure of the show so far might have been to lull you into a false sense of security.
(If you like Evil Dead movies and the Evil Overlord List too, that helps.)

 

Here we go...

 

Spoiler

• We open - after a suitably foreboding change to the title card - on the insanely creepy Svankmajer-esque Salem Seven, who have accessed the Road and are on their trail. (Nice cinematography there, kids.)
• When Agatha's mum tried to execute her, Agatha fought back, draining her power and that of the coven...
• ...but left the kids alive. (cf Rules 101 & 103). Thus creating her own nemeses.
• Brooms. So baaaasic. But fun.
• Ah, the creepy animals following Agatha were the Seven, not Rio.
  [pulls Post-It down off Massive Conspiracy Board, leaving several thousand]
• They try the Gandalf Bypass, but the Road has other plans...
• ...leaving them in the very model of every 1980s Creepy Cabin In The Woods you can imagine. Seriously, even if you don't like the show, wind through this bit and see if you can spot all the gags. Again, plaudits to the designers.
• Magickal Person Side Note:
  • Yes, to ouija is not a verb, thank you Agatha, gold star.
  • William Fuld isn't a clue: he's the original inventor of the board.
  • Yes, it's a toy. But do not mess with those things, or try to talk to the dead at all... concentrate on being alive.
  • However, if someone did happen to activate one - or contact the other side by other means... the dead, the odd demon (rare), and other Things Wot Hoomans Should Not Wot Of are not bound to obey you, tell you the truth, or be who they appear to be.
  • If they're spirits that haven't moved on, there's likely a reason for that that you might not want to know. Also likely bored and enjoy messing with people.
  • This goes double if they tell you they're bound or submit to binding rituals. I think they just enjoy that. Kinky buggers.
  • Oh, and someone clever can just screw with the planchette.
• Punishment time? Yay! Jen turns really rapidly, and some of the rest follow. Lilia and Teen aren't so keen.
• Hi, Mom!
• Typical jealous girlfriend: I can rag on her all I like, but you try anything...
• Knight of Wands: brave, strong, has a plan... but can be a little impulsive.
• Nicholas Scratch - her kid - is dead. And so is Alice. Uh-oh.
• Agatha didn't mean to do that. But the power she took isn't hers to keep this time. 
• Teen is pissed. (And there's a new rip on his chest in the shape of a rune).
• Agatha suddenly twigs who Teen is, and we get confirmation. It's Billy Maximoff, aka Billy Kaplan, aka Wiccan.
  (This was spoilered a while back - thanks, Funko. Joe Locke has also now posted about having to keep this whole thing secret for two years.)
• And his mom succumbed to lust for power. She had her reasons. But she did.
• Then... well, that happened. What. Just... WHAT?
• But if the crown fits...

 

So, we still have four episodes left. I did NOT see that coming, and I genuinely don’t know what happens next.

I like it.

 

Depending on what our antagonist's game plan is - whether this was their idea all the way, or is making it up as they go along - plans never go the way we think they do. Clearly, neither does this particular show.

 

Edited October 10 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

Episode 6, and time for a rewind. If it's every theatre kids' dream to work with Patti LuPone, every movie nerd wants to pull a Rashomon. But here, it works.

Spoiler

• Meet William Kaplan, unsuspecting kid on his Bat Mitzvah...
• ...who runs into a familiar fortune teller. Lilia says his life will be broken in two, then slips a sigil on him to protect him.
• Tarot reference again: Tower/Reversed: disaster may have been averted. Or has it just been delayed?
• Things are called to a halt by an EAS alert about "the Anomaly".
• Seeing Wanda's Hex from the outside - and people just getting on with life as if there isn't a giant red magical zit on the landscape. Then again, people do normalise the abnormal to cope with it. And this is New Jersey, so it probably counts as urban renewal.
• Oops. Driving distracted. Exit William, enter Billy. (And a familiar cop.)
• Some superb acting from Locke and the parents as they adjust both to his new body and his sudden psychic abilities.
• Pause heavily on Teen's room: check out the posters, toys, and accessories, which all cue up parts of the Witches' Road. 
  This all supports my Big Damn Theory:
  • The Road Never Existed. The legend is Agatha's long-con, luring other witches into her clutches.
  • And Rio's been happy to go along for the ride, cleaning up those inconveniently immortal-ish witches.
  • Billy, on the other hand, has either accidentally or deliberately made a mini-Hex (fleeing in terror of the Seven?), and every Trial is one of his dreams or nightmares.
  • So they're possibly still running around in the basement.
• Google time: Agatha is an OG Bad Girl, who's literally followed around by death. She's been responsible for many disasters over the years - plus one hit country song. 
• Bohnerriffic. Nice callback, lots of gags, good exposition scene. Funny as it is, we see how genuinely traumatised people can be by the experience.
• Further great two-hander comedy work between Hahn and Locke as we see the other side of their intro...
• ...and we're back on the road, with Agatha clawing herself out (again). 
• I do love a good "we're two sides of the same coin" speech...
• ...but why do I get the feeling both sides are bad - or one isn't as bad as we think, and the other is potentially worse?

