The recently released trailer for Marvel’s Agatha All Along finally revealed a ton about the show. We know that Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) is back. She’s headed to the Witch’s Road with a new coven, to regain her powers. And some spooky things are gonna happen along the way. But one shot in the trailer is making fans wonder: does W. Maximoff refer to Wanda Maximoff, aka the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen)? Or is it about William Maximoff, aka Billy, her son?
Here’s the context for the quick shot. After establishing Agatha thinks she lives in a Law & Order style world, she finds a dead body in the woods. The black fingers and even the color of the hoodie the face-down body is wearing seem to indicate this is Wanda after the events of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, where she was flattened like a pancake after saving the multiverse (from an apocalypse of her own doing, mind you).
Agatha goes to the morgue, where it appears the same body is on the slab, covered in a sheet. That’s when we get a shot of a mysterious Book Card from the State of New Jersey Public Library. More on that in a second, but it’s from the Westview Branch #53961. And when the name W. Maximoff appears, in scarlet ink no less, Agatha is floored. Enter Rio (Aubrey Plaza), telling Agatha, “That witch is gone, leaving you trapped in her distorted spell.” At which point (no pun intended) Agatha starts to flash through her various looks from WandaVision.
That’s all well and good, but let’s discuss why not everything may be as it seems here.
Here’s Why “W. Maximoff” Might Mean Billy, Not Wanda
The first indication that we’re getting a classic trailer misdirection is that the shot of the library book card is someone holding it in their right hand. When we cut to Agatha, she touches her neck with her right hand, and there’s nothing in it. Ergo, it’s distinctly possible this shot from the trailer of the appearing signature might be from a different scene.
Second, it doesn’t make a lot of sense that the evidence on the body is a loose checkout card from the library. Perhaps it’s from when Wanda checked out the Darkhold, the magic book that was key to both WandaVision and Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness. But far more likely, since we know Joe Locke is playing a mysterious goth teen who needs Agatha’s help — and Locke is almost definitely playing some form of Billy Maximoff, aka the hero known as Wiccan — that this is a clue on the path that brings the two together.
…Except W. Maximoff Is Probably Still Wanda, Right?
So that said, even if there is some trickery with the cutting of the trailer footage. Even if we don’t yet know why the body had a library checkout card on it (if it did)… It’s a bit of a leap to think they’re going to introduce an aged-up Billy Maximoff, possibly in someone else’s body (Locke doesn’t even remotely look like the kid who previously played Billy, but he does look like Billy in the comics) as “William” before revealing, surprise, he’s Billy.
The simplest explanation is the easiest in this case, and the W. Maximoff we see there stands for Wanda. At the very least, the dead body is likely her, whether we see Olsen in the series or not. And it just confirms what everyone except the delusional fans (complimentary) have been saying since Multiverse of Madness: Wanda Maximoff is dead. But also there’s a multiverse so they can bring her back any time they want.
What Do The Dates Mean On The Library Checkout Card?
That all said, as mentioned above I do want to touch on the dates on the card. Marvel always packs in Easter eggs, whether it’s for a license plate indicating an issue a character appeared, or… Dates on a library checkout card. So let’s see what we can suss out:
Feb 16: Elizabeth Olsen’s birthday.
Aug 28: Jack Kirby’s birthday – he co-created Scarlet Witch and Agatha Harkness.
Jun 02: Marvel chief Kevin Feige’s birthday, as well as Agnes (Hahn) and Ralph’s (Evan Peters) anniversary in WandaVision, and the date of the first witch trial in Salem.
Dec 28: Stan Lee’s birthday – he co-created Scarlet Witch and Agatha Harkness.
Jan 21: This is probably the easiest one to figure out… WandaVision premiere on January 15, 2021.
Oct 13: Many folks have taken this to mean the Scarlet Witch died on October 13. However, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness takes place in November, around the planned release date of the film in 2021, before it was shifted to May 2022. I’ve checked every birthday imaginable, including Billy Maximoff and even showrunner Jac Schaeffer, so I’m not quite sure what this one is referring to – though it could be as simple as “that’s when Wanda started using the Darkhold, at the end of Multiverse of Madness.”
Bonus – #53961: While some sites have pointed to this being an alternate reality version of Marvel, it’s not. That designation comes from a fanon wiki and is not canon. So I’m at a loss here. Help!
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