Agatha All Along review: "Wacky, Wizard of Oz-esque series is hex-actly what Marvel needs"

"I'm exceptional," Kathryn Hahn's titular lead tells her new pal Teen in Marvel series Agatha All Along, after he insists that the notorious Witches' Road can't be that perilous if she's walked it before. It's one of many giggle-inducing glimpses at the sorceress's campy confidence in the moment, but she could just as easily be talking about the show itself. 

To put it plainly, the latest Disney Plus outing, which is a follow-up to Marvel's acclaimed series WandaVision, is dark, fizzing with energy, and rather remarkable, as it sees Agatha break free from Wanda's glamour and set off on a dangerous journey to regain her power. Much like how The Wizard of Oz's Dorothy rounds up the Tin Man, Lion, and Scarecrow to accompany her as she skips over those famous yellow bricks, Agatha finds herself having to rustle up a coven in order to walk the Witches' Road, a mythical path that puts those who traverse it through several increasingly difficult trials. (The writers and showrunner Jac Schaeffer are acutely aware of the similarities, clearly, with Agatha referring to Teen as 'Toto' in one scene and the Road looking suspiciously like the one that leads Judy Garland away from Munchkinland.) 

If you make it through the lot, "what's missing awaits you at the end"; be it power, freedom from a binding spell, a fortune-related do-over, or answers to your mother's disappearance – Agatha's rag-tag teammates Jennifer (Sasheer Zamata), Lilia (Patti LuPone), and Alice (Ali Ahn) hope, anyway.

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Unfamiliar territory

To conjure the hallowed highway, the quartet – accompanied by Agatha's clueless neighbor Sharon (a scene-stealing Debra Jo Rupp), or Mrs. Hart, as Agatha hilariously, relentlessly dubs her – sings a song. In the run-up to Agatha All Along's release, there's been much speculation as to whether or not it's a musical. To describe it as such based on the four episodes shown to critics would be dishonest, though the front half does boast Christophe Beck and Michael Paraskevas' sensational score and two cracking tunes by WandaVision's Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez; the track that sets Agatha's coven on the Road, a Frozen-sounding atmospheric chant that demonstrates the actors' synchronicity and gung-ho approach and the other? More of a rock ballad, which sees Hahn do her best Stevie Nicks impersonation.

"Burn and brew with coven true, and glory shall be thine," is a line from the first number, and well, you can say that again. The ensemble's chemistry is off the chart, the fun they had making this series practically vibrating out of the screen. Joe Locke's Teen and Ahn's Alice are the group's sweet centers (a cute upending of their punky, "don't f*** with me" exteriors), while Jen and Lilia are the perfect straight men for Hahn's larger-than-life Agatha to bounce off of. Each character is distinctly drawn and given fair screentime to showcase that, too, as they're forced to face up to unique traumas from their pasts during the Road's wildly inventive tests. 

Learning from WandaVision's successes, the show embraces an episodic format – think Buffy the Vampire Slayer's 'monster of the week' thing, but with trials – which enables each installment to explore new tones and aesthetics. The sets, all of which are practical, and costumes are ambitious and exquisite. One week, our heroes are guzzling never-ending wine while wearing camel blazers and cable-knit pullovers, and stirring up potions in a butler's sink. The next? They're rocking out in a '70s-style recording studio in outfits that wouldn’t look out of place in Aerosmith or ABBA's dressing rooms.

Perfect casting

All of the above wouldn't be half as delicious, though, without Hahn, who's better than ever here, chewing up the scenery – when she's not chewing on donuts, that is. When we first reunite with Agatha, she's stuck still thinking she's 'Agnes' and, for reasons that are not explained, Agnes has been bitten by "the true crime bug". With that, she's convinced she's Westview's finest homicide detective. Hahn hams it up to the extreme, as the show rags on the likes of The Killing ("Based on the Danish series Wandavisdysen"), Mare of Easttown, and True Detective. No crime drama is safe in fact, with Agnes barking at her colleagues: "These cases are all about the place; the specific small town, the history of it, the people in it, the secrets buried beneath it. That's where the answers lie!" It's a clever storytelling device that seamlessly bridges the gap between its predecessor, a love letter to TV whose influences ranged from Bewitched to Modern Family, and its own more occult-driven identity. It means that it's practically invulnerable to any potential criticisms, too. That moment was a bit wooden, or over the top? Oh, the dialogue was clunky there? Yeah, it's called satire, darling!

A huge part of Hahn's comedy genius is her physicality, and Agatha All Along sees her almost constantly offering up ticks and facial expressions that give the likes of Jim Carrey or Lucille Ball a run for their money. A sulky pout, a flick of the wrist, a well-placed eyebrow wriggle – she's so in control of her head-to-toe performance and it really is a treat to watch. She was already brilliant in WandaVision, but with this Hahn proves she's one of the best casting decisions Marvel has ever made.

Divine divination 

While the first four episodes lack real weight for Wanda Maximoff's former enemy, the show's official trailer promises much more emotional material lies ahead. For now, we can assume we'll see her wrestle with the truth about her son Nicholas Scratch, a so-far off-screen relationship that draws inspiration from the comics, and the betrayal of her Salem sisters back in the late 1600s. The final five chapters, which'll take us right up to Halloween, will likely see more revealed about her seemingly romantic history with the antagonistic Rio Vidal (a charismatic, welcomely off-kilter Aubrey Plaza), as well. They can't come soon enough.

Living up to WandaVision was always going to be a challenge but somehow, Agatha All Along never puts a lace-up, leather-booted foot wrong. It's got humor, mystery, demons, friendship, romance, and more. It feels fresh in ways that many MCU titles haven't of late, as it concerns itself more with witchcraft lore than it does connectivity and wink-wink references. It's hard to imagine a more perfect way to usher in the spooky season. Ding dong, the witch has us fed.

Agatha All Along episodes 1 and 2 are streaming now. For more, check out our list of the best new TV shows in 2024 and beyond, or, check out our guide to the most exciting upcoming Marvel movies and shows.