 

Questions remain:

• What happened to Lilia, Jen... and Rio?
• Is Alice dead dead? The writers say so. Then again, if this is an illusion, does this mean she gets to walk away (and Sharon too?)
• How much am I gonna nerd out over Lilia's tarot-heavy trial?

 

Edited October 17 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[InvaderStych]

Finally managed to make my way through the timeline and caught up to this one.

 

Fun.

 

It certainly makes more narrative sense than a couple of Dis-arvel's recent offerings. No need to dwell on that in this thread though.

 

Plaza seems more ... subdued ... than I had expected, still her wonderfully odd self, just quieter ... mostly.

 

 

On 10/17/2024 at 2:05 AM, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

What happened to Lilia, Jen... and Rio?

 

There's a spoiler-ish image buried among the IMDB photos that hints at 2/3'ds of this question. Curious about the other 1/3 myself.
 

Edited October 23 by InvaderStych
typo-rific

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

9 hours ago, InvaderStych said:

It certainly makes more narrative sense than a couple of Dis-arvel's recent offerings.

 

Funny you should say that, because Episode 7 first throws narrative causality out the window...

...then uses it to wind backwards through everything and make it make sense.

 

And I think Aubrey's a little more subdued than usual - other than a fabulous witch cackle - because of who she's playing. This was spoilered a while back if you're Very Online, and finally gets the reveal it should have had in this episode. The performance makes sense. The calm. The romance. The threat. The stillness. The sudden violence.

 

BTW, excuse me for any thaumaturgenerdery...

Spoiler

• We open, confusingly, on Lilia, dressed as... Glinda? ... falling into the darkness.
• Teen and Agatha walking the Road. Teen denies Wanda is his "real" mother. I get the feeling that'll work out badly for him later, so let's save that one.
• Big Chekhov's Gun(Wand?) Line: Billy wonders if Agatha's ever been to the road before. If you flip back to my Spoiler for Ep6, this absolutely fits my Big Theory.
• Next challenge appears: creepy castle. Or if you're familar with tarot: The Tower.
  (Hint: this is a card you generally don't want to see. The storytelling part of Tarot has beginnings, endings and twists: Tower is the unpleasantly Michael Bay explosion ending. If you're not running already, you should be the one to light the fuse...)
• Teen and Agatha suddenly turn into Maleficient and Elphaba. "If the cheekbones fit..." is one helluva line, btw. 🤣
• The game is obviously Tarot... (Hint: Swords are almost never good news, especially if you're on the wrong end of one.)
• ...but the Teen's got no idea what he's doing, and Agatha doesn't give a damn. Nonetheless, this read is also probably a clue. It's all in the interpretation.
• Big Chekhov's Gun Line 2: with everything going to hell, Billy wishes Lilia alive...and lo and behold, she is.
• It's possible Mrs. Hart was right: there are old subway tunnels under Westview. Is that where they've been this whole time?
• In case you haven't guessed yet, Lilia's gift/curse is that she's experiencing life out of order. And as such has rejected it, lived alone, not been the witch she could have been. Ignored her potential. We flip back to her childhood in Sicily, where her teacher is patiently understanding and trying to help this kid. We also go through the various different Trials, and forward into the upcoming Trial.
• Lilia enters the chamber, as does Jen, as Glinda and Grimhilde (Evil Queen from Snow White, in hag mode. "We can be culturally offended later".)
  Three wicked witches, and one good witch.
• Lilia takes charge and reads for Teen, but the Trial doesn't stop...
• ...because this is her Trial and the read should be for her. And she's already pulled all of the cards on her Hero's Journey, she just has to find them again.
  (I've gotta say, the way they've seeded those cards through the moments in the series - writing Lilia backwards and sideways - has been great.)
• Oh, and we get what SHOULD HAVE BEEN the Big Damn Reveal Moment (damn you, Funko): Agatha has literally been romancing Death.
• And every Hero's Journey has an ending. 😢  But if Tarot has taught me anything in my life, it's that what you see - both in the cards and on your Road - is a choice. There is no fate but what we make, no use of our time but what we choose.
• And Lilia, knowing that Death is coming, flips the script. Lights the fuse. Makes that choice to use her time, and give up her life, to let the other three escape. Fade to black.
• ...and suddenly, she reappears back in a happy childhood in Sicily. Cue Jim Croce, and dammit whoever that is please stop chopping onions around me that is not fair.
• It's also a very nerdy writer's joke, in a way: this one is about Time. And it's a self-contained bit centring on one character: so it's a "bottle episode". Neat.
• "Damn, she used his full name". Well, Teenager may not be his Full Government Name, but a lot of us felt that one.
• What's next? Well, the exit is green this time. It's through an Iron Maiden. There's a big damn neon-green R. And from the spoilery images online, including Jen's character poster, it's a morgue. Do you need to be psychic to figure that one out?
• But how do you create a trial for Death herself?
  Why is Jen the Path Ahead? What power has she been afraid of or unwilling to unleash?
  And when Agatha gets called a coward, is she going toe-to-toe with Rio/Death...
  ...or are we getting a Special Guest Star?

