Agatha All Along returns us to the town of Westview which has Agnes caught in a mystery! We have found out that it was Agatha All Along with the clever reveal in WandaVision. The first MCU show was created by Jac Schaeffer. The distorted sitcom reality was Wanda Maximoff’s stages of grief dealing with the death of Vision and so many others. She had constructed that reality using a hex warping the town of Westview, New Jersey and its townspeople into a television supporting cast. We found out her neighbor, Agnes, was really Agatha Harkness in “Breaking the Fourth Wall” (2021). She was a witch from Salem back in 1693. Agatha has discovered that Wanda is the Scarlet Witch and uses chaos magic. Wanda in turn traps Agatha into Agnes and removes her magic in the finale.
Schaeffer returns to the story of Agatha Harkness, and directs and writes the premiere, “Seekst Thou The Road.” We find Detective Agnes (Kathryn Hahn) humming as she drives. Hahn returns to the role and had voiced Doc Ock in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023). We see the woods of Westview, a piano softly plays the tune hummed by Agnes, as she pulls up her car to a crime scene. Agnes brings up a cup of coffee to Herb Feltman (David A Payton) who greets her, “Hey neighbor.” She was playing Candy Crush at home for displinary action, until the chief sent her in, for only a case she can solve. Herb debriefs her on the Jane Doe found by the water and hands her an evidence bag with a library book card. He says she was crushed by “something big, heavy.” An X-Files-type crime. The autumnal trees, fog, and a strange murder is intriguing.
We see the victim in a dark sweat shirt and jeans, a closeup of dirty feet, running?, Agnes clutches her neck. She sees the victims’ black fingers. Agnes walks away looking around the woods. She finds a brooch in a dark pool and pulls it out. Herb asks if she found something, Agnes pockets the brooch, and he tells her that they are ready to “roll her.” The forensics team turn the body over, the face is blocked by Agnes, this led me to believe with being crushed that this might be Wanda. At the end of Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness (2022), Wanda finally came to herself and brought down Mount Wundagore while destroying every copy of the corrupting Darkhold in the multiverse. It would be interesting if this series fixes what was broken in that film. Agnes kneels over the body and whispers, “What happened to you?” Herb asks if she is like herself, Agnes wipes away a tear, and she mentions the dead body in the creek.
Then, we get a moody opening with a jazzy rendition of the title song, “Down the Road”, character credist, Agnes O’Connor, and scenes of Westview and the crime tape in the forest. The credit notes that the show, “Agnes of Westview” was “based on the Danish series, wandavisdysen”, funny!, like the opening credits to Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975). Agnes cuts through the line of library patrons, line?, on “official police business.” The librarian, “Ms. D. Jones”, Dottie (Emma Caulfield), is also returning from WandaVision. Agnes shows her the book card, but Dottie says they only use digital now. Instead, she decides to shout about Dottie’s alibi. Dottie looks up the book that she discovers was stolen three years ago. She points out the Natural Sciences section. Agnes finds a section with a “Under Repair” sign.
It has a charred hole and the section is burned. She is startled by a whisper, “There was a fire.” A man (Paul Adelstein) stares at her from the next shelf over! Adelstein was in the psychological horror movie, The Menu (2022). Agnes arrives at the police department holding a chocolate donut in her mouth. She finishes it off while entering and is met by Chief Phil Jones (David Lengel). This also another Wandavision return with Lengel back as Jones. She walks into her office noting the fire. He tells her the soil samples under Jane Doe’s fingers and toes are not the same as the area. Chief Jones says that they are only found in Eastern Europe, say Transia, the location of Mount Wundagore? They are interrupted by Agent Rio Vidal (Aubrey Plaza) who takes off her sunglasses. Plaza is in the upcoming sci fi epic, Megalopolis. She was also Lenny Busker in the superhero themed show, Legion.
