Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End

"Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End"
Agatha All Along episode
Promotional still from a key scene in the episode
Episode no.	Episode 8
Directed by	Gandja Monteiro
Written by	Peter Cameron
Cinematography by	Isiah Donté Lee
Editing by	Libby Cuenin
Original release date	October 30, 2024 (2024-10-30)
Running time	49 minutes
Cast
Maria Dizzia as Rebecca Kaplan Paul Adelstein as Jeff Kaplan David A Payton as Herb David Lengel as Jones Asif Ali as Norm

"Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End" is the eighth episode of the American television miniseries Agatha All Along, based on Marvel Comics featuring the character Agatha Harkness. It follows Harkness, who has been stripped of her identity after the events of the miniseries WandaVision (2021), and her coven as they continue their journey down the Witches' Road in search of power. The episode is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. It was written by Peter Cameron and directed by Gandja Monteiro.

The episode centers on the final trial of the Witches' Road, in which the remaining members of the coven are tasked with cultivating plants in a basement reminiscent of a morgue. Following the trial, Agatha (Kathryn Hahn) and Billy (Joe Locke) confront Rio Vidal (Aubrey Plaza), leading to the revelation of the Witches' Road's true nature. Apart from Hahn, Locke and Plaza, Sasheer Zamata and Ali Ahn also star in the episode. Filming took place in the Atlanta metropolitan area and in Los Angeles.

"Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End" was released on the streaming service Disney+ on October 30, 2024. The episode received positive reviews from critics, with particular praise directed at the performances of Hahn, Locke, and Plaza, as well as its emotional depth and unexpected plot twist. Disney reported that the episode drove 4.6 million views globally within the first 24 hours of streaming alone.

Plot

Alice Wu-Gulliver awakens in the trial room of her death, now existing as a spirit. Rio Vidal appears, guiding her toward the afterlife and revealing to a distraught Alice that she died fulfilling her role as a protection witch—sacrificing herself to safeguard another.

After exiting the Tarot trial, Agatha Harkness is confronted by Rio, who has uncovered the true identity of Billy Maximoff. Rio asserts that Billy’s reincarnation disrupts the natural balance and must be resolved by his surrender. Following a tense exchange, Rio agrees to leave Agatha alone in life and death if she ensures Billy is brought to her. Rio slices through the fabric of the Witches' Road with her dagger and departs. Meanwhile, Jennifer Kale and Billy mourn Lilia Calderu's demise and discuss Rio's identity as Death. The two rejoin Agatha as they set out to finish the Road.

The group arrives at the location where they first removed their shoes upon entering the Road and deduces that the Road forms a continuous circle. Frustrated by the absence of her powers, Agatha insists that they must restart their efforts. Billy deliberately steps into his shoes as a gesture of defiance toward the Road, and the group is transported to a morgue-like version of Agatha's basement, where the final trial awaits. To complete the trial, the three must cultivate a plant before the overhead grow lights fade completely. As the group searches for a solution, it is revealed that Agatha is the one who bound Jen's power. Jen performs an unbinding ritual, restoring her magic before disappearing from the Road, having achieved the goal she set out to fulfill. Agatha assists Billy in locating a host for his twin brother's spirit. Billy transfers Tommy Maximoff's soul into the body of a drowning boy before vanishing himself.

Pressed for time, Agatha discovers a seed inside her locket and uses it to grow a flower within a floor crack, completing the trial. She narrowly escapes as the room fills with mud and exits into the backyard of her Westview home, where Rio stands ready to confront her. Rio attacks Agatha for failing to deliver Billy and rejecting her affection, binding her to a pole with vines. Billy intervenes, allowing Agatha to siphon some of his power to heal herself and regain her magic. Agatha clashes with Rio in a brief battle but soon admits to Billy that it is futile to fight Death. Rio demands that either Agatha or Billy accompany her, and Billy volunteers. Agatha declares she is willing to let him proceed with the sacrifice in order to fulfill her bargain with Rio. Billy infiltrates Agatha’s mind using his magic, questioning whether her son Nicholas Scratch met a similar end. After a moment of reflection, Agatha kisses Rio before ultimately succumbing to death. Rio allows Billy to depart and observes as Agatha's corpse disintegrates into the earth, leaving flowers to bloom where she once lay.

Upon returning to Eastview, Billy is startled to find that many objects in his room are linked to various aspects of the Road. Agatha's laughter echoes in the background.

Production

Development

In May 2021, Jac Schaeffer, the head writer of WandaVision, signed a three-year overall television deal with Marvel Studios and 20th Television to create new projects for their Disney+ lineup. In pitches for several different projects focused on various characters, Schaeffer consistently suggested including WandaVision character Agatha Harkness, a powerful witch from Marvel Comics, as part of those series. This led to her and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige pursuing a series centered on that character instead. By October 2021, a "dark comedy" spin-off from WandaVision centered on Kathryn Hahn as Agatha was in early development for Disney+ from Marvel Studios, with Schaeffer returning as head writer and executive producer.