 

It was not a spoiler for Joe Locke & co to say this was their favourite episode, because it's an absolutely bravura writing and performance. Give that lady all her flowers.

 

Next week is the double-drop finale, just in time for Halloween. I for one cannot wait. Because even if my Big Theory proves correct - and the midseason trailer drop also fits - I still don't know where this Road ends, and I love that.

Edited October 24 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[InvaderStych]

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Funny you should say that, because Episode 7 first throws narrative causality out the window...

...then uses it to wind backwards through everything and make it make sense.

 

Well, sorta ...

 

Structurally closer to Following (Headline -> Log Line -> Article) than Memento (backwards). We got the "headlines" scattered through the first 6 episodes with her outbursts, ep7 gave them context. Kudos to the writing and editing teams on this episode in particular.

 

My comment had more to do with the way a few recent releases interact (or fail to) with each other than it did the releases in and of themselves, but that's on me for being vague. 🍻

 

It's also a distraction from the Reason for the Season ... of the Witch.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

And I think Aubrey's a little more subdued than usual - other than a fabulous witch cackle - because of who she's playing. This was spoilered a while back if you're Very Online, and finally gets the reveal it should have had in this episode. The performance makes sense. The calm. The romance. The threat. The stillness. The sudden violence.

 

Well, I am neither Very Online nor Very Knowledgeable in Comics Lore save for a few things here and there. Didn't see the merch-spoiler, and still don't know if she's referencing someone specific, or written for the show.

 

Again, apologies for vagueness here. Loving her performance as usual. She has a great deal of range that rarely gets properly utilized due in no small part to the strength of her persona. Its a good thing to see this time around.

 

A few more thoughts ...

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Teen and Agatha walking the Road. Teen denies Wanda is his "real" mother. I get the feeling that'll work out badly for him later, so let's save that one.

 

My memory is hazy regarding the ending of Dr. S:MoM, so I'll not theorize on the status of Wanda (Or Wandas, plural?) - but that was an odd moment. I wasn't expecting the identity crisis to be as strong as it apparently is. I figured William was dead and gone, and he was just Billy. I also figured he was walking the road to get Tommy back, but that seems less likely the more I see.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Big Chekhov's Gun(Wand?) Line: Billy wonders if Agatha's ever been to the road before. If you flip back to my Spoiler for Ep6, this absolutely fits my Big Theory.

 

Also plays into the surprise shown earlier in the series at the notion that Billy could break Wanda's spell at all. Subway Tunnels indeed. Unlikely that they're playing the audience that hard, but no impossible.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Teen and Agatha suddenly turn into Maleficient and Elphaba. "If the cheekbones fit..." is one helluva line, btw.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

"Damn, she used his full name".

 

Locke and Zamata completely crush moments like these when given them. Absolutely into it.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Three wicked witches, and one good witch.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

It's also a very nerdy writer's joke, in a way: this one is about Time. And it's a self-contained bit centring on one character: so it's a "bottle episode". Neat.

