“Through Many Miles / Of Tricks and Trials”
Another great episode, which has me so intrigued to see what will happen next with our coven. I love how we might have gotten answers here but most likely it is just leading to more of them. The crew behind this show are very good at creating a mystery for their viewers. I cannot wait to learn more as the story progresses. The rest of this review will have spoilers. I will be discussing all my thoughts and opinions on the episode.
Eerie Setting
~ Up until this point, the episodes have been very humorous. Episode 3 definitely added in an eerie factor. The Salem Seven were creepy at the end of episode 2 but this had an eerie feeling throughout the whole episode. It was interesting to have such an unassuming house for the first trial and then for it get worse as the episode continued.
~ I particularly loved how each of the witches’s greatest fears were visually shown to us. We don’t know what is going on completely with any of them. Could they be visions of the past or could the task be paying on fears they all have? Or a bit of both.
Their Greatest Fears
~ This episode gave us even more to think about each of the witches and Teen. It revealed quite a bit about each of them. On their way to the first house, Lilia is the one to say that they will come across their greatest fears on the road. Jenn then sees a beach house in the distance. When they get to the first house, it seems to be nice and peaceful until they drink from the wine. I like how each witch is going to have to use their powers to escape from the trials.
~ The first house was meant for Jenn, the potion witch. Though, I like how they each had to help find ingredients for the potion. They all had a hand in getting themselves out of the house. It was interesting to see them have to work together to get over their fears so that they could get the household items. Also, I love how all of the gross items are actually just common household items such as honey. Hilarious!
Poor Sharon
~ It was interesting and terrible that the show writers chose to have Sharon drink the wine first, so the witches are able to see the effects before they occurred to them. (Poor Sharon. I’m hoping she’s not actually gone). We can guess what Sharon’s worst fear is from what she says. It was probably when Wanda is making Mr. Hart choke at the dinner from the first episode of WandaVision. This scene made that original scene even more terrible.
Jenn and the Doctor
~ I like that it took Agatha helping Jenn to get her to have confidence in her abilities after Jenn saw her greatest fear. Multiple times throughout the episode, Agatha takes on aspects of the leader of a coven. She is her sarcastic self most of the time but there are glimpses of her caring for the others.
~ Jenn sees a doctor who tries to drown her in the sink in her hallucination. I’m assuming he’s the one she talks about later to Agatha, who stole her powers. What the doctor does to her reminds me of the “therapies” they used to do to women in the early 1900s to help with what men called, hysteria. I wonder if that is what happened to her. Or at least something similar. It is just too reminiscent. Also, it goes along with one of the ways they tried to prove if a woman was a witch in the past.
Alice’s Mom
~ We knew that Alice did not know what happened to her mother and wanted to see if she could find out on the Witch’s Road. I’m wondering if what Alice saw was from the past or if this is what she believed happened to her mother. This is just one piece of the puzzle, I’m sure we will get by the end of the road. I look forward to seeing Alice’s task on the road.
Lilia’s Past
~ Since we met her at the beginning of Episode 2, Lilia has been having spontaneous visions. I wonder if this is something new that has been happening to her or if it is how she has always gotten her prophetic messages. She seems to be the other oldest witch in the coven at the moment other than Agatha. Makes me wonder what she could have gone through over all those years with such visions. She has given hints when she talked to Agatha and Teen in the second episode, but I’m sure there is much worse.
~ Lilia’s greatest nightmare is the one that interested me the most, besides Agatha’s. It was also the creepiest of them all. When Agatha and Lilia are trying to find their ingredients for the potion, Lilia sees the ghost of a young girl who asks her “Do you want to see?” The credits show that she was a young Lilia. Lilia follows her younger self, through what looks like an old house. As they continue on, they come across an old rotting woman (Lilia’s teacher), who has the personification of Death appear behind her. Then when Lilia gets out of the room, she comes across Agatha, who she tells in Italian “She’s dead… They’re all dead.”
~ Her prophetic messages from both episodes could all be warnings to herself. And her greatest nightmare could be the fact that she didn't listen to a piece of one of her prophecies and the people she cared for died because of it. It seems like she is reliving these scenes from her past.
Agatha and the Cradle
~ Before watching yesterday’s episode, I told my mother that I hope the show doesn’t make it like Agatha hasn’t done villainous acts. I’m okay with her growing but I don’t want it to be like she was innocent the entire time. She has done terrible things over the years as a witch and that should not be just forgiven and forgotten. I love a great villain and she is one of my favorites. She has moments where she is trying to help others, like when she was helping Jen with her confidence and when she chooses to drink the wine instead of Teen. Most of these times seems to be when she is forced to so they can continue down the road or not die. But then she has her selfish moments when she at first tries to get out of being poisoned by the wine or when she kicks everyone at the end of the episode. She’s complicated.
~ After seeing this episode, I look forward to seeing what else they show of her character. There is a lot of depth below the surface. Agatha drinking the wine last plays into her seeing her own worst nightmare in front of everyone. Kathryn Hahn is an amazing actress. Her switch to hide how she is feeling from the other witches was incredible. She is someone so used to hiding her feelings behind sarcasm and it’s obviously hard for her to show any vulnerability in front of anybody. Even though I do hope she stays villainous, I want to see her able to trust someone by the end of the show. I think the point of the Witch’s Road for her will be for her to learn that she has to be able to work with people.
~ Oh my goodness, Agatha's greatest nightmare was so damn sad. I'm wondering if Agatha actually sacrificed her son like Jenn said the rumor is, or if someone else did. Maybe Rio. That would definitely explain why Agatha hates her as much as she does. It could also be the guilt of doing such a terrible thing to her own son or Agatha maybe didn’t even know what kind of deal she was making. What she sees in the vision might be just how it happened. Her son was crying, she went to check on him, and found the Darkhold instead.
Teen’s Identity
~ Teen’s reaction to the sigil seems telling. I believe he knows what is going on and is trying to act like he doesn’t. He probably is trying to hide who he is from the witches. But the question is, why? The show is obviously leading us to believe there is some sort of connection between himself and Agatha. Like, he could maybe somehow be her son. All I know is, that he is acting quite suspicious.
~ Also, I think Agatha might have some idea of what is going on with him. Or at least she doesn’t want anyone else to figure it out for themselves.
Episode 3 Final Thoughts
~ First, I would like to say that I hope Sharon is not actually dead. She was such a great character and she did not deserve such a fate just because Agatha is selfish. Though, them killing off the most innocent character on the road could be to show how terrible their journey is going to be. Also, the consequences if they don’t work together and unselfishly.
~ I’m hoping the show continues the way it is because I’m loving it very much. It is entertaining and has me theorizing a lot. Cannot wait for Episode 4 next week. I look forward to seeing what will happen next in their journey down the road.
