Why Can"t Aubrey Plaza"s Marvel Character Kill Agatha?

:0:1

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Agatha All Along episode 13 years after WandaVision opened the MCU"s TV division, spin-off Agatha All Along has returned to Westview bringing more mysteries. The first two episodes set the scene for Kathryn Hahn"s returning Marvel villain, exploring not only the fallout from Scarlet Witch"s spell cast in WandaVision"s ending, but also forcing her to face demons from her own past.
The most immediately compelling of those demons is Aubrey Plaza"s Rio Vidal, a formidable Green Witch who announces herself and their shared history in Agatha All Along episode 1 by trying to kill Agatha. Despite Agatha"s loss of power, Rio is unable to follow through, as it"s revealed that she cannot kill her. It"s a passing moment, but one that could be confusing, given how enthusiastic Rio seems about Agatha dying. So why can"t the new Marvel magic user kill Agatha? The hints are all there...
Aubrey Plaza's Marvel Character Can't Kill Agatha Because Of A Witches' Code

When Scarlet Witch"s spell breaks and Agatha is freed, Rio Vidal reveals her intention: revenge. She goes as far as trying to stab Agatha with a dagger, before it"s revealed that she actually isn"t allowed to kill Agatha as they talk. That might suggest that Rio is under orders to bring Agatha in alive, or to leave her to a grimmer fate at the hands of the Salem Seven, but it"s actually a reflection of a witches" code of conduct that"s first hinted at in WandaVision.
In Scarlet Witch"s own show, Agatha is put on trial in Salem for practicing forbidden dark magic, which she claims was accidental. Her mother and her coven condemn Agatha to be executed, but she kills them all first, taking their powers away from them. Crucially, WandaVision"s flashback establishes that all witches have to abide by a set of rules, including not using dark magic above their station.

Related Agatha All Along Cast Explained: All New & Returning Marvel Characters Agatha reunites several familiar faces from WandaVision. Here"s a guide to the cast of characters featured in the Phase 5 series.
So, despite Rio"s desire to kill Agatha, she"s apparently unable to. This could well be because Agatha hasn"t faced a trial by fellow witches, as she did in Salem, so Rio passing judgment herself would be a violation. It"s not that magic prevents witches killing each other, since Agatha herself disproved that.
Does Marvel Comics Have Witches Rules? The concept of a rulebook for witches is not something that comes from Marvel Comics. Witches tend to operate independently in covens governed by geography, rather than following a wider unifying order. The Goddess of Witchcraft does exist in Marvel lore, but witchcraft itself is not so much a religion that would prescribe commandments.
Why Does Aubrey Plaza's Marvel Character Want To Kill Agatha?

Agatha and Rio Vidal have history. The marketing for Agatha All Along has leaned heavily on the suggestion that they had a romantic relationship some time before Agatha"s time in Westview, with Plaza herself promising a dynamic "that has all the colors of the rainbow" in a nod to LGBTQ symbolism. Her burning desire for vengeance clearly means that dynamic has shifted dramatically, given murder isn"t usually a comfortable partner of love.
Agatha All Along"s first two episodes all-but-confirm that the pair were romantically involved. The black heart in Lilia Calderu"s list of Agatha All Along"s new witches refers to Rio, a known Green Witch, who Agatha consciously avoids recruiting because of their shared past. Rio wanting to kill Agatha could easily be put down to an extreme lover"s quarrel, or some unknown history involving how Agatha came to own the Darkhold or her murder of her mother and the other witches.
The latter seems likely, given Rio is aware of the Salem Seven"s impending arrival in Westview and presumably why Agatha is their target. That theory is backed up by Rio appearing in Agatha"s warped perception of Westview as an FBI agent investigating Scarlet Witch"s death. That idea of her interest in a crime could be Agatha"s suppressed psyche manifesting a hint of truth: Rio"s "job" is to uphold rules, which is also why she won"t break them.
As a Green Witch, Rio wouldn"t be tied to the Darkhold, so her association with the Seven, who appear to be agents of whoever Agatha stole the Darkhold from, doesn"t appear to make sense. Green Witches are traditionally tied to the Earth and the elements. It feels like there"s more to be revealed about why Rio is out to kill Agatha, perhaps tying back to the Salem deaths.
At the same time, her mission is clearly personal, but the very fact that she cannot break the No Kill rule despite her personal vendetta suggests that she has orders. It also suggests she isn"t actually an agent of an as-yet-unrevealed dark force: villains don"t tend to care about rules, after all, even in Agatha All Along"s warped view of morality.

Agatha All Along 1 Your Rating 5 stars 4.5 stars 4 stars 3.5 stars 3 star 2.5 stars 2 stars 1.5 stars 1 stars 0.5 star Rate Now Submit Rate Now Edit Leave a Review
Your comment has not been saved

Showrunner Jac Schaeffer Writers Jac Schaeffer Cast Kathryn Hahn , Patti LuPone , Miles Gutierrez-Riley , Aubrey Plaza , Emma Caulfield , Debra Jo Rupp , Joe Locke , Maria Dizzia Release Date September 18, 2024 Streaming Service(s) Disney Plus Number of Episodes 9 Franchise(s) Marvel Cinematic Universe Expand Upcoming MCU Movies