 

Good catch on both of these, particularly the latter.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

But how do you create a trial for Death herself?

 

So, up to this point I'd assumed that Agatha was talking about Rio when she said that only one other witch survived the road on her previous passage. But if she's Death that might make less sense - I suppose that depends on how they're treating the idea though. This also assumes the road is real and/or Agatha is periodically honest.

 

One thing does spring to mind though - can she kill what she loves? But that's too obvious to be on par with what we've seen so far.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Why is Jen the Path Ahead? What power has she been afraid of or unwilling to unleash?

 

I'm probably mistaken here, but didn't Lilia refer to her as The Goddess - which might have more to it than just the cards?

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

And when Agatha gets called a coward, is she going toe-to-toe with Rio/Death...
...or are we getting a Special Guest Star?

 

Or just Jen ... Or it has something to do with another spoiler-ific image of Agatha and Billy alone in a suspiciously familiar room - which suggests Special Guest Star indeed.

 

13 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

It was not a spoiler for Joe Locke & co to say this was their favourite episode, because it's an absolutely bravura writing and performance. Give that lady all her flowers.

 

Definitely a high water mark for the series, very well executed episode.

 

Honestly, I know there were doubts as to basing a series on this particular character, but it works. I'm probably alone on this, but I'd much rather see more of these sorts of explorations than just endlessly repeating the same characters playing out the same formula in a vain attempt to re-capture the magic of the first time through. That, imo, is destined to fail through death by comparison.

[InvaderStych]

Sorry, but this dumb forum put the following inside of my spoiler tags, despite the fact that I added it very clearly OUTSIDE the tags, and the lousy editor (at least in Firefox) won't let me fix it, so I am repeating it out in the open since it was meant for a more general thread audience and not meant to be hidden behind the tags.

16 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

It was not a spoiler for Joe Locke & co to say this was their favourite episode, because it's an absolutely bravura writing and performance. Give that lady all her flowers.

Definitely a high water mark for the series, very well executed episode.

Honestly, I know there were doubts as to basing a series on this particular character, but it works. I'm probably alone on this, but I'd much rather see more of these sorts of explorations than just endlessly repeating the same characters playing out the same formula in a vain attempt to re-capture the magic of the first time through. That, imo, is destined to fail through death by comparison.

 

Late Edit to answer a question no one was asking:

 

Keen eyed viewers probably noticed an image of what appears to be a witch on a paddle board during the end credit montage.

 

That's an annual event in Morro Bay. Probably elsewhere by now as its been going on for just over 10 years.

 

 

https://www.morrobay.org/event/witches-and-warlocks-paddle/13954/

 

 

Edited October 25 by InvaderStych
Remembered a thing.

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

Fun thing about this series I’ve just been reminded about via an interview with Jac Schaeffer:

 

…almost all the FX in this series are practical.

 

(Partly because it’s cheaper than CGI, especially with digital artists in so much demand for movies.
 

Mainly because it looks better on camera unless you’re prepared to spend A LOT, and you never get the same actor reactions from tennis balls on sticks.)

That includes…

 

…roughly forty heavy swords suspended from the ceiling by piano wire.

 

”We had to know which swords would fall when and where before any actors went on set.”

 

She didn’t mention anything about telling the actors, though.
 

😨

Edited October 25 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[Without_Pause]

Got through E5 and E6. I was a bit underwhelmed by it up to E4, but those two episodes made me glad I kept watching. 

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

So, we come to the end of the Road... and beyond.

 

Ep 8:

Spoiler

• We open on Alice taking the long walk. The Road gives... and it takes.
• The Road's going in circles... or is it?
• Waking up in a morgue is one for the nightmare files. Though I've had worse hotels.
• Hmm: stripped down set, simple lighting, simple clothing. We are going to focus on character and do drama.
• Quickly losing Jen with another subtle Agatha con: getting her mad enough to start reciting the unbinding spell, then putting it back on Jen's hand. She unbound herself. She just needed the push to do it.
• Let's go find Tommy somewhere to live.
• Big Damn Showdown between our two fine lovers.
• And however she knew, Lilia was right, because Rio is gonna throw the kitchen sink at her. Literally.
• (As a grav controller fan, I appreciate that joke.)
• Teenager Ex Machina.
• Agatha eventually makes the sacrifice play, and embraces Death. They do like literal visual metaphors on this show.
• Cue Teen going home, and exploring his room... penny finally drops.
• This witch was right all along. CALLED IT. His Road. His Hex. [insane cackling]
• But this story ain't over yet...
• ...Boo. 