Agnes sends away the chief. Then, she thinks Rio is going to take over her case. Agnes says Jane Doe must have been carried, but Agent Vidal says there is no tracks. She counters saying that the answers to the case lie with the small town. Rio says it looks like Agnes lived in Westview her whole life. Agnes sends her out of her office. The brooch is examined under magnifying glass, it looks like the Three Witches out of Macbeth or even The Fates. Agnes asks Norm (Asif Ali) at his pawn shop about the brooch. Norm was also in WandaVision. He guesses that it is from New England, 17th century, about the time of Agatha in Salem? Norm says they are the Triple Goddess; Maiden, Mother, and Crone. This would be the Morrigna from Celtic myth. He opens a latch showing a locket of dark hair, red? Night, Agnes is working at her office, she looks at the title of the book, Dialogue and Rhetoric Known History Of Learning & Debate. She underlines the first letters of the title; Darkhold! She is startled by Chief Jones who tells her to go home.
There is another pool outside of Agne’s house as she drives up to the curb. I love the imagery. Hahn playing a relentless cop. The supernatural just at the edge. Some somber music by Chistophe Beck. He also composed the music for Wandavision. It almost makes Agatha sympathetic. She opens a door to a room with a teddy bear, a medal for Nicholas Scratch!, son of Agatha, he was introduced in Fantastic Four #185 (1977). A knock at the door. She opens it to see Rio who has brought a pizza. Agnes tells her there was a car wreck at the time of death at Eastview. Rio asks her if she thinks that’s how they moved the body. Then, she asks why Agnes hates her, but she doesn’t know. Rio is the Maiden and Agatha is the Mother? Agnes hears something and goes upstairs to find a hooded man (Joe Locke) at her closet! Locke was in the teen drama, Heartstopper. He goes out the window and leaps down. Agnes awkwardly slips, falls, and then chases after him.
The thief is hit by a white car and knocked unconscious. The driver is Mrs. Hart (Debra Jo Rupp)! She was a standout in Wandavision as the wife of Vision’s boss. Agnes uncovers the teen’s hood and arrests him. Later, he is in the interrogation room, watched through the observation mirror, Agnes tells Rio that he has no i.d. She enters the room to question him. He says he was looking for a “respected home life”, but she didn’t have it so she kicks him out of the chair! Rio bangs on the mirror. She whisopers a warning to the teen and then gets back in her chair. He admits he was looking for The Road. Agnes is confused. She sees black fingers on the teen’s hand which he says is from fingerprinting. Agnes says she was on a road and found something. She asks where he was from 1 to 3 a.m. and the teen says he was asleep. She writes it down on her notepad and then screams at him. Agnes shows him the murder photos. He says it is flowers.
She looks again and sees flowers on a lawn. This is a strange interrogation like Neo in The Matrix (1999). Agnes turns to look at the empty interrogation room. He asks why she is looking at a painting. She turns to see a classical painting mounted on a red wall. The teen has unlocked the truth that has broken the reality like in Wandavision. He starts to chant words that frustrate Agnes. She handcuffs the teen to take him to the cell. In her car, Agnes whispers about seeing the body before walking to the morgue. She enters and finds it empty! Chills. Agnes repeats Jane Doe’s description, “late 20s, green eyes, 5’7”, then the body appears under cloth. Dirty feet. A tangle of hair which Agnes describes as “scarlet”! The library book card is on her toe tag! She looks at it, the last date, Oct. 13, and then the red letters appear, “W. Maximoff”!! A tear falls. Rio is suddenly there. She says that witch is gone along with all copies of the Darkhold trapping her. Agnes takes off her scarf, jacket, and then finds in the mirror she is in a blue gym outfit out of Wandavision!
Agnes falls over the body and then picks herself up in the black and white sitcom Agnes! Rio says there are two Jane Does and then asks her name. Right above Oct. 13, Jan. 21, the words form, “A. Harkness”! The sitcom Agnes unbuttons her dress, the music swells up, and the overhead lamp blazes with light! Agnes returns to her house, nude, and screams! Herb is clipping his hedge when Agatha walks over to him. She asks how long she has been there. He says three years. Dottie, her husband, Phil, shocked at Agatha undressed, and daughter. Norm is jogging, sees Agatha, and starts to run back. Herb says she seems “powerful.” Agatha returns to her house. She starts to form a hex, but has no magic. Agatha throws on a bathrobe and walks down to her basement. She finds a big rabbit and confesses that Wanda took all of her power. There is a thump upstairs. The thumping continues and Agatha picks up a wooden spoon. This is Agatha Harkness’ return to power after her fall in Wandavision, she has supernatural enemies in her way! '
Five Brooches out of Five!
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