TV Show review
September 18, 2024 · TV-14 · Ended
Woke Score
Lower is better
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Agatha All Along.
Woke representation / casting
Strong audience-visible queer representation with a gay lead character played by openly gay actor Joe Locke, romantic tension between female leads Agatha and Rio, and a diverse female coven; cast and marketing proudly framed the show around its queerness as Marvel's gayest project.
Woke political dialogue
Very little explicit political or activist talk; dialogue centers on personal grief, family, trauma, and fantasy elements without modern lectures or identity-politics messaging.
Identity-driven story themes
Focus on female coven community, generational trauma, motherhood, and personal growth; queer identity elements are clearly present and visible but serve the emotional and mystery story rather than driving an activist agenda.
Western institutional / cultural critique
Minor fantasy references to historical witch hunts as persecution of women, presented as lore without any modern anti-patriarchy, anti-Western, or systemic critique framing.
Review
Agatha All Along is a 2024 Marvel Disney+ series that follows the witch Agatha Harkness after she escapes a spell and joins a mysterious teen to build a coven and walk the dangerous Witches' Road in search of power and answers. The nine-episode season mixes mystery, magic trials, and personal stories about grief, trauma, motherhood, and self-discovery. The show features prominent queer characters and relationships, which the cast and creators actively promoted as a key part of the project and described as Marvel's gayest series yet.
Woke character or canon changes
Expands visibility of Billy Maximoff/Wiccan's established comic queerness and adds romantic subtext; no major race or gender swaps from prior MCU or source material.
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Clear but contained anti-woke complaints about excessive queerness, corporate pandering, and the "gayest" marketing; review-bombing occurred and right-wing outlets criticized it as agenda-driven, though it avoided dominating public debate.
Creator track record context
Jac Schaeffer and casting director Sarah Halley Finn bring documented higher focus on representation and diversity from MCU work; most other writers and crew have low or no activist patterns.
Production
