Agatha All Along E6

Spoilers

“Familiar By Thy Side”

After last week’s big reveal at the episode’s end, I figured this week would be the back story of Billy Maximoff. And I was right.

I loved this episode. We went back and discovered how Wanda’s mind reading son wound up in a teenager’s body.

I had heard this speculation before. How the car accident that was reported earlier in the series, and was the back drop to the credits when Joe Locke’s name was up, would be tied to Billy’s resurrection (or rebirth?).

That car crash they shot was spectacular.

The crash came because Billy Kaplan’s parents, from Eastview, were distracted by the Anomaly created by Wanda was disappearing. I felt bad for the Kaplans but their son was gone. When he died in that car crash, Bill Maximoff took over the body. This is a decent origin for the Teen in the MCU considering how messy Wiccan’s Marvel Comics origin is.

We also get a special guest star… everyone’s favorite… Ralph Boner! Ralph Boner was the albatross around the neck of WandaVision. When he turned out to NOT be Pietro Maximoff from the X-Men universe, that was universally hated. However, we all still love Evan Peters and having him back is always welcomed. Ralph’s appearance was a little inconsistent here. I wish they had chosen a tone and stuck with it instead of trying to do both the fearful/intense tone and the funny/silly tone. Still, it was great to see him.

The discussion between Agatha and Billy at the end was really some great writing. Interestingly, no Aubrey Plaza. Where was she? I also hope the others in the coven are not gone for good. I know they are involved in other aspects, but I hope it is not just in flashbacks.

Three more episodes. One next week and then two on Halloween eve.

Agatha All Along E5

Spoilers

“Darkest Hour/Wake Thy Power”

This was a fairly short episode, but it was really impactful.

Alice, RIP. I think there is something more going on here though as Agatha’s trial turned deadly with the ghost of Agatha’s mother leading to Agatha draining the energy from Alice.

Dressed as a sleep over, this had a lot of the scenes from a trailer, specifically a possessed Agatha doing the backwards spider walk that you see in a lot of horror movies.

They were on the Ouija board and Kathryn Hahn dropped a fantastic Mrs. Hart/Sharon Davis imitation. That was hilarious. Maybe a little mean too…

After Agatha killed Alice (which Agatha certainly seemed shaken by), Teen was very angry and he reacted in a violent way. He seemingly tossed Agatha and the others into the mud and they sunk away.

Even more significant, Agatha said to Teen that he was just like his mother. Then, after he dispatched of the coven, we see Teen with a purple crown that resembled that of the Scarlet Witch.

We all suspected that Teen was somehow tied to Billy, Wanda’s created son from WandaVision, but the show has been tempting us by making Teen Agatha’s son Nicholas. Apparently, Nicholas was part of the Ouija board thing too. We are just past the halfway point of the series and this felt like a significant hint that he is Billy Maximoff.

And during this entire Teen-Agatha trouble, there was no sign of Rio. Aubrey Plaza has been rumored to be Death, which was mentioned in the Ouija session. What part is she playing in all this?

Lots of questions:

  • Is Alice really dead?
  • Who is Teen? Is he Billy, Wanda’s son?
  • What is Agatha’s responsibility in all this?
  • What happened when they were sucked into the mud?
  • Nicholas Scratch is doing what?
  • Is Aubrey Plaza Death?

I wish this episode was longer. It felt too short. What we got was great though.

Agatha All Along E4

Spoilers

“If I Can’t Reach You, Let My Song Teach You”

Whoa, this was a great episode.

Aubrey Plaza has returned, summoned to the Witches’ Road to replace the recently deceased Mrs. Hart (aka Sharon Davis).

Rio and Agatha certainly has a complicated history.

Agatha continues to show signs that she has feelings for Teen. Agatha thinks Teen is her son, you can tell. That is why Rio’s line at the end of the show about Teen not being her son hit Agatha so hard. I don’t know if that was true or just Rio’s vicious attempt to hurt Agatha.

When Teen looked like he was dying, Agatha was truly scared. Kathryn Hahn is such a great actress.

The new version of The Ballad of the Witches’ Road rocked hard. Lorna’s Ballad.

“We’re an album cover waiting to happen.”- Teen. The outfits for this trial were awesome.

The curse in demon form was very frightening too.

