‘Agatha All Along’ Puts the MCU Under Kathryn Hahn’s Kooky, Captivating Spell: TV Review

The Marvel Cinematic Universe built an empire on minor characters, proving that strong execution and an overarching brand could elevate once-fringe figures like Black Widow or the Guardians of the Galaxy into franchise mainstays. (With A-list IP like Spider-Man and the X-Men leased out to other studios at the time, this was partly out of necessity.) But even by Marvel’s own standards, the Disney+ show “Agatha All Along” marks the deepest of deep cuts. Kathryn Hahn’s title character, a witch who survived Salem only to run afoul of Elizabeth Olsen’s grief-stricken Wanda Maximoff in Marvel Studios’ TV debut “WandaVision,” has never even headlined a comic book of her own. Agatha got her own spinoff almost entirely on the strength of Hahn’s scene-stealing performance — which is why the earlier series, not Marvel Comics, is credited as “Agatha All Along’s” source material.

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That approach pays off in the nine-episode series, a magical quest that takes its tonal cues from Hahn’s big, brassy, cock-eyed performance. (Critics screened four episodes in advance.) Marvel has been in something of a creative and financial slump as of late, with viewers fatigued by an increasingly interchangeable, interconnected onslaught of output. Created by “WandaVision” chief Jac Schaeffer, “Agatha All Along”  has a distinct genre and feel, with a minimum of Marvel lore required to join the fun. All you really need to know is that the events of “WandaVision” have left Agatha powerless, memory-wiped and trapped in the idyllic suburb of Westview. Other proper nouns, like the Darkhold, can be safely tuned out. MacGuffins aren’t the point here.

The point, instead, is building a playground expansive enough to contain Hahn’s shamelessly selfish, domineering Agatha, a protagonist unburdened by moral obligations or so-large-they’re-meaningless stakes like saving the world. Agatha’s mission is straightforward, and if the worldbuilding around MCU witchcraft feels slapdash or hand-waved, that’s because it’s clearly subordinate to a greater goal: assembling a cast and staging setpieces to complement an energy engaging enough to build a show around. Hahn has spent her career balancing comic supporting roles (“Step Brothers,” “Bad Moms”) with sensitive, sensual lead performances (“Mrs. Fletcher,” “Tiny Beautiful Things”). With “Agatha,” the actor’s wackier side finally gets to take center stage.

The series premiere makes for a slow start, because it’s essentially a speed-run of “WandaVision”: a witch trapped in an illusion, several steps behind an audience that’s well aware Agatha isn’t actually a straight-talking, small-town cop named Agnes. (Even the obvious allusions to a small-screen trope — let’s call it “Mare of Easttown”-core — are straight out of its sitcom-scrambling predecessor.) It’s nonetheless great fun to watch “Agatha All Along” tug at the edges of this manufactured reality, as when “Agnes” drop-kicks a suspect off his interrogation chair or Aubrey Plaza drops in for some PG-13 rated sexual tension, smirking lines like “If you want to be in control, you can be.” And by the episode’s end, we’re treated to a reawakened, righteously angry Agatha stomping stark-naked across her lawn. The witch’s magic is still MIA, but her attitude is well and truly back.

The second episode is the true table-setter, explaining Disney’s decision to debut both installments at once before switching to a once-a-week release model. Not only is Agatha defenseless, she’s also being pursued by mysterious adversaries, including Plaza’s true, dagger-wielding form. (Surprise: her character’s not really the FBI agent she appears to be in Agatha’s spell-addled mind!) Agatha kills two birds with one stone by gathering a coven to embark on the Witches’ Road, a mythical path that rewards those who survive it with their heart’s desire. Conveniently, her ill-wishers can’t follow her there.

The coven in question are an Avengers of working TV actresses over the age of 35. Broadway legend Patti LuPone plays dotty clairvoyant Lilia, prone to sudden outbursts of prophetic insight; “SNL” alum Sasheer Zamata gets her Goop on as the crystal-hawking, potion-brewing Jennifer Kale; Debra Jo Rupp reprises her “WandaVision” role as a clueless neighbor conscripted into a role she doesn’t understand, but blithely rolls with anyway. Each witch corresponds with a natural element as well as a particular kind of magic, like Ali Ahn’s “protection witch” Alice. Again, the details are less important than the pleasure of watching the group — including Patti! — break out into song. It’s not as much of a banger as the series’ namesake, but there’s a lovely ballad that proves central to the plot (and with lyrics that serve as episode titles).

“Agatha All Along” has a sense of humor that’s a marked change of pace from the MCU’s quippy, Joss Whedon-influenced house style. The first stopping point on the Road is a Nancy Meyers fantasy that turns into a wine-fueled, tastefully neutral house of horrors, and when a sinkhole starts to claim Rupp’s handbag, she snaps, “This is from Talbot’s, and you can’t have it!” The mood is more referential and camp-adjacent than its franchise peers. In other words, it’s more gay, a style that’s quickly matched with substance. (The energy between Hahn and Plaza is decidedly not platonic.) Agatha even gets a gay groupie (Joe Locke) to follow her around, an amusing meta-commentary on Hahn’s real-life fan base. A kind of curse conceals the kid’s true identity, so everyone just calls him Teen.

Even when the mechanics of its story aren’t entirely clear to the audience, “Agatha All Along” is never less than thoroughly enjoyable. There’s a sense of fun, not to mention consistent episodic structure, in the coven’s journey down the Road, punctuated by Agatha’s tantrums and waystations set-designed to the gills. (After the beach house, the second stop is a ‘70s recording studio straight out of “Daisy Jones & the Six.”) It’s the rare Marvel project that feels justified not by its role in some yearslong master plan, but its own creative potential. Even in her diminished state, Agatha is still capable of some enchantment.

The first two episodes of “Agatha All Along” are now available to stream on Disney+, with remaining episodes airing weekly on Wednesdays.