This is the best Marvel show since… the first season of Loki. It’s not a high bar, no, but it’s still something to be proud of. 

I wasn’t craving a TV series centred on Agatha Harkness. As much as I rate Kathryn Hahn, the character of Agatha never felt more than a plot beat, an interesting wrinkle to WandaVision. But Schaeffer takes that character and gives her layers without diluting her amoral core.* I knew we were on firm ground when the first episode proved to be a piss-take of True Detective.

The overarching plot is that Agatha is caught in a spell of Wanda’s making, which has taken her identity and powers. While she does get her memories back (spoilers for the end of episode one), she remains powerless. The very person who freed Agatha from Wanda’s spell, a wide-eyed, mysterious goth teenager (played by Joe Locke), persuades Agatha to form a coven and embark on a journey down the “Witches’ Road”, a treacherous path filled with trials, tribulation and death. If Agatha reaches the end of the road, her powers will be returned. On the heels of Agatha and the coven are the Salem witches, a previous coven that Agatha killed and who are now seeking revenge. 

Agatha All Along is structured around the Witches’ Road, with each episode (well, most of them) centred on a different and dangerous challenge. I would usually find this predictability exceedingly dull (I’m looking at you final season of Star Trek: Discovery). But this is where the writing shines. Each member of Agatha’s coven—Lilia, Teen, Jennifer, Alice**—is fleshed out and given a proper backstory. The episode where we learn about Lilia (played by the extraordinary Patti LuPone) is one of the best 45 minutes of TV Marvel studios have ever produced. But all the characters are allowed to break free of the tropes or stereotypes they’ve been saddled with. We invest in them, so when they die—because death follows this coven—it hurts,

Let’s not forget Aubrey Plaza, who plays the enigmatic and dangerous Rio. Plaza can do no wrong in my eyes. As actors go, she’s a generational talent, and while the role of Rio is very much in her wheelhouse, she still gives it everything.

The last episode is sublime. It’s a mini-story all on its own. One that takes full advantage of the “Ballad of the Witches’ Road”—the earworm of a song that gives you access to the Witches’ Road. It’s a brilliant bit of folk music that adds a rich tonal texture to the show, especially the final episode.

Would I rather everything tied up instead of a meek cliffhanger leading to a second season? Yes. But it’s my only quibble for what’s an awesome eight episodes of TV.

*I never saw Agatha as pure evil, and my dim memory of her depiction in the comics is that she fluctuated between good and evil.

**But not Mrs Hart, who is dragged into the adventure against her will.