I am so curious about Patti LuPone’s character and the strange moments she has. It makes little sense so far, but I really love her so far.

This has been so enjoyable. The cast is tremendous and have so much chemistry with each other. There are so many questions to this story and I am into all of them.

Agatha All Along E3

Spoilers

After all of these years, it has finally OFFICIALLY happened…

Mephisto confirmed.

Jennifer Kale confirmed Mephisto with a name drop during the second week of Agatha All Along and the mere mention of his name freaked me out. After so many weeks in WandaVision with the belief that Marvel’s head demon/devil was behind everything, this was just a slight mention by one of Agatha’s coven. And it was everything.

Then, sadly, my expectation came to fruition as poor Sharon Davis, aka Mrs. Hart, died during the first trial on the Witches’ Road. If this is truly the last we’ll see of Mrs. Hart, then I, for one, will miss her tremendously. Debra Jo Rupp got limited scenes in this show, but every one she got was amazing. She stole every moment and she brought such a wonderful humor. She will truly be missed. Here’s hopin’ that once the trip down the road ends, she will be back in Westview tending those flowers.

Boy, this show is absolutely showing Agatha to be a selfish and uncaring witch. She is our protagonist, but it feels clear that she had not reformed her wicked ways. The show also hinted at the rumor that Agatha gave up her child for the Darkhold. Then, we all thought at first that Teen would turn out to be Billy, Wanda’s child who would become Wiccan, but is he Nicholas Scratch, Agatha’s son instead? Again, the show certainly teased at that too.

I am thoroughly engaged with the rest of the coven too, especially Patti LuPone’s Lilia Calderu. The delusions she faced while poisoned were fascinating and mysterious. She is my favorite character outside of Agatha and Teen. I look forward to learning more about her as we continue down the Witches’ Road.

No sign of Aubrey Plaza this episode, but I expect her to arrive soon with the untimely death of Sharon (How cold was Agatha’s ‘Who’s Sharon?’ comment at the end?).

This has been completely entertaining so far. Can’t wait for next week.

Agatha All Along E1, E2

Spoilers

“Seekest Thou The Road”

“Circle Sewn with Fate / Unlock Thy Hidden Gate”

The last live-action Marvel Television show was Secret Invasion. It was such a letdown that one has to wonder what was going on. The animated X-Men ’97 was brilliant, and that led us to the beginning of the spin-off of WandaVision, called Agatha All Along.

Agatha Harkness was the big bad in WandaVision and Wanda left her trapped in her Agnus character. That was three years ago and it seems that Agnus has found herself inside a police procedural.

The Agnus of Westview section of the first show was awesome, clearly a take on the Mare of Easttown series from HBO. However, the arrival of Aubrey Plaza and Joe Locke helped break Agatha out of the trance cast upon her by the now deceased (?) Wanda.

Agatha still has no power, but Joe Locke, who seems to be unable to say his name or any specifics about him, wants Agatha to lead him down the Witches’ Road.

The mystery of “Teen,” which is what Agatha begins calling Joe is one of the biggest of the early part of the show. We comic fans believe that we know who he is… Billy Kaplan, aka Wiccan. In the comics, Wiccan was one of Wanda Maximoff’s children (or so I think… this is a really convoluted piece of Marvel history). Could this be Billy from WandaVision? Who or what is preventing Agatha from hearing his name?

The second episode had Agatha and Teen recruiting other witches to put together a coven so they could open the door to the Witches’ Road. Patti LuPone, Ali Ahn, Sasheer Zamata are three of the witches that they recruited. Agatha also brought in Debra Jo Rupp, reprising her role from WandaVision in a brilliant piece of casting. Debra Jo played Mrs. Hart in WandaVision, but is actually named Sharon Davis and not a witch. Her part in the show was absolutely hilarious.

The group of them wound up singing “The Ballad of the Witches Road” in Agatha’s basement. This was an amazing song and it sounded awesome. Sharon’s line “Am I supposed to know this song” was just tremendous.

The cast is fantastic. I loved how this started off. Some may claim that it was too slow of a build, but I disagree. I was fully engaged from the first, as Agnus was investigating the death of a mysterious woman (sure being hinted as it being Wanda Maximoff).

The show had a very scary tone as the coven started to head down the road. In particular, the arrival of the Salem Seven was some of the creepiest moments of the first two episodes. I expect these are the witches we see Agatha betray and kill in WandaVision.

