‘Agatha All Along’ 1×06 review: A Maximoff rises from the dead

The journey on the Witches’ Road took a needed break in this episode for an origin story. “Familiar by Thy Side” introduced us to how William Kaplan (aka. Billy Maximoff, Marvel’s/MCU’s Wiccan) came to be on Disney+’s Agatha All Along. Since Teen’s magical debut after the ‘80s trial, there were a lot of theories about how Wanda’s young son returned after the events of WandaVision. Was he a villain? Did Mephisto play a part? In actuality, “Familiar by Thy Side” took a closer path from Marvel Comics’ origin story, (albeit, with the MCU’s storyline). And thankfully, it was the right choice for Agatha All Along to follow!

The unsuspecting life of William Kaplan

“Familiar by Thy Side” didn’t have an outlandish or unbelievable answer to the big question about Wiccan. It made a lot more sense for the character that the events unfolded naturally. In this case, it was a car accident near Westview after William’s Bar Mitzvah. Plus, the mixture of “William” (now Billy) suffering amnesia after the accident paired well with how we as the audience followed his story. The post-WandaVision twist allowed Billy to adjust to his new surroundings and give him time before he discovered the truth. The Teen/Billy we were introduced to on the series premiere wasn’t the powerful superhero ready to fight crime. Instead, we got the newbie inexperienced witch looking for answers about himself and his family. That reality works better for his character’s story overall.

You couldn’t help but feel bad for Billy throughout “Familiar by Thy Side.” Just imagine you were in his shoes: a fictional magical kid who can read minds who died and then reincarnated in the body of a teen with no memories. After the first time you heard your parents’ minds, you would be freaking out and confused too!

At least Billy ended up in a safe and happy place. William’s parents seemed to really love him; they had a great relationship before his death. And William’s bedroom was so cool; all the movie posters and geek stuff would be such a dream. For eagle-eyed fans, there were witchy references and some nods to The Wizard of Oz! Also, it’s great that Agatha All Along kept Billy’s sexuality as an important part of who he is. His relationship with Eddie seemed cute, and we couldn’t help but notice the naming similarities between Eddie and Wiccan’s future husband, Hulkling (aka. “Teddy”).

The spells of the past

Throughout the origin story, we learn a clear sense of how the coven was a part of William’s/Billy’s life. For instance, Lilia was the psychic at his Bar Mitzvah and Alice was the first responder who helped his family after the car accident. These little touches show how everything was connected and fated to happen. Sure, sometimes these cameos can feel shoehorned in, but all the instances of the coven were so lighthearted and fun. Particularly, Sharon’s response after her car door hit him was hilarious! She’s continuing to give us treats even after being gone for so long.

The most shocking reveal, however, was the truth of Lilia placing the sigil on William/Billy! Did anyone see this coming? It’s a surprising twist because the expectation was that the Scarlet Witch did it before WandaVision ended. Though now in hindsight, it makes sense that Wanda didn’t do it because she would’ve never caused Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness had she known Billy was alive in her reality. Lilia’s sigil didn’t just have a huge effect on Billy, but it affected a huge part of the MCU too. Lilia did that. Agatha All Along truly blew me away.

But why did she create the sigil? Did she feel motivated after her psychic reading of William? Or, could she have been influenced by someone (or something) else? The sigil protected both William’s and Billy’s identities from any living witch, so its intent was to keep them safe. Hopefully, we get an answer from her soon. It doesn’t seem likely that Lilia or Jen died from being thrown into the mud by Billy – if Agatha can survive, they can too. We’ll most likely have them back soon.

Special guest star

One area of “Familiar by Thy Side” that could’ve been reduced was the reunion of Ralph Bohner (played by Evan Peters). In the years since WandaVision, Ralph has suffered PTSD from being controlled by Wanda and Agatha. In Agatha All Along, he’s become the cliché paranoid informant who is suspicious about everything. Even though Ralph provided a lot of needed information for Billy and Eddie, the joke just kept going on and on. The full backstory of Wanda’s family coming from Ralph dragged out the scene too much.

Comparatively, “Familiar by Thy Side” would’ve benefited from having some of the Westview details be revealed from another source. Like maybe there is a video on one of the witch sites from inside Westview? I loved Billy’s research montage of finding historical information about Agatha and how he connected the truth of the Witches’ Road. This research could’ve hit a lot more by having footage from WandaVision appear somewhere, instead of only an explanation. If the Ralph scenes had been reduced slightly, we could’ve gotten more of the witchy side of the story. For instance, more scenes from Billy’s point-of-view while Agatha was under Wanda’s spell. Seriously, Agatha and Billy have great chemistry together; Joe Locke looked ready to laugh from the detective persona.

A mentor in the making

Does anyone else think Agatha was impressed by Billy? When she emerged from the mud, her expression always had a hint of a smile and joy. Kathryn Hanh eats up every scene whenever Agatha gets to be the mischievous witch. What I mean is that a powerful centuries-old witch like Agatha was happy that a baby witch like Billy could manipulate her like that. Plus, she did like Billy on WandaVision, so it’s a happy reunion for her. Agatha may have her agenda for being on the Witches’ Road, but Billy now throws a huge wrinkle into her plans; he’s no longer the familiar (or her dead son) that she thought he was.

“Familiar by Thy Side” was a strong TV origin story for Agatha All Along, as well as the MCU. We got a real sense of who William Kaplan was and who he became as Billy/Wiccan. The pieces connected together well that nothing felt forced or off about the character. And the nods to the past helped to frame the story together for the overall picture. A few changes could’ve been made to make it stronger, but “Familiar by Thy Side was essential to Agatha All Along’s story … and potentially more MCU properties to come.

Agatha All Along airs Wednesdays on Disney+.

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Images courtesy of Marvel