Warning: This article contains spoilers for episode 7 of Agatha All Along.
Since Agents of SHIELD ushered in the modern era of live action Wonder television in 2013, many shows debuted, but this week Marvel released its best TV episode ever. There have been a lot of great Marvel TV shows over the years, both inside and outside of the MCU. Netflix Reckless delivered a gripping, comic book-accurate and grounded TV show, while FX’s Legion was a genre-defying, critically praised journey into the mind of a superhero.
In recent years, all of Marvel’s live-action TV shows have been more firmly rooted in the MCU and have been produced by Marvel Studios. This list of MCU TV shows included significant highs like WandaVision and Lokias well as the minimum Secret Invasionwhich remains one of Marvel’s worst-rated MCU projects of all time. Of course, there were some failures before Marvel Studios took over, like Marvel’s Inhumanswhich I couldn’t get through, despite having watched every other Marvel show up to that point.
Still, the MCU series released on Disney+ are very good, even the underrated Marvel shows like Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk and Echo. However, for all the hours and hours of Marvel television that has been released, nothing beats the episode that premiered this week. Agatha all the time has been a wildly entertaining and entertaining witchy romp, perfect for this time of year, but episode 7 takes the series to whole new heights of creativity and execution.
Agatha All Along Episode 7 Is the Best Marvel TV Episode I’ve Ever Seen
And I watched a lot of Marvel television
I had my doubts about Agatha all the time when I reviewed the first four episodes, mainly because episode 4 was the weakest of the bunch. But since then, the series has only gotten stronger, with a perfectly executed reveal of Teen as Billy Maximoff in episode 5, a great flashback episode in episode 6, and episode 7 using Lilia’s divination powers to tell a moving story about the witch’s acceptance of her powers, her coven, and her destiny. Agatha all the time doesn’t just tell the audience that the flow of time is an illusion, the series shows us by allowing viewers to experience time in the same way as Lilia.
The result is an hour of television that took me through every possible emotion – confusion, frustration, joy, hope, sadness – all while telling a story that brought together all the clues scattered throughout the first six episodes. I can’t stress enough how difficult it must have been to write an episode like this, to make sure everything happened in a way that made sense and revealed things like Rio’s identity as Death at just the right moment for its greatest impact. I applaud episode writers Gia King and Cameron Squires for their work, because it truly is a masterclass.
In addition to the writing, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Jac Schaffer’s direction in this episode. As Agatha all the time showrunner, she undoubtedly had a fundamental role in the construction of the episode and was fundamental to its execution as director. From the beautiful scenes of Lilia’s fall to the haunting scene of Rio’s reveal as Death, there’s no shortage of visually appealing things to look at. in this episode. But, of course, the success of the episode could not have been achieved without the actress who plays Lilia Calderu.
Patti LuPone delivers one of the MCU’s most powerful performances
The actress showed all her talent
Everyone will have their favorite performances in the MCU — it’s a franchise expansive enough to have hundreds of actors appearing in dozens of films and television shows. But Patti LuPone’s performance in Agatha all the time episode 7 is among the best in the entire history of the MCU. In fact, the only performance I’d say could rival it is Tom Hiddleston’s in Loki season 2 finale. But Hiddleston had already played the character Loki for more than a decade, while LuPone only played Lilia Calderu in seven episodes of the TV show.
It’s impressive how much talent LuPone exudes Agatha all the time episode 7, bringing viewers into Lilia’s journey as she finally learns to accept her powers and allow them to lead her to the ending she fears. Every emotion I felt throughout the episode was due to LuPone’s performancewhich showed his ability to deftly handle comedy and tragedy. The final scenes, when Lilia accepts her destiny is to die on the Witch’s Road and decides to save her clan in the process, are wonderfully played by the actress.
The writing, directing and acting come together to deliver the best episode of Marvel TV ever produced.
LuPone’s performance in Agatha all the time episode 7 cements its place in Marvel history. Lilia Calderu may have been a little-known Marvel Comics character, but LuPone turned her into one of the most compelling characters in the franchise. And I would go so far as to say that the delivery of the line by LuPone, “I loved being a witch” is up there with one of the best and most character-driven in the entire MCU. It rivals names like “I am Iron Man” and “I can do this all day.”
In fact, I could get emotional Agatha all the time episode 7 all day. It’s one of the most creative and moving episodes of television I’ve watched in a long time. The writing, directing and acting come together to deliver the best episode of Marvel TV ever produced. Even if the final two episodes don’t reach the heights of episode 7, Agatha all the time It’s been a wonderfully enjoyable ride and I can’t wait to rewatch the entire series after the finale airs next week.
The two episodes Agatha all the time the finale premieres on Wednesday, October 30th at 9pm on Disney+.