Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Agatha All Along.
Rio Vidal could be more than she seems inAgatha All Along, and theMarvel Cinematic Universeseries has teased as much, with many clues connecting the seemingly original character toLady Death from Marvel Comics. Thecast ofAgatha All Alongintroduces a few new witches to the MCU. The series is doing a great job of following up onWandaVisionand opening the franchise’s magic corner in exciting ways.
Agatha All Alonghas featured major reveals, such as the factJoe Locke’s “Teen” is actually Billy Maximoff, one of the Scarlet Witch’s sons. After Billy’s real identity was finally revealed, the MCU series might be holding out another major surprise in store.Aubrey Plaza’s Rio Vidal is one of the show’s most powerful characters, and through ominous teases in what might go down as one of theMCU’s best TV shows, she might turn out to be one of Marvel Comics' most interesting players, Death herself.
An Interesting Way To Bring Rio To The Witches' Road
The Witches' Road is a very dangerous place. While Agatha and her coven are walking it in search of power and more, maybe only one of them will be able to make it to the end of the Witches' Road alive.The first character to die in the magical location was Debra Jo Rupp’s Mrs. Hart, who in reality was not a green witch like Agatha claimed, but her neighbor Sharon Davis.
Mrs. Hart died in the first trial the coven found on the Wicthes' Road, and her death served as the perfect way to get Plaza’s Rio Vidal involved with the quest Agatha, Billy, and the rest of the witches were on. The coven summoned a green witch to the Wicthes' Road, andRio suspiciously came out not from where they did the spell, but from Mrs. Hart’s grave. Coming out from where a character had just died could be a nod to Rio Vidal’s connection to Death.
9Rio Said She “Was Around” When Summoned
The Character’s Explanation Is Flimsy
Continuing on the topic of Mrs. Hart’s death after the first trial of the Witches' Road,Rio Vidal had a funny explanation for why she was the one to appearwhen the coven summoned a green witch. According to Aubrey Plaza’s Marvel character, she was simply around when the witches called out for a replacement for Mrs. Hart. For a show that is setting up multiple mysteries and plot twists, that statement does not come out as a simple moment.
Agatha’s experience was needed to open the door, so Rio just being near the mysterious location does not make sense.
It took Agatha’s coven quite some time to get the Witches' Road open, as they had to chant their way through. Billy Maximoff did not know how to get there on his own, and the other witches were either afraid of the Road or thought it was just a myth. Agatha’s experience was needed to open the door, so Rio just being near the mysterious location does not make sense. However, if she is Lady Death,Rio could have been on the Witches' Road to collect Sharon Davis' soul.
8Rio Says She Will Get Her Bodies
A Very Death-Like Statement From The Marvel Character
Rio Vidal has had a few interesting lines inAgatha All Alongthat tease her possible reveal as the MCU’s version of Lady Death. One of the most direct quotes comes in episode 4. In an effort to make herself look better in front of the coven,Agatha manipulates Rio into speaking about her true intentions for tagging alongwith them into a microphone, so everyone can hear.
Aubrey Plaza’s witch then says that she can watch Agatha do what she does best, which is to kill other witches, as she has been doing for centuries. Then,Rio says, “You get your power, and I get my bodies.“Rio has no problem with Agatha killing the other witches, but she interestingly wants them dead but will not do it. As Death, Rio could be getting more souls for her thanks to Agatha’s actions.
7Agatha Tells Rio “Don’t” When Billy Gets Hurt
Aubrey Plaza’s Witch Became Interested In The Urgent Situation
Episodes before Joe Locke’s character would be revealed as Billy Maximoff,the yet mysterious “Teen” almost died as a result of the secondtrial the coven faced on the Witches' Road. To break free of a curse that has been plaguing her family, Alice and the witches perform her mom’s rendition of the song that opens the door to the Witches' Road, which includes a protection spell.
Sadly, Teen is injured in the ordeal by a shard of glass. The situation escalates, with the character almost dying as the coven watches. This is where Rio Vidal’s Lady Death theory gets another interesting clue. While Rio does nothing directly to Teen, she suspiciously looks at him as if seemingly anticipating his death. Noticing the way Rio is looking at Teen,Agatha turns to her and pleads, saying, “Don’t,“which seems like she is asking Rio not to take him away.
6Rio Revealed A Key Moment In Her Past With Agatha
The Nicholas Scratch Of It All Complicates Things
Agatha All Alonghas established right from the show’s first episode that Agatha and Rio have a past. WhenAgatha was seemingly telling Rio not to take Teen away, it might have reawakened a pain from the past in her. When the witches were sitting around the campfire after Teen was saved, they started talking about the scars that each of them carries.
Who Is Nicholas Scratch? Agatha Harkness’s Son & Marvel Comics History Explained
Agatha All Along’s premiere references Nicholas Scratch in the MCU, Agatha’s son who becomes a powerful villain in the original Marvel Comics.