 

Ep 9:

Spoiler

• Still looking good, boo. Puts together a few of the comic looks.
  (Including Kathryn's favourite, which she noted as having no skin. Clearly pneumatic latex leotard mode isn't where she wants to go with this.)
• In a somewhat Leverage-style like rewind, we see howhow we came to that ending...
• ...and understand all of Agatha's astonishment and exasperation ("...none of this would have been as dramatic.")
• Backstory time. We don't see exactly how Agatha and Rio hooked up, only that Nick should have been stillborn. Rio can't change fate, but can grant a little time.
• Two things left open:
  • "Made from scratch". As in Mr. Scratch? Did Nick have a fragment of Mephisto's soul, just like Billy and Tommy in the books?
  • Is stealing other witches' mana what's keeping Nick alive? It's when he chooses not to kill that Rio takes him home.
• A broken and bitter Agatha is happened on by an incautious witch.
• She doesn't have to hunt victims any more: her siren song brings them to her...
• ...for years upon years, including a Craft-era goth coven. (Genuine gutlaugh at that.)
• Side note: if the Ballad becomes famous enough to enter racial memory and pop culture, was Wizard Of Oz based on it and Agatha?
• Confirmed why she sent Teen out of the room when she was intending to kill everybody. She wasn't sure at that point if he was a reincarnated Nick, and still didn't want him to see.
• But hey, the stylish black girl winds up as Final Girl, and survives the movie rather than buying it on [licks finger and flicks script] page ten. Chalk that one up for the history books.
• One last twist: Teen decides he wants shot of Agatha, but Agatha focuses enough emotion to knock the locket out of his hand.
• And now we go looking for Billy.

 

Final thoughts for now:

Spoiler

• Definitely would have been left unsatisfied if it had cut off at Ep8. Ep9 was necessary aftercare.
• Agatha will be back, at least for an encore in What If?
• Wanda is still really, most sincerely dead... for now. There are rumours she'll be an integral part of the Doc Doom Avengers movies, but it's not necessarily the Wanda we (or Billy) remember.
• Next up: Vision Quest is currently filming. This might be a whole other story, or he might cross paths with his son.

 

If I took a moral from this tale...

 

If you seek power and glory, in any field of life - be it magic, work, religious authority, or politics - and want to use a cheat code or shortcut, especially one that has an explicit warning that you will have to do Bad Things to get it, you are quite likely to find worse people waiting for you. (I know. I did. I didn't wind up a shrivelled husk on the floor, but drained, broke and broken).

 

It's best to do the work honestly to get where you want to go, at whatever pace it takes you. And that's worked a lot better for me.

 

And if you wish for anything - from magic lamps, genies, witches or weird pocket dimensions, be very careful what you wish for, and very, very specific.

 

Edited October 31 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[InvaderStych]

Well, ep7 I'd say is still the strongest of the series, but ...

 

I'm generally not a big fan of an extended denouement - Peter Weir's Gallipoli remains one of my favorite movie endings of all time - but I get why they did what they did with ep9. It worked, although I would have been just as satisfied with a ghost reveal at the end of ep8. Writers wanted to wrap up a few threads, and did so nicely in a way that was a fit for the series. I did enjoy the reveal that she'd been using the "Road" as a con game, although I am left wondering how no one caught on across the couple centuries she was pulling that trick.

 

16 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Is stealing other witches' mana what's keeping Nick alive? It's when he chooses not to kill that Rio takes him home.

 

Alternatively, as long as she was "Getting Her Bodies" she was satisfied to let the clock keep ticking.

 

17 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

But hey, the stylish black girl winds up as Final Girl, and survives the movie rather than buying it on [licks finger and flicks script] page ten. Chalk that one up for the history books.

 

Nice catch!

 

I certainly wouldn't mind that character showing up elsewhere at some point.

 

17 hours ago, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

It's best to do the work honestly to get where you want to go, at whatever pace it takes you. And that's worked a lot better for me.

 

Truth.

 

Recently saw a strange quote to the effect of: "Don't chase your dreams. Humans are persistence hunters - follow them at a steady pace until they tire and lie down for you." Which is a weird way of saying "Put in the work, don't look for shortcuts," but it makes a sort of obtuse sense.

 

Would that I had figured this out 35 years or so ago. 🙃