Agatha All Along has a vibe of The Wizard of Oz as well as plenty of Easter eggs from WandaVision. Several supporting cast members from that show appeared here.

I can’t wait to see where the Witches’ Road will lead us. Agatha All Along seemed to be a lot of fun and the perfect show to watch during the spooky season.

X-Men ’97 S1 E10

Spoilers

“Tolerance is Extinction, Pt. 3”

The third part of the season finale was brought to a close on Disney + in one of the most epic animated wars ever put to screen. A struggle with Bastian, with the mind of Magneto, and with the conflict within the Marvel Universe.

There is so much to see in this finale. A finale that ranged from Magneto and Charles inside Magneto’s head, to the momentary return of Phoenix, to cameos from Daredevil, Cloak and Dagger, Cap and Iron Man, Peter and MJ, Omega Red, Alpha Flight, Doctor Strange, Black Panther, Red Guardian, Darkstar, and ending with Apocalypse.

The show did an amazing thing, telling this story of Bastian’s future and finding the threads of family within. It blended perfectly with Magneto’s story and the battle with Xavier for his own soul. Onslaught is surely in there somewhere, but I am not sure it is where the next step for this series lies.

Post credit scene with Apocalypse, grabbing something from the ashes of and saying the word “death?” I am not sure after first viewing what it was that was in Apocalypse’s hand, but it will clearly lead to Death in his Four Horsemen. Will it be Gambit?

A version of Bishop returned to meet Forge, telling him that the X-Men were not dead, but were instead lost in time and that they needed to find them. A crew of them in Ancient Egypt with En Sabah Nur and Scott and Jean in the far future with a young Nathan. But we did not see Storm. We did not see Wolverine. Where did they end up?

Phoenix messed up Mister Sinister something bad. Then Phoenix was gone, regulated to a feeling deep inside Jean Grey. I knew we were seeing Phoenix this season. Every opening credit included a scene with the Phoenix. It only made sense. Apocalypse has been on most of them as well.

This animated series truly has been one of the greatest things that Marvel Studios has put out, especially among the Disney + shows. It has to be considered right there with WandaVision and Loki as the upper echelon of projects on the streamer.

They do a sensational job of wrapping up the season’s story while building toward where the next season is heading. The Apocalypse material did not come at the cost of the Bastian/Magneto tale. It was masterful storytelling.

I know season two has already been written, so I cannot wait until this gorgeous series returns to my screen. It can not come too soon.

X-Men ’97 is masterful. An amazing ten episodes that brought the mutants to the forefront of Marvel where they belong.

X-Men ’97 S1 E9

SPOILERS

“Tolerance is Extinction, Pt. 2”

If the second part of a trilogy is always the darkest one, then “Tolerance is Extinction, Pt. 2” hits the mark.

What an amazing episode, filled with so much X-Men action that it left me breathless and anxious to see the conclusion to this epic encounter next week in the season finale.

Magneto is back and he’s done with Xavier’s message. He recreated Asteroid M and recruited both Rogue and Sunspot to his side. Both of their defections made total sense to these characters, but that did not make it any less impactful to see them turn their backs on the X-Men.

Blue and Gold teams? Yes, please. That was right out of the comics and I loved it. Having Forge, Cable, Nightcrawler still here despite not being “original” members really worked.

The showdown with Jean and Sinister was just epic, as was the inclusion of Cable into that mix. I wonder if this is all leading to Jean’s return as Phoenix? I have noticed that nearly every week, the Phoenix has made an appearance on the opening credits/theme.

This show pulls no punches and is as brutal as you could possibly expect. Seeing Wolverine’s bloody claws (even though the length of them was a bit awkward) stabbed through Magneto was unbelievable, as was Magnus’ response. Who would have guessed that we would see Magneto rip the adamantium from Wolverine on an animated TV program? This is not our kids’ X-Men.

Morph smash? Excellent “cameo” from our shapeshifter.

I also love how the X-Men did not just fall into line with Xavier. The anger they had for their leader and his choices was clear, even if they knew what they had to do in the end. Scott walking past Charles and ignoring his extended hand was a powerful image.

