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Agatha All Along: The MCU now belongs to the witches

Streaming Wars is a weekly opinion column by Amelia Emberwing, streaming editor at IGN. Check out the last entry: What happens when there are no more TV shows to binge? This column contains mild spoilers for WandaVision and Agatha All Along.

In 2021, a witch, her husband, and the sons they created from nothing would usher in the television era of the MCU (I also love Agents of SHIELD and Agent Carter, but the powers that be just insist they don't count, and they just added the Netflix series into the canon very recently). It was a turbulent time for us at home, it was a turbulent time for film and television studios… Basically, it was just a bad time, even if we started leaving our homes again after the vaccines were released late in 2020. In short , the MCU needed Wanda Maximoff then and now it needs Agatha Harkness.

Here's the thing: superhero fatigue is fake. It's not real. It's made up. It's a strange catchphrase that someone picked up a year ago and it sent the internet into a frenzy. There can be no such thing as superhero fatigue, not because it's an untouchable genre, but because it's so malleable. A superhero story can be about anything! It just needs to involve a superhero (or villain, or someone with other powers). Superhero stories can look like Watchmen or like Supergirl and everything in between and beyond. People are not tired of superhero stories. They're tired of it the same Superhero stories.

Before we all trip over ourselves defending the classics… I love them too! I also don't think I can be more excited for James Gunn's Superman, which, while I suspect it will express Gunn's traditional penchant for the absurd and love of outcasts, will largely be a traditional Boy Scout homage . The point is that the superhero genre can't survive by offering the same thing over and over again and over again. And while I really like the MCU and am one of the few remaining defenders, it is incredibly guilty of offering largely the same flavor in most phases.

Yes, part of it has to do with his leads. The fan base hasn't belonged exclusively to straight white people for decades – and they, like everyone else, seem to be tired of seeing the same story over and over again – and anyone who doesn't fit into that demographic is just waiting for their respective genre Catch up on choice. But it goes deeper than just the faces we see in the lead roles. It also comes down to who is telling the stories, what cultures those stories touch, and how they can reach beyond their respective demographics to show people the magic that can happen when we start looking at stories that go beyond , what we know. This is possible and has been done in the MCU – Black Panther was remarkable in every way. But it also took us literally a decade into the franchise epic to get there. A year later, Captain Marvel had similar success, but was (rightly) less critically acclaimed.

But what does all this have to do with witches? Actually everything.

For some, witchcraft is a religion, for others it is a symbol of female authority and resistance to male domination, and for many it is both. For the MCU, it's a story aspect that has saved itself twice now. Back when WandaVision debuted, it was because they needed Disney+ to be successful, and their television offerings were off to a good start and could tide them over until theatrical releases came back into play (when Shang-Chi arrived later that year cinemas came). Now? Now fans need to be reminded that the franchise is more than just its traditional bag of tricks. particularly after the MCU leadership returns to the Russo Brothers and Robert Downey Jr.

Because it's not just about telling a good story. It's about telling a story that people connect with, that fans crave and that opens up whole new worlds of possibilities. WandaVision achieved this with an innovative storytelling method that keeps things fresh while sticking to a beloved character dealing with crippling grief. Agatha All Along does the same, taking an emotional and hilarious look at the complications and true meaning of the coven, along with the catchiest song since the Hex Girls' “Hex Girl” in Ballad of the Witches Road.

In fact, “Agatha All Along” shared early on with “Mrs. Hart” by Debra Jo Rupp captures what makes witch stories so attractive. It doesn't matter if you're a craft-obsessed weirdo like me or an empty-nester housewife, we all have a little witch inside of us. Member of a sorority? You're part of a circle, baby. (Witches feel about mega-covens the same way most Christians feel about mega-churches, but you're not here for that discussion.) Every woman can identify with the witch archetype on some level because every woman on some level knows you what it's like to be viewed as inferior, treated differently or even persecuted because of our gender. Just because things have improved over the years doesn't mean systemic sexism doesn't remain a huge problem in the modern world.

The fact that systemic sexism still exists might be frustrating for some. It's definitely a hell of a frustrating experience! But whether it's something you accept or something that upsets you, the truth remains that witch stories have been in vogue for well over a century, women will continue to identify with them for a century to come, and right now Agatha All Along reminds people that the old dog MCU still has new tricks.

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But what about the boys?! Yes, I understand you. I too am thrilled that the MCU is abandoning its traditional masculinity and appealing to more men! Incorporating the story of Billy Maximoff (Joe Locke) is a completely inspired way to appeal to men who don't fit into the archetype the franchise has created for their gender.

Billy brings a certain balance to the series in both his perspective and his skills. And balance is exactly what will save the MCU if it is to be saved. Sometimes when people read these stories of mine they get the feeling that I'm not also excited about stories like Daredevil: Born Again, but that couldn't be further from the truth. What I and my fans need is not for every story to speak to us; we just want some stories about it. Marvel needs to find a balance between doing something fresh and avoiding falling back into the same thing it created well over a decade ago. I love phases 1-4, but I have seen Phases 1-4. I hope that they keep showing us something new.

And it's not for nothing that balance is also crucial in witchcraft.

See you after the finale!

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