While all the other witches meant physical scars, Rio offers a different answer. According to her, Agatha is her scar. While she does not directly say that, she defines the woman who is her scar by a situation in the past, where Rio had to do something she did not want to, but did anyway because it was her job.Agatha All Alonghas revealed that Agatha Harkness' son, Nicholas Scratch, died as a child.The show implies Rio took Nick’s soul.
5Rio Laughed At A Death Mention
A Not Subtle Reference To The Lady Death Theory
Agatha All Alongepisode 5 did wonders for the theory that Rio Vidal is secretly the MCU’s Lady Death. The Witches' Road trial presented in the episode includedcommunicating with spirits through a Ouija board. That setup was perfect for a few Lady Death clues to come true, andAgatha All Alongwas not at all subtle with one of them, as Rio literally cackled in a direct tease.
When the coven was first trying to talk with the spirit,the letters slowly came together to form “D-E-A-T-H.“As soon as the word was complete, Rio Vidal let out a hearty laugh. There are really no other ways at this point, with all the past clues, to interpret this in any way that is not Rio realizing that the spirit could not be death, as Plaza’s character is the one true Lady Death.
4Rio Has Revealed That She Hates Ghosts
A Meaningful Tease That She Is Death
During the Ouija session, Rio Vidal also said something else that points to her possible secret identity as Lady Death.Agatha All Alonghas been examining each one of its characters closely, with a bigger focus on Kathryn Hahn’s Agatha and Joe Locke’s Billy. In this specific episode,Agatha’s past comes back to haunt herin a couple of key ways. The biggest is through her mother.
After she tried to kill Agatha, the witch took Evanora Harkness' magic and killed her and their coven. When Agatha’s mother appeared as a ghost,Rio said, “That is a ghost. I hate ghosts.“As Death, it would make sense that Rio would dislike ghosts. While her mission would be ensuring that those who die go to their destined afterlife, ghosts remain attached to their past lives due to unfinished business, which would make Lady Death’s job more difficult.
3Rio Vidal Was The Only One Not With The Group After The Third Trial
A Major Lady Death Clue Due To An Event
One of the most interesting details that aid the Lady Death theory is Rio’s mysterious disappearance after the coven finishes the third trial. Notably, after Evanora’s spirit gets out of her daughter,Agatha kills Alice, taking her powersin what she claims was an accident. As soon as Alice’s body drops, Rio can be noticed looking suspiciously at it. The character then looks at Agatha but does not follow her as she leaves the trial room.
When the rest of the witches follow Agatha outside, Rio is nowhere to be seen. As Lady Death, Aubrey Plaza’s character could havestayed behind to verify that Alice’s soul was guided to where it needed to go. This disappearance marks the second time that Rio does something suspicious after a member of the coven dies, just like her connection to Mrs. Hart’s grave.
2Agatha All Along’s Midseason Trailer Features An Interesting Quote From Rio Vidal
There Are More Surprises To Come In The MCU Series
There is a clue related to the Lady Death theory that has yet to appear in the show.Agatha All Along’s midseason trailerconfirmed that Joe Locke’s character was Billy Maximoff before the show’s flashback episode fully delved into how that was possible. The trailer also brought a few new shots of Rio Vidal, andAubrey Plaza’s character is not only ominousin the new footage, but she utters a line that connects to her being Death.
In the trailer,Rio says, “In the end, all roads lead to me.“Well, that seems to be a clear reference to Rio being the MCU’s version of Lady Death. There are only a few things that are certain in life, one of them being that all living things will die one day. Rio’s words make her the end of everyone’s road — death.
The MCU Series Created Two Possible Interpretations
The final clue so far comes from the latest episode of the MCU series.Agatha All Alongepisode 6 was mostly focused on Billy Kaplan/Maximoff’s backstory. During one of the sequences set in the past, Marvel Studios revealed that Billy could have been the black heart of Agatha’s coven instead of Rio Vidal. In the show’s first episode, Rio told Agatha that her heart was black, and it beat for her.
Ali Ahn
Alice Wu-Gulliver
When Lilia Calderu drew a black heart as part of the names for their coven, Agatha immediately thought it was Rio and called in Mrs. Hart instead. However, the latestAgatha All Alongepisode saw Billy’s boyfriend, Eddie, text him with a suspicious detail.Instead of sending Billy a regular red heart emoji, he used a black one. If Billy was always meant to be the mysterious coven member Lilia drew, then Rio has to be Death. It would make sense for Lady Death not to be a part of the coven since she is not a person.
Agatha All Along
Cast
Agatha Harkness, after the events of “WandaVision,” seeks to regain her magical powers. Joining forces with unexpected allies, including the son of an old adversary, she battles new mystical threats while uncovering hidden secrets in the magical realm.
