Agatha All Along spoilers follow – major ones from episode 5.
We're officially halfway down the Witches' Road in Agatha All Along, and as has become the standard with the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Disney+ shows, a major twist was on the tarot cards.
The identity of Joe Locke's "Teen" has become one of the show's best mysteries, but as we're sure will come as no surprise to many, October 9's episode "Darkest Hour/Wake Thy Power" seemingly confirmed he's playing the MCU's own take on Billy Kaplan/Maximoff, aka Wiccan.
Although the character of William Maximoff was introduced decades earlier, in 1986, Wiccan made his debut in 2005's Young Avengers and quickly became a fan-favourite from the junior team of heroes.
Writer Allan Heinberg originally feared that Marvel wouldn't let him write two gay leads, meaning Wiccan's love interest (Hulkling) was originally going to be a female shapeshifter. Both were allowed to feature in the comics, and especially thanks to his family ties, Wiccan has become a gay icon in the comic book world.
Related: Marvel's Agatha All Along creator explains why TV show is so musical
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Locke appears to be playing an older version of Billy Maximoff, who you might remember was played by Julian Hilliard in WandaVision.
While the timelines are just slightly off in terms of ages and Agatha All Along's setting three years after the events of WandaVision, fans are stoked that the all-powerful son of Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) is finally set to embrace his superhero alter ego.
Locke has made a name for himself as a queer powerhouse in Heartstopper, and now playing one of the most legendary gay characters from Marvel Comics in the MCU – well, it's a big deal.
The MCU has taken plenty of flak for its lack of LGBTQ+ representation, notably for the franchise's first openly gay character being an underwhelming cameo from Joe Russo in Avengers: Endgame.
This is just one of several controversies, with a bisexual scene for Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie being cut from Thor: Ragnarok, Eternals making the relatively minor Phastos gay, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness being censored in some countries due to a same-sex female couple, and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever diluting its lesbian romance.
Despite former Marvel boss Victoria Alonso promising more LGBTQ+ representation, it seems that lessons haven't been learned. It shouldn't be a case of adding characters or themes for the sake of ticking a box, but only recently, the record-breaking Deadpool & Wolverine has been accused of ignoring the queer history of its titular characters.
Locke has even been critical of the lack of LGBTQ+ representation in the MCU previously, but he hyped his Agatha All Along character's queerness as being a "big part of him".
Agatha All Along's Aubrey Plaza told Variety how the series will be a "gay explosion" that only gets gayer with each episode, and with a bombshell reveal of Teen's true identity only halfway through the series, we're inclined to agree.
What the future holds for Wiccan is unclear, but as Agatha's latest episode ends with him sporting a gnarly crown inspired by the Scarlet Witch and easily besting Agatha's coven with his powers, it looks like it'll be a case of like mother, like son.
Couple this with Billie Eilish's 'You Should See Me in a Crown' (another nod to Billy Maximoff) and you don't get a better campy introduction into the world's highest-grossing franchise.
The MCU likes to sow seeds ahead of time, while Wiccan's place on the Young Avengers means we should be seeing a lot more of Locke in the world's highest-grossing franchise.
The Marvels' ending neatly cued the Young Avengers, boasting an impressive (potential roster) of Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton) and more. Fellow Young Avengers recruit America Chavez is played by Xochitl Gomez in the MCU and confirmed as a lesbian, while there are calls from fans for Kit Connor to join his Heartstopper co-star as Hulkling.
Even though the MCU seems to be setting up the Young Avengers for some eventual spin-off movie or Disney+ series, there's still a long way to go. Assuming Wiccan is sticking around and we eventually do get Hulkling, there could be some exciting LGBTQ+ firsts on the horizon.
Wiccan is considered a trailblazer for the queer community in Marvel Comics, and despite Northstar marrying Kyle Jinadu back in 2012, the marriage between Billy and Hulkling in 2020's Empyre #4 is the first same-sex superhero wedding.
The largely male, heterosexual, dominated days of the MCU's Phase One seem like an age ago. While all the usual suspects will be banging their "go woke, go broke" drum, most accept the MCU's increased diversity as a much-needed step that Marvel Comics has embraced for much longer.
Locke might have pulled his own "it was Agatha all along" by keeping the true identity of Teen a secret, but with many already dubbing the Wiccan twist one of the MCU's best – and looking at the potential of where his character can go – consider us gagged and gooped in equal measure.
Agatha All Along streams on Disney+, with new episodes weekly.
Read more Agatha All Along news on our dedicated homepage.
Tom Chapman is a pop culture-loving writer and NCTJ-accredited Broadcast Journalist with over seven years of experience covering the small and silver screen.
Starting his career with a post at Movie Pilot in Berlin, Tom took on freelancing full-time with regular stints at Digital Spy, Screen Rant and Comic Book Resources.
These days, you can still find him covering all things Marvel and Star Wars at Digital Spy, while dipping his toe in bylines at Yahoo! and IGN.
Tom likes to think his spirit animal is a cross between Gale Weathers and Olenna Tyrell.
