Agatha All Along Episode 8 & 9
‘Agatha All Along’ has come to an end with episodes 8 & 9, ending the latest series from Marvel Studios. Episode 8 features the last trial and reckoning with Death, whereas episode 9 reveals to the audience what’s really been going on, and who is really behind everything. Episode 8 is another great episode, but episode 9 unfortunately ends this great series on a low note.
Episode 8 sees the completion of the road with its final trial, and it requires a Green Witch, which they don’t have. It’s a growth trial, and fittingly sees the characters grow into something more along with growing plants. Aesthetically, this episode surpasses the prior one, showing again the full strength of the team here. Death’s many costumes are a highlight, but also using the growth lamps as a countdown is an inspired and thoughtout choice as it not only makes plants harder to grow, but poeple don’t thrive and grow themselves in darkness.
It’s the episode that sees the big battle take place, but feels different to the others, as it’s not the resolution to this show, like previous installments. It’s as flashy as many other battles, though has a great end as Agatha decides to sacrifice herself to save a young boy from Death, something audiences later find out she couldn’t do before.
Episode 9 charts Agatha’s life throughout the ages, revealing two major things. The Witches Road was something Agatha made up all along, actually creating the Ballard of the Road with her child, Nicholas. It’s because of this love she has for him, as they sing it back and forth. It also turns out Agatha didn’t trade his life for the book of the damned, Death simply did her job, perhaps coming too early for Agatha. This is where audiences get a fantastic look at Agatha’s true turn to villainy, using the myth of the Road to kill witches.
This realisation that the Road isn’t real immediately leads to the second reveal. Billy Maximoff created the version of the Road that Agatha and her coven travel down, in a similar way to how Wanda created the Hex in WandaVision. It’s something that ties him further to Wanda, It’s hinted at with the end of episode 8. Billy reacts horribly, worrying that he’s killed the witches, but Agatha reminds him that she would have done that away, and Billy actually saved one of them. It’s something that shows the writers
Agatha’s ghostly apparition is a fun nod to the appearance in the comics, and her screams of being unable to face her son as Billy carries out a banishing ritual, who in the flashback clearly didn’t like being used as a tool to kill witches. It’s a strong moment. But outside of this, the finale does lack a bit of punch, as while Billy’s realisation that he created The Road takes him out of it – he did kill several people – Agatha takes the edge off by saying she would have done it anyway.
After Billy ends the banishing ritual, he and Agatha agree to go and find Tommy, aka Speed. It’s a bit of a weak ending, one that ends this otherwise great season on a bit of a flat note. The energy of the show leaves it once the reveals come, with nothing to replace it. This is a minor criticism on the whole however.
The season shows that the experimentation Marvel Studios was known for in its earlier days hasn’t gone away. It’s a series that fully commits to its theatrical tone, thanks to stellar performances and look. The reveals feel like they make sense and payoff earlier moments, showing improvements from ‘WandaVision’. The missteps the series suffers are minor. Hopefully Marvel Studios can learn from this series going forward and start to get their mojo back.