Bastion is still involved, even though the main thrust has moved toward Magneto. Bastion still feels as if something major will happen with him before this war comes to a close. Seeing him crying over his mother was unexpected, but very humanizing.

This animated program had no right to be as brilliant as it turned out to be. X-Men ’97 has surpassed the original program and might take its place as one of, if not the, greatest animated program ever. We will see how the conclusion of this series is next Wednesday.

X-Men ’97 S1 E8

Spoilers

“Tolerance is Extinction, Pt. 1”

The first part of the three-part season finale dropped on Disney + this morning with an epic episode built on previous episodes. Bastian, a character that I really missed out on in the comics, is designed so beautifully, and feels original and unlike any other X-villain.

This episode felt like it fit inside the Marvel Universe more than any X-Men episode, dating back to even the early 1990s. We saw Spider-Man. We saw Dr. Doom. We saw Baron Zemo. We saw Omega Red. We saw the Silver Samurai. I’m really sure that we saw the timeline from Loki. It felt as if this show was building a world that we have known for decades from out of the pages of the comics.

Some of the action in this episode are absolutely bad ass. The Scott, Jean and Cable being pursued by the human/sentinels and plowing through the mountain in a Porsche with optic blasts was unbelievable. The Wolverine falling from the sky, slicing the hybrids on his way down. The use of Nightcrawler and his sabers fighting back-to-back with Wolverine protecting an unconscious Rogue. These scenes were all just so epic.

Magneto was right. Just thought I’d leave that here.

Magneto’s boss move, as Wolverine stated “He declared war on the planet,” happening in the first episode of the three-part episode is dramatic and quite the swing. Seeing Magneto going final boss just before Charles Xavier returned to the earth was poetic.

The family theme goes throughout the episode, with the Summers, with Nightcrawler-Rogue, with Bastian’s background, with Roberto’s mother, with Xavier’s return. The writing on this show just keeps getting better every time.

I love Nightcrawler. He has always been one of my favorite X-Men characters, but he is so perfectly portrayed here and his words are so wise and impacting that I love every second Kurt Wagner is on screen. I hope this character sticks around past this season.

It was a great start to the finale. Two more to go.

X-Men ’97 S1 E7

Spoilers

“Bright Eyes”

X-Men ’97 is not a kids show. Where as the original X-Men animated series from the 90s was absolutely made for children, this is anything but. While kids could watch and enjoy this show, the themes are considerably more adult than the previous incarnation.

Rogue going rogue showed us that. There is no way that we see Rogue kill Trask in the 90s series. But we saw that here in one of the most dramatic ways possible. Seeing him turn into a hybrid human/sentinel did not change the fact that she let a man fall to his death.

We also saw someone smother Henry Peter Gyrich to death. I am ashamed that I did not recognize Bastion immediately. He is a character that came into prominence during a stretch when I was not reading as many comics as I am now. Still, I should have identified this character sooner.

Having Bastion as the big bad is genius. Having him above Sinister even makes this character an immediate threat. His toying with a captive, yet still alive Magneto was creepy as could be.

I love the inclusion of Nightcrawler this week, but I am surprised that Storm did not make her return yet. She’ll be back soon, I am sure but to see her not at Remy’s funeral was disappointing.

That was another scene that I was not sure we would see. The funeral of Remy LeBeau, aka Gambit was tough. Does this mean that Gambit is truly gone? I know no one is ever truly gone when you are talking about the X-Men, but this felt very final to me. I know the showrunner said that the sacrifices of episode five were definite, that they were there to maintain stakes, but even still. Gambit is a major player in the X-Men universe.

Captain America making a cameo in this episode was interesting, if not unnecessary. Seeing Rogue fling the shield off into the mountains was rude. Emma Frost and her diamond form made an appearance too, saved from the rubble of Madripoor.

They do a remarkable job of packing so much content into a 30-minute episode. It is quite impressive and never feels too short.

The final three episodes, entitled “Tolerance is Extinction,” are a three part saga that the showrunner indicated would be as dramatic as episode five. That can’t get here soon enough. X-Men ’97 has been some amazing television so far.

X-Men ’97 S1 e6

Spoilers

“Lifedeath Part 2”

It was inevitable that episode six of the new animated series X-Men ’97 had to be a step down from last week’s episode, which some have called the best episode of Marvel TV ever. While that is hyperbole, the fact was episode 5 was absolutely a large hurdle to follow.

