Agatha All Along Through Many Miles Review: Marvel meets Nora Ephron in bottle episode

The coven goes from the small confines of Westview to an even smaller setting in Through Many Miles / Of Tricks and Trials.

Before the trip down The Road can begin, the coven and Teen encounter a trial. The group is forced to confront past horrors inside a seaside home. This particular test seems designed to test Jennifer Kale’s abilities. True to form, Agatha tries to distance herself from the group by running from her problems. However, when the pressure is at its highest, Agatha rises to the occasion and delivers a pep talk that allows Kale to identify the crucial ingredient for an antidote.

Rachel Goldberg does an excellent job directing Through Many Miles / of Tricks and Trials. Each of the witches revisits a past trauma. While each of these hallucinations is different and specific to each woman, Goldberg makes them all look terrifying.

Agatha All Along sometimes struggles with tone but finds its comedic secret weapon in Sharon Davis (Debra Jo Rupp). From her bemoaning the demise of her purse from Talbots to her exasperation after Agatha throws her wine gas to the floor, staining the upholstery in the process, Rupp is a master as an outsider to this world of breaking the tension.

The series also continues to shine in staying true to Agatha’s character. Agatha is a selfish, power-hungry witch who believes she’s better than everybody. All of those elements are still present, but the inclusion and mystery of Teen shows signs of vulnerability. Kathryn Hahn’s choices as Agatha make her a must-watch character.

Joe Locke also continues to infuse Teen with youthful exuberance and sweetness, so you can easily claim he’s the hero of this series.

On the negative end of the spectrum, there’s a bit too much focus on the botox-inducing side effects of the poison. I would have preferred focusing on hallucinations, which do an excellent job of fleshing out all of the women in the series. There is still not enough chaos in Agatha All Along. With Aubrey Plaza absent again, this series has a mischievous, dangerous hole. While I’m ok with a trip into a Nora Ephron-like setting, here’s hoping the series can amp up the consequences for Agatha.

After the overview and ranking Through Many Miles / of Tricks and Trials 7 out of 10 (Good), here’s a look Agatha’s above-it-all approach, Kale’s test and the seemingly innocent group members. Agatha All Along is streaming on Disney Plus.

Road Hazard

Throughout the episode, Agatha tries to distance herself from the rest of the group. In some cases, the distinction she tries to keep is a mindset, and in others, it is physical.

After emerging on The Road, Jennifer, Alice, Lilia and Agatha realize they’re about to face trials. They look to Agatha to lead but fear facing these tests without magic. Agatha essentially lays out what each member of the coven is fighting. Jennifer wants to unbind. Lilia aims to reverse her fortune. Alice is searching for her mother. Sharon ventures off before Agatha can motivate her.

After saving Sharon, the group discovers an idyllic beach house. The group enters the house. Everyone except Agatha and Teen drinks the bottomless glasses of wine. Agatha immediately tries searching for an exit or any excuse to cheat. Teen doesn’t drink because he’s underage.

The group is poisoned through the wine and turns to Jennifer for a solution. Eventually, Agathais is forced to drink the wine by Teen. He offers to drink himself, and Agatha reluctantly steps forward.

Kale’s Trial

The trials impact everyone except Teen, but Jennifer’s potion knowledge is the key to removing the poison. The group splinters off. Lilia with Agatha and Alice with Teen while Sharon lays comatose on the course and Jennifer works from the kitchen.

After the botox episode, when everyone’s face swells up, the next stage of trials begins. Each of the women faces hallucinations from their past. Jennifer is confronted by a doctor who belittles her knowledge and then tries to drown her. Alice reconnects with her mother in a way that seems to be a warning of Alice following a similar fate. Lilia’s is the creepiest and most unclear. Agatha is reliving trading the Dark Hold for her child.

The women overcome their differences to put the finishing touches on the potion, but something is missing. The potion isn’t the right color. Jennifer doubts herself, but Agatha gives another pep talk. Jennifer may not have her magic, but her best asset is her knowledge. Finally, the Teen comes to the rescue. The final ingredient is blood from the unpoisoned. With his blood, they all escape through the oven sans one coven member.

The Innocents of Through Many Miles

Teen and Sharon are the most pure characters in Agatha All Along so far.

The group doesn’t know how to handle Teen. When he tries to divulge his backstory, a sigil appears over his mouth, removing his voice. The group believes Agatha’s behind it, but she convinces them to keep moving forward.

The coven’s attitude towards the Teen improves once they enter the house. Jennifer warns him about Agatha’s past. The best pairing in the episode is Alice and Teen. She’s a bit cold to him at first. However, after Teen compliments her tattoo, she opens up and compliments his cleaned-up appearance.

The other innocent is Sharon. She wants to go back to Westview. Before entering the house, she wanders off the road. Sharon and her purse from Talbots nearly gets swallowed by a hellish muddy substance.

Once in the house, she doesn’t hesitate to down a glass of wine. It’s been a tough day that somehow turns worse. She experiences the first hallucination, her revisiting Wanda’s actions from WandaVision. Wanda gave her husband a heart attack, and Sharon asked her to let him breathe. She falls unconscious. Once the group emerges through the oven, they find Sharon’s seemingly dead body.

Through Many Miles Final Thoughts

Overall, Agatha All Along continues to succeed based on strong directing, great performances by Locke, Hahn and Sasheer Zamata, and a compelling mesh of tones. Unlike some other MCU series, Agatha All Along‘s greatest strength is its ability to transition between drama, comedy, and horror.

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