Agatha All Along Review

The opening episode is a full parody of a prestige crime drama, shot in that grey handheld style, which tells you the show intends to keep changing shape. What follows is a trial format, with a coven walking a road of ordeals, each episode built around a different witch's craft and a different visual register, and the whole thing is held together by an original ballad that is genuinely good rather than a joke. Kathryn Hahn is the reason it works, playing a con artist whose power is that she is willing to be despised, and Patti LuPone and Debra Jo Rupp treat the material with exactly the right mixture of relish and commitment.

Joe Locke's Teen is a well kept secret and the late reveal about him lands. The weaknesses are pacing and budget. Several episodes are essentially one location and one conversation, the visual effects thin out badly in the back half, and the connection to the wider franchise is asserted rather than felt. It is also, unmistakably, a series about grief wearing a novelty costume.