The second part of Lifedeath, a classic X-Men story arc involving Ororo, was a solid episode that might have suffered from placement in the series.

However, it was not only Storm and Forge whose story continued in this episode. We go into space and pick up with Charles Xavier and the Shi’ar Empire. I will admit that the Shi’ar has never been my favorite X-Men story arcs. I do like Deathbird, who is front and center here, and Gladiator has always been cool, but the rest of the Imperial Guard have been lesser to me.

It was also a surprise to see Ronan the Accuser make an early episode appearance with the Kree.

The events of episode five were felt in both stories, as the terrible news from Genosha inspired both of them. Xavier to decide that he must return to earth and Storm to choose to return to the X-Men after she was able to regain her powers.

The end bit showed us that Mister Sinister was behind the unleashing of the Sentinels onto Genosha, leading into the remainder of the season.

Interestingly enough, Nightcrawler has been added to the intro, despite the fact that he did not appear in this episode. That is okay with me as Nightcrawler has always been one of my favorite X-Men and the idea of more of the ‘fuzzy elf’ is very pleasing for me.

X-Men ’97 S1 E5

Spoilers

“Remember It”

Wow, what an episode.

So much happened. There are so many things occurred in this episode, and had one of the most dramatic and emotional ends to an episode that I have ever seen.

The first half of this episode was beautiful X-soap opera and the second half was full action spectacle.

The line Rogue says at the end of the episode as it went to black, “I can’t feel you” which was a call back to earlier in the episode, was heartbreaking as she held the dead body of Gambit.

The dialogue was so fantastic in this episode, taking a brilliant step up from the great dialogue from previous weeks’ shows. It is so well written and impactful. This is so much better writing than most animated shows you are going to find.

We got Cable. We got Tri-Sentinel. We got a story kind of like the Mutant Massacre. We had progression on the Scott/Jean/Madeline storyline. Nightcrawler was here along with a ton of cameos. Was there a secret cameo with the Watcher?

Gambit is such a kick ass stud during this episode. His ending battle with the Tri-Sentinel where he sacrifices himself to save Rogue is some of the best action storytelling that you are ever going to see.

Magneto and Rogue background comes out to Gambit.

This was unbelievable. There was so much in this episode. I absolutely loved this. It was one of the best episodes of animation on TV I have seen. What are they going to do after the tragic events of this ending? It is so fantastic. Next Wednesday can not get here quick enough.

X-Men ’97 S1 E4

Spoilers

“Motendo/Lifedeath-Part 1”

It was a strange week on X-Men ’97. They had two stories inside the one half hour timeframe. The first one was Motendo, a Jubilee focused episode versus Mojo and the second was the beginning of the story of Storm and Forge, which was teased at the end of last week’s episode.

I believe both of the two parts, though enjoyable, suffered together. They both felt a little rushed and could have easily been full 30 minute episodes on their own.

The two halves were very different as well. The Jubilee part was full of action and video game Easter eggs, while as the Storm/Forge part was intended to be more emotional. Both had its positives, but I just felt as if the two did not flow together well.

It was cool to see Mojo again, and him moving into the world of video games makes perfect sense. I could have used more of the older Jubilee or more with Roberto. I did like how Jubilee and Roberto’s relationship took a step at the end of this section.

I wanted more with Storm as well. The connection between Storm and Forge did not feel fully realized.

Still it was an enjoyable half hour, but it was definitely the weakest of the four episodes this season.

X-Men ’97 S1 E3

Spoilers

“Flesh from Fire”

Is there anything more useless or unnecessary than the “Skip Intro” button on this series?

At the end of episode 2, we see double Jean Greys and, those of us who are comic readers, we know what that meant. Madelyne  Pryor, aka The Goblin Queen, was a clone of Jean Grey from the evil Mister Sinister, and she was the mother of Cable.

This episode felt a little rushed for me, but I could understand why they did. There was so much packed into this episode, with the Inferno arc and the techno-organic virus which led to the Cable storyline.

This episode felt like a horror movie, almost body horror film in many ways, and in all the best ways. They did not need to do it this way, but so much of the body horror in the mansion included such character moments for the X-Men.

The animation continues to be great. One of the great things they have done was use specific X-Men classic covers as frames in the episode. Those are epic things that are like Easter eggs for the comic lovers of us.