During a Disney+ Day event in November 2021, the series was officially announced, with Schaeffer revealed to be directing episodes of the series a year later. By October 2023, Marvel Studios was changing its approach to television, hiring more traditional showrunners instead of head writers. Schaeffer was being credited as the series' showrunner by July 2024. Marvel Studios' Feige, Louis D'Esposito, Winderbaum, and Mary Livanos served as executive producers. Released under Marvel Studios' Marvel Television label, Agatha All Along was later announced to be second in a trilogy of series that includes WandaVision and Vision Quest (2026).

Writing

Schaeffer explained that the series was always envisioned as "a spell," which inspired the concept of Billy creating the Witches' Road and tying its attributes to his personal interests and understanding of witches. To balance emotional depth with the level of action expected in an MCU project, Schaeffer assigned Peter Cameron to write "Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End". The episode was crafted as "a fake finale" to deliver an action-packed climax while setting the stage for the story's ultimate twist and conclusion.

Casting

The episode stars Kathryn Hahn as Agatha Harkness, Joe Locke as Billy Maximoff, Sasheer Zamata as Jennifer Kale, Aubrey Plaza as Rio Vidal, and Ali Ahn as Alice Wu-Gulliver. Maria Dizzia and Paul Adelstein portray Rebecca and Jeff Kaplan, respectively, while several cast members reprise their roles as Westview residents, including David A Payton as Herb, David Lengel as Jones and Asif Ali as Norm.

Filming

Director Gandja Monteiro and director of photography Isiah Donté Lee were attached to "Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End" due to the dramatic nature of the episode, aiming to imbue it with "beauty and gravitas". The backyard action sequence, filmed over four days, relied heavily on practical effects such as fire, wind, and wire work. Each actor performed their scenes independently of the others due to stunt logistics. Joe Locke and Aubrey Plaza used megaphones at several points during filming to project their lines to Kathryn Hahn, who was positioned at a considerable distance.

Reception

Viewership

On November 1, 2024, Disney revealed that "Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End" drove 4.6 views globally after just one day of streaming, up 48% from the performance of the miniseries' premiere episode "Seekest Thou the Road." Nielsen Media Research, which records streaming viewership on U.S. television screens, reported that Agatha All Along accumulated 744 million minutes of viewing time across its nine episodes during the week of its two-part finale, reflecting a 75% increase from its premiere week. Disney+, which calculates its "Top 10" list by considering daily views for episodes and movies alongside the growing popularity of newly released titles, announced that Agatha All Along was the second most popular title in the U.S. on October 30 following the release of "Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End" and "Maiden, Mother, Crone". JustWatch a guide to streaming content with access to data from more than 40 million users around the world, revealed that the series was the second most-streamed original series in the U.S. for the week of the episode's release.

Critical response

Kathryn Hahn, Joe Locke and Aubrey Plaza received critical praise for their performances as Agatha Harkness, Billy Maximoff and Rio Vidal in "Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End."

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval rating based on twelve reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "The penultimate episode of this windy road finds its end in a witches-brewed twist that works -- once again -- because of Kathryn Hahn, Aubrey Plaza and Joe Locke."

Caroline Framke of Vulture lauded the episode for its focus on character revelations over action sequences, writing that "we [...] got a surprisingly bold and astonishingly self-assured piece of TV work that managed to avoid the usual Marvel pitfalls — endless blue-screen sky fights, Ouroboros references to Avengers lore, any single agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., et cetera — to become something all its own". Writing for CBR, Joshua M. Patton gave the episode a 9/10 rating, commending the writing for meticulously setting up the plot twist at the end, stating: "Despite taking a "cards down" approach to storytelling common in other Marvel series, series creator Jac Schaeffer and her writers [...] made sure it was an actually compelling drama and mystery, not an overlong teaser for more MCU projects. Nowhere is this made clearer than the fact that [...] it turns out that the answers have been in front of viewers' eyes this whole time." Joshua Yehl of IGN gave the two-part finale a score of 7/10, commenting positively on Agatha and Billy's dynamic: "The main thread of the show has been about wicked witch Agatha Harkness forming a mother-son/mentor-mentee relationship with fledgling sorcerer Billy Maximoff, and in that regard the final two episodes are a win. It seems Billy’s true super power is seeing the best in people – even unrepentant magical mass murderers – and it’s a mighty feat for him to break through to Agatha, to the point where she actually acts selflessly for once." Yehl further highlighted Agatha's death scene as "tragically beautiful, right down to the patch of purple flowers her body leaves behind."

The A.V. Club critic Jen Lennon was impressed with the cast's performances, stating that "the core trio of Kathryn Hahn, Aubrey Plaza, and Joe Locke killed it at every turn." Lennon expressed mixed feelings on the episode's conclusion, noting that it "leaves viewers with a messy, difficult ending that reframes the entire series." Taylor Gates of Collider also had words of praise for Hahn's performance, writing: "This entire show has truly been a career-defining performance for Hahn — a declaration that shouldn’t be taken lightly considering just how impressive her career has been." Gates also lauded Zamata for her performance in the unbinding scene, but was more critical of her story's abrupt finish, opining that "her getting her power back gave me chills and immediately made me teary-eyed — but her ending felt a bit rushed."

Accolades

"Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End"'s ending twist was named Entertainment Weekly's most shocking TV moment of 2024.

External links

• "Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End" at IMDb