This has been an amazing continuation of the X-Men animated show so far. With the Storm and Forge end, Lifedeath is on its way which is a classic X-Men story.

X-Men ’97

Spoilers

“To Me, My X-Men”

“Mutant Liberation Begins”

I was not ready for the levels of AWESOMENESS that the new animated series, X-Men ’97, a continuation of the 1990s TV series, X-Men: The Animated Series, would be.

Honestly, I knew there had been positives said about it by many people, but I did not expect the amazing two episodes we got kicking off the series on Disney + today. This was simply epic.

The 90’s series was great in its day, but it does not hold up as well as some animated series. the storytelling in the first series was decent, but the clunky, block-like animation never looked very good. It always felt rushed, as the time frame never seemed to be long enough to sufficiently tell the story. While I loved the show when I was younger, my recent re-watch of a few episodes only enhanced my thoughts that this was not as great as I remembered.

This changes everything.

These two episodes, which deal with the continued rage against mutants and the after effects of the ‘death’ of Charles Xavier, are filled with emotion, action, potential storylines that are not just focused on children.

That is really the main change. The 1990s show was focused on children, while X-Men ’97 feels as if it is not only something that works for children, but also targets those same children of the 1990s who have now grown up. This is a decidedly more adult version of that show. The 1990s show was a cartoon. This is animation.

Speaking of the animation, it does a remarkable job of updating the look of this show without feeling as if it rejects the look of the original. It feels like a new style while still engaging the nostalgia of those fans of the 1990s X-Men show. It is really beautiful and laid out in a wonderful manner.

Cameos everywhere, from actual mutants like Roberto DeCosta to multiple mutants shapeshifted by Morph from everyone from Angel to Sabretooth. You had to keep your eyes open to see what Morph was doing next. And, by the way, I am not even going to address the controversy over Morph that sprung up online. Morph was just amazing. ‘Nuff said.

Note to all future X-Men live action shows or movies, this is how you do Cyclops. Talk about a character that has never been done properly in live action, Scott Summers is right at the top of that list with Doctor Doom. Cyclops is pitch perfect in these first two episodes of the new series.

Oh, and the 90’s show never allowed Storm to bring the level of kick ass as she did in these two episodes. She showed the Omega-level mutant that she is.

These first two episodes have laid the groundwork for some brilliant storylines moving forward. Nathan Summers? Rogue-Magneto? Gambit’s jealousy? Storm’s loss of powers? Roberto and Jubilee? Magneto’s attempt to go straight? Genosha? Was that Madeline Pryor? So many threads here to bare.

The voice cast is exceptional. I do not know how many actors came back to once again voice these characters, but the actors doing these voices sound very much like the cast from the 90’s show. They are exceptional.

What a treat these first two episodes were. I can not rave enough about how much I loved these two episodes. If the remainder of the 10 episodes are the quality of these first two, we are in for quite an amazing and possibly uncanny ride.

X-Men: The Animated Series

Tomorrow, the new Marvel Studios animated program, X-Men ’97 debuts on Disney + and I expect to be watching it weekly. In order to prepare for this event, I picked out a few of the original series from X-Men: The Animated Series to watch over the last few days.

I watched a few of the episodes: Season one episodes- “Days of Future Past: Part One and Two“, “The Final Decision” ; Season two episode “Mojovision“; Season three episode “Longshot“; and Season three episodes “Old Soldiers“, “Hidden Agendas” and “Graduation Day.

Graduation Day was the final episode of the series run and it is the one that the first episode of X-Men ’97 is supposed to follow directly after. That is why it was a vital episode to watch. It dealt with the near death of Charles Xavier and how Magneto and the X-Men tried to work together to call on Lilandra of the Shi-ar Empire to help save Xavier. Xavier was taken away in the Shi-Ar spaceship to keep him alive.

The animated series was never great in animation, but much of the storytelling was solid. Specifically, the stories based after the comics. The Phoenix Saga was considerably better in this animated form than it has ever been in a couple of attempts to adapt it into live action.

With the iconic opening theme, X-Men: The Animated Series introduced the concept of mutants to countless young children who have now grown up to be excited about the new series on Disney +. With the X-Men now being used in the Marvel Studios, their arrival in the MCU is right around the corner.